Ian Dewhirst

The group is called Fork In The Road and the song is "Can't Turn Around Now". Came out on GM in the U.S....... Ian D

This could be a great thread. Even in my limited capacity as a 'wide-range' Discogs vinyl seller, I'm seeing some interesting trends. New markets are emerging along with the traditional bedrock markets. Roughly 66% of my sales are abroad and more and more are coming from 'emerging markets' like Brazil, Russia and many of the old soviet block countries. It's like some of these guys are discovering 70's and 80's records for the first time and actively trying to hunt them down in the same way that we have for the last 60 years. Interesting stuff. It's almost like the stuff that we're all tired of, is the same stuff which is now inspiring new markets that never had easy access to it before. So certain markets will sweep up the stuff we leave and create their own scenes from our leftovers. Very organic really and a natural progession in it's own way. I think the ethos of vinyl collecting is still very strong out there and the refreshing thing is that so many musically-minded young people still take it seriously. So an 18 year old guy in Brazil is only just discovering the stuff that we had in the 70's and, furthermore, wants it on the original vinyl? No probs. Bring it on! Ian D

Be patient like Jocko! Ian D

That extra week was down to some intricate repair work on 19 masters, which has made a FANTASTIC difference to the sound quality so hopefully it's worth it! Are you in London Jocko? I'm off Great Tichfield St if you fancy a pint or two......... Ian D

Well, yeah for sure. But there's sure an abundance of Paris's in the house. The best-known Paris of 'em all is the rap guy who hit big in the 90's. Even my daughter knows THAT Paris LOL. But Paris was obviously a name that a few people went for. Did the Chi-Sound Paris make any earlier records under a different name I wonder? He's just too good to be a first-timer on "I Choose You", which is one of my favourite vocal performances of all-time as an aside. I've bumped into this Paris problem before......... Ian D

For sure. That's why we're all here. I'd like to work out the recording history of the Paris who recorded "I Choose You" on Chi-Sound. This my personal favourite Paris but who was he and what did he do before? Fascinating stuff...... Ian D

"I Can See Him Loving You" to be precise (and slightly pedantic LOL). The production values of the Paul Kendrick record and the Anderson Brothers aren't a million miles apart in my opinion. I actually had a Private Stock acetate of it at one time but that ended up in a collection. It's a bit of a bummer 'cos it's not even on You Tube so I can't immediately reference it, but I recall it as being a great record with a brilliant 70's production........... Ian D

Yep. It's always been a beauty. Would fit in right next to the Anderson Brothers or something of a similar ilk. I'd love to hear this out over a great system........ Ian D

Fantastic tune! I've had around 3 copies over the last 35 years and they've always been prised out of the shelves by people who bent my arm, much like that Bo Cooper record "Don't Call It Love" on UK Bell (which recently turned up on a Levine podcast), Marva Hick's "Looking Over My Shoulder" on UK Infinity and Darlene Love's "Lord If You're A Woman" on UK Phil Spector. Just great records period. It's actually pretty rare. I presume most copies are secure in people's collections......? Alas, I can't seem to locate a copy right now........ Ian D

Damn. I can't even remember that Dave Rene record...... ....is it any good....? Ian D

Brilliant! Great story and exactly what this thread is all about. Sometimes you know you may have a major item which in my case, in the late 70's, happened to be Si Hightower's one-off test-pressing and Willie Tee's "I'm Having So Much Fun" on Gatur. I moved them on because, frankly, I was way off the scene at that point and those records were more use to the people who REALLY wanted 'em, i.e., the next generation of people like me who were deep into the scene. But what's your excuse LOL? Ian D

Yep, I'll always be grateful to Bob from Louth for turning up with the then unknown copy of "I'm Com'un Home In The Morn'un" which I almost didn't buy 'cos the title looked country and western.......... ....but then I heard the record over the cans and changed my mind right sharp! Ian D

A lovely early online review for Holy Spirit...... https://www.soulandjazzandfunk.com/reviews/1781-various-holy-spirit-harmless.html Ian D

Who'd have thought that a record I bought for £4 in Louth one winter Thursday night in the mid 70's would go on to become one of the most loved Northern anthems of all time. RIP Lou. Ian D

Not quite Chalky. I definitely got this in the early Wigan era. In fact, unless I'm mistaken, the deal actually took place there. I'm pretty sure Kev was the first one @ Wigan to have it as I'm sure he'll confirm....... Ian D

Yep, the Pipkins got around a bit. They did some Motown stuff for Little Lisa, Oma Heard (and Marvin Gaye), Martha Reeves etc plus Brice Coefield, Vicky Nelson and Tate. Busy guys. I always bought anything with their name on it.......... Ian D

OK. Weird that I've never seen this anywhere but in the UK and it was always cheap as chips. I think it must have been mass imported at some time. What's it worth these days? Ian D

That wouldn't surprise me. I was always seeing this around, especially in some of the bigger second-hand stores and market stalls. It always looked like a pressing and there were loads of 'em around at one time. I always wondered how come there were so many pressed and how come they ended up everywhere...... Ian D

Wow, 2 weeks in a row is a real rarity for me these days. However the patchy nature of my shows over the last couple of months means I'm making up for it now! Besides it's Jubilee day on a long bank holiday weekend and this is a perfect way to gear up for the next 36 hours of partying! We have the usual musical odyssey that carries us through the eras - everything from a couple of new releases, the best of the latest re-edits, some unbelievable slabs of incredible soul and the usual Sunday afternoon killers. Come join the Sunday afternoon regulars us in the Starpoint chatroom on the home page of the Starpoint website! Six Million Steps Presents The Original Mastercuts Show LIVE with Ian Dewhirst between 2.00-4.00pm on Sunday 3rd June 2012 on everyone's favourite Soul station www.starpointradio.com. Featuring...... Barry White * Roy Ayers * The Sunburst Band * George Benson * Gregory Porter * Cameo * The Pasadenas * Armed Gang * Zalmac * The Four Tops * Jimmy Helms * Jr Walker & The All-Stars * Bobby Womack * Sister Sledge * Audio * Dorothy Norwood * Stanley Winston * The Delfonics * William DeVaughn * Dionne Warwick * Eugene Record Also, for anyone in London this weekend, don't forget the Six Million Steps gig down @ East Village today with special guest Red Greg and the Six Million steps posse. Catch you @ 2.00pm today! Ian D

All of us did Roger! I was earning £22.50 a week from my job and some pocket money from deejaying but I was always broke because there was always another record. I'd regularly spend a couple of weeks broke because I'd just layed-out on a record or two. I didn't really drink or smoke back then so that's obviously how I afforded it all LOL.... Ian D

Great signing mate. I didn't even realise they were British until recently. They seem to be getting the most attention in the U.S. Good for them. Is the first single any good? Ian D

Blimey, this has just turned up on the new Strongbow TV ad. Maybe it'll be a hit finally! Ian D

Funnily enough, I think I met Trevor Vallis a couple of years back when we met up with Silvia Love who was included on some of the Disco Discharge albums. I think the Detours were a studio group and MCA just picked up the master. Funny that for a none hit it got released throughout the world - there's even a Chilean copy on e-bay at the moment! If you want anymore info on the band I can probably put a call in to Trevor (assuming it was him that I met)....... Ian D

Mmm. Interesting. I know they have a very sophisticated computer tracking system that works to certain patterns and automatically adjusts the Amazon price if a competitor has a lower price. So an Amazon price can swing around a bit depending on the level of interest in a release. I remember the price of the Backbeats releases dropping from £4.99 to £3.93 almost overnight. It's an efficient system for sure and Amazon's sales on Harmless releases have jumped circa 4-500% in the last year, so I'm not complaining. They're actually using the same model that the supermarkets used when they started stocking CD's, namely, trying to price everyone else out of the market. They're really the leaders of the new way of shopping and the more people order online, the bigger they'll get. It's sure changed from the 1960's ay? Ian D

OH, I didn't realise that they price-matched their lowest price and refunded early buyers for the difference! Is that what they do? If they do that, then that fits another piece of the jigsaw into place. Can you confirm that Roburt? Ian D