Glen Miller - Where Is The Love...history On The Northern Soul Scene

[Cutdown69]

This is a great song, mixing a distinctive high in the mix rolling JA snare sound, slow beat, haunting horns with a yearning soulful vocal

 

I can understand the appeal to collectors, especially as it was issued on a UK label (Doctor Bird)

 

I was interested in how/when this became in vogue...was it on a dj playlist? (I would have thought it would be too slow to set the dancefloor on fire, unless it was at the local youth club and you got to canoodle!)

 

Maybe it's just gained legendary status through collectors?

 

Can anyone shed any light?

 

Many thanks

[Pete S]

Totally off the radar except to UK label collectors until the very late 90's or turn of the millenium...

[Daved]

It's more revered as a crossover sound rather than northern. As Pete said, late 90s

[Daved]

It's more revered as a crossover sound rather than northern. As Pete said, late 90s

[Glynthornhill]

nope much earlier can remember this being spun @ The Legendary Parker's soul sessions in Manchester . Methinks they started around January 1990 ....

[Darkes]

I remember first hearing it around 96 possibly 97.  Me and my mates started going out in Manchester on Sunday nights and would have a walk around what is now known as the Northern Quarter although at that time it was pretty dead but with some good old fashioned boozers and Dry Bar of course.  

 

Anyway pubs and bars were closed by 10.30 - 11 except the Burton Arms next door to the Band on the Wall.  The Burton Arms had a late licence due to some historical anomaly due to being close to the old Shude Hill Market.  A guy called Martin the Mod had a residency there playing, not surprisingly mod scene records which was pretty good and had a good following.  Martin always played Glen Miller and none of us had ever heard it before.  I remember one week David Ripolles had, for whatever reason a copy of Willie Wade "when push comes to shove" with him (like you do) and asked Martin to spin it after Glen Miller.  A perfect blend.

 

If my memory serves me correctly, a year or so later my old mucker Dean Johnson started playing  Glen Miller at crossovery type events and subsequently in the tent at the Fleetwood Weekender.  Whether Dean heard Martin play it may be incorrect and  Dean has an extensive collection of all things relating to JA music, although I do have a vague recollection that the two of them DJ'd at a Rufus Thomas gig.  Taking a tongue in cheek Manchester centric approach!, Martin the Mod discovered it and Dean made it popular on the "crossover" scene.

 

I certainly don't recall it being played at Parkers but stand to be corrected.  That all said, it must have been known, as Pete points out, to collectors of the label just needed a scene to play it on.

 

Regards Alan

[Guest john s]

I bought it for the other side (Funky Broadway) from a stall on Portobello Road in the early 90s - it was a tenner.

 

A Japanese bloke (who knew the 'Where is the love' side) saw it as I was buying it and tried to gazump me - luckily the bloke on the stall ignored him.

Edited January 16, 2015 by john s

[Cutdown69]

ok, thanks for the replies

[Cutdown69]

Not that I'm obsessed with this tune or anything

I just noticed this 45 up for sale... All the copies I've seen pics of on Dr Bird have the pop out centre. This has a set centre...like some of the recent 'Sanctuary records' Trojan et.c re-issues

Not saying it's not legit...just curious

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GLEN-MILLER-WHERE-IS-THE-LOVE-FUNKY-BROADWAY-7-45-UK-ORIG-DICTOR-BIRD-DB1089-EX/162911944981?hash=item25ee4f0115:g:QoIAAOSwXqVajSoI

 

Edited February 26, 2018 by cutdown69

[Modularman]

Mine has the push out centre also. Doctor Bird did do a few solid centre releases but I've never seen this Lloyd & glenn 45 as a solid centre, still don't think it justifies the asking price though!!

[Michael V]

Solid centres on UK 45's seem to have come in some time in 1966 and for years after solid centres and push-out centres co-existed on the same labels,with the same records.UK Stateside Soul 45's,particularly in 67'/8 are a good example;I have The Vontastics' Lady Love with a push-out centre but have seen solid centre copies.James & Bobby Purify's Let Love Come Between Us seems to only exist as a solid centre. With Doctor Bird, push-out centres are more common,as Modularman has stated above.

[Corbett80]

Same with Coxsone and other reggae labels it would seem.

From what i've heard the JA press of WITL is a bit more complicated. On Stag you want a dark brown label not the lighter golden one which i've heard is a later press. Can anyone confirm that?

Thanks, 

J

[Derek Pearson]

On 16/01/2015 at 17:44, glynthornhill said:

can remember this being spun @ The Legendary Parker's soul sessions in Manchester . Methinks they started around January 1990 ....

 

On 16/01/2015 at 18:37, Darkes said:

If my memory serves me correctly, a year or so later my old mucker Dean Johnson started playing  Glen Miller at crossovery type events and subsequently in the tent at the Fleetwood Weekender. Martin the Mod discovered it and Dean made it popular on the "crossover" scene. Regards Alan

If you'd have asked this question 2 or 3 years ago I could've told you exactly where, when and how all the answers you ever wanted to know. Even down to what colour socks I had on when I bought my copy.

But these days I've all on to remember that I once had a copy (smile).

For me personally I would have suggested exactly what the above 2 chaps have said. And thank you Alan - you summed it up so neatly with all the relevant details.

My story on how I got a copy of said 45 is quite funny but too long winded - especially the way I tell 'em - to reproduce on here (laughs).

Dx

[Dean Rudland]

I was first played this by Andy Hynd in the mid-80s, so I think this was being played on the mod scene back then. 

T

[Alan H]

Was deffo known on the Mod Scene generally by us Jamaican collectors .But dint really take off till the 90s on the Soul Scene

Ady Lupton has it on JA Stag im sure its the Brown one but its been along time since ive seen it 

[Joesoap]

I don't know. There is a collector I know from the Liverpool / Chester / North Wales area who has been deep into both Jamaican music and  Soul and aware of the crossover between the two since the late 60s  / early 70s and has had this record since then. Can't name names cause the guy is totally under the radar and as far as I know wants to stay that way but the records he's got.. man alive ! He definitely has connections with people named above, though...

Edited February 27, 2018 by JoeSoap

[Dean Rudland]

18 hours ago, Alan H said:

Was deffo known on the Mod Scene generally by us Jamaican collectors .But dint really take off till the 90s on the Soul Scene

Ady Lupton has it on JA Stag im sure its the Brown one but its been along time since ive seen it 

Alan was going to say that it might actually have been you I heard playing it back then, but I'm glad I wasn't mistaken as to the timescale.

 

[Swedenchris]

On 26.2.2018 at 15:46, corbett80 said:

On Stag you want a dark brown label not the lighter golden one which i've heard is a later press. Can anyone confirm that?

Thanks, 

J

I also read that a few times but I am not sure if that is really the case. Would be interesting to know!

 

Because Jamaican music everything comes down to a guy told another guy, and then he told me!

[Geeselad]

Memory might be playing tricks on me but I can remember having a conversation with one of the London skins/suedes, late eighties about what soul was on reggae labels and I think this was mentioned back then. Got a copy off here, I think,  for about £70, no centre, passed it on shortly after as I couldn't ever see me playing it out. 

[Corbett80]

On 27/02/2018 at 19:02, schwabenchris said:

I also read that a few times but I am not sure if that is really the case. Would be interesting to know!

 

Because Jamaican music everything comes down to a guy told another guy, and then he told me!

Would the Roots knotty Roots book have any info? Ive never actually had a copy to read it...

[Guest Corrie Thomas]

On 04/03/2018 at 23:52, corbett80 said:

Would the Roots knotty Roots book have any info? Ive never actually had a copy to read it...

Hello All

I dont go online anymore so using wifes facebook log in, but thought you might like to know my view on the Jamaican label variations

I had both label variations at the same time a few years ago and I can tell you that the dead wax markings and heavy weight
pressing thicknesses are identical, these were pressed at the same time. 100% both totally original in my oppinion.
In fact I kept the yellow label version because it was in better nick and sold on the brown silver to a Soul guy in Spain.

It was pressed at west indies records - matrix wirl 3168 a with a tiny 1ga in the deadwax just after the matrix (both identical)
both my copys came from the same Jamaican dealer in Kingston Jamaica

Also the West indies records plant went up in flames in late 67 or 68 so there were no more wirl pressed discs after this
Edward Seager the owner sold what whas left of the site and the business the Byron Lee who rebuilt the studio and plant into the famous Dynamic studios.

Unless someone can actually lay claim to knowing someone who worked at wirl before it whent up in flames in the late 60s to confirm as to why there are two coloued labels I would say the its all just conjecture concerning a second press of this 45

I would of thought they would have simply ordered the wrong amount of labels initialy to complete the run?

Thanks Guys, thats my oppinion,

Keep collecting
Gareth Thomas