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REVIEW
#1
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Versatones
/ With A Broken Heart / Magic City
Setting a distinctly uptempo tone for a set of 20 reviews
from my collection, here’s a Detroit outfit about
which little, if anything, has been documented. Its
what I would term “proper Northern Soul”
with all the ingredients you would expect and just begging
to be activated. Excellent double-sider too with “Rollin
Rollin” on the flip. |
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REVIEW
#2
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Connie
Austin / She Made A Mistake / King
I first heard this spun by Carl Willingham in January
2005 at an allnighter in Manchester and was in complete
turmoil whether to dance to it or dash around to find
somebody who could identify it. Thankfully I chose the
latter and spent the next few months trying to find
one, it’s a complete stormer with all the necessary
breaks for the stunt enthusiasts. The crossover crowd
buy it for the flip “Ball Of Fire”. |
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REVIEW
#3
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Calvin
Grayson / Love Just Begun / In
Quite rightly enjoying a prolonged spell of popularity
on the UK allnighter circuit as many of the big name
jocks include it in their playlists. Taking a little
longer to break down under but with patience I’m
confident it will take off. Another uptempo dancer,
anybody spotting a trend here? |
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REVIEW
#4
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Honey
Bees / Let’s Get Back Together / Garrison
Taking pride of place in my “Premier League”
box, its difficult to imagine a more well-credentialed
Northern Soul record. Co-written by Don Mancha &
Edwin Starr with production and arrangement shared
between Don, Mike Terry & Jack Montgomery, its
reads like the who’s who of Detroit legends.
It also happens to be one hell of a gutsy dancer.
Also listed in Wand’s catalogue as #1140, but
if you find one contact your insurance broker immediately
as none has ever surfaced. |
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REVIEW
#5
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Loretta
Williams / Baby Cakes / Jotis
Little known pounder released on Otis Redding’s
label then later on red UK Atlantic. Starts off like
that drummer on the Muppets trying to beat seven colours
of shit out of the drum kit then develops into a traditional
on-the-fours dancer with some tailor-made spin breaks.
Still available at a reasonable price but perhaps not
for much longer if it starts to pick up UK plays. |
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REVIEW
#6
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Mighty
Joe Young / Ladies Man / Celtex
There are 2 types of R&B in my book, the early cowboy
stuff that seems to border on rock & roll and the
more soulful rhythmic type not too distinguishable from
regular Northern. This falls squarely into the 2nd bracket
and I reckon if “I’m A Big Man” can
become as ridiculously popular as it did, then this
is destined for greater heights given some appropriate
exposure. |
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REVIEW
#7
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Gordon
Keith / Look Ahead / Calumet
On many wants list and twice as many playlists, this
is exactly the type of Stafford sound proving so popular
among dancers these days. A metronome introduction soon
settles into a relentless beat involving a barrage of
horns and twanging rhythm guitar. Certainly not your
traditional Northern but definitely infectious and growing
in popularity every month. |
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REVIEW
#8
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Lavern
Baker / Nothing Like Being In Love / Brunswick
Virtually all collectors buy this disc for the A side
“Wrapped, Tied & Tangled” – itself
an excellent record. But never forget to play your flip
sides because this, in my opinion, is far superior and
Lavern’s best Northern cut. Never heard it spun
anywhere else other than my house and the Irish Club.
Attention all DJ’s: turn it over and watch the
dancefloor! |
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REVIEW
#9
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Kenny
Carlton / Wait Til I Get You In My Arms / Blue Rock
Sources tell me that the Major Lance version of this
tune (t’other side of “You Don’t Want
Me No More”) is being spun on the UK allnighter
circuit to good effect, but in my humble opinion, this
is the better version and a tad more dancefloor-friendly.
Again it’s tucked away on a flip side, with the
main tune being the classic “Lost And Found”.
A better double-sider would be tough to find, particularly
as it was penned by the immortal Van McCoy. |
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REVIEW
#10
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B
J Thomas & The Triumphs / Keep It Up / Joed
Billy Joe is more renowned as a white country and rock
& roll artist than a soul singer but here he is
belting out what would surely have been a floorpacker
at the big clubs of the 60s and 70s, had the DJs of
that era known about it. Very reminiscent of John Leach’s
“Put That Woman Down” and one of those intros
that stops you mid-conversation and sends you slaloming
round tables to get to the floor. |
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REVIEW
#11
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Jimmy
& Vella Cameron / Lovin’ You Is Such A Groove
/ Reprise
This one has all the features you expect of a Northern
Soul dancer. Apparently an early Blackpool Mecca spin
but I only heard this for the first time in March 2005.
It went straight to the top of my wants list and is
now getting regular action at the Irish Club and filling
the floor every time. How many more of these undiscovered
gems can be lurking around waiting for me to hear about
them? |
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REVIEW
#12
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Four Pros / Everybody’s Got Some Soul
/ Carla
Mention these four lads and the frantic “Just
Another Girl” will be the first thing most people
will relate to, but for DJs to overlook this would be
borderline criminal. Unrelenting beat set at slightly
below uptempo makes it “just right for today’s
scene” which these days is a thinly disguised
way of saying “your arthritic knees & ankles
might just be able to handle this one”. |
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REVIEW
#13
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Reatha
Reese / Only Lies / Dot
One of the toughest on the label and only discovered
about 7 years ago, since which time very few have ever
surfaced. Powerful vocals over an excellent stomping
beat, this would have surely been immortalised by now,
had it been played at the big 70s venues. Astonishingly
this appears to be Reatha’s only vinyl release,
despite having Clarence Reid as a co-writer. Got to
be a good tip for a future monster. |
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REVIEW
#14
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Turley
Richards / I Feel All Right / Columbia
One of 3 Columbia releases by the cardiganed Val Doonigan
look-a-like, for me this is the best blue-eyed Northern
dancer by a country mile. Quite simply it is hair-raising
material of the highest calibre and is acres away from
reaching its potential, however that could all change
because one Neil Jones of Bury Town Hall fame is currently
plugging it in his allnighter sets. |
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REVIEW
#15
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Traits
/ Too Good To Be True / Garrison
Possibly suffering from under-exposure due to it being
cheap and available, and therefore not regarded as having
much street-cred by the “big names”, this
is nevertheless Detroit at its best and only requires
an enterprising DJ at a big venue for it to surely take
off. Can’t find much about this band but presumably
they’re the same blokes that backed Roy Head on
his Back Beat outings. |
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REVIEW
#16
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Falcons
/ Good Good Feeling / Big Wheel
One of those bands that could record their bathtub farts
and still get people up dancing. I picked this up for
peanuts ages ago when it was relatively unknown but
these days it has a strong following plus growing demand
so expect to have to part with about 150 quid for a
minter. One of 4 Big Wheel releases and they’re
all superb, I reckon this just about edges “Love
Look In Her Eyes” for the top Falcons track. |
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REVIEW
#17
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Bobby
Baskerville / Gotcha Where I Wancha / Dot
It was at the Ducie Bridge pub in Manchester in January
2005, the warm-up venue before the New Century allnighter,
when I almost got whiplash a nanosecond after Dave Rimmer
dropped the needle on this one. It went straight into
the notebook and about 8 months later into my record
box. Refer to the comments relating to Mighty Joe Young’s
“Ladies Man” to understand what type of
Northern R&B this is. Everyone who hears it wants
one. |
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REVIEW
#18
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Dream
Team / I’m Not Satisfied / Gregory
Odd name for a 60s group but that’s certainly
what it is, and co-written by none other than Norman
Johnson of the Showmen fame in Norfolk, Virginia. Picking
up spins by the few jocks who own a copy, its not particularly
pricey but rarely shows up on lists or at auction. Very
nippy indeed, bordering on 120 mph, but intrepid dancers
would be able to maintain the pace for the 2 and a bit
minutes. |
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REVIEW
#19
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Barons
/ I’ve Got A Feeling / Etah
One of 9 releases by this New Orleans outfit, only 2
of which were for the same label, this is yet another
example of a scandalously underplayed 60s newie. Flatulent
horns throughout the insistent mid to uptempo beat are
complemented by superb tight harmonies from the lads.
Have you ever wondered how mad some label names are,
like what’s Etah all about? Spell it backwards
for the answer, but this is certainly not going to be
your reaction when you first hear it. |
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REVIEW
#20
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Shorty
Long / Don’t Mess With My Weekend / Aussie Tamla
Motown
Nowadays the rarity of Australian-only Northern Soul
vinyl is quite well documented, the hypothesis being
that the label owners cut the bare minimum to meet contractual
obligations. Whilst its doubtful that this theory applied
to Tamla Motown this 45 remains highly elusive and I
imagine will be known to only a handful of UK jocks.
Amazing that such a top quality and ultra-danceable
NS/Motown tune is still largely hidden from view. As
the phrase goes, that’s the strange world of Northern
Soul for you. |
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