macca

True, though many on here did cast apersions on it Ady, especially while Kenny's was up for auction. To me this is a form of revisionism. One thing is being weary of a sound, another is questioning its rightful place in NS lore etc; I perhaps hould have worded it 'whether a record is considered good or bad is often down to personal tastes. I never had any doubts about FW, though I must say it didn't grab me immediately back then, unlike other records that spring to mind.

I wonder if Frank himself is aware of the vampire and cross reaction. That's a good analogy you used Mark. Whether it's a 'good' or 'bad' record or not is entirely down to personal tastes, and they're like colours; i.e. lots of them, all different shades and hues.

I wonder if that Roger Earl Okin was the Earl Okin that I saw at my brother's comedy club 'the gaslight' in Peterborough in the mid 80s. This guy would have been in his 50s then, very suave, pin stripe suit, fedora and spats. He did a cabaret act, with a guitar, alternating blues and jazz standards with witty ramblings a la George Melly. The strange world of Northern Soul indeed!

In the last 4 years I've only attended two events in my former hometown, one at the City Club in December 2006 and the other at the DKOF Christmas 2007. I saw lots of old faces at both: Nogsy, Dave Reed , Gary DeRoux, Spike, Debbie Pierce, The Donnelly brothers, Chris Cousins, Gill, Phil O'Hearn, Bully twins etc, etc. but living out here means I'm a bit removed from it to tell the truth. 'corby john' and 'stangroundsoul' on here organise well attended events at The Fleet, and there's the Right Track at the Post Office club, but I've not attended either. I do get the impression that it's a very splintered scene there though, with lots of wailing and gnashing of teeth over music policy, promotor mud slinging and the like, which is a shame of course.

I probably paid over the odds, but bugger it, I've secured a faultless copy and that's what's important.

I'll try to keep this on topic by relating a dance style and clothes worn in 1975. The all nighters at the Wirrina Peterborough in 1975 would sometimes attract African-American US servicemen from RAF Alconbury. I can remember marvelling at their dance styles which was completely different from ours, naturally. Some of them happened to be wearing kaftans and I thought at the time, jesus, those geezers must be really comfortable in those flowing garments. The music was stuff like Ann Sexton, Betty Wright, Gil Scott Heron, Bataan, World Column etc and it all seemed very exciting. They stopped coming after a few sessions, maybe phased by all those English kids blocked out of their tits giving them patronising Soul brother salutes and having to endure inexplicable records like Barnaby Bye and Cats Eyes. I digress. Back to 2010. A kaftan or a linen Kashmiri long shirt with matching strides would be most comfortable in my opinion.

I wouldn't call it slagging off Ian, it's merely expressing opinions. For example, if I see a 'city gent' in 2010 wearing a bowler and dark pinstripe, five buttons, carrying a nicely furled umbrella and a freshly ironed copy of the Torygraph, he's going to spark interest and debate if I'm with friends/colleagues. As long as the comments aren't spiteful, I don't see there's any harm in passing comment. As to whether people 'make an effort', 'look scruffy', 'look smart', 'look cool, look daft etc, etc, it's all a matter of opinions, and as the Spanish say, opinions are like colours, there's lots of them, different shades, hues etc.

Spot on Trevski. I'd rather the levis, brogues, loafers, blazers and ben shermans of the 69/70 look than the abominations of 1974/5, even though I partook. The reason they choose this particular attire probably has something to do with what they perceive as the 'peak period' of NS, sadly ignoring the straight cords, dungarees, mohair jumpers and plastic sandals, and of course, great music, of the end of that decade. There's a whole seam they could exploit there! Interestingly enough, there are people leaving disparaging comments on the Leicester Oddfellows 80s videos about 'NS loving Eastern Europeans', so I can see why they'd rather not explore that period.

Heyup big Mick, Macky here, from Peterborough, perhaps you'll remember me. :-) You and Martyn should get over to Facebook and look at Jane Stryzkalo's (formerly Osborne) pics from the Scarborough and Yarmouth 1980 scooter runs. Johnny Cockerill's on there too and has tons of photos. Some of them will make you smile, some might even make you shed a wet one. :-) Best, M

Where did that the come from in 'Northern Soul'? It's a bit like 'they play records that were popular at The Wigan Casino. The Twisted Wheel yes. The Torch yes. But The Wigan Casino? NO!!! Linguistic aberrations like this are far more sinister than dance schools in Fylde.

I'm feeling very elated after managing to acquire, after much searching, a stone mint copy of this great Pied Piper produced album. The 'dynagroove mono recording' vinyl weighs a ton and that glorious black RCA Victor label gleams like it was pressed yesterday. It's so new looking, cover included, that it raised suspicions initially. It's been on my turntable all afternoon and is proving a thoroughly enjoyable listening experience. There's everything from Doo Wop (Blue Velvet), killer Detroit Soul (Time Changes Things, Do The Pied Piper, Since I Found My Baby, Till The End Of Time) to blues romps like 'I'm In It All The Way'. It cost me 85 euros including shipping, but I think it's a privilege to own such a slice of Detroit Soul history in perfect condition. A better trained eye might be able find a few faults with it, but to me it looks almost perfect, new even. Apart from Since I found My Baby and Sweetest One, which I believe was a big hit for them, what other tracks were released on 45 off this LP?

When we were attending venues in the 70s, the fashions went hand in glove with the music. People then were very dismissive about retro scenes like the R&R scene, which was made up largely of forty five year olds hankering after an idealised Elvis pre-army era. Most of us thought they were the height of tack and legitimate targets for sometimes merciless ridicule. From what I've seen of retro scenes today, for example Rob Bailey's New Untouchables events, I can't help thinking they've got it right. They'd probably argue the point that they're a retro scene at all, but I find it quite hard to have a conversation with a 25 year old beautifully dressed like Edie Sedgwick or Peter Tork circa 1967 and not draw that conclusion. The biggest difference, and correct me if I'm wrong, between the Untouchables punters/DJs and what I see as the more regressive side of the UK Soul scene is the undeniable fact that the Untouchables crowd continually push back boundaries in their search for new sounds/grooves. Es una opinion, as they say in Spain...

Very interesting Chalky. Both writers do little to hide their distaste for 'mods and scooterists', eh? :-)

The trailer. Feel free to carp, sorry, comment. Bari track sounds awesome! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEa1ODNzv2Q

Must be an emminently exportable product. According to her news section, 'workshops' at a weekender in Rome last month went so well that she's taking bookings from the Eternal City. Isn't she the blonde that's jumping around (literally) on the O'Grady programme by the way?

Fascinating. Keep up the detective work. Those red, yellow and black designs look decidedly pervy.

I think it would probably be prudent to say 'what's up with some French record buyers', that way you don't have to 'concede an apology' at the end of the post. I wonder what US and Japanese dealers have to say about UK buyers on this question. The volume of records flowing from the UK to continental Europe and vice versa' and across the Atlantic will determine the volume of 'bad apples', surely?

Mick, the shuffler you mention is Vaughan Atkinson, I think. He was a much admired dancer back then. Think he was from Boston or Spalding.

Fabulous version. Smokey in fine voice, thankfully...

I too have a problem with the Stylistics. I just found them saccharine and contrived. Stoned In Love With You used to have me reach for the hammer and when they topped the charts with 'I Can't Give You Anything But My Love', my brother in law, who'd seen all the major 60s Soul acts at the Boston Gliderdrome, muttered something about Soul Music going down the gurgler. Looking back I can say I quite liked The Intruders, O'Jays, Harold Melvin, Billy Paul and most of the other Philly acts, but couldn't stomach this lot. Saccharone Soul I'd call it.

Has Cleo made any kind of statement? I think this guy, along with Chris Barber, was one of the earliest champions of black american music. DEP.

Fascinating. Keep it coming... I was in Olympia Washington in 1987, well after the mid 70's 'Klondike', but still managed to pick up some nice pieces for just a dollar fifty, an Yvonne Baker YDSAW 'two shields' being one of them. The owner of the store was well aware of the 'English scene' and had had visits from UK folk down from Seattle from time to time. They trawled through his bins for what he called 'obscure R&B and Blue Eyed Stuff'. I went to that store several times, coming away with about dozen records (I was backpacking) and a Lonnie Johnson 'Tomorrow Night' reissue LP, which I posted back to the UK. The early days of Internet kind of democratised record collecting, why pay people like Pat Brady or John Manship a ridiculous amount of money for something you could pick up for a few bucks? The advent of price guides and wedge-waving wants lists stopped our farting in church, sadly.

Well done Troid. An epic post. Didn't know that 'Ton Of Dynamite' was Lonnie Youngblood with Willie & The Mighty Magnificents. Dave Godin's first two releases for Right On were crackers too. A lot of people sniffed at all the stuff that became available on 'general release' through 75/76 but for many a wide-eyed 15 year old, they were his/her only affordable route to owning sounds. People didn't get sniffy over grapevine though, funnily enough.

Your havin' larf, surely.

I didn't hear Florence Devore till a good two years later, about the same time as Mary Saxton's take on BYBFBH. Can we include Johnny Vanelli on the shortlist? February 1975, to be precise. :-)