Ian Dewhirst

Good point Eddie. I used to love those ads 'cos you'd get to know what sounds were being played around the country and who had exclusives etc. I don't know why clubs stopped doing that but I wish they'd bring it back. The 100 Club could have claimed the first UK club plays on tons of stuff. At least two brand new vintage sounds were aired last Saturday alone plus with Butch there the records should be a major part of the draw shouldn't they? Great idea plus it would actually help break stuff as well because of the curiosity factor. The listing of records that would be played was fundamental to us travelling hundreds of miles every weekend in the 70's so maybe it's time to revive that as a marketing tool....... Ian D

It's a type of coffee popular with Guardian readers, Yuppies and 80's Mod revivalists. Ian D

Different strokes Russ. You may find that some older folks may not be as mobile as younger spring chickens and some folk may not necessarily have the capacity any longer to take flagons of speed to propell 'em through the weekend. Things that once seemed appealing for a 16 year old youngster full of energy with an insatiable lust for record labels, i.e. talking bollox @ a local McDonalds @ 6.30am to anyone who will listen, may not necessarily have the same appeal to someone 40 years older. I can remember when it was fashionable to go to Wigan baths after a night at the Casino and get a couple of hours swimming in before setting off to an all-dayer! That could be half the problem with a club that's been operating 31 years. The age range of the customers may necessarily mean that in order to survive the club needs to cater to a wide swathe of ages or operate on several levels to appeal to all their range of customers. It's a pretty unique problem in that I don't know many other clubs that have to cater to an audience of 25-60 year olds. Serving Lattes is a brilliant idea though mate. If the kitchen could knock out some quiche lorraine and caesar salads to go with it they'd get some of those 80's mods back in no doubt! Ian D

Oh yes! 7" is perfect Phil. Well done. Ian D

You got a new scanner Kev? Ian D

Or alternatively everybody could crash at Ady's since he only lives around the corner! How's that sound Ady? Ian D

Well I'm party animal supreme Kev but I don't always make it to the last record these days and the night bus service isn't for me mate. In fact the last time I made the mistake of catching a night bus home was @ the Kent 25th anniversary @ the Forum in 2007. It took me 2 and a half hours to get to 5 miles from where I live and the idea of sleeping in a skip actually looked appealing @ 4.30am. And spending the early hours on a Sunday morning in the Tottenham Court Road branch of McDonalds doesn't fill me with joy either. We used to do stuff like that in the 70's at Motorway services but maybe I'm too long in the tooth to do that these days. What I was getting at, is that I'm pretty sure that the 100 club could probably sort out some favourable rates with some local B&B's for those who have horrendous journeys and who may want to have more leisurely journies to and from. Just a thought like..... Ian D

Just out of curiosity, what's wrong with sorting out a package deal with a couple of local hotels or B&B's Kev? If someone's travelled a couple of hundred miles to attend the event might they not like to freshen up or get changed? Or maybe have somewhere to go back to and crash for a few hours rather then spending the time on the streets @ 6.00am on a Sunday morning before they can get a train back? Also, some customers might no be as young and sprightly as yourself and may require to leave earlier. I can think of a zillion places I'd rather be than walking the streets of London @ 6.00am waiting for a train that doesn't run until 9.00am.......... Ian D

Yep. Good job I got dropped off south of the river as that was only £35 and believe me I was lucky to get that! Most London gigs I do run at a loss these days! I wonder why we can't have all-night tubes like they have in most other civilised cities on a Friday and Saturday..........? Ian D

You're probably right. I've got a tendency to assume that just 'cos I kept stumbling into things in the 70's (and 80's to a lesser extent), that certain titles cannot be rare. But if those couple of hundred count boxes have all ended up in people's collections since then, then I guess they're rare now...... Ian D

I think the suggestion that someone made earlier about maybe sorting out a decent package deal for a B&B or hotels for the longer haul travellers makes a lot of sense. With an aging fan-base convenience has to be a factor and the one thing London has is plenty of hotels and rooms and conveniently hundreds of 'em are within a mere stroll of the 100 Club. So rather than having to co-ordinate everything for just the hours that the club is open, having the option of a local room means that everyone could adopt a slightly more civilised approach to visiting the club rather than getting to 6.00am and then trying to figure out how to deal with the travelling back. London transport throughout the night is also an issue for me. I would have happily popped down on Saturday night if it wasn't such a pain in the ass for me to get back home @ a civilised hour! I was at another function just along the road and would have loved to have come down between, say 1.00-4.00am but that would have entailed a £50 cab fare to get home and that's a luxury these days. I wouldn't have lasted 'til 6.00am otherwise that would have written me off for work on Monday so I had little choice other than to get the last tube back to my area @ 12.30am. This is patently ridiculous for a metropolis like London in 2010 but obviously that's way beyond any of our remits........ Also Ady, I think that the financial impact is really affecting a lot of things at the moment. I've travelled around quite a bit this year - Blackpool, Dewsbury, Prestatyn, Preston etc and it's not cheap so I guess you've got to be reasonably well-off to be a regular monthly gig goer these days. Also I would really make a bit more of the heritage of the club - after all this is the longest running Soul club in the world isn't it? 31 years is a huge achievement by any standard - most clubs are lucky if they get 5 years! Since the 100 Club is one of the great institutions that's actually still running I would have thought it would be in the club's interest to generate a bit more interest in it's heritage. This could be achieved by being a bit more proactive on the PR front or by redesigning the flyers/posters/ads so that visiting the 100 Club is a historic occasion for many visitors. Are people necessarily aware of the heritage of the club? I dunno but if it were my club I'd invest a bit more 'history' in the entrance and stairwells for a start. There's certainly enough archival stuff that could be used and would give people a sense of the history of the club as they enter the hallowed portals. Not many clubs have the rich history of the 100 Club so I don't think I'd be shy in promoting it as the longest running Soul club in history. You need those extra visitors to make up the numbers and it would be naive to ignore this area IMO. Every 100 Club do should be seen as an event so you may need to step up the all-round promotion of the venue and get those extra couple of hundred 'waiverers' in each time. And finally what's the deal with Talcum powder down there? Does the owner not like it? I popped along Oxford Street on Saturday 'cos I was at a party @ Centerpoint so I thought I'd share a fag with a few of the regulars and I noticed that Talcum powder was being confiscated. Is it that much of an issue? But whatever you do, keep it running. The Xmas do was f*ckin' brilliant and I bumped into tons of people who made it down for the occasion. I just think you have to make every 100 Club do an occasion these days! Ian D

Blimey, they disappeared quick. Must've been snapped up after you started the thread Chris. As Baz said, it was a fairly common Soul Pack record in the 70's so they'll be out there somewhere mate. It's one of those records that I always seem to find in odd places and generally never bother picking 'em up 'cos I'm convinced there's tons of 'em out there. First copy I ever picked up was from Cheapo Cheapo for 25p but I've bumped into 100 count boxes of 'em a couple of times over the years...... It'll turn up.... Ian D

Wow, all these scans and I still haven't seen a nice UK Verve copy of the Amazing Dance Band's "Deep Blue Train" - a real traditional Northern stormer! Ian D

Glad ya like it Baz. I couldn't believe that such a great Levi Stubbs vocal was buried away in these sessions. Apparently the Four Tops were working in the studio next door and heard the song and insisted that they do a version! I presume this was cut after they left ABC and prior to them going to Casablanca....... Ian D

Hiya Steve, Those albums were pretty much cobbled together from so many out-takes and unreleased sessions that the correct information probably got obscured in the process. Plus the album in question was the fourth volume so "To Care" was probably the working title that had been written on the tapes I presume. All they had to do was listen to the track LOL. It is the chorus after all....... Ian D

Good spot Ken. Passed me by entirely first time around....... Ian D

First time on 7". I can't believe this was actually issued on one of those George Clinton & Family albums in the early 90's. Probably sold about 10 copies as it was Volume 4..... https://www.discogs.com/Various-George-Clinton-Family-Series-Testing-Positive-4-The-Funk/release/1281978 Recorded in Detroit in '79 by all accounts. Tremendous vocal from Levi and great song - the proper title is "Love Enough To Care". Could be another "Prayin'".....? Ian D

Fairly common. It turned up in bulk in the UK in the 70's and I think it was a fairly typical Soul Pack record at the time which may explain why there's more over here then in the U.S. I just did a search and turned up a couple for 5 euros and £5...... Ian D

Well it's been a pretty busy coupla weeks what with Morag's 45th birthday up in Preston a week last Friday and then the delights of the St Alosysius Social Club in London on Saturday night. Both gigs were major fun and it was a gas meeting so many friendly Souls at both events so a big shout out to all my new and old friends. I love getting on the road and getting around the country. It shows how we've all been blessed with the Soul bug......... Anyway another musical odyssey this week covering some up-tempo goodies in the first half-hour, some late 70's/80's gems up to halfway through, then a powerhouse 60's/70's session in the third half-hour and we finish off with some sleazy slowies into a dreamy ending for a perfect Sunday afternoon! Hope ya like it! Six Million Steps Presents The Original Mastercuts Show with Ian Dewhirst between 2.00-4.00pm on Sunday 11th April 2010 on everyone's favourite Soul station www.starpointradio.com. Featuring....... 1st Hour Alicia Keys - You Don't Know My Name - DJ Spen Remix Michael Jackson - Butterflies - MCM Remix New York Rappers - I Wish Papik - Stayin' For Good Donny Hathaway - Little Ghetto Boy - Freddy L Remix Ashford & Simpson & The John Davis Monster Orchestra - Bourgie Bourgie -Jetsetter Remix Alton McClain & Destiny - My Destiny Norman Connors - Stay With Me L.A. Voyage - Never Lookin' Back (Again) Aaron Broomfield - I'm Gonna Miss You 2nd Hour Ruby Andrews - I Got A Bone To Pick With You The George Clinton Band - Please Don't Run From Me Barbara St Clair - Teacher Man The Four Tops - Love Enough To Care The Temptations - Think For Yourself Marva Whitney - This Girl's In Love With You The Pacesettters - Lovin' The Ohio Players - Sweet Sticky Thing Blair - Nightlife Cool Million feat Karen Groth - It's Too Late Earth, Wind & Fire - Fantasy - Blaze Shelter Remix Marvin Gaye - Mercy Mercy Me - Rapson Re-Edit https://www.sixmillionsteps.com/6MS-2010-04-11-Starpoint.mp3 Al is back next week and you'll catch me again on the 25th before I jet off to Ibiza for the Nightmares On Wax Beach Party with me old mucker Paul Schofield! A 4 hour marathon session on the beach is EXACTLY what I need right now LOL! Enjoy! Ian D

Wow. Perfect imagery for a Northern Soul All-Nighter in Bolton then........ Ian D

...and remember "Let's Spend Some Time Together" - L.A. Power and Light? Ian D

Coming up LIVE @ 2.00pm. Some killer tunes this week including a brilliant 4 Tops from '79 recorded in Detroit with Levi in great form! www.starpointradio.com Ian D

That was the other promoter I was trying to remember Malc. Terry Sampson promoted the Jr Walker gig I think. Was he from Sheffield? I seem to remember doing a few gigs for Terry. Dunno what happened to him as I haven't seen him for 36 years LOL.... Ian D

It came from the Torch I think. I don't recall ever hearing it out though. "Land Of A 1000 Dances" - Electric Indian and "Black Is Black" - Lord Sitar were around at the same time. The period of weird instrumentals........ Ian D

Va-Va's was part of the weekend ritual at one point. Kick off @ the Central in Leeds and then across to Bolton for Va-Va's every Friday and then Mecca and Casino on a Saturday followed by an all-dayer on the Sunday would make for an action-packed weekend. Very handy as you'd hear the countries top sounds across 4-5 different venues every weekend, so a new record could 'break' in a single weekend. Richard use to often play his new discoveries @ Va-Va's 'cos he was the resident and had more time to play different sets, so musically Va-Va's was great. The only not so great bit was the occasional hassle with Bolton townie dickheads who infiltrated the club sometimes and created unnecessary stress. Could be a hostile atmosphere at times I seem to remember....... The Cats Whiskers in Meanwood, Leeds was famous for the record decks being suspended from the ceiling because the floor could get jumpy at times. I did a few gigs there with John 'Kojac' Harvey I seem to remember. Best gig bar none for me was the Junior Walker gig which I recall was a brilliant day. I actually wrote-off two cars en route to the Cats Whiskers Sunday all-dayers...... Ian D