Dave Thorley

Billy is woven into the very fabric of the UK soul scene. For many of us our earliest memories will have included hearing 'The Right Track' blaring out of one club or another's speakers. Soon after I discovered this was only the tip of an amazing iceberg. My thoughts are with his family and friends........... The Right Track https://youtu.be/VtfbgSUfY-o This has grown to be one of my favourites by him .................. My Love For You Grows https://youtu.be/Sjco8K9k-1Q

The Jerry Green on Woodward One could be the same. there was a connection between Mr Wonderful (Ron Lewis) and Detroit through Ernest Kelly. They worked pretty closely promoting each others material. Also the Breckinridge Inn photo above is inside his club, the club is part of the hotel complex

Just as an aside Jerry Green was from Louisville and a one time member of The Heartbreakers. The LP track was licensed from Mr Wonderful records or directly from Jerry. He has a night club in the city to this day and sings there himself weekly.

https://youtu.be/2gHX2l8FE5w https://youtu.be/8RyYKrfzFGQ https://youtu.be/p6nxtMaHsMk https://youtu.be/fr0mr9ZlV_4 https://youtu.be/P0wBxjEImSA

We The People - Making my daydream real - Lion VG+ £45 Five O'clock - Hold on tight/Watch for the morning - O'clock Mint- £60 Willie Dixon - Our nation - Mil-Smi Mint- £50 Wilson Pickett - How will I ever know - Wicked Mint-£15 Curtis Wiggins - Stand up when I talk to you - Palm Mint £50 Willie G - Meet me halfway - Ric Tic Mint £15 All plus P&P

Hi All Another week, another bunch of shiny new things on the site, including these .................. Mighty Sons Of Glory - Don't forget the bridge - Jewel Mint £50 Windy City 4 - What my god has done - Peace Mint £45 Jae Mason - Please the crowd - Buddah Demo Mint £150 Endeavors - Beware of your friends/I can't help crying - Empirestate Mint- £250 Nate Evans & Big Buss - This time with feeling/Look on your face - DPR Mint- £150 Bataan - Woman don't want to love me - Epic Mint £40 True Movement - Depression - Mystic Insight Mint £55 Plus a whole bunch more, including some rare gospel, see site for full descriptions and sound files www.topdogrecords.co.uk Thanks for looking Dave & Malayka

Anyone got a copy of this on either U.S. or U.K. Dynamic Concepts - California Black Circle 0r Power Exchange Cheers Dave

I did Keele a few times around the same time as The Ritz. It came from a big pile of acetates Chris King got from Jerry Ross. Many of them were Tom Moulton mixes of things. This one is a Tom Moulton mix and unrelaesed. Spoke to Tom a few years ago and sent him a sound file, he remembered doing it, his memory was that it was recorded down in Philly by a bunch of studio musicians. Was planned to add a vocal to it, but the project got canned.

Hi All Another bunch of nice new shiny 45's gone up on the site, including these ............ Percy & Them - Look in the mirror/Trying to find - Roulette W/D Mint £150 13th Amendment - Hard to be in love/The stretch - Slave Mint £250 Sandra Phillips - World without sunshine - Broadway W/D Mint- £100 Pergy & The Monarchs - My heart cries for you - Musicor W/D Mint- £250 Hesitations - She won't come back/I'll be right there - Kapp W/D Mint- £140 Ray Batts - Love me - Faces Mint £75 Ivory Brimmer Jr. - Testify - Brimco VG £75 Twighlights - you're the one - Aqua Mint- £130 Plus a bunch more, full description and sound file on site www.topdogrecords.co.uk Thanks for looking Dave & Malayka

Anyone got one for sale or trades

Freda Payne - How do you say I don't love you anymore - MGM Demo - VG+/VG+ £45 Rare Demo copy, Includes the Stafford classic 'Easy street' Various Artists - Nuyorican Soul - Talkin'Loud/Giant Step Mint-/Mint- £20 Stuffed full of classic 90's modern soul Rinlew Allstars - The same - AVI Mint-/VG+ £60 Includes the awesome 'Holding back' 9th Creation - Falling in love - Pye VG+/VG+ £15 Cool modern soul and funk from 75 Marvelettes - Sophisticated soul - Tamla Mint-/VG+ £15 Original 286 copy, stuffed full of classic dancers Ovations - Having a party - MGM W/D Mint-/VG+ £30 Rare white demo, includes 'Don't look back', 'Born on a back street' Barrett Strong - Love is you - Coup Mint/Mint £25 Still sealed copy, includes the modern soul dancer 'You make me feel'

Available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Waterstones online and all good bookshops or pre-order.

At a car boot in Cheltenham 2 years ago, box full of nothing, then a stone mint copy of Tony Middleton - Spanish maiden on the Storm label £2.00 Car boot back in the 90's near Oxford 30 copies of Billy Hambric - got to find that girl on the Pyramid label 5p each

All plus P&P Herman Kelly & Life - Share my love - RCA Mint/VG+ £35 Italian only release, nice picture bag. Lead singer is one Jelly of supa rare Fu-Ja fame Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes - Where are all my friends - PIR W/D Mint- £15 Classic Philly modern soul, here on a nice white demo Eskew Reeder - You better believe me - Cross Tone Mint £145 Thumpin good 60's dancer, stone mint Earnest King - You gonna miss me / I can't turn it a loose - LK Mint- £120 Dancefloor destroying funk with the bonus of the killa crossover flip DeBow - Crime - The Unicorn Project Mint £150 Picture bag release for this Louisville anti crime project slice of funk

I'm intrigued Ady

***************** Detroit 67 .... The Year That Changed Soul ************* I have been looking forward to starting Stuart Cosgrove"‹'s new book. Last night I nipped into bed early and open the pages. Instantly I was transported back to the early 1980's, when Stuart used to write for a weekly music publication called Black Echoes. I'd pick up the paper from the news stands and eagerly flick through the pages looking for his article. These would always stand head & shoulders above most, opening with scene setting, plenty of context before getting to the heart of the matter, always a joy to read. Well 30+ years on he has lost none of trade skills, opening in January 1967, carefully constructing the ticking time bomb that was Detroit at that time. A city covered by a thick layer of snow, ice and the worst weather in living memory. As he he skillfully introduces us to each player texturising their characters with background and visual traits, so they materialise in your minds eye and so the scene is set for an explosive year that with change the very soul of the city and it's music. I eventually got to sleep at 1am after much page turning, saying to myself with each flip of the page 'Well just one more'. riveting and like so many years ago, a joy to read. I will return so to tell you more !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Aretha Franklin - Hey now hey - So swell when youre well - Somewhere - Moodys mood - Atlantic Stone mint with picture sleeve and Jukebox title strips £20 +P&P

Like so many others I loved my trips down to see John. Would go down with Ady Pountain, spend the day going through his filed records on the shelf pulling out great things. He used to have a couple of areas I loved looking through, in a back corner of the main barn was a Detroit section, so many cool tunes pulled out of there. Also at one end of one of the main shelving runs was an section for test pressings with little of no info on, some great surprises found in there. Towards the end of the day you'd go to cash up and that would be when he'd pull out his special things for your consideration by which time you'd be totally spent up. Then when you thought all was done he'd pull out a couple of extra special things, like The Ringleaders acetates and the like. You'd look at him in a certain amount of pain, 'John their fantastic, but I've no more money'. He'd smile, knowing you were hooked and say 'That's OK take them and pay me over a few weeks and I'll put you in the book'. At Stafford he was a bit of a 'Fifth Beatle' , constantly finding new things for DJ's to play. John's contribution to soul music in general has been immense, whilst traveling the States to this day, so many artists and record business guys still speak warmly of him, with comments, like ...................... 'He came along and help get me out of a hole' 'John would always treat us fairly, unlike many others that came by' 'That guy gave my career a real boost when no one else was interested' Much later on in life when I decided to sell records full time, he gave me some great advise that I use to this day as a mantra, always happy to help others along the way, when he could. We speak weekly even now, always got great stories to tell and wealth of knowledge which he is happy to share. Can't speak highly enough of The Man

Last show for a month, now up for listen again.............................. https://listen-again.gloucesterfm.com/index.php…

Mighty Elegant - I don't know what it is, but it sho is funky / I find myself falling in love with you - Jaber - Mint £18 + £2.50 UK shipping, £3.50 the rest of the world Stone mint original Jackie Beavers label for this funk classic, flip side has the equally cool 'Lowrider' sweet group standard

Electrifying Cashmeres - What does it take / Ooh I love you- Sound Stage 7 - Mint £60 + P&P Classic Johnny Bristol penned group modern soul A side, with killa sweet Lowrider flip