Gene M. Corrado of West Windsor will be selling and signing his book, “Confessions of a Delirious DJ” at Monroe Library’s local author day on Saturday, February 26, from 1 to 5 p.m.
The 125-page book features the confessions of Corrado, pictured at right, who admitted to often being not at his best at events. Chapters include “Jobs That Suck,” “(Brides) and Others Behaving Badly,” “Jobs Where I Suck,” “Five Things I Hate About DJs,” and “Knee Deep in Weirdness.” “I’ve been taking notes for years and it has taken me 25 years to write it,” says Corrado. “The hardest part for me was being honest. “ Readers in West Windsor may recognize people and places. The book is also available at amazon.com and bn.com.
Over the years he worked as a disc jockey at more than 600 events, sometimes alone, and sometimes with his friend, Tom Bowers. “The biggest change was in technology,” he says. “When I started all there was were records and I would take five to six milk crates and 1,000 pounds of equipment to most jobs.”
“Although there are 100 books out there telling people how to be a DJ, mine is the first one retelling experiences of being a DJ,” he says. He did cut the book down and took out personal “stuff” — especially stories vetoed by his wife. “Taking too much personal stuff would be like taking the music out of `The Sound of Music.’”
Born in upstate New York (near Jamestown), Corrado and his family moved to Brooklyn when he was seven. He graduated from St. John’s University with a degree in English. During college he was the editor of the literary magazine, “The Torch.” He is currently a sales director at Real Soft computer software.
While living in Sparta, he fell into being a DJ by accident. The Young Woman’s Club of Sparta, one of his wife’s organizations, was having an event in 1982 and the budget was shrinking. He volunteered to help out, figuring he would work for less and make a little extra money. “The first one was so fun and wonderful,” he says. “I thought every job would be like that.”
He and his wife, Aimee, have been married for more than 32 years. She works in the human relations department at Mathematica in West Windsor. All three of their children graduated from High School North. His son Justin, 27, is in the software business in Washington, D.C. Jonathan, 24, is working in South Korea. Daughter, Jessica Rose, 20, is a sophomore at the University of Rhode Island.
The Corrado family are members of Congregation Beth Chaim and many of the events took place in the area. One of his favorite stories happened at a wedding at the Westin Hotel (then Marriott) in Forrestal Village, Plainsboro during the 1990s. The grandfather was happily dancing away when he suffered a cardiac event. An emergency medical technician, who was a guest, saved the man’s life. He lived.
Corrado also enjoyed performing at Cranbury Day. “It was a lot of fun with interesting sounds of music among the trees,” he says. “I still love to do sock hops — playing music of the 1950s and `60s.” His favorite music is anything from the 1960s, the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Miles Davis, and old blues. Corrado is also big jazz fan. “My father had a large collection of 78 rpm records including Frank Sinatra and Glenn Miller,” he says. “I play them every once in a while.”
“I’ve been writing all of my life,” he says. “Holding a book in my hands is a great feeling. It’s like a good friend.” His second book, focusing on children’s solutions to difficult world problems, will be completely different. Corrado’s poetry has been published by VSA New Jersey and Wordsmith.
“Weddings, bar mitzvahs, and other events I covered are a microcosm of our society with family and friends getting together to have a good time,” he says.
— Lynn Miller
Local Author Day, Monroe Public Library, 4 Municipal Plaza, Monroe. Saturday, February 26, 1 p.m. Meet and greet authors with books for sale and autographing. Gene M. Corrado, “Confessions of a Delirious DJ.” Coffee and tea served. 732-521-5000. www.monroetwplibrary.org.
