Music

Saturday Evening Dance

Lady Sunshine and the X-Band Lady Sunshine was born to sing the blues. Born on a plantation near the Mississippi Delta in West Helena, Arkansas, Lady Sunshine grew up singing gospel music as a little girl and is definitely the 'real deal'! Sunshine is the consummate entertainer and that deep soulful southern hunger that drives her is apparent both on and off the stage through her heartfelt originals and down-to-earth demeanor. She moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1975 and began performing professionally in genres such as Blues, R&B, Gospel, Soul & Jazz.

The Rhythm Section is comprised of (Slick) Rick Humesky on guitar, Kito Pardo on drums, Joe Aranda on bass, and Tom (Fossdog) Fosselman on keyboards. The 'Xsatiable Horns' are comprised of Patricio Padilla, David Maki II, and Ken Ferry. For more about Lady Sunshine and the X-Band, including samples of their music, visit their website.

Friday Evening Dance

Michael Gamble Michael Gamble is a DJ who somehow manages to enjoy playing a wide variety of swing music from across the spectrum, from classic to contemporary, making him destined to annoy purists of all types. He is a hopelessly addicted collector who endeavors to bring fresh swing sounds to the disenchanted masses. He enjoys vintage recordings, and believes it's possible to subtly educate a dance floor without being obnoxious about it. That being said, he thinks that sometimes a room just needs to groove out. Overall, his childish addiction to both crowd-affection and caffeine tend to mean he's more likely to try and seriously rock the party than to try and simply fill a set with solid tunes you've heard a bajillion times.

Matteo Mannino Matteo started dancing when a friend paid for his first series of classes, and has been addicted ever since. Matteo loves to dance, but one day when got into a dance off with some other guys, his mom got scared, and said, "You're movin' with your auntie and uncle in Bel-Air." He whistled for a cab and when it came near the license plate said fresh and it had dice in the mirror. If anything he could say that this cab was rare, but he thought, "Nah, forget it. Yo, holmes to Bel-Air!" He pulled up to the house about 7 or 8 and he yelled to the cabbie, "Yo homes smell ya later!" Looked at his kingdom, he was finally there, to sit on his throne as the prince of Bel-Air.

	Joe DeMers A bit of funk, touch of vintage, and a whole lot of love makes for dancing that is mmmmm mmmmm good! From Denver to LA to Seoul, Joe has been spreading the Blues love; always throwing in a few surprises to spice up the night. Along with playing the good stuff, Joe enjoys Thai food, anime and long walks on the beach.
	JD Skinner JD has been a part time ballroom DJ since 1990, and has spun discs for numerous events in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin. He calls Big Band his favorite, but JD enjoys most all types of music. His repertoire is very wide including at least a little of everything from Classical to West Coast Swing.
	Aleks Daskalov On his travels Aleks has shared his love of dance and music as far away as Shanghai and Dubai. In each spot he finds a few forgotten gems or new originals to bring back home and share. Every set will include songs you.ll wish you.d heard before mixed in with familiar favorites. At Pirate Swing he'll be closing out latenight with some old soul and a whole lot of blues to ease you into the night. This will be worth staying up for!

	Nick Davis Nick Davis is a big fan of the slower, more modern blues. He also continues to add traditional blues and modern R&B tracks to his collection to mix it up.
	Kenny Schabow Kenny Schabow has been dancing for over four years now. Although pursued initially with the intent of meeting girls, dancing has evolved into not only a way to meet girls, but also a way to meet girls. Along the way, Kenny fell in love with the music and caught the dancer's bug. After a while, he decided to try his hand at spinning some of his favorite tracks, and never looked back.
	Renata McAdams Renata said the Pirate Swing crew could write her DJ bio, so we're going to flatter her outrageously. She has superb taste in music that lends itself to happy melty dances, and she is herself a happy melty dancer skilled at both blues and tango. Most of Renata's DJ experience comes from blues house parties in Ann Arbor, and we're looking forward to showing her off at Pirate Swing!
	Jesse Metcalf-Burton After dancing for ten years, Jesse took the plunge into the other end of the dance floor. She DJs regularly for most of the local Ann Arbor dance nights. Jesse keeps people up and dancing all night long, whether it's lindy or blues. Her style is fun and eclectic. Sometimes there are dinosaur songs!