Davenpete

Don't know his name (he was a Londoner), anyway he was not 'one of ours' - as for hear about it - it's coz I was there back stage after their performance talking to the git and yes I DO know it was their standard set more or less, but by all accounts (as noted above) they had intended to tailor it to the crowd and were disuaded by this guy.

Freddie was awkward all weekend - and didn't even mix with the rest of the group, who are the nicest people you could meet.

Dx

Dells at Trentham Gardens. Awesome show.

Should have been SO much better - some dickhead had got to them prior to the show and told them NOT to do their up tempo stuff which is why they didn't perform a lot of the stuff that you'd expect at a northern event (which I understand they had intended to build into their show more than usual) - he was boasting about how he was ensuring us philistines got to hear 'proper' soul music back stage later on (and I don't care WHO you are - you were STILL a dickhead for persuading them not to perform the stuff the crowd wanted).

Best live performance BY FAR I ever saw was Ray Pollard on the Tuesday at the 100 Club first time he came over (much better than the Great Yarmouth weekender the following weekend) - SUCH a lovely unassuming guy, no showmanship, just pottered on stage, opened his mouth and out it came - staggering.

The Originals were fabulous and incredibly well rehearsed - Terry and Hank Dixon have such stunning voices (Terry sang us a lullabye she wrote for her son later on - she has the most exquisite crystal clear voice) - though Freddy Gorman was an arrogant git and his wife Doddi is a pig.

Dx

Matrix Stamped - Bellsound or Frankford Wayne I think, I forget - on the reverse side only to 'The Age of The Wolf'- label looks fairly obvious too (similar to the real Sandbag label as oppose to the glossy typical boot style label).

Dx

Instrumentals, yep mad 4 em! just bought my favourite one last year Walkin the Duck by the Triumphs on Verve Demo, great.Tune up Jnr Walker on Tamla Motown, now that cost me. There is so many to get, like to buy them on demo if pocket allows. KTF

Tez

Buy 'Can't Get Over Losing Your Love' by the Audio Arts Strings, and the fabulous 'Let's Have a Love In' by the Wingate Strings - both cheap as it gets and the best of the lot.

Dx

Sam Butera version of Rat Race is a cracker.

Earl Van Dyke - suprised Soul Stomp hasn't been mentioned, plus of course 'Can't Get Over Losing Your Love' by the Audio Arts Strings, and the fabulous 'Let's Have a Love In' by the Wingate Strings.

Harlem Train by Dick Leslie is one I wish I hadn't flogged - I notice True Patron of the Arts seems to be popping up at the mo - paid about 4p for my demo.

Used to have the dodgy Sweet Talking Guy inst from Wigan on EMI - quite like it in a sicko sort of way - also the daft, but compelling pop crap 'Dizzy' by Lester Lanin (course since Duraphet M became a distant memory it doesn't sound mid tempo any more)

Still have shed loads of instrumental coz I was collecting them in the days when they were seriously out of fashion (late 80s) and mondo cheapo - except of course it meant you got the piss taken out of you big style (even though I flogged the pricier ones like Frank Foster and the like a few years ago - ironically it's left me with the best stuff IMO).

Dx

Their version of 'Save My Love For A Rainy Day' is another cracker - though 'You + Me = Love' is as good as it gets of its type (and is my fav by them).

Dx

Pete Widderson did it - I bought a copy off him at Morecambe Rally in 84 or 85 (the first one at Heysham anyway) before the covers had arrived from the printers - still have it somewhere.

Dave Carne

I assume this is the same group that recorded 'That's What Love Can Do' - were they also the Softones of the Softones/First Class 'Candy' fame?

Dx

Keith Minshull ran it - went there two or three times (with Kenny Sway/Geeslad and/or Vince Ayers I seem to remember) - one occasion was Keith's birthday bash.

Dx

It strikes me that given the level of attendance a very good purely commercial argument (all they're likely to listen to) could be made for retaining the cellars.

Dave

600 people stuffed in a cellar , surely we have moved on from that sort of thing and have higher expectations for our " door tax "

That's what makes a 'proper' club club special - everyone bouncing off each other - atmosphere etc - I HATE lowest common denominator/mass herding instinct events... nice decor and a chicken in a basket caf area is for tossers and surely just NOT what it's really about (grit, excitement, passion, shared empathy etc)... Unfortunately I would say that the modern Wheel revivals can often be just one youth club spin after another with none of the sounds that made the Wheel unique and special amongst the clubs of the period (much to the annoyance of Pete and the other old timers I go with when I do go to it nowadays).

The old revivals Brian ran were the exact opposite in every way and were f*cking excellent - never missed one if I could help it.

Anyway it'll be a very sad day to see it finally go if and when it does.

Dx

PS As for the 'I went ONCE, but 600 nah' one of the nights when ALL the rooms of Placemate 7 were open had over 800 and it was VERY VERY full.

Was woken up to Brenda singing 'When I'm Gone' to herself in our bathroom when she stayed at our old place.

Dx

Dave Godin and I had some long and interesting discussions about similar or shared experiences or understandings between gay people and black people - and their shared attraction to soul music.

Les Cokell once told me that on SOME nights at the Wheel there was SUCH a high proportion of gay (god I hate that term) blokes that today it would be considered a gay club, as it happens Zan made a similar comment last time we were out with him.

I strongly agree with the comments Dave made - and indeed had similar discussions myself with him in his later years when I got to know him, similarly I draw a connection between those who are Jewish and soul (the old Blackpool Cyberman himself being a prime example).

Whilst we've never been huge in number, we've ALWAYS been on the scene and in perhaps larger numbers than you breeders may be aware of - though of course NS is basically an egalitarian scene where it SHOULDN'T matter either way.

Dave

PS Though long before my time - the area around Canal Street has been 'gay' for a long time - way back before the Wheel was there.

I would point out that he used to DJ for the International Soul Club events that Kev used to do in Coventry.

As far as I was aware he's never done anything but heap praise on Motown and Soul in general - unlike so many UK pop artists/producers others who've just ripped it off wholesale and never given credit - why all the scoffing?

Dx

I dunno, Rob Messer dancing on top of a mountain in Peru and singing "Ain't no mountain high enough" has something unusual about it...

More like 'Mod on a Mountain Top'. The girl looks like my cousin who as it happens is a conservator at the Natural History Museum - though she's not one of our's.

Dx

1971 Dave Godin visits the Twisted Wheel, and writes a coulmn piece in Blues and Soul magazine.

Er... it closed January 30 1971 (the boss was there).

How about theft of the Wheel collection resulting in the involvement of collectors in DJing and a resultant move towards more obscure imports etc and a rapid development in 'the sound'.

Dx

PS Russ the move to Whitworth street was 66

Carl Carlton knocks spots off this. RSARSE?

Craig Westwood and Gary Warmsley

well said my friend

Vince whatever happened to jacking in collecting - you're a bad man

Hope you're well

Dave

Watch the bleedin film.

Dx

I suppose this is more or less the right place for this porridge brained ramble today - and I'm sure it's been said before but...

Having received a copy of the Soulboy DVD as a 'special birthday treat' from little brother I finally got round to watching it about 4.00am this morning (note to self - remember that unlike yer usual fry up weekend an evening do on a Sunday does NOT provide 24 hours to achieve a vague semblance of normality ready for work on Monday).

Amazing! Music set 'feel', period, actual records included - all wrong for the ostensive year (and not simply in detail - it just WASN'T anything like right) - after several replayings and rantings by the Boss we discovered Double Cooking burbling in the background that must've come on by accident from Tunstall Hospital Radio on the old radio that was scene dressing during the 'please cut my hair so it looks like it will do in 5 years time please, give us a snog' scene... Kev surely you've got licence option on about £50 worth of licensable material from the KTel (seriously) vaults that'd been more representative of the supposed period... Alarm bells rang when I saw 'specially recorded original Northern Soul soundtrack' flash on the cover, should've said 'ill-advised investment of limited budget on inexplicable own goal'... Then out of dazzling glare of the gloom beneath the 'Wigan' balcony Jimmy Radliffe and 'The Black Ship From Hell'?... Were there subliminal messages being sent out there?

Dancing patchy of course (why not just pick out some of our lot and get the makeup artists to nip down B&Q for polyfilla) - what was weird was that the floor moved just completely wrong as a whole - I guess the extras must've been filled out with show kids from Yvette Pottie's Five Towns Academy for the Performing Arts (and Launderette). Loved the Rambo style dance off - they must've got confused when they saw those bits about kick boxing champions in past Northern TV documentaries.

...The whole thing felt like a strange sort of 'legendary gritty realist dramatists triumph again with new Grange Hill spinoff 'Zammo Goes Casino Crazy for Piped Vests and Barm Cakes' - no doubt much lorded amongst Guardian and Independent Arts Critics for it's uncompromising portrayal of a young girl choking to death whilst trying to swallow giant black and whites on the dancefloor ('they MAY have been 4 times the size of a red and brown, but for all the good they did me I might as well have stuck them up me arse' - no change there then) ... A later-day Boys from the Black Stuff for the 3 Day Week Generation - only with big trousers, no tarmac and Les 'The Ginger Harry Green' Battersby.

Must admit though you have to give the young production team their due - I never thought that the BBC's Wigan Casino Play for Today from the late 80s would EVER be out-dafted- at least THAT was darker inside than Shotts at 4.00am in mid summer... Though you know I DO have to say that it's not until you hear oldies that've not been played for 25 years-plus that you're reminded just HOW good they were - and remember that as a group they recorded so many more great storming cuts that are so much less well known than Tiger Feet - which appeared to be the key theme track that tied the whole package together.

'Music consultant Keb Darge' - you NAUGHTY man.

Still towards the end it was lovely to see everyone's favourite (especially mine) dancefloor sprinkler system - Graham from Cheltenham - a west country diamond amongst the taffs.

Dave 'I hope my head's less potted when the clients role up this afternoon' Carne

PS What goes around comes around - did anyone notice the 'With the Support of the Stoke City Cultural Heritage Fund' credit? Do you reckon anyone can persuade the West Yorkshire Police Community Liaison Team to put on a Charity Northern Soul Gala Dinner and Evidence Planting Dance in aid of the Queens Hall Allnigthter World Heritage Site Campaign Committee (incorporating Crofty's Echoes Bankrupcy Memorial Garden and Paul Philips Heritage Trail project).

.. .One last thing - promise - once again a VERY happy 60th to that finest TRUE gentlemen - Mr Sneddon - from both me and the boss.

the snake is one one of those hated records at home/club...but in a remote place you love it really...do soulies boycott lambrini because of it ..??????do they check sales against promo records ??how many soulies bought more kat food on the strenght of the felix the cat ad .....keith

I for one haven't eaten cat food of any description since I saw those ads, despite the fact it tastes much better than Lambrini.

Dave

That's exactly what it is - simply MG speeded up - remember it coming out, it was pretty well known that was what had been done with the release (probably got one kicking around somewhere myself).

Dave

Looking at this I'm amazed!!! Seems to me Funkaddict is giving a quite reasonable 'be a bit wary' heads up and all he seems to have received is abuse!

FA says clearly he knows the guy doesn't own any of the records.

I've seen similar warnings from dealers on this site about other ebayers etc with no more proven justification than FA has supplied (which seems pretty damn well reasoned to me) and yet they aren't bombarded with suggestions that their post is sower grapes or a sneaky way of knocking out the bidding competition.

On face value FA seems to have been trying hard to be helpful... And I now see from the last postings that the aforementioned suggested hooky ebayer has turned out to be exaclty that - are we now gonna see apologies delivered to FF with equal gusto?

Dave

CDs give you warts.

Dave