AFTER more than 30 years as one of the best DJs in the land, Graeme Park tells MARK GREEN why he still loves playing small gigs and offers advice for those coming to see him

THE 1980s saw the birth of the supermodel and the superstar DJ.

Graeme Park was among the very first. His nights at the Hacienda in Manchester introduced Chicago and Detroit house, helped create the myth of the place and shape the music scene in the city and across the country.

Some 33 years later, he’s still hugely in demand, playing arena gigs in front of thousands of fans.

He’s also co-creator of the Classical Hacienda sound - reworking old dance classics with a classical orchestra.

But you can also find him behind a deck at much smaller venues, and he's still looking forward to discovering new places to play and meeting new, younger audiences.

He said: “When you have an open-minded up-for-it crowd, you can do what you like.

“If you said to me in 1984 that I would still be doing this when I reached 50 in the next century, I would have laughed.

“But I am, mainly because I enjoy it. It is the variety that keeps me going. Ever weekend is different.

“I’m aware that I’m seen as a ‘heritage’ DJ and I always get an older crowd, but equally I get this younger crowd who have no interest in the 80s and 90s so I do play contemporary stuff.

"You get the odd miserable git climbing up to the box saying ‘why are you playing this?’ and they want you to play all the old stuff.

“I have to remind people that when they came to the Hacienda, they did not know the music, it was all new stuff. If you are a DJ, you have to keep abreast of new sounds."

A lecturer in creative media technology at Wrexham Glyndwr University, when he played Carlisle in December, he had to dash back home because he was teaching the following day.

He’s more used to appearing in front of tens of thousands of people, but still gets a buzz from appearing before a lucky 200 or so at venues like the Drawing Room in Barrow where he’ll be appearing on April 1.

It is among the smallest venues he’ll be playing this year, which includes Classical Hacienda gigs at the Albert Hall (which holds 5,000) and SSE in Glasgow (13,000).

He said: “In any small venue, you are totally winging it and feeding off the crowd and each night is different.

“That is why I’m happy to be doing it still.”

He says of Classical Hacienda: “I have a whole new tour and set-list this year.

“The easiest thing would be to tweak the old set.

“I’ve picked some really obvious ones to keep people happy.

“We learned so much last year. we started by building the atmosphere slowly, like a DJ set, but this year the show starts with a proper smack between the eyes and goes on from there.”

Graeme Park appears at The Drawing Room, in Barrow, on Saturday April 1 as part of the venue's MCR Weekender. Support comes from Liaison and Rhythm Is Rhythm DJs. Tickets can be booked in advance at www.skiddle.com or bought at The Drawing Room.