The
clap-
clap mix (sometimes referred to as the '
clap-
clap list') pays homage to the romantic possibilities introduced by a device called 'The Clapper'. An 'As Seen on TV' product, The Clapper features a sound activated electronic circuit, which allows a user to turn on/off electronic devices plugged in to an outlet simply by clapping. A generation of on-screen (and we must assume, real life) smooth operators used The Clapper to cue 'romance'.
In the 2006 film, Accepted, Bartleby (Justin Long) set up a clapper in his dorm room to activate a disco
ball and mood lighting. In the 1999 comedy Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, Austin Powers (Mike Myers) claps twice to activate the "seduction lighting" in his apartment. An impressed Ivana Humpalot (
Kristen Johnston) asks "When did you get ze Clapper?". Austin, thinking she means "the
clap" replies "Dutch East Indies, shore leave."
The '
clap-clap mix' originally referred to a mix CD or digital playlist of 'romantic' songs, queued up and ready to play when a would-be Romeo clapped the command. Although The Clapper device is largely a relic of times past, the idea of a ready-to-go, romantic, sensual,
sexy playlist (continually updated with the hot-and-
heavy or whimsical ballads of the age) persists. Many, this author included, will forever know this 'in the mood' playlist as the 'clap clap mix'.
These artists are standard starters on any clap-clap mix: Marvin Gaye, Al
Green, Luther Vandross, Brian McKnight, Frank Sinatra...
His
clap-
clap mix, crafted over years of intimate encounters, kicked in from speakers across the room, and as she melted into his embrace, the smooth stylings of Marvin Gaye's 'Sexual Healing' echoed in the warm hollows of their caramel
bodies.
