Ian Dewhirst

This is 100% what Soul Source should be about. Sharing knowledge and building awareness. Reg Bartlette's credentials are impeccable. Soul Source is the No.1 Northern Soul resource on the net and I'm sure Reg will soak up whatever knowledge can be thrown his way. I would urge anyone knowledgeable within this area to contribute. I don't know and have never met Reg, but I really applaud his efforts! If only I had that level of focus.......... Best, Ian D

From Detroit Northern Soul to Railway Memorabilia???? I wonder if he kept anything? Some folks are just plain strange. Once a collector always a collector....... Ian D

Correctomundo Dante. Well spotted. The last time S.S. appeared in person around Northern Soulers he almost got lynched and I ended up with a glass in my face! 'Persona Non Grata' was the most elegant way of putting it LOL... Ian D

Yep, Bob Foster was the Detroit man! I used to see the Welsh crew @ the Mecca or Casino most weeks and they'd always be going on about his legendary collection. 'Twas rumoured he had the first Tamiko Jones too........ Ian D

It was. First place I heard it anyway.........although as mentioned previously, there were plenty of pure Detroit collectors who may well have had it before the DJ's got copies. I can't remember his name (Bob ?) but there was a Detroit collector in Wales who had a lot of unknown stuff at the time but would never sell! Ian D

Much more than a night out Simon. It absolutely changed my life and I feel blessed to have been lucky enough to have lived through such a fantastic era. I often describe Northern Soul as being the eighth wonder of the world 'cos that's what it was to me. It got me on a plane to the states in '76, a million-selling record and pretty much a career doing what I love to do ever since. So no. Not a night out at all mate. More like 10,000 nights out! Merry Christmas! Ian D

I think the Velvets was played at the Torch first wasn't it? Dunno who got there first - it spread pretty quickly and there were a few copies around. "Easy Baby" was Richard Searling all the way. A big Va-Va's tune! Ian D

I think you're taking it all a little too righteously Posstot. Finding obscure Soul records was the foundation of the scene and it's always been a fundamental part of Northern Soul. Without those DJ's and collectors who started the scene we wouldn't be reading this forum now. I don't see that thread as point-scoring and I don't know what you mean by "under the desk, IN HAND shall we say". Under the desk? In hand? Sounds like a schoolboy perversion to me. I didn't know who discovered Jerry Williams but I do now and I LOVE stories like that and so do most of the forum judging by the popularity of the thread. Also it's really interesting to me to know where records were found, whether in the U.K., U.S. or elsewhere. I don't give a shit who found what really - I just like the stories. Discovering records is a pretty subjective thing anyway. Two of the most prolific 'discovers' of Northern Soul are persona non grata on here anyway so it didn't do them much good did it? All in all it's nice to have a positive thread for a change IMO. There was so much negativity going on at one stage that it was getting painful. We should celebrate this great music and salute those who keep digging up stuff. Most of the artists I've had the pleasure of meeting over the years have been knocked out and very grateful to the Northern scene. After all, it was the only scene in the world that appreciated their music and went to the trouble of finding it 'cos everyone else managed to miss it didn't they? Loosen up mate. It's Christmas and a time of goodwill to all men........ Ian D

You're absolutely right Dave. There were pretty big differences around the country. The schlepp from, say, Leeds to Yate was a long, long haul in those days but whenever some of us made the trip the playlists and DJ's were obviously different to 200 miles away in Leeds. I liked the regional variations. There was always a good chance to pick up records which you hadn't seen elsewhere. I got my Carstairs in Hanley, Lou Pride in Louth and Al De Lory in Peterborough - all a result of actually being at the places at the time. Plus there were those local breakout records - Ila Vann "You Make Me This Way" was established in Nottingham before it took off elsewhere. You could only hear Little Joe Romans if you caught Pep gigging so that usually meant the Midlands....... Ian D

I assumed that she might be related to Johnny and Capitol picked it up because of that but I've never researched her. Maybe someone on here knows more............? Ian D

First copy I saw was Kev's @ a Whitchurch All-Dayer I think...... Ian D

There ya go mate! History in the making. Wonder if Pete Smith was there that night? Ian D

Wow. What a story Richard. Brilliant find and one of the greatest records ever made. What year was this? Must've been around '71 or thereabouts? Too slow LOL? What were they thinking of.........? Ian D

Great, great stories Dave. Especially since I spent most of the Stafford era dicking around in London and as a result I missed out on the whole bloody scene! I only ever got the stories second or third hand when I bumped into Pat, Guy or some of the other regulars. I actually set off to Stafford on two or three occasions but always got de-railed along the way LOL, so this is great. What we really need is one of those Pete Frame "Family Tree" type of diagrams tracing the path of certain records, like he does with members of Rock groups. Here's an example:- https://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=https://www.diozine.com/Tree.jpg&imgrefurl=https://www.diozine.com/Tree.htm&usg=__NxJvOIdXorIeqJwWhW293kmiwEo=&h=2468&w=2400&sz=1677&hl=en&start=9&um=1&tbnid=Tw2j0-PatS-7KM:&tbnh=150&tbnw=146&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpete%2Bframe%2Bfamily%2Btree%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1W1HPEB_en-GB%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1 Something like that would have been really handy on the Frank Wilson copies! It'd also be a great tool for people to verify the history and path of some of these records. For instance, the first copy of Lenny Curtis that I found on Bradford Market for 10p now resides in Ginger's box but I'd love to know where it went in between......... Dynamite thread though innit? Merry Christmas to you and Malayka! Ian D

Ah, maybe I made a continuity error Eddie. I always assumed that "You Didn't Say A Word" was after "I Can't Change". The production on "Didn't Say A Word" sounds much better and more contemporary than "I Can't Change" which always sounded dated and slightly doo-woppy to me. I was really wondering what happened to her after "Didn't Say A Word" 'cos her performance on that is right up there with my all-time faves. I think it's one of the greatest productions, greatest arrangements and greatest vocals ever laid to plastic and it's almost inconceivable to me that she disappeared after that........ ......there again what about Jodi Mathis? What happened to her? How can a vocalist of that magnitude just disappear into the ether..........? Ian D

Only the two I'm afraid. The Patti Austin 70's version (whilst great in its own way) is still kinda limp compared to the earlier superior Yvonne Baker recording, one of the greatest Northern Soul records of all time. Pretty much unbeatable IMO. Did she ever record again? Ian D

Bernie Williams was a Colin Curtis 'last hour @ The Mecca' spin but I never thought it fitted with the Mecca sound at the time. It was much too dated and R'n'B'ish compared to most of the other stuff Ian and Colin were playing at this point. This was a point where the Mecca was championing the more progressive 'Modern' sound and that's what people were getting off on. As a result, many of the more traditional Northern stompers were being relegated to occasional plays or 'last hour' status. Which is kinda what happened with records like Joe Mathews, Jimmy Raye, Robbie Lawson, Herbert Hunter, Jenny & The Jewells, The Inspirations, Jimmy Mack and tons of others etc, etc. Times were a changing @ the Mecca and there was almost like a sort of reverse snobbery about the traditional Northern sound in this period. It was cooler to play King Sporty than Bernie Williams LOL...... Rosey Jones, Mel Britt, The Carstairs, The Anderson Brothers, Marvin Holmes & Justice, Anne Sexton and James Fountain were the floorfillers at this point and the new fashionisters frowned on out-on-out million-mile-per-hour stompers 'cos it seemed like a throwback to the recent past. This was when the Northern/Modern split was just beginning to happen, so even though Levine and Curtis had the cream of everything in their boxes, it seemed like some of the more traditional stompers were being relegated to 2nd class status IMO. For instance, Ian HATED Joe Mathews with a vengeance and used to complain every time Colin played it. Even Ian will admit that he veered waaaaay too far at this point, even apologising sometimes for having to play a stomper rather than, say, the latest New York underground indie label club track. So, bit by bit, traditional Northern Soul was being edged out @ the Mecca. When Ian came back from a trip to the states and unleashed a traditional Northern monster like, say, Jimmy Raye, he was almost apologetic about it. Similarly Colin would get unbelievable Northern one-offs that everyone else would kill to get hold of but somehow they were never as popular as, say, an Oscar Perry record........ So, in short, many of the later KILLER Mecca Northern discoveries were wasted @ the Mecca. So, throughout this period, vampire-sucking opportunists like me and various other DJ's/Collectors would be watching, analysing and thinking about the effect that some of these records would have on a 100% pure Northern gig like Wigan Casino for instance. If only some of these 'cult' traditional Mecca Northern stompers could be liberated from Colin or Ian and then exposed to the right audience, then BINGO! Job accomplished. Squeezing the bastards out of either Ian or Colin was another thing though. Ian didn't sell anything period and Colin was a hard bargainer at the best of times. So the smart money said wait until the right moment then pounce......... So I stored Colin's Bernie Williams record at the back of my mind and figured I'd swoop out of the blue a few months down the line, get it and then unleash the bastard to willing audiences @ Wigan, Cleethorpes, Leeds and Sheffield and take the kudos.........it should've been a piece of cake theoretically......... .....but I knew I was in trouble when I rang Colin to snag the record and he told me he'd traded it with Jack Bollington from Derby. Uh Oh....... The end result was that I consider that my 'private' deal with Jack to buy the Bernie Williams record for a hefty £40 at the time was the beginning of the insane price escalation of Northern Soul. The word got out and suddenly there was a bidding war between myself and another well-known and enduring name on the scene. When the price reached £120 and a Rosey Jones and World Column - essentially £150 in 1975, the deal no longer made sense to me. That was the point when I realised that obsession has no boundaries. So I decided to go to the U.S. and find the f*ckers myself. I took strength from adversity and it completely changed my life. As a result of backing out of the Bernie Williams bidding war I have been rewarded with a rich and interesting life which continues to this day. So Bernie Williams was a very significant record for me...... However, in answer to the original question, Colin Curtis discovered Bernie Williams OK? Ian D

I actually had a copy very early on but never quite managed to get it away. It stayed in the box for 2 years though but eventually got traded on. Similar stories with Ernest Mosely, Al Jones and Mikki Farrow I'm ashamed to say....... Graham Coates rings a bell though........ Ian D

Look at that. I couldn't even get the names right. Were Gary Lewis and Joey Dee the same guy LOL? Also Ginger needs to take a bow for Tommy Sands "The Statue"! Ian D

I then found one a couple of days after looking through your box but never actually played therefore I should be just mildly flayed....... Who was responsible for "My Heart's Symphony" and "Good Little You" both by Joey Dee though? They should be skinned, sprayed with salt and then surgically disected and disemboweled, fed to carniverous wolves and then the bones should be set alight. After that you can piss on their graves LOL....... Nearest I got to out and out Pop was Barnaby Bye, Felix Caveliere and Benny Troy....... Ian D

I'm afraid he who shall not be named found a bunch of Holly St James on one of his U.S. trips and used 'em as swops for stuff he needed from the UK, so I guess that's another one down to him......it took a while to take off after that though....... Ian D

Jack always had goodies but it was murder getting anything out of him and Kev LOL....... Levine got the Detroit Executives from Brian and I was kicking myself 'cos I liked the sound of it too. When he played it at the Mecca the next Saturday I realised I'd made a huge rick. Luckily I got mine off Russ fairly quickly. Instant floorfiller for the next couple of years.......then found an Ideals @ Cheapo Cheapo shortly thereafter........ Always wanted the Nancy Wilson on British but never found one......... Ian D

Plus that Electrical shop in Brick Lane that ordered one of everything in the 60's was handy. We got a Carl Douglas out of there plus Jim Wilson's in Shoreditch of course..... Ian D

You could fill a seperate thread with the stuff which was originally turned up in London in the early 70's. Transport links were tougher, there wasn't much communication and Northerners going down to London record-digging was a relative rarity anyway, so a handful of guys - Dave Rivers, Dave Burton, Ian Clarke, Tony and Ady had the whole of London to plunder lucky buggers...... Ian D