Mark Bicknell

So that's that is it fantastic, statement issued from Northern Soul HQ all seems pretty clear to me of course this must be true and now the topic is closed. Perhaps just the start of a massive amount of shit hitting the fan, i'm sure all the points covered in this statement are correct so perhaps best it's left alone, however why does this not come directly from the horses mouth it's like some people think they are slightly above everything and everybody, still i guess when you have an empire and a successful brand you need to protect ut at all costs. I think in the next few days, infact i know there is going to be an aweful lot of postings and comments on various topics which will confirm how fucked up all this really is........ Mark Bicknell

Sorry Dan i misread BMI for BPI in your comments but still i think a different organisation to the performing rights set up. Mark Bicknell

Dan, Sorry correct me if i'm wrong here but the playing of tunes, live music etc. at a venue has nothing to do with the BPI as this is a performing rights issue and to my knowledge this is a totally different organisation, you will often see a blue sticker displayed at venues which referes to the PRS i think. The BPI is the governing body for the music industry to i understand it's paid up members only, so it's for the big fish Beatles, Stones, Madona etc. and they can't stop their recordings being ripped off so what chance has a forty year old non hit soul record...none. Good valid point shere though. Mark Bicknell.

Make a stand and make a stand i have, this is basically or partly why i've called it a day for the time being anyway, just another fucked up part of this very corrupt scene, the passion has just gone i'm affraid, all that's good about this scene has been abused. It's funny but the good guys get fucked here on this scene and the wankers do what they like, in certain areas of this scene from the top down it's spoon fed bollocks run by a few people who think they know best in certain areas at least, they all piss in the same pot and it's simply overflowing, they bootleg together, run gigs together and make out it's their's and think they control the scene but in truth they are souless dick heads who are only interested in making loads of money off the back of the original talent and other peoples dedication, commitment and passion. It stinks to be perfectly honest, how dare these people take the piss out of everyone on the scene and then want the respect, status and cudos that goes with this scene. For far too long now we have all let it go and let then do what they like, now it's time for change as this tide is very much turning, shit sticks but then it rises and i wanna be there when all this "togetherkeeping the faith" for my own ends and milking it dry ethic comes crashing down, then get it back underground where it belongs with a true following of people who care about the scene and when the shit heads fall flat on their faces let's hope they take all the bootlegs, crap, t - shirts, car stickers, clocks and all the other shite with them. How dare some of this people claim to be the market leader and brand Northern Soul it's again total bollocks, the sooner people challenge this the better so please don't insult me and present your own watered down version of what you think the scene should be. Why should i be made to feel like i am right now totally fed up with the whole sick scene and be forced to call it a day from DJ'ing well in short i refuse to be told who i can and can't work for thats insulting and believe me it goes on big time. Still better to hold your head high and go out proud rather than be a yes man to the puppet masters....... I really enjoy playing records out there and i'm pretty good at it and have always tried to do my best so i feel sorry for the hardcore people many of which have tried to talk me out of packing it in, but i would look rather silly if i changed my mind. If we can shop the bootleggers that will be a start so now it's time to join forces i think and get the job done.....i.e finally rid this scene of some of the crap going's on of late. Mark Bicknell.

We complain make a fuss, have a pop and they still bootleg whatever the f*** they like, trouble is if the person or persons behind this were named i'm pretty sure you would all be very shocked more the case of don't do as i do do as i say it's fucking wrong and i wish we could do something about it but we can't, it's really hard to stop this when they are openly on sale on the net and in well known record shops alongside the clocks,patches, t - shirts, dodgy cd's which are claimed to be legit and all the other crap that makes my skin crawl, you can't claim to be purist and a know it all then do the complete opposite, some people on this scene have double standards and are simply only interested in making as much money as they can for as little effort as possible, well another one of the many fucked up things that has fueled me to step down from it all for however long it takes to calm down. You can buy into this crap if you want as i have said before who am i to tell people how or what to collect and how to spend their own money but this is just taking the piss and basically sticking two fingers up to the rare soul scene and saying f*** it don't matter, well it does matter and if i find out who's behind them then maybe it's time to inform the MCPS/BPI and let then deal with it or on the other hand do we really care, not sure if i do anymore to be perfectly honest. Reagards - Mark Bicknell. Let's see what happens.

Hi All, If it is Judy Young yes she did used to live in Reading but i think she is now based in Cardiff South Wales, i hope this helps. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Slipped , Tripped and Fell In Love - Clarence Carter/ Ann Pebbles cause that what i do when i've drunk too much. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

My biggest clanger has to be selling Eric Mercury - Lonley Girl on Sac to George Sharpe at Stafford for £95.00 ok so i bought the thing for £75.00 and thought £20.00 was a good profit back in 1983/4. Many others have gone through my hands over the years Gene Toones Simco blue stock/ issue and The Empires Candi demo sold for £800.00 the pair back in 1988/9 still a lot of money then for two records now you could get two grand each for then perhaps more,Rotations D - 9 sold at 100 Club for £30.00, Barbara McNeir UK Tamla Demo £60.00 also at The 100 Club and many more, all part of this wonderful scene we are apart off...............................I'll get me coat! Regards - Mark Bicknell.

There that told you Brett....... clear as mud all this and do we really care ? i think not. regards - Mark Bicknell.

Lou Bond - You Shake Me Up - Brainstorm Spencer - Searchin' For Love - Midtown Two fantastic out and out NORTHERN SOUL records and cheap, never played that much but should be......... Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Hi All, I'm having major problems with this one guys, not ever done this before, even purchased Steinberg Clean - version five to record from vinyl to PC and can i work it out can i sod........ Can anyone give me a little help here????? otherwise it's gonna be an old fashioned c90 tape from me i'm affraid, there must be an easy way to do this...help! I've enjoyed all the CD's so far and really want to contribute. regards - Mark Bicknell.

I suggest you send the record back and demand a refund, the Yanks often grade totally different to us, they often think condition matters very little if it's a Northern 45, most of them just want your money and very few collect and basically don't care about the music in the first place. If you get no satisfaction inform Ebay, but they often do nothing about it, as they are also simply interested in making money.

What a question!!!!!! But for me pound for pound has to be Sam Williams - Love Slipped Through My Fingers - Tower Records........Why just awesome lyrics, a powerhouse vocal that will level a city and leave it begging for more. Regards - Mark Bicknell Ps - See you all on Saturday at THE NEW CENTURY SOUL CLUB, and i'll show you what i mean!!!!!!!!

There are two ways to break into DJ'ing on the northern scene, firstly you can do it the long and hard way, build a collection, build a reputation at local club soul nights and in time you will be invited to take the next step on the bigger stages or you can buy your way in and spend a fortune on records which often other people have made popular, this seems to be noticed by certain promoters who think you have to spend big to become a DJ and don't forget the northern DJ thing has always been a closed shop certainly almost impossible to crack or break into in the old days, possibly eaiser to do now but remember DJ's should be booked on merrit, quality of collection, entertainment value etc. ............??????? However many of this type of DJ's have come and gone over the years so perhaps the best way is to serve your time and wait until the invitation comes. As for re issue/second issues etc. being used by national or local DJ's, i can't really comment on this point but take it from someone who knows you get a lot more respect and bookings if you do it the original way, and as already mentioned there are some wonderful cheaper records to be sourced which could be played. But often the DJ's who get the bookings, respect etc. are the ones with the best records, how you judge that is difficult but if you hold what is considered to be the big heavyweight tunes then you are more likley to get more DJ bookings. It's fair to say that the likes of Mick H, Butch, Andy Dyson, Bob Hinsley, Carl Willingham, Keith Money, Mick Smith, Ady Croasdell, Roger Banks,Tim Brown, Ginger Taylor, Kenny Burrell, Soul Sam and myself ( i can include myself now as i'm stepping down now ) and several others are considered some of the top boys who spin the tunes on the scene, why? for a number of reasons two in particular either/and they are inovators of the music i.e they try and keep it fresh and move it forward and the records are without question originals whatever the value of a record. DJ'ing on this scene is very competative as often we are chasing the same or similar records, but also it's about having fun and to enjoy what you are doing. I wish you well in what you do but it takes a little luck and sometimes a huge investment not just financial but you have to invest the heart, soul and passion, have a good ear for a tune and you a half way there. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

I would think these are the only two releases but not totally sure. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Kolla and All, A big sorry but what with work commitments, solar show, 100 Club DJ visit Saturday i'm a little behind with this one so please can i have a few more days, you know it will be worth waiting for so please is this ok. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Firstly what a brilliant double sider this one is........ I first bought this record off Dave Thorley for £15.00 at an alldayer many moons ago then let it go for £25.00 in the early 80's, a big mistake one which i regreted until last year when i finally sourced my second copy for £600.00 from my good friend Dave Rivers, now Tim Brown included ' I Wanted To Tell You' on one of his Millonaires CD's and i seem to remember it being valued at a cool £1,000.00 perhaps a little high but in terms of how rare this is this price should be the selling price? 'You Said' is very much the Northern side and with a little turntable action this would i'm sure become a big tune second time round. Also check out The Four Arts - 'Who Do You Think You Are' also on Shee records out of the Bronx NYC, a beautiful looking pink label and if Nicky Soul is worth upwards of a grand then the Four Arts must be up the too, superb street corner to soul male group harmonies of the highest order. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Wendy, Drop me a quick email bicknellmark@aol.com and we can arrange something, i would gladly do you a tape of all the Sansu stuff i have, i'm not complete but have many of the good ones. Regards - Mark Bicknell

I paid £8.00 for Curly Moore eight or nine years ago, before i started playing this record it was just a nice little collectors record, pleased to see i started off a now nice top tune but i really don't think over £500.00 is a realistic price at all. Over £300.00 for Bobby Paris is a bit steep too sold a Capitol demo last year on Ebay myself for a lot less than that. It's remarkable that even over played oldies are fetching the incredible big price tickets. Nice if you still have a few nice titles in the collection. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

The High Keys - Let's Take A Chance - Verve - Flipside to Living A Lie, simply no one can sing like that and not mean every word, I've said it before that you must have lived it to sing about it with such emotion........... Regards - Mark Bicknell

Shane / Kate, It's ok guy's your be with us, we will look after you........... Looks like i'm giving up my first class train ticket and coming on the mini bus...... see you Saturday Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Oh dear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just sorting out the Wayne Gibson and Dobie Grey 45's for Saturdays main spot at The 100 Club and saw this item, seems like a few are making their way down to that there London by all means possible, sorry to Ady in advance for the original coach trip idea falling apart so i'll pay you Ady ok...lol Should be a few of us coming down by train, mini bus, push bikes etc. email me bicknellmark@aol.com or telephone 0161 330 6267 and let me know where you are all meeting up. Looking forward to it more than you know...... Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Once their gone that's it, this can/could/does happen to many records, a case of paying your money and taking your chances, does it matter how many copies there are of a good record, just means more people can have a chance of owing it! Just because copies surface this should make no difference to it's appeal, if your into buying records for any other reason than the musical enjoyment and pleasure then best off collecting stamps me thinks.......... Does this mean if there are only one or two copies of a desired tune owned by a couple of DJ/collectors and it suddenly turns up in quantity then they don't like it anymore because it's no longer exclusive? Dream Team, Danny Moore etc. etc. Still the same tune, still the emotion, so what changes, nothing that's what. As long as the selling price is reflected with a multi copy find and not still sold at it's original ultra rare price tag then there is no problem, it's when they are sold a top price that this issue becomes a little cloudy. Regards - Mark Bicknell

'Keep The Faith' springs to mind here, i agree with the above comments, it was far too long and made the artists look foolish, it would have been far better to use original footage which is out there cut with straight interviews with artists, perhaps when you take a step back and look at the huge ego behind this project it's no wonder this possible epic turned out at best a very average 'B' flick. So far there has been no TV/Film coverage thats ever really come close to the real story, far too much on 'The Keep The Faith' ethic and not enough depth on the fundimental importance of the people who made the music in the first place, instead the focus is often on baggie trousers, the 1970's, drugs, three before eight and all the other watered down aspects to this otherwise unique scene. The only way we are ever going to 'tell it like it is' is to commission an independant proffessional film maker with the guidence of people connected with the scene and tell our story our way, 'The Strange World Of Northern Soul' had the chance to do this but i feel it failed by miles, a shame but fact. Yes there are very good parts and if your prepared to watch the re recorded nightmare then it's worth a look, as for the comments 'Johhny' made regarding the high cost of licencing original tracks perhaps it would have been better to have included a backing track of a few tunes to give the flava then at least it would have been authentic, i'm sure if the film maker had have contacted some of the re issue labels then a reasonable deal could have been struck. But again ego and i know better would have been the issue here. Still whats done is done and maybe in time we will look back on this package and reflect and say at least he had a go, for that you can't fault him as no one else so far has attempted to do this, so really do we have the right to down his efforts..... Just to say it could have had more impact and importance if it had been shorter by a third, more detailed on certain clubs etc. When this was first screened a few years ago in Blackburn, the antisipation was vast but as the day went on and the hours rolled by people there became restless and their attention was gone,loud cheers and thunderess claps at he start of the day were replaced by polite auidence partisipation towards the end, infact most people just wanted the gig to start so they could get down and party to authentic tunes, i went away with a headache and just wanted to get home and i've never seen it since. Still i guess the only way to judge this is to have a look yourself, it's still available and i'm sure it's sold well, as with most Northern related products Soul fans will invest in such things but it would be interesting to know how everyone rated this one. 6 out of 10 for effort and having the balls to tackle such an imotive subject. Regards - Mark Bicknell.

Kolla, This sounds cool to me, are we sticking to this non CD tracks only i.e only taking from original 45's format or are we going for just as much quality and variation as possible? I wanna play by the rules here but also want to put together a corking CD. Regards - Mark Bicknell