Russ Vickers

Yep, on the button mate, there is a local issue & an Atco dist issue, both are hard IMO, Virginia label & recording, got comped on Ol Va Soul too. I never did find a copy when I lived locally in VA, but eventually got a copy in Florida ???. Best Russ

They were all boots done from the original acetate wernt they ?, the only 'real' one is the acetate, some would have you believe they were the real deal, but beware................cant remember all the details but I know young David Flynn san knows the story.............The fact that IL has a copy is a clue . Russ

Hi Ernest When I lived in VA Beach I would visit your store quite regularly (& the thrift shop round the corner !). As I remember, there were very few 45's & mostly LP's & 12's, I think you said the 45's were in storeage until you could sort them ?. I bought some great albums from you & a few 45's that you would keep in a little box near to the counter, on the whole these were lesser condition, but I still found an odd gem. 'You Know I Love You' is a personal fave of mine too. Mark IV is a hard record for sure, but other copies have shown up over the years. Ernest if you would like to sell the 'Fast' version of Barbara Stant, I will buy it, just PM me or email at russvuptownsoul@msn.com & we can negotiate a price. I'm so pleased you have found the site & are enjoying it, the store gave me many happy hours of digging in Portsmouth, VA. BTW W e have a mutual friend in Brent Hossier, who first told me about your store, I must contact Brent as its been too long. Thanks for posting here & I look forward to hearing from you & reading any other contributions you make on the site. Russ

Hi Ernest (mate) Do you own the store in Portsmouth VA ?, I was gutted as I got sniped on the BS on ebay, one of my big 'wants' too.............if it wasnt a sigle copy PM me, likewise if you have any other Barbara Stant discs, welcome to SS & thank you for posting, look forward to the scans & clips. Russ

......................................... Now thats out of the way, can anyone sell me one perleeeeaaaaaaaaaasssssssssseeeeeeeeee.......... If no one will dance to it, & its a white pop stomper, its also been booted, this piece of crap should be flying out of any self respecting soul fans collection, so why on earth wont some one sell me a copy..........hang on, I think I might have talked myself out of it now.................nah, still luv it ............ Russ

James, sorry to hear this, chin up & up an at em, anything I can do dont hesitate buddy ! Best of luck

Hi mate, hope your well..............you've got too many good records, you need to let me have some . See ya in a few weeks Russ

I like some blue eyed stuff, not keen on pop, but love Carolinas stuff, Vivian Carol & many others, unfortunately I wasnt around when Sandy Hadley was first played at the Mecca, so when it started getting a few plays a couple of years ago, whilst it sounded familiar, to me it was relatively unknown. I've grown to love it, to the extent where I want one. I'm not keen on British stuff on the whole, with a few exceptions, although my main criteria for buying records is if I like something or not, period. Now go & find one for me Pete & you can laugh some more when I hand over the dosh .............chill mate & go & eat some Easter Eggs or summat

Someone......................please. Russ

I love everything I have heard by her, she has a marvellous voice, but I have a soft spot for 'You Know I love you'...........I actually bought a spare copy of this & gave it to Bearsy, I just wanted him to hear it, its bloody fanatastic & I'm not a big lover of ballads, but this really does it for me big time. Wish I had bought all the copies I found in Richmond, instead of just picking up a handful......... Russ

There's a CD due/out shortly, on Soulscape i think, which could incluse unreleased material............ Russ

Agree...... Russ

Waiting for my Easter prezzie.................. Russ

BTW Good to see ya at Lifeline & thanks for the 'gift'..........t'was a lifesaver !!! Russ

Proper 'oldie' IMO guys & a class tune, just need to snag me one now............money waiting . Russ

Sandy Hadley - Since I found a Love - So - Char wanted in any playable condition. Please PM me price & condition. If we can do a deal, money paypalled immediately as gift. Russ

later gator.......... Russ

Yeah, I think its a great record too Jason, just want to work out all of the why's n where forths........I'm not of the opinion this was done for the NS scene personally (the Fast version), but just want to find out the story really, as I have an interest in Shiptown/Howbig Records. A few people have played it off & on, but as you say, I think it hasnt reached its full potential by any means. Russ

Would love to Lee, but I'm in Baghdad (long story lol !!!)...........wadaya doing in L-O-S mate ?. Russ

Hi Rob Great post buddy. The Colony Club was a proper Nighter Rob, I'm soooooooooo proud of what was acheived there, we were all much younger & personally I was very naive with regards to promoting, but the music was a bit special for the time, you & Elaine were always perfect to deal with, with regards to the venue & very accomodating with all of my little foibles !..........mind you, you guys are soul lovers too & that made the difference. I was once asked what I hoped the legacy of the Uptown Down South 'Whole of Soul' All - Nighter & Soul Nights would be & half jokingly I replied 'If I'm at a Nighter in 10 years time & overhear a coversation in the bogs about how much someone enjoyed the Nighters, then we made our mark' Well, that has happened several times over the years...............great nights of proper soul music & great live acts in Sam Dees & Jeff Perry, together with great DJ's playing from the heart with a passion & of course great punters who knew how to enjoy themselves without boundaries in there tastes in Rare Soul.............................. I'm working in Baghdad right now mate, so only get home occasionally, but tend to cane the Nighters when I do, so I'll see ya round the bizarres. Take care & love to Elaine Russ

Why are we so hung up over the value of Rare Soul Records ?. There are several groups of collectors/record buyers who have differing opinions: There are the cheque book collectors/DJ's & comentators who will buy/champion anything that is expensive for the kudos/willy waving factor, regardless of whether the said record is actually any good or not. On the other hand there are collectors/DJ's & commentators who for whatever reason constantly 'slate' Rare Soul Records, including the absolutely brilliant, just because they are worth a lot of money. To me personally, I dont care what a record is worth in financial terms, I will collect Soul records that move me regadless of price, occasionally I may be a bit flush, so if a 'want' comes up that is a bit more expensive I will purchase those along with everything else, but ultimately its about the quality of the music regardless of the price tag. I know we are talking extremes here & most of us fit into the middle ground, but I do get very frustrated when the value of a record seems to over shadow the quality, whether cheap or expensive..........its also very frustrating when you get comments like I dont like that Rare stuff..........most NS classics were/are rare, some very common records, when first discovered were extremely expensive, comparatively speaking, as expensive as records are these days, but people didnt say I dont like that because its Rare, so when did this line of thought become exceptable.......the whole scene is based on Rare Records after all, whether expensive or not. I thinks the best feeling in the world, is when a disc you have loved, cherished & championed forever, that was bought because you loved the tune, goes on to become appreciated by the masses...........however, if you bought the record cheaply, does that make it crap if it turns out to be quite rare & the price goes up accordingly ???. If the disc was bought cheaply & remains cheap after becoming popular, does this make it less of a good record ???. Russ

Steve Csordas has championed the Ronnie Dyson LP cut of this for a couple of years now & seen it rip up a few dance floors, even saw a room of mostly non NS fans go for this big time in Brighton, classic song, covered by many, but so far RD cuts it for me with his gritty dance floor friendly romp. Russ

He isnt the sole credit on the original Shiptown release though Chalky, Barbara Stant shares writing credits on the original. Russ

But who did ownership move to ?, Ida told me herself, that she had master tapes in the garage (she always promised to show me, but we never got around to it), Ida also told me, that when the shop on Church St closed, a prominent local DJ helped himself to a lot of stock etc, before anyone could stop him, I think this was when Noah passed away, this guy still works for a local Gospel station in Norfolk. I contacted him & he told me he still had stuff from Shiptown, however could never nail him down to go look, a couple of years later, a local collector in Va, confirmed the story, but when he visited the DJ after being fobbed off for months & months (in the end he waited on the guys doorstep until he showed up !) there was nothing there at all, so what happened to the stuff he took is anyones guess !. Russ

I cannot find any information with regards to what happened to the ownership of Shiptown/Howbig Records after Noah Biggs died in 1978, however when I was talking to Ida Sands regularly when I lived in Va, the impression I got was that she owned the rights, I really do not know if that was the case though. The theory behind the BS MMHOTY, is that Charles Amos Hunter from the Positive Sounds took the Master Tape to Dish a Tunes in NYC, this would have been late 7ts as they were the house band at Shiptown/How Big until the end, the Positive Sounds recorded for DAT in NYC, also the added credits to the 'Fast' version of BS, all point to the involvement of Charles Amos Hunter, even takes sole writing credits !. So c'mon, whats the story with this...........anyone else shed any light on the subject of the remixed version & the release date ???. Russ