Ian Dewhirst

Well same here. I actually left a U.S. import copy in a second-hand record shop run by a biker in Morley that was PACKED with loads of Doo-Wop and early to mid 60's gear in the early 70's and it's always plagued me since I left the bloody place. Everything in there was just slightly too dated for me at the time and I shudder to think what else was in there. Typically when I tried to find the place a few years later it had gone..... So the record stuck in my mind and when I saw a Pama copy in a guy's box a few months after I hit the Morley shop, I thought to myself 'no big deal, it came out in England'. However, brother Tony and I couldn't quite collude on the label colour, which worries me a bit 'cos I could have sworn I saw a blue copy but Tony recalls the Mauve design. This is one of those things that's never gonna be settled until someone whacks up a scan. I must admit it seems almost inconceivable that, if it does exist, someone out there, preferably a serious U.K. collector, wouldn't be able to confirm it with a real copy. But the amount of gaps in that Pama label listing, plus the nature of Mr Palmer's operation anyway, mean that anything's possible. If it was ever pressed, then sooner or later one will turn up. It could easily turn up in a West London old Reggae boy's collection. That's part of the problem I guess. Pama was always patchily distributed. The first collection I ever bought from a guy in Huddersfield in 1972 contained the Mohawks and Bill Moss. Clifford Curry was widely available up North and I found plenty of other Pama soul releases in the cheap boxes up North in the 70's. But I can imagine Mr P pressing some initial copies of some releases to guage reaction and then maybe not bothering to do any more. Some of my mates have worked for him and very little was ever documented which kinda suited the operation. That was the nature of the beast. So I still reckon it exists. Ian D

Of "New York New York" fame. Yep, you're all right. It sucks LOL..... Ian D

Ah. Didn't realise that it was known Mick. I'm staggered it's never taken off. Completely new to me. That's what happens when you drop off a scene for 20 years! That would have been a HUGE record in my day........... Ian D

Where's Flynny when we need him........? Fascinating stuff Rick. It really doesn't surprise me that threads like this come up from time to time. Having worked for most of the major record companies and a number of indies over the last 35 years, I can say catergorically say that many releases get 'lost', slip between the cracks or never make it out to wider distribution fairly regularly for one reason or another. Sometimes it can be a pressing fault, a label copy fault, a legal problem or a pressing/distribution glitch. Sometimes a release date changes at the last minute, a tour date changes, a promotional tour gets aborted, an artist gets ill, the record company falls out with the management or a 'cease and desist' order comes through the door. In short, there's tons of reasons why a record may get pressed but never make it out of the warehouse. I've been actively involved in every aspect of certain releases and yet, several years later, I've bumped into a completely different pressing or pic sleeve that I never sanctioned or even remembered from the time. Shit happens and it wouldn't surprise me if someone can eventually turn up a Volumes on Pama or a Don Varner on Veep. I mean I only heard "Happiest Man" by Gerard on Laurie today for the first time! How can there possibly be such an unknown killer Northern Soul tune on a label which spawned Dean Parrish, Hoagy Lands, The Casualeers etc, etc? Happiest Man - Gerard - Laurie Records Anything's possible, especially if it's Northern Soul. Ian D

I don't doubt him either..........apart from the fact that I can almost swear that I've physically seen a copy in a guy's record box back in '73. But hey, 38 years ago is a long time...... Ian D

Mmm. PM-755 according to this...... /index.php?app=core&module=attach&section=attach&attach_rel_module=post&attach_id=93808 Ian D

Great to be joined by Al for this week's show plus Carl and Jen in the studio made for a memorable show on Sunday. Self-indulgence was the key this week with loads of regular faves 'cos it was my birthday however we did manage to fit in a couple of exclusives and some wonderful mixes and re-edits so check 'em out! And don't forget that next Sunday afternoon we'll be broadcasting LIVE from Prestatyn with all the Starpoint jocks who'll be there so keep it on Starpoint all weekend! Six Million Steps Presents The Original Mastercuts Show LIVE with Ian Dewhirst between 2.00-4.00pm on Sunday 6th March 2011 on everyone's favourite Soul station www.starpointradio.com. Featuring...... 1st Hour Intense feat Jazmina Let The Rain Come Down Frankie Knuckles feat Satoshie Tomii & Robert Owens Tears Neil Thompson/Ian D 'Thomohawk' Mix Tongue N' Cheek - Tomorrow Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis Jr Shine On Silver Moon Glenn Rivera ReStructure Mix Donnie Who's Rockin You? Instant Funk I Got My Mind Made Up Victor Rosado Remix Basic Black Whatever It Takes Tafuri What Am I Gonna Do About Your Love Switch Keeping Secrets Neil Thompson Re-Grooved Mix 2nd Hour Mel Britt She'll Come Running Back Jodi Mathis Don't You Care Anymore Natural Four I Thought You Were Mine Eula Cooper Let Our Love Grow Higher The Internationals Beautiful Philosophy Ila Vann You Made Me This Way Rock Candy Alone With No Love Anne Sexton You've Been Gone Too Long Nolan Porter If I Could Only Be Sure Stevie Wonder Ordinary Pain The Lovelites You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling Charles Sherrell Why Can't I Be Treated Like A Man Aretha Franklin One Step Featurecast Re-Edit The Spinners Games People Play (They Just Can't Stop It) Al Green Everything Is OK Ashley Beedle Re-Edit https://www.sixmillionsteps.com/6MS-2011-03-06-Starpoint.mp3 See ya LIVE from Prestatyn on Sunday! Laters, Ian D

They were around in the 70's Pete. It was a big record for a few people back then so many more than two were around. I found one myself in Record & Tape exchange for 10p in the early 80's........... Ian D

Yabba Dabba do! At last. Don't forget to pop mine in the post! Ian D

Hiya Screamer, Born in '55. I was 56 last Friday. Talking of Central regulars has anyone seen hide nor hair of Chris Jenkinson aka Psycho over the last 20 years? He was a good mate in the 80's but I lost touch with him in the mid 90's....... And, yes. That Cardigan Road flat sure saw some action didn't it LOL.......? Ian D

OK, you're 2 years older than me then and probably started 2-3 years before I did. I actually lived in Leeds (Roundhay) up to the age off 11 (in '66), when the family then moved to Mirfield, however, I used to go to Leeds on a Saturday afternoon in the mid to late 60's and can clearly remember that the Saturday afternoon action happened at the Spinning Disc. Mind you, moving to Mirfield, meant that I fell in with the Huddersfield crowd which included several Wheel goers plus Graham Slater used to work at the same place as me, so I figure I would have eventually found the In Crowd wherever I lived LOL.... I think the Central was the main beneficary of it's proximity to Bradford market because I remember hearing all those Verve/MGM tunes very early on like Dottie Cambridge, April Stevens, The Tymes, The Shalimars, The Triumphs, The Superiors and Alice Clark's "You Hit Me" on Warners which was also via Bradford Market etc, etc. The first records I had at that time were "Thumb A Ride" - Earl Wright, "I Need Your Love So Desperately" - Peaches & Herb, "Crying Over You" - Duke Browner, "Nothing But Love" -Kaddo Strings, "Wait Til I Get To Know You" - Bobby Treetop, "Slipping Around" - Art Freemen plus virtually all of the Bradford Market gear including quite a few things which hadn't broken at that point. I think it was "Thumb A Ride" which got me the Central gig 'cos Banksy used to pester me to bring it down every week......... Ian D

This is another one of those situations where you can visualise the label perfectly (blue Pama by the way). This is another one which I'm convinced I've actually seen, like "Humphrey Stomp" on Wand. Except, in the case of the Volumes, I'm recalling this from the 70's. I'm usually pretty good at recalling things but maybe this one is going too far....... Entirely feasible though. Pete chose a good one. Ian D

"Soon Everything's Gonna Be Alright" Inst - Third Time Around "Don't Shake My Tree" Inst - Beverly Wheeler & The Cameros "The Bottle (La Botella)" Inst - Joe Bataan Ian D

Well I was a div wasn't I? It's the unwritten set of checks and balances that keeps 'new to the scene' people in their place. These things usually work in generational cycles. If you were going to the Spinning Disc in '68, you'll be around 5 years older than me I guess (ie 60+) which would make you a 'first generation' soulie and me a second generation one, since I probably didn't get seriously into it until '71. In fact, that would be about right, 'cos that was about the time I met Graham Slater and the Cleckheaton lads. So I was a kid. No one who arrived on the scene back then got any respect until they'd been around a while or put a few good records together. It was a rite of passage and sorted out the wood from the chaff which probably wasn't a bad thing in retrospect. It meant an early induction into the heirarchy of the scene. This meant that you'd develop a hide of steel and thus be able to deal with the particular nuances of the scene. Good fun this. I completely forgot about Joan, but she was responsible for giving me my first DJ gig. Later on, from '77 onwards, myself and Paul Schofield ran the club in conjunction with Len Cave and his glamourous younger wife who's name I've temporarily forgotten. But that Joan was a real character wasn't she? Ian D

OK it was my birthday this week and for some weird reason I decided to celebrate over 3 days this year. So yep, naturally I'll be completely knackered again for this week's show LOL... But not to worry, it's a cracker this week 'cos I'm playing loads of my faves! Got some real goodies this week right from the off with an exclusive belting Neil Thompson mix of a Frankie Knuckles gem with a twist! Plus whilst he was at it, Neil has also managed to remix another long-term show fave so we're naturally proud to give it the first play on this week's show! Best pair of birthday presents I've had this year! So it's gonna be total self-indulgence for me this week! I'm treating myself. But hey, if I like it, then a few others will! Should be fun! Also Alan Champ is threatening to drop by, so it'll be like old days and will no doubt be the finale to 4 days of partying. All this is just limbering up for Prestatyn from where we'll be broadcasting LIVE next weekend so keep it Starpoint! Six Million Steps Presents The Original Mastercuts Show LIVE with Ian Dewhirst between 2.00-4.00pm on Sunday 6th March 2011 on everyone's favourite Soul station www.starpointradio.com. Featuring...... Intense feat Jazmina * Frankie Knuckles feat Satoshie Tomii & Robert Owens * Tongue N' Cheek * Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis Jr * Donnie * Instant Funk * Basic Black * Tafuri * Switch * Mel Britt * Jodi Mathis * Natural Four * Eula Cooper * The Internationals * Ila Vann * Rock Candy * Anne Sexton * Nolan Porter * Stevie Wonder * The Lovelites * Charles Sherrell * Aretha Franklin * The Spinners * Al Green See you LIVE @ 2.00pm! Laters, Ian D X

Hi Roy, No, I was too young for the Spinning Disc but I'm pretty sure I was passing it when I was 15 and noticing that's where the action was. Leeds was always a pretty cool place so any excuse to get over there from Mirfield was good. I met the Cleckheaton mob - Sid, Smithy, Rod, Twink at a Soul night in a pub in Cleckheaton and they took me to the Central. Tony Banks was the deejay and P.P. Arnold, Lou Johnson, Fathers Angels, Soul Twins, Garnet Mimms were the big records, so I reckon that must have been '72 or thereabouts......? I think Twink and I maybe started deejaying there from '73 then.....? Ian D

I'd agree with that. This has been an underground scene for almost almost 50 years and it's influence continues to captivate many different audiences. As an example, I spent last Thursday night with Dan who runs the Baltic Soul weekenders and he was telling me about his efforts to find Anne Sexton, which took years but eventually resulted in her playing her biggest ever shows some 30 odd years after her last 70's gig, to a highly enthusiastic 4,500 capacity audience (plus I got to see her last year @ Vintage too). Without Colin playing that track all those years ago, initially to sparse initial appreciation believe it or not, then the course of Anne Sexton's career would have been very different! Good post Agentsmith. Are you going for that Proffffessssssor gig then....? Ian D

I wonder how many copies are around? It's always been one of the rarer ones but I wouldn't have a clue as to how many have been dug out. 30? 50? 100? Can anyone make a calculated guess? Ian D

Absolutely awesome slice of pure Northern Soul. Everything absolutely perfect. Incredible song, impassioned Soulful vocals, perfect Northern dancefloor beat, brilliant Detroit production, great name, obscure Detroit label and mega mega rare from day one. Pretty much the perfect Northern Soul record. God bless Kev Roberts for selling me the 2nd copy. £40 doesn't sound like much these days, but it was 4 weeks wages back in the day. I was never happier then when I was playing this record. If I won the lottery, I wouldn't think twice about buying it back for £5K. It's seriously that good! Ian D

Hiya Pete. Long time no see. Hope you're well mate. You were an established Leeds Central regular long before I got there and I can still remember your sharp taste in suits! I'd love to see some photos from the early days. I never realised that the Central kicked off in 1967. This stuff needs documenting and I guess the best bet would be to trawl locally and maybe launch a kind of 'memorabilia appeal' via the local papers. I'm worried that a lot of this stuff will get lost. Ridiculous as it sounds, Jimmy Saville actually invented the concept of utilising two record decks for the DJ. So the whole foundation of the professional DJ and the use of two record decks started in Leeds. Then Leeds based Pete Stringfellow came along and launched with the Mojo in Sheffield before going on to establish himself as a massively successful nightclub entrepreneur on the international stage. So Leeds is responsible for spawning a lot of influential stuff in terms of culture. The Central was a total inspiration to me as a 16 year old entering the scene in1971 and I namecheck it every opportunity I can because it was the most important and influential club in my musical education. Leeds Central is very dear to my heart. Who's the local heritage guy Pete? And does he know about this rich seam of local history I ask myself.....? Ian D

Wow. Sensational stuff Gareth. I never realised that Motown compromised on the quality of their vinyl. But now you've mentioned it, Berry Gordy was designing his mixes so that they'd sound great coming out of tiny Japanese transistor radio speakers, which were obviously shit. This was the main reason why the drums, bass, strings, tambourines and vocals were always to the front of the final Motown mixes - so they'd still sound great coming out of HORRIBLE tiny Jap transistor radio speakers. Also there was no higher quality FM radio at the time, so maybe it just didn't make any sense to pay a higher price for quality pressings? We already know that Berry Gordy Jr was a smart businessman, so it makes perfect sense really. A brilliant piece of insight mate. I can instantly see Berry Gordy realising that there was no sense in worrying about the quality of the 60's and 70's 45 commercial pressings. For sure, Motown internal staff required the best quality pressings to guage the appeal of the release. However, once that had been decided I bet Berry did some quick calculations and saved himself $200,000 on every hit. Naturally the engineers hated that approach but, let's face it, would any of 'em have dared to argue with Berry Gordy Jr? Plus he was paying 'em too, which generally demands a certain level of compliance. This is the kind of stuff which none of the air-brushed accounts would ever think about. I guess that's why we're discussing it now.............. Ian D

And I can picture this in my head very clearly on Wand, which makes me think that I've seen one along the line........ ....or maybe I was pissed too! Ian D

Actually the Tamiko Jones was purely a rumour at one time as no one had ever actually seen one, either demo or issue. I think Martin Koppel probably found it first but no others had managed to find their way to the UK at that point. When Anderson brought those first white demos back there was a general feeling of, "Wow, it really DOES exist". Ian D

Tony Turner on Musicor. Can remember arguements for years about whether Tamiko Jones on Golden World actually existed...... Ian D

Ian D