Russ Vickers

I'm pretty sure also that those first copies came over from JP via Andy D. I was told that it was recorded in Nashville after RR left NC to have a stab at Country Music, this was spose to be his last soul effort of the period.......cant check label details as I'm not at home. Russ

I first heard this whilst I was still living in the US. It would have been about 2007 maybe. JP played it on his annual NC college radio show. I'm sure this was totally unknown prior to this. If I remember correctly on the show Jason didnt say who it was, but it blew me away, so I contacted him to see if he could ID the track & hopefully help me track a copy down. JP confirmed it as RR & said that the copy he had played on the radio was RR own copy & it was the only one known at that point & was in very poor condition. JP is a legendary digger & collector in NC & maybe 6 months later he contacted me to say he had found a small batch, 5 copies I think it was, my copy was one of those. Others went to collectors in the UK & I believe JP would have kept a copy for himself also. Since then I know that a few other copies have surfaced, but not many. Hope this helps, I think Jason is on here, so might clarify. best Russ

Thats the one Tony, but that must be the re - issue label, original is on Sugar. Russ

Hi Lenny Hope you are well buddy. My copy was in the first small batch that Jason from NC turned up. Very few have turned up since & I have never seen one for sale on the 'open' market. A very hard record IMO & I would guess at about 2K, but I'm not certain. Russ

Wow.........thats brilliant. Do you have any more memoribilia or memories to share. What about the Birdcage ?. I'm far to young to have attended these venues, but have an avid interest in how the Soul Music scene developed in the area. Do we know each other, maybe we have mutual friends - Ray Gillen maybe ?. Thanks for posting Russ

Is the LP the same as the 45 mix ?........big record for me n Ben at the Abshott Soul Nights & Newbury Nighters........have both but cant compare right now. Russ

Remember who won the dance competition Matt ? Russ

This is a brilliant thread........still havnt heard anything what so ever that would stop me covering up a record........... Russ

Good news buddy . Russ

I would say realistically 75 - 100 UKP. Best Russ

I just find the whole thing interesting, I personally enjoy c/ups, its all part & parcel & thus far I havnt heard a decent argument against them, its just personal opinion. The fact that a record is covered up doesnt make it an any better or worst record than one that isnt covered up.....if its good its good............if 20 copies of something turned up, I doubt very much it would remain covered up & would quite possibly be dropped as a play too, if up until that point it had remained a 1 or 2 copy exclusive..........but too be honest this is just my opinion & I dont think there are any hard & fast rules Simon.............for me personally, its a bit of fun & I enjoy the mystique. Russ

I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but the Belita Woods c/up was an Andy Dyson discovery & was exclusive to him for some time. Butch, Ginger & Mick H (?) & one other that turned up recently not sure of other copies, but didnt think there was that many,,,,,,maybe 4 - 6 ?. Best Russ

Wish I was going to Essence mate, missed the last 2 years, I'm still working out in the desert mate, thats why I have missed the last couple of Filthy's too.........still, might not be able to get to the venues as much these days, but the records are still coming in . Have a great time buddy & say hey to everyone for me...... Best Russ

I cant see the point in keeping a disc covered if 8 - 10 people are playing it, its then not exclusive anyway ?. Best Russ

Hey Wayne, how ya doin' buddy, hope all is well with you mate. If you read Dave Abbotts last post he hits the nail right on the head - if all DJ's were the gentleman that you are then just maybe there wouldnt be such a need to cover records up these days, no matter how much fun it is - but the lazy, bone idol, jump on the band wagon type DJ's unfortunately vastly out weigh the DJ's who put in massive amounts of time, effort & money in finding new tunes to help make their sets imaginative & unique. As an example, for years in the South Coast area, there has been a person who will stand behind the decks at every event they attend for the entire evening, taking notes about every record you play that is not of the norm, next time you hear them out if its a reasonably priced item, said person will be playing it out, in the past, sometimes before you even when your DJing at the same venue on the same night, they wouldnt even acknowledge you when playing it or say thank you. Thats one reason, as well as the ones previously discussed in the thread, why the likes of myself, Dave Abbott, Tim Smithers (?) & others down these parts started covering records that we might not have done previously, just to stop this practice..........its enfuriating when you have put in so much effort. I would also add that we tend generally to share the cover up information between ourselves......................sometimes. At the end of the day, mostly its a bit of fun & if someone was to come up to me knowing the true identity of a cover up, I'd be fine with it, thats part of the game isnt it. All the best mate Russ

Sorry Martin, I was typing a way ten to the dozen & 'covered you up' you are now uncovered, apologies matey Best Russ

No it wouldnt Steve, a good record is a good record, I dont think covering it up makes it any better, but I do think that it adds a dimension of mystery that can create more interest ..............I agree with what you say about exclusivity to DJ's, but hasnt that always been one reason why DJ's do this anyway ?......... Cover ups are great & keep the scene fresh & exciting. Long live the cover up !. Best Russ

Yep, its been 'known' for quite some time, as far as I'm aware never played at Wigan though (?). Thing is, there are loads of records that are 'Known', but have never really been played to a larger audience & have never properly taken off so to speak, so when a respected DJ starts to fit these into their set on a regualar basis, they receive wider exposure..........& this generates demand, both from the dancefloor & collectors/DJ's wanting copies. Records that some feel are well known amongst collectors, can be totally unknown to the dance floor until someone gives it a push......... Best Russ

However if your talking about covering up new or recent releases, which to my knowledge hast happened for years, thats a different bag all together...... Russ

With the greatest of respect Ian, I dont beleive that theory holds water, in the vast majority of cases the artists are pretty unknown, once the disc is uncovered, which inevitably they all are, the artists receive more recognition than they ever have in recent years, particularly if the record hounds hunt them down & they then realise there are mad Brits who still listen to thier music...............most are blown away & they receive more recognition than if the interest hadnt been created by the DJ's covering the disc in the first place. You could argue that the same thing could have happened by playing the disc uncovered, but sometimes covering up creates more of a buzz on a disc & if the artists have been unknown for 30 odd years, what will a few more months/years make ????. Best Russ

Cover Ups are fantastic & part & parcel of the scene, its all part of the fun innit...........loads of great new cover ups about, Dave Abbotts Al Green c/up is great & I have several right now, just need a larger audience to play em too.........my Explosive Dynamiks c/up went down the proverbial storm at the Soul in the South Nighter, with some activity behind the decks from others trying to get a looky........I think some DJ's need more bollox, they're sometimes frightened to get the cover up label on it in case its 'known' & they look stupid........it just adds a bit of mystery to it all & can create a talking point & raise the profile of the record as people debate its true identity & the search is on.........Long may they continue..........Russ

It was a lot better than vg - . Russ

This is my own personal view. Firstly, Modern Soul has a direct link to Northern Soul, it evolved originally as part of the NS scene, with what we now refer to as Modern Soul being part of the over all play list at all Allnighters. The Highland Rooms influence on this is well documented, however the Mecca became more & more NY Disco to the exclusion of traditional sounds, where as the Casino & other venues played 'Modern' soul alongside everything else if it had the right sound, remember the term Modern Soul wasnt widely used until the very early 8ts, until then it was all NS & whilst there has always been some debate for & against, many just enjoyed everything pretty much & continued to dance all night to all records regardless of the 'date' on the label. The early 8ts saw the Modern Soul scene develop its own identity independant from that of the main stream NS scene, with Soul Sam, Arthur Fenn & many others dropping traditional NS sounds in favour of recent & new releases & events like Rock City etc being exclusively Modern Soul Sounds. I'm not entirely certain, but I think it was the early 9ts when Allnighters started having a Modern Room. I have always enjoyed all kinds of Black Dance Music played at All nighters & would frequent both rooms & enjoy both thoroughly...........In actual fact I would still prefer to have things how they used to be........ a one room event with everything played together in one set by intelligent DJ's who can mix things up a bit.......... In recent years Modern Soul Rooms attached to Allnighters seem to have diminished & the Modern Scene continues to develop all over the UK in venues independantly. However, many of the patrons came directly from the NS scene & some, like myself continue to enjoy all good soul music regardless of decade of release & frequent both Northern & Modern Soul Venues & Rooms.. The Modern Room when I visited Radcliffe worked very well & the way Chris etc breaks the rooms into different timings for different genres with the rooms being hosted by respected moovers & groovers within said genres is brilliant.......it doesnt matter if the folk in the Modern Room all leave when thier bit comes to an end, cos an entire new lot of soul fans are going to be entertained for the rest of the Night with a different brand of soul, many people go between all the rooms anyway. With the greatest of respect Karen your views on Modern Soul are well known & whilst I think your q's are relevent, I think they are motivated by your lack of understanding & dislike (?) of Modern Soul. I dont want a Modern Soul Allnighter I want a Rare Soul Allnighter playing the whole lot........so I can enjoy everything under one roof & preferably on one dance floor.......just like it used to be. What was the question again........... lol. Best Russ

Cheers guys - Hope your well Tim. Best Russ