All Styles for All People?

We all know, it’s impossible to please everyone, no matter what environment. The same goes for music taste.

Pick two or three people you know:  chances are overwhelming that one person’s  musical desire is the opposite of another’s. Reminds me of any two nights in a row performing at a wedding or special event.

One night the demand is for classic rock and country, the next night it’s Top 40 and Contemporary Pop. Basically, in order to keep a respectable schedule –a band really has to play all styles (and convincingly).

Knowing WHEN to play those styles for WHO is actually an art. I’m not sure what kind though! At any rate, part of the reason Shine exists is so we can play so many different styles, it can get pretty stale playing the same material all the time. Who’s going to dance to just one style anyway?

We just added a bunch of new songs of the band playing at our website:

Carly Rae Jepsen to Bob Marley… Zac Brown to Karmin… The Beatles to Adele and Soup to Nuts!

  PLEASE CLICK ENJOY THESE NEW SONGS :          http://shineband.com/n-clips.html

 

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What Will the Big Summer Song Be?

It’s inevitable…happens every year when the weather starts getting hot. It starts to creep into your world: on a friend’s playlist, at the grocery store, at a traffic stop in the car next to you… the mystery begins to unravel to a point where its in total demand… its THE Summer Song! It’s fun to speculate what it’ll be. Once folks start asking for it at wedding gigs we play- Shine learns it !

What will it be this year? Tough to say before June, but you can bet we’ll be listening and add it it to our repertoire. Here are some from other years: http://shineband.com/n-songlist-party-tunes.html

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The Envelope Please …

Real reviews from real people -can’t beat it! We are both blessed and honored to have received this industry award for the fourth year in a row.  ”Hard work pays off…” – just like our parents always tell us (insert smiley).  Shine will go to great lengths to ensure couples get the level of professional music and service they expect.  A consistent 5 out of 5 rating since the inception of the awards -no smoke and mirrors!  One of the ways to back that up is to see what many brides, grooms and family members say about their experience working with Shine AFTER the big day has passed (and they can breathe again).

Please visit our Reviews Page for some great stories and information

Also, feel free to check Inquiries & Band Availability

Listen to Our Latest Tunes

Here are the most requested songs by brides and grooms from 2012.

When you click on the links they will open in a new browser window. Close the browser window to return to this page.

Check with us about availability for your wedding reception.

Drop us a line using our online contact form.

 

 

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Featured Venue in Gloucester

Another great north shore venue that many folks might not know about as being a great/reasonable venue for a coastal wedding, party or corporate event is The Elks At Bass Rocks, in Gloucester. Shine played there last week.

The club is upstairs, the dining room and dance floor downstairs has a real nice overlook to the good ol’ Atlantic Ocean.

There’s lots going on in Gloucester and Cape Ann.

Stacey Dexter, the event coordinator, is also a musician and fantastic to work with!

http://www.elksatbassrocks.com/

For more great wedding reception venues where the  Shine Band has enjoyed performing in Boston, Massachusetts and New England,  visit our website at: http://shineband.com/n-newenglandweddingreceptionsites.html

 

 

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5 Ways To $ave – So You Can Have A Great Band!

Many folks want to have a band at their wedding – but the overall cost of a wedding can be overwhelming. Let’s face it, most of the time having a DJj just isn’t very memorable, musical, entertaining –or even easy on the ears.

Plus, there nothing compares to live music!

It isn’t difficult to program songs with today’s software, then set up a couple speakers. But learning how to create, read, write, sing, rehearse, and perform music? Different animal! Bands can also play some of your favorites on a break – giving the best of both worlds.

Here are 5 ways to save money on your wedding reception, that you could possibly use to hire the band you want:

1.  Schedule your wedding for an off-peak time. You may well already know this- but it’s huge. Most venues and vendors will offer significant discounts for winter and early spring Saturdays. Also, many will additionally discount almost any Friday or Sunday. A few Holiday Sundays may be the only exception.

2. Have a friend or relative help out with:  playing the music for your ceremony and/or cocktail hour, taking pictures or video. Friends and family love to be asked!

3. Have a music student play the music for your ceremony and/or cocktail hour. There are campus referral services, message boards (as well as Craigslist) which access talented people from The New England Conservatory, Berklee College of Music  as well as other music departments at local colleges.

4. Ask your band or venue to supply pre-recorded cocktail music. Honestly, guests will not really notice  (or care) if background music is not “live.”

5. A good band can help determine the success of a reception MUCH more than: lighting, flowers, food and pictures. Dancing to well-played, live music is what folks remember.

In case you are still looking for a reception venue in Boston, Massachusetts , New Hampshire or Rhode Island – check out this very informative list of New England wedding reception sites.


 

Corporate Events & Holiday Parties: Seasonal and Unseasonal

As the wedding season thins out, Shine is looking forward to performing at holiday parties. It seems that more and more companies are shifting their celebrations to January. I’m guessing A. to save money (most vendors and venues offer great discounts) and B. due to the fact that things are much quieter after the month of December, it’s a good time to have something to look forward to.

Shine is scheduled to play for several tech companies, as well as some well known local retail outfits and financial organizations both in December and January.

We have some openings, please feel to inquire at our website, as well as see and hear a huge range of the music the band plays. Enjoy the holidays!

More information:     www.shineband.com

 

 

 

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Popular Wedding First Dance Songs

Someone asked me today what are the songs I usually suggest to brides and grooms for their “first dance.”

You can see the entire list of wedding first dance songs at our website, but here are what I would say are the most popular Contemporary first dance songs at a wedding.

Contemporary: First Dance Songs for the Bride and Groom

All I Want is You… U2
Are You Gonna Kiss Me… Thompson Square
Be Mine… David Gray
Better Together… Jack Johnson
Bless the Broken Road… Rascal Flats
By Your Side… Sade
Crazy Love… Van Morrison
Dance Me To the End of Love… M. Peyroux
Faithfully… Journey
Feels Like Home… C. Kreviazuk / B. Raitt
Fireflies… Owl City
Got Whatever It Is… Zac Brown Band
Grow Old Along With Me… Mary C. Carpenter
Have I Told You Lately… Van Morrison
I Can’t Wait To See You Again… Norah Jones
I’m Yours… Jason Mraz
Ice Cream… Sara McLachlan
If I Ain’t Got You… Alicia Keys
Into the Mystic… Van Morrison
Just the Way You Are… Bruno Mars
Making Memories of Us…Kieth Urban
Need You Now… Lady Antebellum
Some People… Leanne Rimes
Someone Like You…Van Morisson
Stay With Me… John Legend
True Companion… Marc Cohn
You and Me… Dave Matthews Band
You and Me… Lifehouse
You Are The Best Thing…Ray Lamontagne
You Say It Best… Alison Kraus

Often referred to as one of the best wedding bands in Boston, visit our website and listen to our music, download our song list, and before you go check pricing and our availability.

Thanks…

Just a quick “thank you” from everyone in the band to those who enjoyed our music and took the time to visit our Facebook page to leave a note! It’s always our pleasure and a privilege to share a special day with you!

Take a moment and follow us at Facebook.

Often called one of the best wedding bands in Boston, visit our website and listen to our music, download our song list, and before you go check pricing and our availability.

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It Definitely Is a Small World

A Wedding Reception at the Four Seasons in Boston is always one of our favorite places to play.

I always get a kick out of running into brides and grooms years after Shine played at their wedding reception. We’ve played everywhere in New England, from Newport, Rhode Island to Bangor, Maine. From Western Massachusetts and the Berkshires to Nantucket Island – and everywhere in between!

Recently, this happened to me twice in the same week! The band was performing at a reception at the Four Seasons Hotel in Boston. While we were on our dinner break, the photographer for the wedding, Leah Haydock, mentioned that Shine had played at her wedding a couple years ago in New Hampshire! What a pleasant coincidence and I must say an enjoyable person to work with. You can find Leah’s photos and more information at her website.

A few days later, I had my annual routine physical and the doctor’s assistant nurse and I began talking while having my blood pressure checked. After the usual “what kind of work do you do” chatter,  we realized that Shine had also played at her wedding reception on Cape Cod a few years ago. Both of us chuckled how the reception started off so reserved but quickly evolved into a wild dance party that she had hoped it would. Everyone had a great time!

It’s a small world, I guess you never know who you are going to run into.

p.s. Join us at Facebook! If we played at your wedding reception we’d love to hear from you!

 

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