Len

Hang on a minute, this guy is in his 30’s and has 20 years on you - What the devil were you doing at an All-nighter at the age of Ten?!!! Kev Roberts - I hope you let this poor lad in for half price! Keep on dancing Sonny All the best, Len

Sometimes people forget how good records are after they've had their 'hit' (as in acquiring it) But after a while, hearing it again (as in this case) they are reminded how good it is. I think......."I'm terribly sorry, but on hearing it again it's made me change my mind. I will try and get another one for you though"......may have been a nicer way to put it - In his defence, he may have 'panicked' a little All the best, Len

Ref the sound - I often hear people say…..”It was fine when we set up”…..When a venue fills with people (or cushions) all needs turning up to compensate. When the kit is at that stage it should be nowhere near its’ maximum - if it is, the sound will obviously be distorted. I wasn’t happy with the in house equipment at ‘Lennys’, so we ‘lugged’ all our kit up there, set it up, and were still not happy. We then plugged our kit into their ‘surround sound’ speakers, and I could not believe the huge difference - It sounded fantastic in comparison to just one speaker on either side of the stage. This and ‘the darkness’ are so important…….The D.J’s are next down the line! All the best, Len

Darkness rules! One night I arrived at ‘Soul in the Bowl’ (Rushden) only to find that ‘The Den’ had been decorated - all the walls painted white!!! Worse still, they had taken down all the blinds to do so……”Oh, they took them down to decorate”…..Grrrrr - I was f*ckin’ livid!.......I then clocked that the lights from the car park were shining through the windows, lighting up my ‘Dark Den’ even more, so I got a screw driver and went outside to dismantle them. Me not being an electrician got the shock of my life - literally! It went straight through me, I fell to the ground, and snapped the plastic chair I was standing on clean in half! (and it blo*dy hurt!) That is how strongly I feel about ‘THE DARKNESS!' True story. Len

Halle’f*ckin’luiah! - I thought it was just me (Oh, and Mick Lyons) You should never be able to see the other side of a dance floor - If ya can, the atmos lacks! I understand the health and safety pain in the *rse angle, but sometimes it’s venues' managers that don’t understand, and prefer it lighter to make their job easier. I remember at the first venue I promoted - Much to the bemusement of the management, I rolled up bin bags and stuck them to the bright strip lights behind the bar - It made ALL the difference………ahem, until they got too hot We don’t want a Tea Dance - We want dingy! All the best, Len (The Prince Of Darkness wasn't it Joan?) P.s - I think it’s great when (after an event) someone says…....”I didn’t realise you were there!”…....

I only knew you as 'Pikeys Dog' and always enjoyed your input on here - You came across as a lovely fella. RIP Joe. Len.

It's puzzling though. If someone asks for a want, someone sends them a message that they have the record they want, then gets no answer - It must be annoying, especially if it is your business. There is worse things in life I grant ya (Pete) Len

It’s not much of one, but in people’s defence with ref to replying generally (no excuse if asking for a record and someone has taken the trouble to contact you - Even if you managed to get the record from another source) Some people are made of different stuff - They’ll read a message and think to themselves…...”I’ll reply later”……then simply forget. This is something I personally can’t get my head round because I am someone that always ‘reacts’ (replies) Absolutely out of common courtesy, but also that I always feel the need to deal with things straight away. Most people generally reply, some take their time, and the ones that don’t get round to replying don’t actually mean anything personal by it (Although still drives me insane on the rare occasion that it does happen) It’s the world we live in Len

Tastes change over time. I was actually surprised there was so much modern sounding stuff in there, and remember thinking it was a bit of a rip off! I didn't like anything that remotely sounded Modern back then - I do now All the best, Len

I know it, but think I'll be breaking 'The Northern Soul Rules' if I name it - so shant! Len P.s - I couldn't say if it's rare or not though.

Bought mine from Soul Bowl, and still have a shelf load to go through ('again again'!) As times have changed I am forever finding 'new' stuff in there. I remember sorting out a load of 'modern sh*te' (or so I thought at the time) into a plastic carrier bag to give away, this plastic bag went to Tony Parker, then on to Dave Vanner, then Cliff Steele, and back to me with about half gone........Gawd only knows what my 'poison' was their 'meat' back then - I don't wanna know either! Pretty sure most on that shelf is still rubbish, but I do love 'wading' through every so often - It's strange, some sound so good after a nighter.......and back on that shelf they go by Wednesday Soul Packs - Great memories Len

Beautiful record Len

That would be Crossover. Confused? We will be! Len

Yes I do apologise! Len

You don't need to use the word 'confess' - Or do any homework! The whole point is that there are so many tunes out there that are new to so many people - 'Up-front' meaning 'New' It's all healthy ..........Oh, and should be fun (If any of you 'out there' need reminding) Len

Hi mate, Yes the ‘ostentatiously’ named ‘Lennys’ was my club (Named ‘tongue in cheek’ as people that know me are well aware of) It’s now finished due to other commitments (The last night being a great success btw) The rest of your post clarifies my point again. To answer the thread starter - No, there are no classic Up-front tunes (In my opinion), because as soon as they become ‘classic’, they cease to be ‘Up-front’…….You said you don’t hear many from that list on your travels, so presuming you don’t know them all, this makes them Up-front to you. John insinuated that the Mid-tempo tunes I champion are ‘good ole oldies’, which (to be fair to John) to some people they are. But a lot of people I have D.Jed to don’t know all the tunes I play (so are Up-front to them) I think I prefer the word ‘New’ - It’s so much simpler! If interested, this the link to the last ‘Lennys’ event To me, the comments about the music say ‘Up-front’ (in comparison to a Classic Oldies night) SKEGSOUL last post states that they played two ‘first plays’. I hope that helps! Len

Was he now John? Below is Brian’s play list from ‘Lennys’ - I’m sure Brian would absolutely agree that there is nothing on there that is ‘Up Front’, they are all pretty well known, well excepted, good tracks (‘good ole oldies’) He didn’t play anything that is ‘Up Front’. You may have not known some, so that would make them ‘Up Front’ to you (as has been discussed), and this is the point I've been trying to make. This is ‘Up Front’ John - Something Brian has been championing for a while (including reviewing it) St. Paul & The Broken Bones - Half the City Album https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5LQat9_f5U Brian Goucher’s set from ‘Lennys’ (31st Jan 2015) A great set of records - It would be interesting to know how many of you know most of the tracks. Will Hatcher “You haven’t seen nothing yet” Checkmates Ltd “All alone by the telephone” Ballads “Butterfli” (Balja) Masters of Soul “Do you really love me” Clay Brown “Why you want to change” Walter Jackson “It will be the last time” James Wayne & The Soul Soothers “I found someone” Soul Serenaders “Gotta hold onto my baby” Freddie South “Set me free (to love my woman) Fabulous Playmates “Don’t turn your back on me” LIoyd Williams “In love with you” Kelly & the Soul Explosions “Talking about my baby’s love” Essex IV “My heart just can’t take it” Rance Allen Group “I know a man who” Johnny Cole & The Mondells “No Love” James Brown “People wake up and live” Maybe we should all stop complicating things - and just play some Northern Soul! All the best, Len

Yeh a lot of it does suck - You wanna hear some of the stuff Brian Goucher forces me to listen to! It's just the way I remember All-nighters at a great time for the Scene. At Winsford for instance, I always enjoyed popping into the Modern room (ran by Gavin Page) staying a while, thinking....."Mmmmm, not really for me"......then wandering back to the main room - It broke the night up But these Modern Rooms were 'kicking', and seemed to bring a different crowd to the event (some cool people) ..........Not sure if there's a call for these rooms now though - The 'Modern People' will know. Len

No - The main rooms to be SOUL music, and the Modern Rooms to be run by Gavin Page, supported by Steve G ('cause I think he knows about that 'stuff'), Adam, Brian Goucher, and Cliff Steele. Ok Len P.s - and guests

I see, and has that advantage of separate promoting of course - I'm not for one moment putting Pow Wow (Or any other second room) down, I know it is very popular All the best, Len P.s - It took me a while to reply, I've just been thinking about it that's all, and of I course wouldn't want to offend promoters that work really hard - All good promoters are open to constructive criticism, and don't take it personally (even if they disagree with someone)

That’s a very bold statement. I understand that is your opinion - I like Life-line, and support what they do there, but saying things like they are better than the others by a mile can come across as a tad disrespectful to all the other All-nighters (I don’t think that was your intension though) Maybe to rephrase it - “The Life-line All-nighter is my favourite All-nighter in the country by a mile” We all know Terry ‘shouts from the roof tops’ with ref The Burnley All-nighter (getting behind an event that he strongly believes in) Great, but I’ve never once heard him say it is the best - The last thing I read of his on the subject was…..”My favourite Nighter” Most events have good and bad points differentiating between people; this is me (on just a handful I have been to) Life-line - I like their music policy, but I like second rooms to be Modern Rooms. Burnley - I enjoyed my trips there for the atmosphere / before you know it, the end of the night arrives - BANG! But I do prefer my lullaby’s to be in there somewhere (It saves me coming out the other end like a ‘Husk’) Rugby - A great venue, and nice people behind it (Too friendly if anything) Again I like second rooms to be a Modern Room. If we were to use the wording ‘by a mile’, I think most would agree that The 100 Club is the most respected All-nighter in the country 'by a mile’ Ref the thread subject - When I was out this weekend, I picked up a leaflet for The Stateside Soul Club All-nighter (24th May), and do you know what struck me? It was the simple title ‘100% Soul All-nighter’ (Back to basics) I like that. All the best, Len P.s - My take on Second rooms being modern rooms comes from my times in the 90’s - I like all the tunes to be in the main room, and I don’t see why some should only have an airing tucked away to the side (Whatever style)

Yeh that's what I meant A place that tries to be creative......"taking a risk"........'Risk' is the word - But please think (listen properly) before taking that 'risk', because sometimes a damn good Oldie is um.........'Damn Good'!!! Len

Don't be sorry mate - The whole thing is now hilarious (I was trying to give a serious answer to a serious question on very serious matter) As Phil says above, I think we can all agree it so isn't Cool anymore - Cool is for young people (Maybe The 100 Club has a bit of that 'Cool' still) That said, it shouldn't stop any of us enjoying 'not being cool', and talking utter shite for years to come - It's the way backwards! I still plan on 'doing it' for quite some time, before I become a 'Gin Stroker' at home (I'm looking straight at you Jocko on Arthurs' behalf) All the best, Len

Up Front is a description of a venue where most of the people in the place wouldn’t know a noticeable amount of the records - There is of course Good Up Front records, and Bad Up Front records (Individual taste) My event last Sat night was just this (Most, if not all the people there not knowing half the records) BUT if I was to list them all, Chalky (or whoever) could immediately come on here saying most had been done (I don’t deny that) But it was a cracking fresh night (This isn’t a plug for the venue btw - It’s now finished) So my understanding of Up Front, is somewhere that plays a large percentage of tunes that you most probably won’t know (or remember) in comparison to an Oldies night. ‘Up Front’ for some can be ‘Old Hat’ to others (but not many others) I like ‘Up Hat’ - JUST GOOD SOUL MUSIC! All the best, Len

SOLD! See ya Sat bite Len