Ian Dewhirst

I had a Joe Mathews from '75-'76. Can't remember if I played it @ Wigan or not..... Ian D

He only sells originals Pete.......quote:- "all my records are originals" I can understand where he's coming from but you have to have a higher tolerance level for record selling these days I think. I've had some lunatic situations which sometimes made me lose the will to live. There's not enough hours in the day to deal with some of 'em. Like the guy who ordered and bought a specific promo and then accused me of selling something illegal! Or the guy who bought a Tommy Boy white 12" promo and then refused to accept that it was a 'proper' promo, even though it had "Promotional Copy: Not For Sale" printed on the label! Or the guy from Brazil who wouldn't accept that the postal system would not get his records there quickly and who launched a dispute after 5 days and then received 'em 6 weeks later. And on and on and on LOL.... If I ever use e-bay again I'd be inclined to have a bit of fun too....... Ian D

Al Jones - Only Love Can Save Me Now Ian D

It could be very intimidating in most Northern towns walking around as a soulie in the early to mid 70s and you had to have your wits about you. Sometimes just getting a train back with records in your hand or bag could be enough to create a punch-up. Plus Wigan and Va-Va's had some very naughty characters hanging around that were constantly looking for easy targets. I was lucky, that apart from a well-publicised pint glass in my face @ the Mecca and a plot to nick my records @ Cleethorpes (which never took place) I managed to avoid most hassles. Even though I was tall and soft-looking I got through 'cos I knew my records, thank god! Ian D

The film producers don't have any control over the mainstream media Mark - the producers of the individual shows call the shots. I think the hope is that the film will give a much more realistic portrayal of the times and hopefully reach a wider audience in the process. As I've said many times before, it'll take a lot more than a film and soundtrack CD to destroy a scene that's lasted for 45 years. And also, as I've said before, the low point of the scene was Wigan's Ovation on Top Of The Pops in the mid 70's. Believe me, that was 100 times worse then anything we can do these days! The shame of years and years of explaining to people that the scene wasn't about dodgy third-rate pop groups was awful..... And yes, I am biased. But I wouldn't have pitched for the soundtrack if I wasn't into what Elaine was attempting. I'm 59..... Ian D

I got on the scene for the music, first and foremost. When I started deejaying I wanted to play the music to as many people as possible in order to spread it and I still feel pretty much the same way now. Why wouldn't you want people to maybe discover this music for the first time? I WANT people to hear these tracks and come rushing over to ask what the record is, as happened several times last week in the office. I'm pretty sure the likes of Gino Washington, Joshie Armstead, William Bell and numerous other veterans featured on the soundtrack are over the moon that these songs will be given a new lease of life and hopefully reach a wider international audience then was even remotely possible some 45 or 50 years ago. So I don't really understand what you're saying? The film would not have been made and the soundtrack would not have been meticulously compiled if Elaine didn't understand the scene. Maybe you want Northern Soul to go the same way as dry-stone walling? Not me. I get a buzz when I see young people getting off on this music in exactly the same way as they've always done since the mid 60's. Who are we to deny them? Ian D

There's nothing b*llocks about this I can assure you and you pissing over your gran's grave isn't the first thing that would have sprung to my mind. I've had 44 years on this scene including being resident DJ @ Wigan Casino, Samathas and Cleethorpes Pier and I think this is a fantastic project which captures a special period in my life. To each their own I guess..... Ian D

So much energy vented in vitriol. Why? I was having a good day until I experienced this venomous barb. Ian D

It is. I'm very excited. We're doing a 14 x 7" vinyl set from the Soundtrack. The 7" photo sleeves and the accompanying hardbound book of Elaine's photography throughout the making of the film are simply breath-taking. The way I look at it is, if the mainstream media ever needed a fail-safe lesson in the understanding of Northern Soul from people who are qualified for the job, then here it is. Look no further. This is the real deal. Finalized track-listing for CD2 next week! Might be some other good news coming through shortly too. Exciting times! Ian D

It's coming, it's coming, it's coming..... This will actually outdo Stevie Wonder's "Songs In The Key Of Life" for an extended waiting period LOL. CD2 is 98% completed and contains several songs with haven't been legally comped before. Elaine is holding out for the final track for CD2, which we're praying will be cleared shortly. We think this CD release will reflect Northern Soul in the correct way. CD1 (the actual soundtrack) is completed and it's certainly sparking the right kind of vibe around people who didn't know what Northern Soul is, but now get it totally. Superior film and superior music. I feel blessed to be involved and it couldn't be for a better project than this. Ian D

There's quite a few from this era that I never hear out these days. "Do It To It" - the Funky Sisters, Ila Vann's "Can't Help Lovin' That Man", Casanova Two's "We Got To Keep On" and the Mylestones' "Sexy Lady" are a few other examples to name a handful..... Ian D

Kegsy and Photoshop. There's a marriage made in heaven ay.....? Ian D

I worked for Decca in 1977 and all the remnants from the 60s were still in place then. Everything was documented and rooms were dedicated to carrying copies of all releases. In my view things were much better organised and curated back then. Plus obviously physical copies of everything were kept from vinyl to paperwork. When Polygram bought out Decca most of that stuff was dumped or disappeared I believe... Ian D

Yep, Billy was a great guy. Richard got to know him better than me and I think that's why he always gave credit to Billy for Frankie & Johnny. I bet you know a couple of my mates Desa and Jon Williams - they used to go to Terry Lennaine's night in Birkenhead, he was also on Radio Merseyside when Billy was doing the breakfast show I think........ Also, talking of UK demos, did you ever go to Magical Mystery Store in Birkenhead? I got a few things out of there at one time..... Ian D

Could well be, especially for an older item - they probably had an archive at Broadcasting House which BBC provincial stations could call on if need be. By the late 60's the major record companies were quite sophisticated in promoting records nationally and pretty much everything would be serviced to most stations throughout the UK. There's been some great hits at local BBC stations which had clear-outs in the mid 70s - often Richard Searling and I would be scoping 'em out 'cos we were both reps for RCA and Decca at the time. Richard had some particularly good results from Billy Butler on Radio Merseyside (Frankie & Johnny and Delaney Bramlett to name a couple) and both of us had some great hits in Leeds, Sheffield and Derby when they had clear-outs. There was a shop in Harrogate that specialized in buying radio station and reps clearouts. We're talking tens of thousands of UK promos at a time. I once bought 5000 for 2p each, so they're out there somewhere.... Might be worth checking with the National Sound Archive and see if they've got one! Ian D

There's still a plant in the UK that can handle those. My designer mentioned it today. I see if I can dig their name up..... Ian D

Which BBC library? There were loads of 'em back then - the ONLY radio stations at that time were BBC and most, if not all, of the BBC provincial stations were serviced by all of the major record companies to my knowledge. Actually this brilliant find doesn't surprise me that much. I wanted to mention earlier in the thread that I could have sworn seeing a DB issue in the early 70s but I couldn't remember the occasion or who had it, so it seemed pointless chirping in with no proof. I remember there being a full run of London-American UK demos at Decca HQ on Albert Embankment and every so often an issue would be there instead and it was generally because they'd run out of labels or something on a particular week . And of course, many demos were pressed up but some titles just piled up in offices 'cos there were bigger fish to fry or an artist would be in town or something. So when the issues were pressed they just stayed there 'cos no one knew or ordered the records. I'm sure Rouncy will know whether generally the issues would come off the same pressing run as the demo, as surely they'd just swap the labels and continue the run I would have thought? If so, it would be perfectly feasible for, say, 200 demos to be run off and then 300 issues wouldn't it? Brilliant find whichever way we look at it. Could have been the guy at the factory keeping one before the rest got junked? Ian D

Also Vince, never under-estimate the power of the world market and especially the younger buyers who want to amass a collection but don't necessarily have the big bucks. Selling the odd Northern tune here or there probably accounts for about 5% of my sales. I have repeat buyers who come back every month and spend anywhere between £20-£100 a time for multiple 7's or 12's and I love 'em. Everybody has to start somewhere and that's the audience that I target. Ian D

I honestly don't know how people can expect to get Mint Northern Soul records anymore. These are 50 years old, have probably been in several collections and been played a few dozen times in most cases. Unless it's unplayed U.S. Stock, then the chances of a classic being Mint are negligible IMO.... Ian D

It's gone quite a way since it was £3 on Brian '45' Phillips list ay? Ian D

Actually, I should probably qualify things slightly. If you have a massive stock that is none too specifically targeted and you're not in a hurry to sell stuff, then Discogs is probably the right operation for you. I have across the board stuff that covers a lot of areas so I find Discogs perfect for me. No big ticket Northern items but thousands of easily affordable nice copies of great tunes that appeal to a wide section of buyers and that for me is where the market is on Discogs. I've been thinning down my collection for the last 10 years and have a healthy week-to-week tick-over via Discogs. However, I've noticed more and more Northern stuff going on there over the last 12 months especially. There's not much to lose by listing Northern on there at the price you want. It takes circa 30 seconds to list with no upfront fees so why not? I notice even Manship's begun listing on there. On the rare occasions when I actually buy stuff these days, it's almost always through the U.S. listings on Discogs. There's bargains galore for people like me and more and more stock is being loaded on daily. E-bay's been kinda dead for a long time in my view...... Ian D

Discogs since 2008 Kev. https://www.discogs.com/seller/Mastercuts Ian D

It's the beginning of summer proper and the worst time of the year for selling records in my recent experience. Other priorities multiply at this time of the year and less time is spent pouring through listings. Plus e-bay is a pain in the ass and takes too long to list for too little return. I haven't listed anything on there for over a year now. Ian D

Thanks everybody. A labour of love for all of us! I'm glad it worked out. Next up, Northern Soul: The Film - 2 x CD+DVD package and 14 x 7" Box Set and The Odyssey: A Northern Soul Time Capsule 1968-2014... Ian D

Pretty well known Kev. On a subsidiary of Philly Groove originally. I even used it on a UK comp a few years back.... https://www.discogs.com/Various-The-Original-Jazz-Funk-Selection/release/1104254 Ian D