By Derek Schlennstedt
If the mark of a good DJ is that their events are packed with dancers, then Ian Cranage is among the best.
Particularly when talking about primary school students hitting the dance floor.
On Friday 21 July at St Paul’s Primary School in Monbulk, DJ Crano marked his 30th year DJ-ing for the school.
To celebrate the milestone, St Paul’s Primary School presented DJ Crano with a golden record in recognition of the many years of entertainment he brought to generations of students.
Mr Cranage spoke to the Mail as he was setting up for the disco at St Paul’s and said music had always been a big part of his life.
“I’ve been doing this for 54 years – I’m a big lover of Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Bill Haley and the Comets, and that era of music,” he said.
Although he said he enjoyed the early years of rock‘n’roll, Cranage has no trouble getting the kids involved and listens every week to the top 100.
“Well, I love seeing the involvement from the kids, watching them have a good time because when we were growing up there were no discoes at school,” he said.
“I still download the Aria chart on the Sunday morning so I can keep up with it all.
“I’ve, basically, got every song that’s ever chartered in Australia, from right back in the ’50s.
“If asked, I can do a whole night on one particular year, I’ve got around 20,000 songs on CDs and a lot more on records.”
The 75-year-old Seaford DJ is part of the St Paul’s community and Principal Michael Watt said he was practically family.
“He’s been coming twice a year for the past 30 years and he’s also come and DJ-ed other school events, such as our country fair,” Mr Watt said.
“He’s really a fixture of the St Paul’s community.
“The golden record was just to say thank you and that we all at St Paul’s appreciate his dedication and everything he’s done for us over the years.”
