Sean Hampsey

I posted this on the 'Movie' thread t'other day: Northern Soul dancing inspired by Kung Fu, total nonsense. People were doing the acrobatic stuff years before KF was even heard of in the UK. Certainly Teddy Boys and Rock & Rollers were doing backdrops many years before. On the soul side I saw Arthur Conley perform in '71 and his back dropping, footwork and spinning was absolutely awesome and from the early 70's Matchie and many others would dance in that style in my neck of the woods. Fancy footwork and a bit of athleticism always seemed to go hand in hand. Sean

Northern Soul dancing inspired by Kung Fu, total nonsense. People were doing the acrobatic stuff years before KF was even heard of in the UK. Certainly Teddy Boys and Rock & Rollers were doing backdrops many years before. On the soul side I saw Arthur Conley perform in '71 and his back dropping, footwork and spinning was absolutely awesome and from the early 70's Matchie and many others would dance in that style in my neck of the woods. Fancy footwork and a bit of athleticism always seemed to go hand in hand. Sean

Now $5,900 Think I need to take stock!

Lovely tune, first played by yours truly at Thorne, Canal Tavern, circa 1988. Still own the orig W/D. Good luck! Sean

Wow! You're very welcome! Thank you. Hope you find the 45! Sean

Dottie.

Anyone? Sean

And I've just seen it on a list for £300. Sean

Reasonable copy of Lonzine Cannon — Quit While I'm Ahead - Philips U.S. issue required please. PM me with price and condition please, if you have one to sell. Cheers, Sean.

"Shower The World" Long time no hear! Sean

No it isn't mate, but mine is! I've got something for you, havent I. Please pm me your address! Sean

Hi Rick and Peter, The artist is actually a young lady called Sepandiya (her real name) but 'Sapphire' was the name put about at the time of its eventual issue. The track was produced and recorded some 10 years ago but ran into some difficulties when license couldn't be gained to use the original 'I'll Be Around' riff directly from the Spinners record. This slowed things down and the project started to lose momentum. Then the artist had a few personal problems and failed to show at recording sessions etc. so the project ended up being canned. I still have an album full of stuff from the sessions that will sadly never see the light of day. Such a shame, she did have a lovely voice. It was agreed that 'Thank You' should be put it on the comp, after I'd been playing it heavily for a few years, at Yarmouth etc. to try and get some extra use from it. It certainly still works on the dancefloor and I still find myself dropping the original mix into my modern sets from time to time. Sean

Hound Dogs Bop Shop inMelbourne was a fantastic Record Shop. Had a field day there many years ago with dozens of rare soul 45's for a few dollars each (inc Kenny Sheppard, Sandy Wynns etc.). The owner, Denys, was a real record guy, with huge knowledge of Rock N'Roll, Rockabilly, R n'B. If it's still going it must still be worth a visit! Sean

Will be an interesting one Andy. Sean

Great looking lady. Here she is with the Beatles, Mick Jagger, Herman's Hermits and the Supremes. But I don't think it will have been any of them, somehow! Here's a link to her website. You can read all about her Jim. https://www.ladastedmund.com Might be worth dropping her a line personally, on the contact page. Sean Interview here:

Who's there on Thursday? Must admit, pretty excited too! Sean

Spot on. Think they must have been on catalogue for a while. Everyone had em in their Red / White original covers. Have nice Red Demo's of both, these days! Sean

Yep, I had it mid 70's and played the other side 'Tell It To The Wind' out regularly late 70's / early 80's. Sean

Agree Jock. Fantastic! Must have been played on the scene almost from the get go (67/68). It was released in the UK around the same time as Rodger Collins 'She's Looking Good' and I knew of both of those in 1970. In fact everybody round these parts seemed to have both records in their collection. They were both played at the Wheel for sure as I got my copy from a guy who picked up all the Wheel sounds. Was a pretty big record in the local clubs here long before I'd heard of Northern Soul. Still bloody love it! Sean

Think Warrington started '83 or '84 Chalky as I DJ'd the first few and I recall I stopped doing Warrington and Bradford in '84. Also recall attending the first Three Voices meeting at Stafford TOTW, and feel sure that will have been '84. Sean

Invictus showed up in all kinds of attire! Sean

Yep - Morecambe came along on the cusp of Clifton & Cleggy and around the rise of Bradford Queens Hall & Warrington Parr Hall. But was post 1982 from memory (83 / 84?) so couldn't have made the chart. Sean

Hi Steve, Yep - Without BlackBeat I do think these (early 80's) would have been the forgotten years. Still waiting for the 80's Returnees to come back! That said, both Rotherham Clifton Hall and Rotherham Windmill have 30 year Anniversary gigs coming up soon, so expect to see see quite a few of those diehards who didn't call it a day after Wigan putting in an appearance! Yes, Stafford and 100 Club were certainly in the top half dozen! For the poor sighted, Top Venues Poll reads as follows: Venues 1982. 1. Cleethorpes 2. Rotherham Clifton Hall 3 Stafford TOTW 4 Sheffield Romeo & Juliets 5 Rotherham Tiffanies 6 100 Club 7 St Ives 8 Shrewsbury (The Oak) An extremely dynamic, exciting and important period in my opinion. About time it had proper representation in media portrayals that only ever seem to focus on the cliche stereotypical version of what the Northern Soul scene was, in one fairly brief snapshot of 'Pop / Popularity' as reported by the Red Tops nearly 40 years ago. Sean

These are the 1982 / 1983 results from the Black Beat magazine Annual Poll. The Early 80's - Very Healthy Indeed as I recall:- Venue wise, Record wise and DeeJay wise! Post Wigan and The Mecca - Not much sign of some of some 'names' but I'm sure they'd be the first to concede, they weren't really around much at the time. Guess it only goes to show, every dog has his day, lol. Interesting reading! Sean

Most of them Steve. I rarely have the time. It's an illness. An unhealthy obsession. Like most 'extremes'. Seriously thinking about applying a few filters of my own at the minute. But I can't imagine a future without a collection. Sean