Russ Vickers

Get another venue. I'm staggered anyone would compromise there musical integrity in this way. May I ask is this for a Soul Night or for a wedding or other such function ?. Best Russ

I was out last night relatively locally & I thought the balance of music played was brilliant, at times the dance floor thinned to records that might not be as familiar to some, but everybody just got on with it, no winging from anyone....tom me this is what nights should be about. Best Russ

What a fantastic post, I'm so pleased that Sean is able to be the mitigator here & has managed to perfectly encapsulate everything. I personally am very happy with my little bit of the scene, I would never have to post on threads like this if everyone was as tolerent of each other as we should be, in my defence I would only normally comment if I feel I have to defend my believes. Am now off on my travels for tonites soulful adventure....were ever your soulin' have fun. Best Russ

Im really sorry if I misunderstood your original post Martin, but agree with everything you say in the above post, thank you for taking the trouble to explain mate. Best Russ

Jennette £10 tune for years n years Dottie & Millie £15 in nearly every box ya looked at Oliver Christian - Unsatisfied Man x 3 copies $5 the three, kept one, traded one, sold one for £350 + 1984 Love Machine - 15 count box was about $50 - covered up & sold extra copies for £150 a pop My Johnny Praye which I have since Butch had it covered, was a trade for three records I found in the US cheap. Im not blowing my own trumpet, cos in the words of Chris n Shifty - Im the worst record finder in NATO, I'm giving examples of how you can find good records & how you can generate income for records, buy cheap, sell for more, invest in you collection, but it doesnt just happen, you have to work hard, the best diggers have the best collections IMHO. This stuff is schoolboy stuff, the bread n butter of every collector in the world....DJ's who do not DJ from original format are lazy or dont give a f*ck, but they'll tell you any old story to justify it & you lap it up & defend em....tragic. Best Russ

Its friggin insane, some of the comments in this thread are down right mental & just shows how little appreciation is given to the guys n gals that constantly dig for tunes old & new, many on a shoestring....people have more money now than back in the golden days of the scene & it was probably more difficult to find records, no access to internet US etc....its the diggin & the hours/days/years you spend finding the tunes.....you had to be passionate, dedicated & canny. I find it unbeleivable that someone can say its all about money....thats total bollox & shows the total ignorance of some of the people involved in this debate....there are folk who were potless, saved every penny for a trip to the US, got the Greyhound every where for gods sake to save money, blah, blah, blah....if you aint got the tenacity needed to get the tunes, then dont DJ....thats the point not everyone has to be a DJ, if you dont have the tackle, tough, dont bother.... Best Russ

Trust me, you'll be f*ckin rolling in it....anyone can do it & does...I would suggest Russ Winstanleys Soul Suvivor CD's, illegally download them, put them on loop from ya laptop, find some old social club or hall....kerchiiiiiinnnnggg !!!....if your in the right area, it'll be like taking candy from a baby lol. Your justifying it by suggesting these records dont get played every week some where up n down the country, sorry nice try but not true, invest ya money in supporting a venue that does play these things already. Best Russ

Using your criteria, we'll never here another uknown record again...c'mon listen to your self. BTW the top 500 arnt sh*t particularly, I enjoy most as much as the next man, but I dont want to hear em every Saturday night for the rest of my life, I want to hear a varied set of music, played from original format that encompasses everything, including some unknowns/current floorpackers & yes, some classic oldies too. There seems to be a mis representation of people who enjoy listening to varied sets, but of course that is deleberate, cos you couldnt agree now could you. Every single 'legendary' DJ worth thier salt has played sets that push new sounds including the current top Dj's Butch, Ady Croasdell, Andy Dyson, Mick H, Soul Sam, Keith Money, Cliff Steel, Dave Abbott, Des Parker, Joel Maslin, Carl Fortnum & many more.....are they all wrong....no, the debate here on the whole is about local yokel soul nights, in my opinion theyre great for the locals, play what you want on what ever format, so long as its clear, but dont force your opinions on the rest of the scene as being the norm, cos it aint, you may be able to shout the loudest cos at present your in the majority, but what comes around etc.....the returness, tourists & wannabees will disappear again when it suits them, the proper scene now is made up from a very small number of people who still KTF, the scene was alive & well in the 8ts when many took thier break, something a lot try to deny or ignore & it will continue to thrive when the hangers on have all buggered off again, taking thier opinions with them. Enjoy your moment in the sun, the scene will be around long after we have gone... Best Russ

To be honest I dont think I could ever give this life up, even if I wanted to, but it gets sooo frustrating when you constantly feel battered into submission from ill informed people. I am not the oracle, none of us are or could be, Im not suggesting I know everything, I dont & never will, but there are certain aspects of the scene that are being white washed over. Am i wrong that through out the history of the NS Scene, the playing of original vinyl by DJ's has been the normal thing ?, there are cases were dubs, EMI Discs, carvers have been played, for the purpose of breaking rare or unissued records, but this is not the norm, where records are available, regardless or whether £5 or £1500 they should be played from the original format, if you havnt found one yet, or you cant afford or even after diggin for the said record still havnt got lucky, play something else you have & believe in instead. Have I got this all wrong, if I have then I apologise profusely...I really am getting confused as to whether I have made this up, such is the weight of opinion against what I thought was just an accepted practice on the NS Scene & has been since its inception... This really is a serious question, have I got this wrong... On the subject of emptying dancefloors, no one deliberatly wants to do this, but occasionally it will happen if you are trying to break new records, its always happened....again, have I imagined all of this, Im not being faeciceous, Im deadly serious, can someone else pse confirm what I thought was the absolute norm...Im struggling to understand why I feel I may be living in my own world with what might be my own set of values & understandings of how I thought this all worked... I thought this was how things were & that everyone else felt the same, until maybe 10 years ago & more recently when comments on forums infer that is not the case ?????. Frustrated, puzzled & a little bewildered....... Russ

Post deleted. Sorry, but deleted my reply to Krissi B as Its pointless to even try to communicate, if this is what we have come to Im seriously considering calling it a day...totally deluded, I wont say anything more as like I say pointless, I have only written this really because SS is used as a point of reference by many younger folk or people who are interested in the history of the NS in general & you cant leave comments like the last few posts from Krissi up without letting these people know that on the whole, love of the music apart, its fantasy. Deep contemplation today on whethter it really is worth trying to continue to fight to keep the integrity of this once wonderful scene, it gets challenging the continuing onslaught of complete bollox is never ending....over & out. Russ

See post 150. Money has got nothing to do with it, original 'format' & good taste has, you aint got the tackle, dont attempt the job, my 'version' of history is the correct/true one, wannabes tend to make thier own versions up to explain why they aint got the records or play bootlegs or reissues. I've spent most of my life travelling what now must be hundreds of hours to dance Allnight in the North of England & all over the UK & the more recently the continent, my nearest Allnighter is 2 hours away, how many in the Northern mill towns would travel further than the end of the road these days ?. Some silly format rule, as you so naively say, was not imposed by a minority recently, its a code that the vast majority have lived by for well over 30 years, I think you'll find that the wannabe returnees starting making thier own rules up, not visa versa....your entitled to your opinions & I respect that whole heartedly, but DO NOT incorrectly rewrite history.

The actual point of the scene/DJ is to promote unknown/underplayed soulful dance music. This should be done in a sensible/proffessional manner, mixed in with current floorfillers, both old & new. Once again I find it incredible that this debate is even happening....I thought it was your 'duty' as a DJ to introduce new sounds, not only to keep the scene fresh & exciting, but to create an identity/sound as a DJ or promoter. Any f*cker with a few quid or no scruples with regard to re issues or boots can shackle a top oldies set together that will fill a dance floor, the art of the DJ is to keep the floor reasonably busy, but not just to entertain, there is also an element of education too....... your not at your local disco for gods sake, if you go to a NS venue its what you should expect. Monster classic oldies cleared dance floors in some cases when first played, the DJ's you guys hold up as legendary where the DJ's doin this....whats changed is YOU. Best Russ

Taking sensible offers on unsold items. Just PM me, Im easy to deal with, but no chancers pse. Best Russ

Crackin tune, would have this myself if I hadnt spent my record funds for the foreseeable future....never fails to drag me on the dance floor... Best Russ

Yeah, you always see ya top DJ's polling the floor..... Best Russ

Willie White - Nobody Likes Me - Gold Soul EX £175.00 - Top Detroit Dancer with unknown flip (?) Paypal + 4% or Bank Transfer. Postage Extra. Best Russ

Post removed, as it even offended me. Russ

Thanks Bob, I think for International Dance DJ's this is a great tool, as apart from anything else, it saves having to travel with all that Vinyl. Best Russ

Yes I friggin do......n that is my point & why it makes my blood boil when people make light of it....its an old hat thread to some extent & maybe Im too long in the tooth to be getting wound up over it all over again, but if we ignore it people will thing its all ok, thats why I always bite !!!... Best Russ

Hey Bob, what is Serato pse. Thx Russ

There is nothing wrong with listening to any format you wish to at home, in the car or where ever. If you DJ POP down your local pub or are a wedding DJ, who cares, but if you wanna DJ on a serious music scene, based on years of collecting, diggin, wheeling, dealin & generally making serious life style decisions to ensure your on top of your game, you play from original format of release. The debate is ridiculous, its non existent, why people constantly try to argue that its ok is totally beyond me, its just another way to jump on the NS DJ/Promoter gravy train, but without atually having the tools to do it....the folk that agree are not part of any real scene anyway, there attitude proves that & the fact that we then reach the position where the ones who shout loudest are right does not actually make them right.......... You can say, think or do what you like to desperately justify why you wanna be a fake NS DJ, you can get your mates or others to endorse it, in the vain hope it will bring some semblence of authenticity, you might even get deluded individuals on SS posting in support....but hey if your not DJing from original format your a fake wannabe, an absolute fake, leave it to the folk who have the tackle

The Wheel no doubt....over & out....have every respect for your great contributions on SS but strongly disagree with your opinions on this subject, so will not pursue it any further....BTW the comment was not snide, it was a question, which you answered, but pretty much as I thought from your reply. Russ

Crazy it might be to you, but its what the original scene was built around, so your either the real deal or your not, simple really. I personally will never knowinngly attend an event that aint playing music from the original format of release. Its folk like you Roburt that dont actually attend events (?) & constantly add fuel to the fire with your comments, that encourage others to follow the 'dont give a sh*t attitude' when it comes to doin the right thing....go Google that & cut n paste an answer . Best Russ

Wanted: Stanton T92 USB Deck. Used in Excellent con, full working order, with all components. Pse PM with price & con, inc postage. Can do immediate money transfer from bank. Could pick up, but Hampshire area only other wise will need to be delivered. Other makes considered, but must be a similar specification. Best Russ

Whilst I respectfully take your comments onboard & agree to some extent, I think you do the NS scene a massive injustice, artists & groups have had commercial success with re issues on the strength of NS plays back in the 7ts & artists & groups have toured the UK on the back of same plays. Also its not just about the financial gains, but the recognition artists have received from the NS scene, recognition which would never have happened other wise. I could go on & on, but, its about time the scene took some kudos from its facination & passion for this music, I get pissed off when ignorant people make incorrect judgements about the scene (not you BTW). Many outsiders find it amusing to poke fun at some of the aspects of NS & ridicule it, but there have been far more positive aspects than the negative, which have had a knock on effect for the artists & for soul music in general. Its like pulling teeth with you lot some times, cant even take a pat on the back & add your own positive thoughts, stories, come on for gods sake, take some credit for this passion of ours for over 4 decades . C'mon, lets hear it for the UK soul scene, past & present...... Best Russ