Been into this music scene since late 60's. Spent 3 years (on the free bus) attending the Highland Room 1970 to 73. (Les Cockel, Tony Jebb and ?). Also went to the Torch, just the once. But we did in 74 go to a massive all-nighter at Leeds tram station where along with live artists J.J. Barnes, Mel and Tim, The Exciters and Major Lance (I think) a few records were played out which have forever stuck a chord with myself. I don't think they were ever played at Blackpool or Stoke and just pondered which d.j's had brought them to light?

Saxie Russel, Tony Clarke : Landslide, The Sapphires : Slow Fizz, The Milestones : The Joker and also an instrumental take to River Deep Mountain High (don't think it was Les McCann but could be wrong).

Have all but the last 2 but would love to source a copy of the Milestones. Would also like to know who were the d.j's on that occasion?

If anyone out there could enlighten myself on this period I would be very interested to hear their thoughts and comments and possible but unlikely sale of a Milestones record.

Many thanks,

In Anticipation,

Ian

  On 12/08/2017 at 14:57, ik001 said:

Been into this music scene since late 60's. Spent 3 years (on the free bus) attending the Highland Room 1970 to 73. (Les Cockel, Tony Jebb and ?). Also went to the Torch, just the once. But we did in 74 go to a massive all-nighter at Leeds tram station where along with live artists J.J. Barnes, Mel and Tim, The Exciters and Major Lance (I think) a few records were played out which have forever stuck a chord with myself. I don't think they were ever played at Blackpool or Stoke and just pondered which d.j's had brought them to light?

Saxie Russel, Tony Clarke : Landslide, The Sapphires : Slow Fizz, The Milestones : The Joker and also an instrumental take to River Deep Mountain High (don't think it was Les McCann but could be wrong).

Have all but the last 2 but would love to source a copy of the Milestones. Would also like to know who were the d.j's on that occasion?

If anyone out there could enlighten myself on this period I would be very interested to hear their thoughts and comments and possible but unlikely sale of a Milestones record.

Many thanks,

In Anticipation,

Ian

I heard Mick Smith was credited in discovering/playing  "Landslide" - Tony Clarke.

  On 12/08/2017 at 14:57, ik001 said:

 

Saxie Russel, Tony Clarke : Landslide, The Sapphires : Slow Fizz, The Milestones : The Joker and also an instrumental take to River Deep Mountain High (don't think it was Les McCann but could be wrong).

 

Ian

Slow Fizz was played at the Torch but wouldn't surprise me if it was played at the Mecca first. Tony Clarke and Saxie Russell were Mecca first then Wigan sounds.

  On 12/08/2017 at 18:26, solidsoul said:

I heard Mick Smith was credited in discovering/playing  "Landslide" - Tony Clarke.

The London lads, Mick, Dave Rivers et al brought loads of sounds up to the Torch/Mecca in those days. I'm not sure Mick was even DJing back then, certainly not outside London if at all.

Tony Clarke & the Sapphires (as recording artists) were both well known to UK mods / soulies from the mid 60's via their UK 45 releases. Both of Tony's mid 60's outings got loads of club plays (The Entertainer was even reissued here as early as April 69) and the Sapphires HMV singles were also popular finds. So UK soulies like myself who were 'buying blind' off UK auction lists & from US warehouse lists (paying low prices for cuts we didn't know by artists we did) were picking up things like "Slow Fizz" from around 1968 ... (I never liked it coz of the stupid dance lyrics & so sold it in the early 70's).

When B&S started doing their soul packs in 71/72, they bought in a whole truck load of old Chess 45's & I believe that haul included loads of things such as Tony Clarke's later biggie. I've no idea who played either 45 first in a UK club setting but copies of each single were floating around in UK soul circles from around 71.    

Something that needs to be kept in mind, when trying to suss out who played what, where first, is the following.

Back then The Cats/Torch/Mecca were all happening on the same night and people traveled between them. Therefore a new discovery could get played at the Cats or Mecca and then at the Torch within hours. Later on we had Sam's (Fri.)/Mecca/Wigan(Sat) and Va Va's(Fri)/Mecca/Wigan (Sat.), so a new sound could be played at 3 different places in 36 hours.

Please remember, in those days most DJ's were quite willing to lend their new sounds to other DJ's at another club, many collectors who didn't DJ, would also often lend records to DJ's too.

Snowy (Donny) used to borrow some of my stuff (he also bought many other items) & take them along to the Casino. 

just pre Wigan Aug/Sept73  'landslide & 'Like Adam & Eve' were big records for Levine Mecca etc..both were still going strong at the TWO Leeds Allnighters in April 74 also massive and played many times during the Leeds gigs were 'Please Operator' 'The Joker' 'Psychedelic Soul'..i'm pretty sure Kev Roberts was at these events, maybe Keith Minshull..'Supertime ' had just been booted...and the ISC were selling white OOTP boots for 4 for a £1..

Tony Clarke Landslide was being played in soul clubs in the late 1960,s all around the NW before NS had been termed we had a copy on Silcocks waltzer on which I worked in the late 1960's early 70 .71 along with Tommy Neil going to a happening, I bought that one in Ashton under Lyne in 1968 so these DJ, s only played something that was already there and already known to lots of people

ML

  On 12/08/2017 at 14:57, ik001 said:

Been into this music scene since late 60's. Spent 3 years (on the free bus) attending the Highland Room 1970 to 73. (Les Cockel, Tony Jebb and ?). Also went to the Torch, just the once. But we did in 74 go to a massive all-nighter at Leeds tram station where along with live artists J.J. Barnes, Mel and Tim, The Exciters and Major Lance (I think) a few records were played out which have forever stuck a chord with myself. I don't think they were ever played at Blackpool or Stoke and just pondered which d.j's had brought them to light?

Saxie Russel, Tony Clarke : Landslide, The Sapphires : Slow Fizz, The Milestones : The Joker and also an instrumental take to River Deep Mountain High (don't think it was Les McCann but could be wrong).

Have all but the last 2 but would love to source a copy of the Milestones. Would also like to know who were the d.j's on that occasion?

If anyone out there could enlighten myself on this period I would be very interested to hear their thoughts and comments and possible but unlikely sale of a Milestones record.

Many thanks,

In Anticipation,

Ian

Ian

I was one of the DJs at the Leeds Allnighter. I think I was asked as I had DJ'd at the Leeds Central prior to the tram/bus station event. If I remember rightly the whole night was a disaster. Concrete dance floor ,echoing sound and live acts that couldn't really do their best on a poor stage and bad sound system. There were full page ads in Blues and Soul but I can't get to my copies just now.

The records you remember were all well established at the time but not easily available. I could have played the first three singles on your list but definitely weren't anywhere close to being the first to play them.

Saxie Russell I thought was a Midlands discovery, I remember first hearing it played by Barry Tasker at The Pendulum in Manchester around 71/72.

Tony Clarke- Landslide was an Ian Levine play and was a featured title in the adverts he placed for the Mecca. I don't remember it ever getting plays all around the NW in the late 60s. Ain't Love Good and The Entertainer were played everywhere but I can't see Ian Levine playing a record that would have been well known before he got it.

Slow Fizz was a Torch biggie but I don't remember which DJ played it first .

I thought the Milestones was a Simon Soussan discovery for Russ, it's a bit manic so would go down well at Wigan.

As Kegsy says a lot of records from the early 70s were sold or lent to DJs from guys in London. I remember two or three lads from London coming up to the Pendulum with a couple of boxes of fantastic records that no one else had. They wouldn't sell any to us plebs , perhaps already having done deals with the top DJs.

Rick

I travelled all over the north west in the late 1960,s with Silcocks Waltzer it was called the Soul Waltzer because we mostly played Tamla, and Soul with the odd current charts records played early then mostly soul so Landslide was played on that Waltzer it was played all over the North West, I first met Brian Ray in Stockton Heath Warrington when he asked me what was that record that had just been played on the Waltzer it was Tommy Neil ( Going to a Happening) that was 1969.You would have to be 65+ to remember these things the problem is there is a whole batch of SOULIES under 60 who through no fault of their own think that the scene started when they became aware, it was already brimming and live from 1963 on in the Uk just because you weren't there when these tunes were played doesn't mean it didn't happen, everybody has their own interpretation of who played what first where it happened just have an open mind you can't be everywhere at once just enjoy the music

Mick L

 

I concur with Rick Cooper re "Landslide". It was a HUGE discovery at the time and absolutely no one that I know knew it prior to it being broke at the Mecca. Mind you, it wouldn't surprise me if the odd fairground waltzer got hold of some tunes because U.S. import 45s were often prizes at the fairs. I never heard anything other than the hits of the day or oldies at the ones I attended...

Ian D

  On 15/08/2017 at 13:30, Ian Dewhirst said:

I concur with Rick Cooper re "Landslide". It was a HUGE discovery at the time and absolutely no one that I know knew it prior to it being broke at the Mecca. Mind you, it wouldn't surprise me if the odd fairground waltzer got hold of some tunes because U.S. import 45s were often prizes at the fairs. I never heard anything other than the hits of the day or oldies at the ones I attended...

Ian D

Hi Ian

It was not a odd fairground Waltzer it was known as Silcocks Soul castle and had a reputation for top soul music as both the proprietors daughters besides us the gaff lads at the time were lovers of soul music at Nottingham Goose fair all the blacks and soul music lovers of the time would be on there from 12 dinner till 12 midnight Thursday Friday and Saturday, this was pre Northern soul it did exist I was there lived and breathed it along with thousands of others new soul records were bought every week in different towns were we travelled at the rate of at least 6 new tunes per week the belly boxes under the living wagons were bulging with original 45,s pity nobody realised then what they would have been worth now they were bought because they were great tunes that fitted in with the atmosphere of ride there were no bootlegs and re releases in those collections

Cheers

ML

  On 14/08/2017 at 10:55, Roburt said:

Snowy (Donny) used to borrow some of my stuff (he also bought many other items) & take them along to the Casino. 

Yes he told me the tale, he said he sold all that stuff to Russ to play at Wigan, and used the money to buy some decent records instead .

  On 15/08/2017 at 13:53, Hooker1951 said:

Hi Ian

It was not a odd fairground Waltzer it was known as Silcocks Soul castle and had a reputation for top soul music as both the proprietors daughters besides us the gaff lads at the time were lovers of soul music at Nottingham Goose fair all the blacks and soul music lovers of the time would be on there from 12 dinner till 12 midnight Thursday Friday and Saturday, this was pre Northern soul it did exist I was there lived and breathed it along with thousands of others new soul records were bought every week in different towns were we travelled at the rate of at least 6 new tunes per week the belly boxes under the living wagons were bulging with original 45,s pity nobody realised then what they would have been worth now they were bought because they were great tunes that fitted in with the atmosphere of ride there were no bootlegs and re releases in those collections

Cheers

ML

What years are we talking ML? It was all about The Brit when I met up with the Nottingham lads which would have been around 71 and 72. But Nottingham has always had a strong Soul music tradition. I used to love digging in Nottingham in the early to mid 70s. Found some good records there.

Ian D

  On 15/08/2017 at 14:05, Ian Dewhirst said:

What years are we talking ML? It was all about The Brit when I met up with the Nottingham lads which would have been around 71 and 72. But Nottingham has always had a strong Soul music tradition. I used to love digging in Nottingham in the early to mid 70s. Found some good records there.

Ian D

Hi Ian

the years we are talking about when I worked on there are 1968,69 70, 71, everybody who was into soul those days came to the waltzer especially at the Goose fair in 1969 there were that many people on the run ups around the machine riding and listening to the music that the run ups collapsed luckily nobody was hurt, at the goose fair we were situated at the top right hand corner in front of the boxing booths and striptease, the local Nottingham soul lads used to come every year for a chat with us, I R ember one in particular tall bald lad who seemed to be the main man  funnily bumped into him at Nottingham crown court in 1974 but that's another story

Cheers Mick L

 

 

 

As already said, Nottingham always had a big crowd of soulies (well from at least as early as 65/66 to my knowledge).

They frequented clubs such as the Dungeon & Beachcomber and travelled to the Mojo (Sheffield) & Nite Owl (Leicester). We'd hitch down to the Nite Owl from Sth Yorks and if we got stuck (no lifts en-route), we'd head into Nottingham to visit the pubs the soul crowd hung out in (can't remember the names of em now though).  Some of the Notts lads would 'jump' the train (no-ticket) up to Sheffield to get to the Mojo.