Planning a class reunion? How to build the soundtrack from your graduation year

Everyone walks into a reunion a little nervous. Name tags, reading glasses, "you haven't changed a bit". Then the right song comes on, and suddenly it's senior year again. If you're on the committee this time, the music is one of the best jobs you can take on. Here's how we'd go about it.

Start with the charts from your year

Look up the year-end Billboard Hot 100 for the year you graduated, and the year before. (The Hot 100 started in August 1958; for earlier years, look for Billboard's other charts from the time.) Those lists are the songs that were on every radio and in every jukebox, and the backbone of your playlist.

Ask your classmates

Put a line in the invitation: "What song takes you right back?" You'll get the big hits, but you'll also get the local favorites, the records the house band played at every dance, and the B-side only your crowd knew. Those are the ones that start conversations.

Mix fast and slow

A reunion isn't a nightclub. People want to talk as much as dance. Start the evening with music that's easy to talk over, bring the tempo up once dinner is done, and keep a slow song every few records for the couples, old and new.

• Arrival: doo-wop and gentle ballads, quiet enough to hear a name.
• After dinner: rock 'n' roll, Motown and the twist records that get everyone up.
• Late on: the slow dances, and the class song if you had one.

Save the best for last

Every class has a song. Maybe it was the prom theme, or the record that played at the last dance before graduation. End the night on it. Turn the lights up a little, and don't be surprised when the whole room sings along.

And after the reunion

The playlist doesn't have to end when the hall closes. Send Tony a dedication for your class, with the year and the song, and share it with everyone who was there. It's a fine way to keep the reunion going.