Robbk

There wouldn't be any one song for me. I would have liked to have been working at Motown during 1962-66, and have watched all facets of the songwriting and recording process was handled, seeing how all the talented people did what they did and how the whole process came together to produce such fabulous recordings. I couldn't pick any one song or watching any one artist, musician, producer, arranger, or songwriter work. I saw a later version of that process at Motown in L.A. during the 1970s, and Airwave and Altair Records in the 1980s. But those weren't the same as how it was done in Detroit at Motown in the mid 1960s. I have a big appreciation for what those people did back then, based on my feeble attempts to take up playing the guitar, piano and harmonica (failing to get very far), and also trying to write songs (both music and lyrics). My "songs" were well-known chords and musical phrases patched together (with no Soul or life of their own). They weren't TRULY inspired.

I love ALL my records. There are a few thousand I could get rid of, and still survive. But, if I were to start selling them off, If it ever got down to the last 1000 or so, it would already be so disastrous and anguishing that it wouldn't help to keep just that few. I'd have a difficult time in deciding which 1000 to keep, and it wouldn't have been worth it to keep that few to play or even look at, if most of their label run issues are missing. They all go well together in a collection. They are all like "old friends" I used to be able to remember where and when I got each one of many thousands. I've lost some of that memory, already. But it would rip my heart out to see them go, being sold off in installments, as I need money. I hope I never NEED to sell them off to survive. I might rather pull the plug on the old oxygen tank before that could happen. Luckily, I'm and artist and writer, and not a longshoreman/stevedore or day labourer. So, I can possibly continue to earn money drawing into my nineties or early 100s, as long as my eyesight holds out, and my hands are not too shaky (and then I can move to computer animation as long as I can even punch keyboard keys with my nose ); and I can write stories, as long as I can think coherently, and what I write still reaches the emotions of the reader enough to bridge the generation gap (e.g. isn't based on outmoded ways of thinking, but spans all generations).

That makes sense, as according to Ron Murphy, one or both of those same two DJ copies (I can't remember which, but believe that it was both) were found (rescued ) in a box of mid 1960s test pressings at ARP. Ron told me long ago (early 1970s), that the Midwest pressing plants (probably ALL US pressing plants) generally kept 2 of the usual 6 pre-press run test pressing records at their facility, in case subsequent press run would be ordered. Oldies runs made years later were sometimes made based on the original test pressings. That was done, at the very least at ARP, Columbia Terre Haute, and RCA Indianapolis, and probably at Archer and others. I was told that of the remaining 4 of the test pressings, one went into The Motown Corp. Record File, one into The Jobete Music Co. Record File, one to Quality Control, and the other to Berry Gordy's own record file.

I'm guessing that the master tape was first sent from the Jobete Music L.A. office to Detroit (to be evaluated by Quality Control - as was the general procedure); and that the mastering for the future press run was subsequently done at RCA Chicago (where most of the mastering was done for RCA Midwest (Indianapolis plant) was done). Pressing decisions were almost always made in Detroit, NOT at the Jobete Music offices in Los Angeles or New York.

Motown must have sent the master tape to Detroit. They could easily have originally planned to have the record pressed at RCA Indianapolis. The demo was made for quality control to listen to it, presumably to make their decision to schedule it for release, or not.

The way I understand the situation, Berry wanted to keep Frank Wilson as a producer and songwriter, and wanted him to move to Detroit, to work with Motown's major artists. He had planned to give Frank an ultimatum that he must choose between being a producer and moving to Detroit, or remaining in LA. and pursuing a singing career. It stands to reason that he would hold off on sending the DJ copies to DJs, so that there would be no interest in the record to possibly influence Wilson to turn down the producer job offer.

Yes, I'm here. I never saw nor heard of this test pressing. It was pressed at RCA Indianapolis, and mastered in Nashville. Looks legit enough, with that 1964-66 Quality Control stamp, and the mid '60s style test pressing record, with depressed centre area.

They're not quite all "Detroit Area" records. The Occasions on Big Jim was a Cleveland record. Big Jim was named after the label's co-owner, Jim Brown, a professional football player for The Cleveland Browns. HEM Records was located in Washington, DC. Lawrence & The Arabians were an East Coast group. Chester St. Anthony (Frank Wilson) was a 100% L.A. production, released on an L.A. label. But he was working for Motown's Jobete Music's L.A. office, so I can understand listing it with Detroit records.

I think that the bottom will fall out of the Northern Souk 45 market, just as it has in the Doo Wop market, as the old-time collectors reach very old age and die off. On that "scene" only a few people are left, and most records that used to sell in the thousands of Dollars now go for just a couple hundred IF sellers can find a buyer. Records that used to sell in the hundreds are now $5. Maybe this effect will tale longer with Northern Soul because of the young foreign markets. But it will happen eventually.

Yes, that's the legitimate original Monarch pressed West Coast White DJ styrene issue.

The Contours' "It's So Hard Being A Loser"/"Just A Little Misunderstanding" The Monitors' "Crying In The Night"/"Since I Lost You Girl" The Spinners' "I'll Always Love You"/"Truly Yours" I could go on and on.

I'll be 71 next month. m Most of my close family lives well into their 90s or early 100s. So, I expect to be around a while. I'm still working, and I live each year at regular intervals in 5 countries on 2 continents. So, I move regularly. I still lift free weights almost every day, still run, swim ski, and played ice hockey until I was 50. Sadly, I don't buy records anymore (probably because I will live to be over 100, and will need the money. Can't attend all-nighters anymore (mostly because I'm seldom in The UK. But, sometimes I pull an all-nighter drawing cartoons for a heavy deadline.

Is this the same Meditations gospel group from Detroit, who recorded for D-Town Spiritual Series?

So unusual, that I wouldn't believe it. Swifty's certainly looks legitimate. I would guess there was an original styrene Monarch release for The West, and an East Coast vinyl pressing, and likely, a Midwest vinyl pressing, as well, EVEN if the record had a relatively small press run, and wasn't pushed much by ABC.

Very few pensioners can afford to throw away silly money. I would guess that young people with good jobs and no children are more likely to afford that.

Blue Rock, (US) Philips, and (US) Fontana were all subsidiaries of Mercury (as was Smash Records). Therefore, each of them should have had ALL their issues distributed by Mercury (certainly true of Blue Rock, which was only a US label, as far as I know. Non US Fontana wasn't distributed by Mercury, as Mercury had affiliate local distributors in other countries. I'm sure I've seen eastern and Midwestern Mercury records and its subsidiary labels' white DJ issues pressed on vinyl. Most of their styrene white DJ issues were pressed at Monarch for Wstern US market, as far as I remember.

Here it is: And an even rarer 1963 re-pressing:

This record was not picked up by Chess. The Tamla issue is dead rare. Only a few copies are known.

Not all Philips and Fontana records were styrene. But, I believe all store stockers and white DJ issues of Eddie Garrigan were.

I saw Ian P's as BLUE. It's clear that his is a bootleg. So, if you say that his is white, then there was a "white DJ bootleg", as well as a blue "store stock bootleg". The only bootleg of this record I have seen is the BLUE one which also has the stars on the "A" side, mimicking a promotional copy, but not having the words: "promotional copy - not for sale", and not having the stamped matrices. Ian P's scan looks to me like that BLUE bootleg (NOT white).

Russoul's is a nice original copy, in good nick. Nice clean grooves for a styrene issue. They usually wear mighty quickly. You see that the original blue store stocker didn't have the stars. That's another way to recognise the boot. It was blue (pretending to be a store stocker), and yet had the DJ stars, indicating the "play side".

That's the white DJ issue. The stars only appeared on the white DJ issue.

I didn't know of any WDJ boot. I, too thought the moulded, vinyl blue was the only boot.

Detroit Jr. recorded a lot through the 1950s and the 1960s. The recording in question sounds to me like 1963 or 1964. "Money Crazy" above, sounds like late 1950s. The recording in question could be a 1960s Detroit Jr. re-recording of that song, with the tempo and a few of the words changed. If I had to bet, I'd be that is exactly the case.

Sorry! That voice sounds very much like Detroit Jr. So, maybe they just got the song wrong? Although, the song is about his ladyfriend always asking him for money (but he's "Too Poor"). So, "Too Poor" might be correct. But, maybe, "She Wants Some Money" is the title? It sounds like early 1960s. I would guess that it really is Detroit Jr. singing.