Paul Oakenfolds biography

Re: Paul Oakenfolds biography

what does he say like?

i suppose as he's been at the top of the business, leading it in some parts, it can get mundane after 20 years...

Don't think has had any passsion fot it since his backroom resdicency at cream.

Used to like his goa mix but not much actual mixing going on.

I was gunna get this as id like to read all the earlier stuff he's done & experiences he's had - think it would be interesting, rather than turning up to a gig nowadays & not giving 2 shits how he plays or what people think of him.

I respect what he's done & how far he's come, just cant get my head around his attitude to the whole game?

1 of my favourite mix Cd's, the 'Perfecto Fluoro' 1 from 1997, hardly ANY iof it's mixed, more just 'faded' in and out. Still, awesome lol but that was the height of the perfecto stuff, then and till the end of 99

I started reading it when i went to Goa then give it back when i come back cos i decided to read Ricky Hattons instead.

I think some people care more about a DJ's mixing than the actual music that is getting played.

Oakey's mixing has never been good but when he was at his peak he played some amazing trance - surely that should be the most important thing?

When you think of influential DJ's you think of Paul Oakenfold - the bloke deserves respect imo.

Not really but to me since the goa mixes and the perfecto fluro era the guys had neither.imo

He was in the right place at the right time and had the right contacts to make a career out of dance music.

Poeple like Ron Hardy,Frankie Knuckles and the early chicago and detroit dj's deserve more respect for getting the music out in the first place and taking dj'ing forewards.

Danny Rampling i can understand poeple having respect for as he started shoom and kicked started stuff over here but to me me oakenfold always had one eye on making money out the dance scene and just seemed to copy other poeples ideas and bring them into the mainstream.

Just my thoughts of course i did see him in the pefecto fluro early cream days and was impressed but his mixing has got worse and he just looks so not intererested. Why bother seeing when there so many better artists out there.

Not that i follow modern trance or rate anything he has done since the goa mixes.

I do like his remix of Massive attack though.

These are just my thoughts on the subject from books i have read and experince rather than being based on any real fact or anything to be honest,

Well said.

Imo If you have 20 years of practice with anything your bound to pick up the gist, in time want to better yourself technically or musically & push your self, it's a natural progression with anything. For me everytime I've seen Oakie he's been terrible, proving to me he doesn't give a shit, what he plays or how he plays it.

Like James quite rightly said, he was in the right place at the right time, theres a lot of DJ's still doing the rounds like him who are nothing more than dead wood in the Industry, living off the fact that they were round when the whole Dance Scene kicked off, doing fuck all to warrant the huge festivals/gigs they play charging promoters obscene amounts of money to book them.

I respect where he is & how he's got there, but Oakie is nothing more than a clever businessman, as a musician/DJ - tosh.

Is there a full chapter devoted to his shite haircuts?

Oakenfold is a quality A+R man, average DJ but is great at spotting opportunities.

He must do loads with his life now, he's probably just grown out of djing as peoples opinions do change as they get older, look at the rate peoples music tastes change on here, emagine playing trance for 20 years, it'd probably depress me too, and who wouldn't still dj the odd night if being promised a few grand, you'd be nuts not to.

Oakenfold was a big player in the early Goa sound. Ian St Paul (T.I.P records) and Oakenfold would go to Goa party's around 1990, and then come back to the UK with the first 'killa' tunes.

Dragonfly records was the first label to fully push Goa trance into Psy trance. Perhaps even the first 'psy' label?!!

Yes because of Danny and jenny Rampling's Schoom and the boys at Clink street plus loads of other partys happening around london from 1987 onwards.

Plus the Hacadendia had it own thing going on really early as well in the uk which set the blueprint.

As ferox says maybe you trancebods owe him some due for pushing goa trance early doors but he really has not that much to do with what i am into.