Mark Bicknell

Couple added, some further reductions...one or two nice titles to follow in between gardening, painting my fence and looking after my son...lol Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Just played this again....awesome tune, another Kent best seller on the cards no question. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

New titles will be added and prices revised later today. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Ady. I'm gonna need another copy of Danny Cobus mate....sleeper! very much woken up in 'The Bicknell' household...can't stop playing the bugger so mines worn out...lol I guess I'm one of the first to have a set of these and wow what can I say? wonderful simply wonderful, the sound reproduction, the look, the artwork, the sleeves just the dogs 'do dars' oh and the tuneage is without question so typical of The House Of Kent....simply Ace!!! get it?........I'll get me coat. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Ady, well if everyone who's hit this thread today buy's a set then they will be sold out pretty quickly....lol, someone has asked where they can purchase these? I suggested JM who had the last batch but perhaps you can point them in the right direction. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

John Manship stocked the last batch of these and I'm sure some of the leading record dealers will have them shortly.......ask Ady...lol Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Ian Clark in his prime takes some beating, early 100 Club, circa 1982/83 Brooks Brothers, Paris, Jock Mitchell, Cashmeres, Bobby Kline, Chico Lamar, Eric Mercury, Roger Hatcher and so it goes on...top man, done my nut in and cost me a fortune...lol Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Ged, the 'City' releases are well worth a punt mate, I know I keep mentioning the Tobi Lark 45 from the last batch but within a very short space of time tunes like this become almost instant collectables, you only have to look at some of The 100 Club Anniversary singles which now have that status. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Spot on comment there Chalky old son. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Awesome tune. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Perhaps the cakes are stale??? lol Regards - Mark Bicknell.

I think this pretty much answers Geoff's very valid point and question here. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

When Paul's play first opened in Manchester both Jacqui and myself went with a very open mind as we thought it may turn out to be a joke, how wrong we were, we sat there totally gob smacked from start to finish, it was a work of fiction based on 'The Casino', it was well written, well produced by someone who was actually there, it was well crafted, well acted and the sound track, story etc. were bang on, well it made us cry in places, without question this paly was by far the closest to actually document that very important time in the scenes history than anything before or since, Paul could have milked this for all it's worth with an anual production around September 23rd but he chose not to. I wrote in several publications at the time that the play was superb and will stick by my comments and observations, it was an entertaining piece of art..bugger me it was that authentic you could taste it, I think Paul used my review in a sound track CD which came out at the time. Cheers Paul - Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Good question this Simon, well they are all legit/legal first class re issues or in the case of the 'City' 45's first generation issues of up until now unissued recordings apart from being on CD format, such a shame not to play them out at the venues, however the 'Town' records are straight re issues of some pretty hard to find USA originals so I guess you do what you consider to be the right thing when out DJ'ing i.e. do you play the Kent 45 of 'The Primers' for example when x,y,z DJ could hold the authentic USA 'Hale' original?, perhaps these releases are to be enjoyed away from the venues but again it's up to you, personally I'm made up to have 'The Primers' on vinyl now but I would not play it at a gig but that's my choice, more to do with some DJ/collectors ethics than anything else, this is an old chestnut which has been thrashed out so many times over the years with mixed feelings and opinions, some say play it if it's legit, others would be firmly rooted in the first generation original only camp, again as for the unissued tracks get them played I say. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

I'm not saying that all radio stations would hold you to a playlist but the bigger picture would perhaps mean a more commercial appeal and as I say 'The Soul Shack' has always been free style with no constraints. Regards - Mark Bicknell. Ps - The Dave Greet show is going to be a blinder this coming Sunday....top tuneage selected by Dave for the two hours.

Nice tune, now here on yummy vinyl. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Top tuneage for sure Kev infact all of the latest batch are quality...simply Kent as we know it. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Ace/Kent and the talents of Mr Ady Croasdell have done it again with a new batch of wonderful 'Town' and 'City' new releases this month following up from the superb batch a few months ago. The 'Town' sides are all in demand Northern Soul tracks and have never been re-released until now, the higher priced 'City' singles are all tracks only ever available on CD or LP, never having been given a release on original vinyl when originally recorded, the 'City' singles are limited to 500 copies so be quick as you may remember 45's like Tobi Lark - True, True Love from the last batch sold out very quickly indeed making it an almost instant collectable and rightly so. The 'Town' 45's retail at £5.00 with the 'City' ones coming in at £10.00 which is superb value for money As with all Kent projects Ady is as ever on the money with this little lot, producing first generation sound quality 45's with every attention to detail followed to the letter, these babies look good, sound good and by - golly they will do you good. Check these out as soon as possible. The Imaginations - Strange Neighbourhood B/W The Diplomats - Cards On The Table - Town 127 Two tracks that still cut the mustard on the dance floors, I'm pleased about this release as I sold my Fraternity and Arock stockers of these two some time ago, a stunning double header that will soon sell out so be quick adding this beauty to your collections. The Primers - How Does It Grab You B/W Minnie Jones And The Minuettes - Shadow Of A Memory - Town 128 These two would cost you a small fortune on the original Hale and Sugar originals, well a large fortune actually (Primers at least two Grand and £400/500.00 for the Minnie Jones) Both sides of this release are sublime cult records no question and destined to be another top seller, both sides are pure quality. Sugar And Spices - Have Faith In Me B/W Brilliant Corners - Three Lonley Guys - Town 129 Again two stunning sides taken from Swan and Modern records also pretty hard to find on the originals, 'Brilliant Corners' is of course Pat Brady magic from the Stafford period which still hits the spot for me at least, 'Sugar' is an oh so sweet magic moment out of Philly and makes for a wonderful double header, now two for the price of one in every sense of the word. On to the 'City' singles now with three outstanding releases which I feel will sell out even faster than Tobi Lark etc. All I can say on the following three releases,well words fail me, simply order these now otherwise you will regret it when it's too late. Charlie Rich - Don't Tear Me Down B/W Jeanette Jones - Cut Loose - City 004 Danny Cobus - The Two Of Us B/W Chico And Buddy - You Won't Miss The Water - City 005 The Tandells - Is It Love Baby B/W The Fashionettes - Losin' Control - City 006 Again instant collectables once word is out, I'm hoping to review/preview this little lot on my final 'Soul Shack' www.solarradio.com on September 2nd, pleased to do so as I'm sure you will agree that again Mr Croasdell has done it agian....Charlie Rich LP only until now is pretty much as good as it gets for me....awesome! I suggest you message Mr Croasdell ASAP to reserve a full set of these, no hype required from me here, the titles speak for themselves....cheers uncle Ady. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

I know Dave way past my bedtime...lol still had a certain 'David Greet' here a few hours ago and just about come down from the delights in his 50 box....oh my soul!!!! Regards - Mark Bicknell.

New title added 21st August with more to follow this week. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

All I basically said was go where you want to, collect what you want to, select all the best bits jell it together, discover, learn, share it, have a good time but don't keep constantly milking certain cows of yesteryear if your not prepared to contribute to the scene as it is now! sure have an oldies event but promote it as a current event rather than on the back of the good old days, it easy to ride those heady days without any real commitment or passion for the music, old, new or otherwise? there again if 1200 people show up to a retro/nostalgia bash then thinking about it who's wrong and who's right? as I said I don't go to certain events for my own reasons but whatever floats your boat and all that and in no way was I suggesting don't go, we all have choices and our own ideas and views on what makes a good soul night out, as Mr Moore said soak it up and enjoy it whatever your tipple as long as it's authentic and is true to yourself I guess. I'm waiting on three new records this week and I can't wait to get the buggers in my sticky palm, that is a buzz that I'm sure we all share and keeps it alive and real for me the point being there are many aspects to the scene which people get off on so again really we can not judge others on how they enjoy this wonderful scene just be happy that we have a scene to still be part of and enjoy, like it's been said if you feel something is naff or not for you then simply don't subscribe to it, it's all about choice at the end of the day, I still stick by you should only get something out of all this if you put in and contribute to it and I'm not just talking about money here, more to do with the bigger picture, promoting, DJ'ing, collecting, running a fanzine, dancing and just turning up and paying your money to get in, Northern Soul in some cases/events has become a little commercial again and I think that upsets some people, making it no longer special and underground a little like the boom period of 1976/77 when it was massive, a bit like Northern Soul by numbers or based on numbers through the door and the content sometimes suffered, so I guess if you are running a huge nostalgia based event then you are still infact making a contribution as it would seem that 1200 plus people attending these type of events can't really be wrong can they? It would be nice to see however 1200 people at say the monthly current Northern events which are running now on a regular basis rather than the every so often or once a year blast from the past events but we all know that those days are gone for one reason or another. Lastly, I have some very happy memories of Wigan, Yate, St Ives, Stafford etc. etc. but from my own point of view they are just that memories which yes you can't get over to quote a certain tune by 'John And The Weirdest' but trying to go over old ground is not for me and again I'm not talking about the music or the records played I'm talking about doing this Soul thing at what ever level now in the present rather than in the past. My point is Sam Williams, George Blackwell, Ronnie McNeir, Duke Browner etc. etc. etc. sounded good then and guess what they sound as good now, so is it not the music that should be the real celebration rather than although very important where it was played? please I'm not dishing the memory of past venues I'm simply trying to put into perspective that the music is King rather than the venues, for me you could play them in a field and they would still hold that magic. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

If there is an all time low then you have to ask yourself why? one factor has to be too many Chiefs and not enough Indians? too many gigs, everything has reached close to bursting point, there are pockets of gigs that appeal to me around the country, the big retro nostalgia events are just not of interest to me but each to their own and all that if you want to go, basically there is very little or very few events today to really look forward to, there is something on every weekend, loads of gigs which are pretty similar, try to have a voice or say and do something about it in terms of change or progression and you get slagged off, voice an opinion which differs from other peoples point of view and you get slagged off for it, it seems to me in the main you have to conform to a certain formular these days and anything out side of that can be considered elitist well if that is the case then far better to do your own thing and enjoy it rather than simply going through the motions?, I think the very foundation, ethics and ethos of this scene has changed from it's original standpoint beyound recignition, has it not always been about moving forward and discovery? This comment has nothing really to do with music style or taste but we must be in the best possible postion to be able to select all the best bits from our forty plus years history alongside all the quality missing bits. I would wager that many people are bored, fed up and totally at a loss with this scene as it's been milked and basically f***ed up the arse, pulled every which way and manipulated into a very shallow version of it's former self, riding the back of the so called glory days is a lazy sad reflection of greed and personally ego fueled, I salute anyone and everyone who contributes to the current scene, promoters, DJ's, collectors etc. basically the people that put in rather than suck and bleed the scene dry who simply only have their own agenda and pockets to line. Retro/Oldies/nostalgia, our history of course is important and the very foundation of the scene but please don't abuse any of it, if you don't like something or have issues with certain aspects of the scene then simply don't involve yourself in that section of it, I've never been to x,y,z events never have never will, just continue to do my own thing as and when, collect and enjoy the music which was around before the birth of the scene and will still be there when it's finished, despite what anyone says without the music there would not be a scene in the first place so preserve it, cheerish it, hold on to it but for f*** sake please don't betray it. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Well two more shows to go and that's it folks, end of an era for me at least....lol can promise a top show this coming Sunday with my final guest Mr Dave Greet...awesome tuneage, thanks for all your kind comments, many Emails and phone calls, I have four A4 sheets of paper full of people to thank and name check on the final show going out on Sunday September 2nd so it should be a good final show. One or two people have asked me if there is going to still be Norhtern based show on the station after I finish? well I can't answer that one as I simply don't know?, what I will say is if someone does take it on then I wish them every success with it for future and please support them if there is a similar show lined up, embrace it, cheerish it and support it because when it ain't there it's simply too late. As for getting onto a major station like the BBC etc. well if I had to work to a playlist then to be honest I would sooner not bother doing it, mainstream means just that and playing Stax, Atlantic, Motown etc. as good as that music is has never been what 'The Soul Shack' has been about, it's always been free style and free from being told what to play, I went with the flow and tried to contribute something unique so going backwards just for the sake of being on radio simply does not interest me and I'm not claiming what I have done on Solar has been cutting edge far from it I've simply tried to play quality music every Sunday and think that sometimes I hit the spot. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Masqueraders now sold. List will be updated on Monday with some new titles. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Some prices reduced and list updated 19th August. Regards - Mark Bicknell.