An Homage
(Photo collage by Karen Kennedy)
One Saturday night back in the late 80s I made my weekly trip to Club Clearview in Deep Ellum. The usual house DJs were Mark Debosier in the main room and Terry Simms spinning hip hop in the black light room. On this night, Mark was nowhere to be found. In his place was an animated character with a big Cheech Marin-style mustache, a Hawaiian shirt and this bizarre headphone contraption strapped to his left shoulder. I usually spent the night dancing on one of the stages in the main room, but this night I decided to spend some time watching and listening to this guy. He was amazing. He would chat with a bunch of people at once, appearing to forget about the music playing, then he’d reach into his crate, grab a record without even looking at it, throw it on a turntable, lean his head slightly to the left to rest his ear on the headphone contraption, and dive into a completely flawless and unexpected mix. I’d never seen or heard anything like it in my life and that experience would eventually serve as the primary driver of my decision to become a DJ.
That DJ was Rick Squillante, a well loved and respected DJ who put Dallas on the worldwide dance map. Rick was a DJ at the legendary Starck Club, which was Dallas’ equivalent of Studio 54 (designed by Phillippe Starck and part owned by Stevie Nicks and Grace Jones). I went to Starck only a few times during the last few years of it’s existence and Rick had already departed, but my hipster parents were on the guest list at Starck and they danced many hours to his music. Despite not hearing Rick at Starck, I did end up spending a handful of nights dancing to his sets at Metronome and Clearview – some of the best nights ever. I also had the privilege of hanging with him on a few occasions, the last of which was an all-nighter at an after hours club called Industry (not the more well known 2920 Canton version of Industry, but the ‘original’ location, which was a gutted-out warehouse that was staged as a cocaine lab for the movie Robocop and later became the Bomb Factory). Rick left Dallas in 1988/89 to take a job with Virgin Records in LA, and after 10 years working deep in the heart of the music business he ended up taking his life for reasons we may never know.
Rick may be gone, but he still inspires everyone whose lives he touched through his music. My good friends Jeff and Lisa Wichman recently entrusted me with a few digitized mix tapes recorded live at the Starck Club and another Deep Ellum club called 2826. The Starck mix was recorded in 1986 and the 2826 mix was from Rick’s going away party in 1989. My hope is that these mixes will be the first of many. I will post other mixes as I receive them.
I’ll stop writing now, and invite you to stream or download the mixes below and also check out the pictures and flyers as well. If you know the missing artists and songs, please send me an email and I’ll fill in the blanks. Also, if you have any of Rick’s mixes from back in the day and want me to post them, please send ‘em my way along with a Rick story to share – pics are welcome too. I’m sure the folks on the Level V | Xenon | Metropolis | Stark | DV8 | Aqua Lounge | Industry group on Facebook have some things to share.
Rick Squillante – Starck Club (1986)
(from the music vault of Jeff and Lisa Wichman)
- Rock Me Amadeus – Falco
- Big In Japan – Alphaville
- Ball and Chain – Wax
- The Day Before You Came – Blancmange
- Money’s Too Tight To Mention – Simply Red
- The Game of Chance – The Twins
- Cities in Dust – Siouxsie and the Banshees
- A-Z – ABC
- Tower of London – ABC
- Opportunities – Pet Shop Boys
- Heaven Help You Now – Paul Haig
- Amok – Ledernaken
- Kiss Me – Stephen Tin Tin Duffy
- Children of the Revolution – Violent Femmes
- Take It Back – Pookah Makes 3
- Viva Le Rock – Adam Ant
———————
Rick Squillante – Starck Club (1986)
(from the music vault of Karen Kennedy)
- Bach To The Future – Latin Rascals
- Hamam – Annabouboula
- Sinful – Pete Wylie
- Golden Years – David Bowie
- Shake It Right – Six Sed Red
- Perfume From Spain – Dr. Calculus
- Every Kind Of People – Robert Palmer
- Feel Emotion – Twiggy
- ???
- The Visitors – ABBA
- Don’t You Just Know It – Amazulu
- The Hardest Thing – Rubber Rodeo
- Every Breath You Take – The Police
- Looking From A Hilltop – Section 25
- Good To Go? – ???
———————
Rick Squillante – Last Dance in Dallas @ 2826 (Sept 29, 1989)
(from the music vault of Jeff and Lisa Wichman)
- Children of the Revolution – Baby Ford
- Pull Up to the Bumper – Grace Jones
- Wheelin’ and a Dealin’- Ledernacken
- (Unknown Artist & Song)
- Everything Starts With An E – E-Zee Possee
- French Kiss – Lil Louis
- Where is Your Love – Gail Ann Dorsey
- Don’t Cry For Me Argentina – Festival (Boris Midney)
- Cold Sweat – Danille Dax
- (Unknown Artist & Song)
- Witness the Change – Pete Shelly
- Do the Right Think – Redhead Kingpin and the FBI
- Which Way Is Up – Syndee
- Love Train – Holly Johnson
- Eyes – Donna Summer
- Set it off – Strafe
- Try My Love – Denise LaSalle
- Deep In Vogue – Malcolm McLaren
———————
Learn more about Rick Squillante & the Starck Club:
http://ped111251.tripod.com/rick.htm
http://www.discomusic.com/clubs-more/3437_0_6_0_C/
http://www.myspace.com/starckclubrevisited
Starck Club Documentary Trailer (film coming later this year)
March 15th, 2009 at 10:59 am
TY~ the music keeps me young;)
March 15th, 2009 at 11:40 am
awesome post gary! one correction: robocop was filmed inside the old Bomb Factory down the street.
March 15th, 2009 at 11:45 am
Thanks for the comment, Merritt. The “original” Industry location was in the Robocop building in 88/89 – long before the Bomb Factory. Industry moved to the adam hats building and a few other places before coming to rest at 2920 Canton.
March 15th, 2009 at 11:58 am
scratch that… industry had many locations. but there was only one Bomb Factory!
March 15th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
ps… i’m an idiot. too early in the morning after going out last night.
March 15th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
don’t be so hard on yourself. it’s a wonder any of us remember what happened back then.
March 15th, 2009 at 3:13 pm
That Starck mix has all the hits but the mixes sound a bit phoned in..oh well, Rick was still the man and he was probably busy chatting up the boys. Give Rick his props though, he made playing more progressive mixes in Dallas clubs into a much more attainable dream.
By the way, the song listed as “Revolution” above is really a remix of “Children of the Revolution” by the Violent Femmes which came out “86ish. Of course, the original song is by T-Rex.
March 15th, 2009 at 5:37 pm
Hey G-Reg – thanks for filling in the blank on the Violent Femmes cover of T-Rex.
Phoned in? Maybe a little. To your point though, it’s a good selection/program.
Hoping to get more of Rick’s mixes posted if folks find them and send ‘em my way.
March 15th, 2009 at 5:53 pm
hey greg and gary o…rick was mailing it in in 89 and while at 2826 because he was burned out. 2826 hada totally different vibe and although everyone was trying to recreate the starck magic…none could. i had the pleasure of hanging out with him a little and he was a great guy with a great laugh and infectious smile…im sorry to hear he’s gone.
March 15th, 2009 at 11:38 pm
Hey Merritt, whats up bro? Remember Vivid and your friendly bartender Chris? you are correct. The original Industry was at Adam Hats on Canton St. What a crazy and cool place that was. Did anybody go to the original Club A on here? Did anyone on this site go to the NIN show at the Video Bar?
March 16th, 2009 at 10:01 am
cdev – i’m pretty sure the adam hats location of industry opened “after” it moved from the location across the street. My wife and I hung out at the original location when we first met and we introduced two of our best friends at adam hats one night months later(one of whom, rami, was the manager at aqua lounge).
March 16th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
Great post G! I had not moved to the Metroplex yet but heard every dj from my era and before talk about him. Thanks for the mixes as well.
March 17th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
Wow!! Gary-O “Felix the Cat” if you see this……A BIG HELLO to you from an old friend from back in the day!!! Anyway, Rick Squillante!!!! We spent an insane amount of quality time together back then. Especially at Empire Club. (Where Lizard Lounge is now). I worked the door with Todd Hedrick and Michael Lathan. Rick came in early, and we would start the night with a George Michael or Salt ‘n Pepa song. Some song Rick loved and I would lip sync. On that stage, like some drag queen or something. Absolutely……GOOD TIMES!! Miss those days…… I’m going to ding through my tapes, I know I have some Squillante mix tapes, along with my Mike Dupriest tapes……..Unearthing some “OLD SCHOOL”!!! thanks for this site…….A
March 17th, 2009 at 9:53 pm
Rick was great. I remember the first time he let me behind the ropes, into his DJ booth at Starck Club. I just danced and danced around while he spinned. Cherishing those old times has taught me how to appreciate all the experiences of my life. As for the music…what else can I say!
March 29th, 2009 at 6:51 am
Rick made my years at SMU some of the best times in my life. I was lucky enough to know him from The Bonham Exchange in San Antonio where I went to high school. I remember the first time I saw him at Starck Club, I gave him hell about still having his “Village People” mustache. He told me it was his “pet catter-piller.” He was a God to me. All that great music I discovered through him was amazing. He was definitely a pioneer, and Starck wouldn’t have been Starck without all those cutting-edge records he spun there. He will surely be missed by everyone who knew and loved him. It’s nice to know that everytime I hear Vicious Pink, Ledernacken, Shreikback, Les Rita Misouko, Strafe, Section 25 or Cabaret Voltaire– I’ll always think of him working that turntable at Starck. He knew I loved “Boops” by Sly And Robbie, and he would always give me a wave when he played it. I hope you’re spinning the music in Heaven when we meet again, buddy.
April 15th, 2009 at 7:00 am
OMG! Hey Joseph! Wow, so cool to stumble upon this site and find you here. I still have the mixtape of all those Starck songs you made me. Man those were the days. Remember meeting up at the Inwood Lounge before heading off to Starck? With Kennedy, Tom, Whit, Bud, Todd Oldham??? So fun! I sure miss those SMU days at the Ice House on Yale and those cheddar fries at Snuffers. I heard that there’s a documentary that will be playing at the USA Film Festival this year about Starck Club. I’m in NYC, but hope it gets a wide release soon. Great to see that people are appreciating Rick and his music. My favorites were always Book Of Love and Dominatrix. STARCK LIVES!
April 30th, 2009 at 11:27 am
STARCK CLUB LIVES ON!
April 30th, 2009 at 11:30 am
STARCK CLUB LIVES ON! Are you guys coming to see the documentary film tonight at the USA film festival? It is so cool to reconnect with such a great group of people who fondly ‘remember’ the heyday of Starck – there was NOTHING like it. I can’t wait to dance to Starck music at the party next month!
May 6th, 2009 at 4:21 am
hi…i was one half of the pookah makes three and’ have just discovered that we were loved at the starck. nice one. peace, m xxx
May 6th, 2009 at 4:24 am
ps. check out international peoples gang for music and you tube for the video of ‘take it back’. x
May 10th, 2009 at 6:13 pm
Come see the Starck in action one more time on June 6, 2009 for the Starck Red party! It’s actually an afterparty for my 50th birthday and I turned it into a fund raiser for Legacy Founders Cottage, a hospice in Oak Cliff. We have two amazing DJ’s and the party goes on for 10+ hours!
May 21st, 2009 at 2:24 am
Hey all you Starckers out there. I heard there was a reunion of sorts recently. Did anyone go? If so, how was it? I’m in Chicago now and was just feeling nostalgic for my youth. My own kids just went to prom this year. YIKES! If they only knew what I got up to in the 80′s *blush*
And a HI to Joseph from SMU. I remember you from back when. You were a film student right? I think you got your hair cut with Warren at the Neinast Salon like I did and we ran into each other there a few times. You talked me into getting a very wild Bob style once. I loved my hair back then by the way. I wonder what ever happened to Warren.
Well, if Amanda Tennant or Kelly Benson should happen to pass thru this site, I hope y’all will get in touch with me. I’m on Facebook.
June 5th, 2009 at 1:24 am
AWESOME collection of Starck Club Music on this youtube page:
http://www.youtube.com/profile_video_blog?user=skatesloth
June 17th, 2009 at 8:29 am
Rick was quite the character…and his imprint on my musical tastes lasts to this day ! Thanks for posting all these …
August 20th, 2009 at 7:26 am
Really cool thread giving mad props to Rick and his spins.
Ah the good ol’ days. “White lines……”
What’s up, Joseph aka “The King Of SMU.” Long time no see buddy. Someone told me you were makin movies out in L.A. Well, if you’re ever casting a cynical, deranged, menace to society look me up. I still run into some of your little cronies now and then around town. If you’re ever in Dallas gimme a holler! I still have your black Calvin Klein sports jacket!
“The unexamined life is not worth living.”
September 24th, 2009 at 10:24 am
Before HIV? What solar system is this guy living in?
January 2nd, 2010 at 4:52 am
I’ve enjoyed reading all these great messages and am reminiscing fondly about all those great nights at Starck Club. Dallas has changed so much and I wish it were 1985 all over again there. Joseph Gonzales– I heard you were a filmmaker now, will you be participating in the Starck Club projects I’ve been hearing about? It would be great to know if you’re a part of the projects, lord knows you were Starck royalty to all us underlings who adored you and your tribe. I ran into Charlie a few times around Dallas, and she’s still so upbeat and sociable. I think she must have been the unofficial Starck hostess and PR person because she always seemed to be flitting around to check in with everyone. I miss those magic nights– waiting on the stairs outside and hearing the thump thump thump of Rick’s latest song spinning. Talk about a wonderland. Alice has nothing on us!
January 2nd, 2010 at 4:55 am
PS Thanks Todd (Oldham maybe?) for the link to the great youtube vids, I play them in my office all the time now– “Set it off on the left, y’all, set it off on the right, y’all, set it off!”
January 6th, 2010 at 10:27 am
If anyone knows how to find Chante Grier, Pedee, or Mark Debosier pass along m y email: blandaccount09@gmail.com
peace Martin
January 20th, 2010 at 3:50 pm
Hey Joseph, Jason, et al. Great memories…those I can remember! I just went back to Dallas for the first time in about 20 years, it has changed so much, it is crazy. I made a great Starck playlist on my ipod. People freak out when they hear some of the songs – perhaps they are having “flashbacks!” Keep in touch gang, I miss all of you.
April 28th, 2010 at 10:47 am
I just accidentally ran across a Starck blog and now I’m looking for all I can find and compiling the music for my ipod. I’m 44 now and I used to go twice a week. There was such a freedom at the Starck to be whatever you wanted to be. You could dance by yourself or walk up and dance with complete strangers and no one cared. Last year at a party, a woman asked me if I used to go to the Starck because I dance like a Starcker with the little skipping and hand movements! I’m so out of vogue but I still love it! I’m showing my kids the music but you just can’t convey in words what it was like. They would laugh so hard now if they could see me in my funny hats and clothes. Once I brought a friend from Oklahoma to the Starck and I told her to borrow some of my clothes. She refused and wore this polyester striped shirt from K-mart. I was so mortified that I had to stand in line with her. I had to beg to get her in. What was I thinking? She thought I had taken her to the pit of hell!
keep the Starcker in you alive,
Joni
July 24th, 2010 at 4:07 pm
you boys are silly..you can see the starck dancefloor and side cages plain as day in the Robobcop nightclub scene. Tsk tsk