Most Soul Sourcers do embrace new technology 'cos they're on here in the first place.

But this is a scene which is governed by 7" pieces of plastic.

So it makes me wonder if any Soul Sourcers actively use the Internet as a research tool to find new sounds?

I haven't been in the business of discovering fresh Northern Soul since about 1977 mainly 'cos my career took over most of my free time and moved me in different directions. Plus I think most serious DJ's and serious collectors will agree that collecting or digging for Rare Soul is really a 24/7 obsession that doesn't leave much time for anything else.

So, if the internet had been around back in the early 70's, I'm pretty sure that I'd have got even less sleep (which would be hard to believe) because my thirst (aka obsession) would have kept me up most nights in that constant search for new tunes. No doubt whatsoever.

I use the internet all the time now simply because it's faster at getting me to what I want then going upstairs to the record room/library or across to the other half of the lounge which is my CD library. I spend a lot of time just researching stuff and looking for inspiration for new album ideas or new tunes for my radio show and, as a result, I constantly keep running into some FANTASTIC tunes from some weird sources. I'm amazed at where stuff springs up. It could be a French Boogie site or a Brazilian Disco Collectors site or more often than not, simply a general blog which is written by a serious music lover. I've discovered more utterly brilliant tunes which I'd never heard before via the internet then I ever did crate-digging.

And I can do it all from my sofa, which, at the of 55 suits me better than spending 12 hours a day in damp, dusty basements sifting through tens of thousands of junk before the odd gem manifests itself. Yes folks, the internet arrived exactly at the right time for me.

You Tube is rapidly becoming the No.1 key source for me. You key in an interesting record on Google and lo and behold, someone's posted it on You Tube. For instance, anyone into Deep or Southern Soul should check out Sean Hampsey's You Tube channel as a great example. When I was checking out some Hi/Cream/Paula/Ronn/Jewel/Soul Power stuff from the Demon catalogue I kept coming back to Sean's channel 'cos he'd posted some of the goodies up there and the Google searches kept bouncing me to either Sean's channel or zillions of threads on Soul Source. So I asked Sean if he fancied compiling a couple of KILLER albums for Demon as a direct result - I'll post the details shortly but rest assured, Sean was exactly the guy for this particular job. In my book, anyone who has the obvious knowledge, dedication and level of passion to spend time posting their thoughts or tastes on the internet should also be the people who should be entrusted with the job of compiling dedicated CD's in their areas of expertise. Check out Sean's You Tube channel:-

https://www.youtube.c...JustSoulHampsey

However, it can be frustrating too. I have a legion of like-minded mates around the world who know my tastes and if they bump into something they know that I'll like, then they call or e-mail me to see if I know it. One of these guys is my mate Jaffa who doesn't spend any time on forums but does obsessively collect all types of vinyl, so he's on the phone all the time. Because I've been around forever I know a good 70% of most of the stuff he flings at me, so when he rang last week and said he had a GREAT record by the Blade Family, I thought I already knew it. Their "Sweet Dream" had been on my shelves for 30 odd years before someone prised it out of me. I don't think I ever played the bloody 'B' side "My Baby's Gone". So I pumped into You Tube and had a nasty shock. It's f*ckin' GREAT. Her vocals are sublime.......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWe5kcOCPqA

A great tool. Anyone else use it for finding stuff?

Ian D

Edited July 3, 201014 yr by Ian Dewhirst

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWe5kcOCPqA

A great tool. Anyone else use it for finding stuff?

Ian D

Ian will you stop doing this please....heard it...had to buy it! ....via the internet! £25!

yep the internet a wondeful thing in many ways...although do miss the aspect of driving hundreds of miles to hear the elusive DJ who had the only copy of the record I loved! Then again I'm 46 now so you are probably right want to hear it from my armchair!

I was watching a vinyl documentary short last night and this guy (Kiko Amat, quite good spanish writer and record collector) said the internet took all the romanticism away from everything, including looking for records.

It might have, but without it, I would've never got properly into soul music. Theres four or five record stores in Mexico City and none of them have any quality soul records, so, from my point of view and personal experience, the Internet is a really valuable source.

Ian will you stop doing this please....heard it...had to buy it! ....via the internet! £25!

yep the internet a wondeful thing in many ways...although do miss the aspect of driving hundreds of miles to hear the elusive DJ who had the only copy of the record I loved! Then again I'm 46 now so you are probably right want to hear it from my armchair!

Haha LOL. I saw that copy too Soulechoes! I was half-way tempted myself. You got the bargain of the century there mate. Great record and very obscure so well done.

But good point you made about driving hundreds of miles to hear a record. This was something I did every weekend in my teens because I had no responsibilities, almost unlimited time and unstoppable energy. These days I'm loaded with responsibilities, have zero free time and I have to pace myself accordingly.

However, what I can do, is zap the lappy up and then trawl the tens of thousands of forums, blogs and You Tube channels looking for stuff which rocks my boat and then track it down before a stampede starts. Much easier. Before it would have taken me several trips to the U.S. at massive expense, days and days of getting covered in cobwebs and rat shit to pull out a few killers and then try explaining to my loved ones why this was a good thing.

Anyway gotta go. I just hit some guy's blog from South Carolina. He obviously collects Beach Music and I cannot believe what I've just heard..........!

Ian D

I was watching a vinyl documentary short last night and this guy (Kiko Amat, quite good spanish writer and record collector) said the internet took all the romanticism away from everything, including looking for records.

It might have, but without it, I would've never got properly into soul music. Theres four or five record stores in Mexico City and none of them have any quality soul records, so, from my point of view and personal experience, the Internet is a really valuable source.

Good point Dante. I think it encourages like-minded people from around the world to explore music. The beauty of it is, if someone hears a record that really moves them and subesquently does a Google search on it, there's a good possibility that they'll bump into lots of other stuff which other people from around the world have posted. I'm constantly amazed at what's out there. I mean, I think I'm pretty damn knowledgeable across a number of areas but you never stop learning. That's the beauty of it really...........

Ian D

Good point Dante. I think it encourages like-minded people from around the world to explore music. The beauty of it is, if someone hears a record that really moves them and subesquently does a Google search on it, there's a good possibility that they'll bump into lots of other stuff which other people from around the world have posted. I'm constantly amazed at what's out there. I mean, I think I'm pretty damn knowledgeable across a number of areas but you never stop learning. That's the beauty of it really...........

Ian D

For over a year now , I have found youtube a very good source of / for records , both 7" & 12" , that I was unaware of .

One record leads to another , which in turn leads to another one , and so on : As it has been stated , you can then look and find them , usually at very little expense .

Malc

I reckon there's more unknown and lesser known stuff in refosoul than there is on you-tube. Refosoul doesn't get the recognition it deserves IMO. Dunno why some keep posting you-tube clips of practically nothing but the song when it is in refosoul, often in better quality. Don't get me wrong there is some wonderful videos in refosoul, the Temptations one in the studio being a good one recentl, and there are videos of records that not everyone knows.

is refo soul working now ?????

is refo soul working now ?????

yes as far as I know

I reckon there's more unknown and lesser known stuff in refosoul than there is on you-tube. Refosoul doesn't get the recognition it deserves IMO. Dunno why some keep posting you-tube clips of practically nothing but the song when it is in refosoul, often in better quality. Don't get me wrong there is some wonderful videos in refosoul, the Temptations one in the studio being a good one recentl, and there are videos of records that not everyone knows.

You are right in what you are saying about Refo. Excellent source of music in there.

But also I like the visual experience of youtube, funnily even if there is no video!

P

Good post, another great thing about the tinternet thing is the plethora of radio shows playing some fantastic stuff

Murder beat I couldn't agree more, I find my self going straight to youtube and google to hear and surf for new music. I find distant memories and new tunes all the time and the spiders web linking is great to channel you towards different and unknowns.

I also find it a sinch to rip the audio tracks from youtube clips.

I think I can attribute youtube for expanding my mind on the Modern side and on the Latin side, great source for all and once you get past the stereo type Wigan Casino clips you are left with some excellent sounds and clips.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWe5kcOCPqA

A great tool. Anyone else use it for finding stuff?

Ian D

yes as far as I know

===

a few weeks back ,the tunes/artist s were available in order,,,seems to ave changes and not as easy to find....but may well just be me!!!! usually it is...

chalkys right re ref-soul it is an immense library of incredible stuff -particulary seventies were up to 163 pages of stuff on the crossover thread and every week-there keep coming thick and fast -brilliant -Ian is right ive stumbled on all sorts on obscure sites and you tube is awesome particulary for funk the last 5 tracks i posted on the funk thread were straight of you tube!!

The romantacism with finding rare stuff etc -went along time ago for me it simply rarely happens these days mainly because of the longevity of the british soul scene however theres thoushands upon thoushands of interesting records to be had and you can latch on to stuff from all places online etc-going to us record fairs etc keeps the fire burnning for me but thats for the social reasons etc.

Hunting records and going out are now 2 different things imho [never used to be]but certainly is now -plus the ownership issue with djs ie "i discovered that" YEAH RIGHT -what aload of kack bet your bottom doller with the exception of a few that a tune has found a place before it becomes big etc-trends and fads still dominate a soul scene in the uk ?? how many collectors etc are sitting on the stuff for numerous years before a dj makes it popular NUFF SAID -right back online to find some interesting stuff !!lol.

BAZ A

===

a few weeks back ,the tunes/artist s were available in order,,,seems to ave changes and not as easy to find....but may well just be me!!!! usually it is...

I'm with you , I seem to struggle finding things on refo , must be me as well

Russ

Murder beat I couldn't agree more, I find my self going straight to youtube and google to hear and surf for new music. I find distant memories and new tunes all the time and the spiders web linking is great to channel you towards different and unknowns.

I also find it a sinch to rip the audio tracks from youtube clips.

I think I can attribute youtube for expanding my mind on the Modern side and on the Latin side, great source for all and once you get past the stereo type Wigan Casino clips you are left with some excellent sounds and clips.

whats it like ripping from refosoul.... ?

i would say the protection given to files on here is a lot better

eg

members only

the use of latest technology to protect,

limits on bulk downloads,

and other stuff

end of day our policy has allways been not to offer direct downloading and to discourage ways around this

so suppose peoples views could be

youtube is good cause you can download files

refosoul is good cause it offers a certain degree of protection to your files you have uploaded

that does raise some interesting issues

When you go on refosoul at the bottom there is a option to filter the tracks how you want....

you can also select just below the option settings newly added clips and files added the date you are viewing.

whats it like ripping from refosoul.... ?

i would say the protection given to files on here is a lot better

eg

members only

the use of latest technology to protect,

limits on bulk downloads,

and other stuff

end of day our policy has allways been not to offer direct downloading and to discourage ways around this

so suppose peoples views could be

youtube is good cause you can download files

refosoul is good cause it offers a certain degree of protection to your files you have uploaded

that does raise some interesting issues

Interesting point, re ripping from refo-soul, i havent done it, but i know it can be done, it was one of the reasons i withdrew all my downloads out of refosoul ( didn't really want to do it) but i felt the sounds (i'd posted) could be copied etc and it started to stick in my throat a little, i've done hundreds of cd/tape swaps etc and if people feel the need to copy them and send them on, well thats up to the individual,but the point with swapping is i got something back. Initially i'd put up a shortened file, but that got to be a pain. Refo soul is great as a listening resource.

I'm with you , I seem to struggle finding things on refo , must be me as well

Russ

must be

aint seen any feedback on any issues from both of you

a lot of work has just gone on - 3 odd weeks

as said elsewhere even thought tested there was some issues showing up from certain browsers

backwords steps were taken to resolve this and these problems should be resolved

clean up is still ongoing after this work

so far have had one person reporting an error

if you do have a problem then why dont you pass on

if people mentioned about probs such as finding clips

i could highlight some of the features

stuff like live search, site wide search, labels, artist, tilte - navigation and pages

or explained how live search will return on all page shortly, inform that a new live single clip search is planned

or maybe have a deeper look and make more improvements to lists or navigation system

Love Youtube and the internet in general for finding out about tunes. Whether its blogs, podcasts, online radio, refosoul, forums or just plain old email to a knowledgeable soul!

CHALKY - i know you're a busy man, but you seem to know refosoul inside out. Im sure many on here could really benefit from a refo 'tutorial' - just a simple thread with a series of screenshots and brief guide notes as to how to get the best out of refo??

Love Youtube and the internet in general for finding out about tunes. Whether its blogs, podcasts, online radio, refosoul, forums or just plain old email to a knowledgeable soul!

CHALKY - i know you're a busy man, but you seem to know refosoul inside out. Im sure many on here could really benefit from a refo 'tutorial' - just a simple thread with a series of screenshots and brief guide notes as to how to get the best out of refo??

Dunno about inside out, I know what I want to know, or learn what I don't. It is pretty straight forward though. Let me know what you want to know and I'll do some screen shots when I get chance. I'm trying to avoid the list of jobs our lass has for me

Dunno about inside out, I know what I want to know, or learn what I don't. It is pretty straight forward though. Let me know what you want to know and I'll do some screen shots when I get chance. I'm trying to avoid the list of jobs our lass has for me

Ah, a bit of a catch 22 situation that Chalky. If i dont know the different functions, i dont know what i want to learn, if you get me?

Maybe a pinned thread in members feedback, or source news, where peeps can write about the functionality theyve learnt over time and then other members can benefit. Plus refo then gets used to its full potential wich can omly be a good thing.

Interesting point, re ripping from refo-soul, i havent done it, but i know it can be done, it was one of the reasons i withdrew all my downloads out of refosoul ( didn't really want to do it) but i felt the sounds (i'd posted) could be copied etc and it started to stick in my throat a little, i've done hundreds of cd/tape swaps etc and if people feel the need to copy them and send them on, well thats up to the individual,but the point with swapping is i got something back. Initially i'd put up a shortened file, but that got to be a pain. Refo soul is great as a listening resource.

exactly!

do you know what method ?

any file can be copied by being recorded , so can never offer 100% protection

however can try and prevent direct downloading and other means

it is a different system now, using diferent methods

i cant really test at moment as it be very time consuming setting up various stuff and that

if any one has any such programmes if could let us know if works or not, save me a fair bit of time

and same if anyone knows current method of download etc

remember as well, that the file is converted to a lesser format as well so does lessen the attraction of file downloading

can add various options (file automatically clipped), or if felt needed beeps or something etc if members feel others downloading is a problem

thats one of the major differences between here and youtube

if members let us know concerns can try and resolve them

Am i the only one who finds Utube a sad embarrassment of NS then ??

The name of the site is a big clue so why do all these muppets post up sound files with a scan or a rotating record or a picture of Wigan !! very sad imho !!

Can't believe Utube allow all this shite to be posted on it with no video of such !!, yes there are some good videos but not many and not nearly enough to spend some time on the site, don't use it myself for this reason alone !!

As said in previous posts refosoul is a good source of music files, more then enough to save your soul !!

Ian.

Am i the only one who finds Utube a sad embarrassment of NS then ??

The name of the site is a big clue so why do all these muppets post up sound files with a scan or a rotating record or a picture of Wigan !! very sad imho !!

Can't believe Utube allow all this shite to be posted on it with no video of such !!, yes there are some good videos but not many and not nearly enough to spend some time on the site, don't use it myself for this reason alone !!

As said in previous posts refosoul is a good source of music files, more then enough to save your soul !!

Ian.

:yes:SECONDED A REAL YAWN AND CRINGE.. FOR THOSE WHO HAVNNT GOT ANY RECORDS AND TO LAZY TO LOOK IN REFOSOUL

I use the net constantly to find new sounds..mainly R&B and Rockabilly blogs from America..you have to wade through tons of shite but you also find a few diamonds in the rough..YouTube isn't as bad as people make out either..you just have to know who to subscribe to..people who put more obscure stuff on rather than the popular faves

YouTube isn't as bad as people make out either..you just have to know who to subscribe to..people who put more obscure stuff on rather than the popular faves

Exactly Beeks. Lots of sh*te on there, as with anything, but if you look in the right places then you'll find the good stuff. Refo doesnt have everything, neither does youtube, but the net has lots to offer.

Murder beat I couldn't agree more, I find my self going straight to youtube and google to hear and surf for new music. I find distant memories and new tunes all the time and the spiders web linking is great to channel you towards different and unknowns.

I also find it a sinch to rip the audio tracks from youtube clips.

I think I can attribute youtube for expanding my mind on the Modern side and on the Latin side, great source for all and once you get past the stereo type Wigan Casino clips you are left with some excellent sounds and clips.

reason you are just finding em now is cause you are using youtube

most of clips you talk about or post about have been up in refosoul for years

or this

terry callier - gotta get closer to you -

if you used refosoul, you could have posted above in 2007

all very well people claiming its some amazing feature and suggesting its better than refosoul and shoudl use but imo its not

its just a simple video upload with millions of video clips that are only sorted very basically

refosoul offers a lot more features , and a lot more info and a lot more means of navigating thru clips be it via dynamic menus or artist/label/title pages

eg one example - can see if other members have clip for sale, or can let members know that you are after one

wanna view more clips from artist ?

The best thing about youtube are the comments from the people who made the music and their families. Great examples I can think of off the top of my head are Bonnie Blanchard on CRS where her son, who had never heard the record, posted some wonderful pictures of his mother; Jesus Alvarez's family comments on the Nicky Newarkers clips and the clip of Billy Proctor's "Keeping Up With The Joneses" where Billy's daughter revealed that he was Billy Hill of Anita Humes & The Essex fame. There are obviously numerous other examples of this kind of content, all helping to aid our understanding of the people who were once just names on record labels to a lot of us.

Mike is correct in highlighting the staggering depth and breadth of the Refosoul feature. It's something he and the contributors should be rightly very proud of.

However the sheer ubiquity and breadth of reach of youtube means that it can unlock a lot of the hidden history of this wonderful music, and reinforces the idea that the past was a magical time of ordinary people doing extraordinary things in music.

Edited July 4, 201014 yr by garethx

Ripping from Refosoul

Just started a new thread in feed back as it may be of more interest in there Mike?

I always go straight to refo soul if there is somthing I spot on e bay that looks intresting and I don't know it.

And 9 times out of ten is is here.

then I search the old sales forums on here for an idea of on price - quick look on popsike and the main dealers.

Then I return to e bay for the chase.

I am sure this would be standard practice for on line diggers and members on here when it comes to stuff that you dont know ?

refo must be the largest database of Soul related music on the internet.

Refo is a credit to the admin team and the members of this site who have taken the time to post the thousands of recordings.

All Baz Atkinsons massive threads - Pete Smiths jamaican section etc etc. etc

If you are into your Music you can spend hours n hours on here.

As for ripping things / downloading things you can always put a little gap in the tune if you want to make it difficult for the bootleggers.

Anything that goes through your computers soundcard or video card can be ripped - the softwares out there and there aint nothing anyone can do about it !

Best M

Most Soul Sourcers do embrace new technology 'cos they're on here in the first place.

But this is a scene which is governed by 7" pieces of plastic.

So it makes me wonder if any Soul Sourcers actively use the Internet as a research tool to find new sounds?

I haven't been in the business of discovering fresh Northern Soul since about 1977 mainly 'cos my career took over most of my free time and moved me in different directions. Plus I think most serious DJ's and serious collectors will agree that collecting or digging for Rare Soul is really a 24/7 obsession that doesn't leave much time for anything else.

So, if the internet had been around back in the early 70's, I'm pretty sure that I'd have got even less sleep (which would be hard to believe) because my thirst (aka obsession) would have kept me up most nights in that constant search for new tunes. No doubt whatsoever.

I use the internet all the time now simply because it's faster at getting me to what I want then going upstairs to the record room/library or across to the other half of the lounge which is my CD library. I spend a lot of time just researching stuff and looking for inspiration for new album ideas or new tunes for my radio show and, as a result, I constantly keep running into some FANTASTIC tunes from some weird sources. I'm amazed at where stuff springs up. It could be a French Boogie site or a Brazilian Disco Collectors site or more often than not, simply a general blog which is written by a serious music lover. I've discovered more utterly brilliant tunes which I'd never heard before via the internet then I ever did crate-digging.

And I can do it all from my sofa, which, at the of 55 suits me better than spending 12 hours a day in damp, dusty basements sifting through tens of thousands of junk before the odd gem manifests itself. Yes folks, the internet arrived exactly at the right time for me.

You Tube is rapidly becoming the No.1 key source for me. You key in an interesting record on Google and lo and behold, someone's posted it on You Tube. For instance, anyone into Deep or Southern Soul should check out Sean Hampsey's You Tube channel as a great example. When I was checking out some Hi/Cream/Paula/Ronn/Jewel/Soul Power stuff from the Demon catalogue I kept coming back to Sean's channel 'cos he'd posted some of the goodies up there and the Google searches kept bouncing me to either Sean's channel or zillions of threads on Soul Source. So I asked Sean if he fancied compiling a couple of KILLER albums for Demon as a direct result - I'll post the details shortly but rest assured, Sean was exactly the guy for this particular job. In my book, anyone who has the obvious knowledge, dedication and level of passion to spend time posting their thoughts or tastes on the internet should also be the people who should be entrusted with the job of compiling dedicated CD's in their areas of expertise. Check out Sean's You Tube channel:-

https://www.youtube.c...JustSoulHampsey

However, it can be frustrating too. I have a legion of like-minded mates around the world who know my tastes and if they bump into something they know that I'll like, then they call or e-mail me to see if I know it. One of these guys is my mate Jaffa who doesn't spend any time on forums but does obsessively collect all types of vinyl, so he's on the phone all the time. Because I've been around forever I know a good 70% of most of the stuff he flings at me, so when he rang last week and said he had a GREAT record by the Blade Family, I thought I already knew it. Their "Sweet Dream" had been on my shelves for 30 odd years before someone prised it out of me. I don't think I ever played the bloody 'B' side "My Baby's Gone". So I pumped into You Tube and had a nasty shock. It's f*ckin' GREAT. Her vocals are sublime.......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWe5kcOCPqA

A great tool. Anyone else use it for finding stuff?

Ian D

Ian will you stop doing this please....heard it...had to buy it! ....via the internet! £25!

yep the internet a wondeful thing in many ways...although do miss the aspect of driving hundreds of miles to hear the elusive DJ who had the only copy of the record I loved! Then again I'm 46 now so you are probably right want to hear it from my armchair!

All the time, all the time!! Have discovered some real 'gems' via You Yube

The best thing about youtube are the comments from the people who made the music and their families. Great examples I can think of off the top of my head are Bonnie Blanchard on CRS where her son, who had never heard the record, posted some wonderful pictures of his mother; Jesus Alvarez's family comments on the Nicky Newarkers clips and the clip of Billy Proctor's "Keeping Up With The Joneses" where Billy's daughter revealed that he was Billy Hill of Anita Humes & The Essex fame. There are obviously numerous other examples of this kind of content, all helping to aid our understanding of the people who were once just names on record labels to a lot of us.

I agree with this. Now that everyone is on the internet, people google themselves and find it on youtube, it has become the best way to find people at this point. I spend so much time trying to find people in real life and they'll now find you if you just put a clip on youtube.

THINK THATS A GREAT endorsment of REFO-SOUL 9/10 aint bad -think as soon as most get the hang of usb then we are gonna have a massive site of soul music for everyone -its great when new people hit the threads and start posting as everyone has such different taste -i learn all sorts every week -and long may it continue!!

BAZ A

Gareth X is right also you tube is brill for knowledge of the musics context often really surprises me -bit more resonant when the creators of the music are involved instead of the djs !!

I always go straight to refo soul if there is somthing I spot on e bay that looks intresting and I don't know it.

And 9 times out of ten is is here.

then I search the old sales forums on here for an idea of on price - quick look on popsike and the main dealers.

Then I return to e bay for the chase.

I am sure this would be standard practice for on line diggers and members on here when it comes to stuff that you dont know ?

refo must be the largest database of Soul related music on the internet.

Refo is a credit to the admin team and the members of this site who have taken the time to post the thousands of recordings.

All Baz Atkinsons massive threads - Pete Smiths jamaican section etc etc. etc

If you are into your Music you can spend hours n hours on here.

As for ripping things / downloading things you can always put a little gap in the tune if you want to make it difficult for the bootleggers.

Anything that goes through your computers soundcard or video card can be ripped - the softwares out there and there aint nothing anyone can do about it !

Best M

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWe5kcOCPqA

A great tool. Anyone else use it for finding stuff?

Ian D

you post how another website had a clip up and is such a "good tool" as you found it

yet if you had used refosoul first then you would have seen its been up here since 2007!

https://www.soul-sour...st=blade+family

then could have had a look at the forum search and find a stack of info -playlists, sales etc

going of memory think Dave Thorley has it on one of his playlists and maybe talked about it, sure this led me to listening to it via refosoul and then buying it of a mucker

rather than then post up some great big youtube clip you could have then just added a nice smart refosoul embedd button

members would have seen then who had took time and trouble to share it on here

so can ask next time you gonna post up a youtube link can you check first if in refosoul and if so use that

thanks

great tool ?

should have gone to refosoul

The best thing about youtube are the comments from the people who made the music and their families. Great examples I can think of off the top of my head are Bonnie Blanchard on CRS where her son, who had never heard the record, posted some wonderful pictures of his mother; Jesus Alvarez's family comments on the Nicky Newarkers clips and the clip of Billy Proctor's "Keeping Up With The Joneses" where Billy's daughter revealed that he was Billy Hill of Anita Humes & The Essex fame. There are obviously numerous other examples of this kind of content, all helping to aid our understanding of the people who were once just names on record labels to a lot of us.

Mike is correct in highlighting the staggering depth and breadth of the Refosoul feature. It's something he and the contributors should be rightly very proud of.

However the sheer ubiquity and breadth of reach of youtube means that it can unlock a lot of the hidden history of this wonderful music, and reinforces the idea that the past was a magical time of ordinary people doing extraordinary things in music.

The grand daughter of Tommy Navarro replied in a posting of Cried My Life Away. real name Luther Walker.

you post how another website had a clip up and is such a "good tool" as you found it

yet if you had used refosoul first then you would have seen its been up here since 2007!

https://www.soul-sour...st=blade+family

then could have had a look at the forum search and find a stack of info -playlists, sales etc

going of memory think Dave Thorley has it on one of his playlists and maybe talked about it, sure this led me to listening to it via refosoul and then buying it of a mucker

rather than then post up some great big youtube clip you could have then just added a nice smart refosoul embedd button

members would have seen then who had took time and trouble to share it on here

so can ask next time you gonna post up a youtube link can you check first if in refosoul and if so use that

thanks

great tool ?

should have gone to refosoul

Mike,

With respect, I find Refosoul to be one of the clunkiest most user-unfriendly devices I've ever had to try and get my head around. Anything that's not easy to use and instantly workable I'm afraid just doesn't do it for me. This is no reflection on Soul Source or the fact that Refosoul is probably the best Northern Soul reference tool on the planet, it's just a shame that it feels like it was designed by a set of cluless programmers back in the early 90's who obviously delighted in making the system as inpenetrable as they possibly could. I've tried many many times to try and work with it but always ended up giving up because frankly, anything that's so clunky to use is a time-waster for me. Not just me either by the looks of it. I must read something on here every week from plenty of other people who can't use it either. Ease of use is a big thing with me just lately and it's not just Refosoul that hacks me off, it's tons of stuff that has been badly designed by people who don't understand the needs of the end user and the list is endless........

The other point is that when I'm searching for stuff I'm not necessarily just looking for input from the Northern Soul fraternity, as good as it may be. I like a wide palette and like searching for all kinds of stuff so when I highlighted You Tube it wasn't a personal attack on S.S. or Refosoul. It's a time issue Mike - I just find pumping a quick search into Google will take me to all sorts of places quickly and often take me on a tangent to other stuff which I'm interested in which I may otherwise never have found. In the same way, I wouldn't ever just go to one supplier for records because frankly I've found tons of stuff in the unlikliest of places, so it's pretty much the same on t'internet.

But, in order to keep in harmony with everyone, I'll persevere with the dreaded Refosoul. I think the same people who designed the SAPS accounting system that I have to deal with every day at work and which is truly the worst designed system ever inflicted on the public must have designed Refosoul in their spare time.

And whilst I'm at it, what's the deal with the random placement of emoticons that seems to be happening just lately?

Hey, no one ever said it was going to be easy!

Ian D

Edited July 4, 201014 yr by Ian Dewhirst

I agree with this. Now that everyone is on the internet, people google themselves and find it on youtube, it has become the best way to find people at this point. I spend so much time trying to find people in real life and they'll now find you if you just put a clip on youtube.

Yep. Also You Tube is an 'open' system which means it's accessible to hundreds of millions, that's why when you pump in a general search on a record it'll often be at the top of the page and instantly accessible to all. I'd class Refosoul as more of a connoisseurs tool and less as a general search reference..........

Ian D

For instance, anyone into Deep or Southern Soul should check out Sean Hampsey's You Tube channel as a great example. When I was checking out some Hi/Cream/Paula/Ronn/Jewel/Soul Power stuff from the Demon catalogue I kept coming back to Sean's channel 'cos he'd posted some of the goodies up there and the Google searches kept bouncing me to either Sean's channel or zillions of threads on Soul Source. So I asked Sean if he fancied compiling a couple of KILLER albums for Demon as a direct result - I'll post the details shortly but rest assured, Sean was exactly the guy for this particular job. In my book, anyone who has the obvious knowledge, dedication and level of passion to spend time posting their thoughts or tastes on the internet should also be the people who should be entrusted with the job of compiling dedicated CD's in their areas of expertise. Check out Sean's You Tube channel:-

https://www.youtube.c...JustSoulHampsey

Ian D

Thanks for the superb plug mate.

I got 4 new subscribers today and wondered why

On my YouTube channel I try to put music up that's not already on there. Don't see a lot of point in putting tunes up that are already available on someone elses channel.

Keep meaning to add lots more - but you know what my workload is like... so must try harder!

I have had several comments from Artists and their friends, or the Children of Artists, since I set it up.

It doubles the satisfaction for me!

YouTube and RefoSoul are definitely a valuable resource - as is the entire internet if you're a true digger

Really looking forward to the CD's coming out.

They oughta sell a million!

Sean

Exactly Beeks. Lots of sh*te on there, as with anything, but if you look in the right places then you'll find the good stuff. Refo doesnt have everything, neither does youtube, but the net has lots to offer.

Which is pretty much the point I was trying to make. Never intended it to be a 'who has the bigger dick' battle between You Tube and Refosoul. They both have their uses......

Ian D

Really looking forward to the CD's coming out.

They oughta sell a million!

Sean

Two of each please Sean, that just leaves 999,996 to go mate

Glad to be of help

Thanks for the superb plug mate.

I got 4 new subscribers today and wondered why

Really looking forward to the CD's coming out.

They oughta sell a million!

Sean

Yep, credit where it's due Sean. It's a great advertisement for people who may not otherwise know about that kind of music and if they stumble into your channel and get off on Ann Peebles then great! Job done.

And the next set of Backbeats should be in the shops in a couple of weeks. I'll post up track listings and info on a seperate thread shortly 'cos your albums should be dead certs for SS'ers. Also I'm getting some banner ads for these done so hopefully they'll be up on here shortly too!

Best,

Ian D

Two of each please Sean, that just leaves 999,996 to go mate

Glad to be of help

Mmmm. Maybe I should start making my tropical island retirement plans early then.......?

Ian D

Think all Mike is asking is rather than post a youtube clip post a refosoul clip which is simple to search for, search box on every page top right, then narrow search to refosoul with the selections across the top.

I can do some screenshots for searching as well if you like

Think all Mike is asking is rather than post a youtube clip post a refosoul clip which is simple to search for, search box on every page top right, then narrow search to refosoul with the selections across the top.

I can do some screenshots for searching as well if you like

No I think I can handle a Refosoul search thanks Chalky and if it takes me a further ten clicks to post the bugger up then so be it. T'other sides not bad either......

There I did it! Still a pain in the arse though.....

Ian D

Nope. Horrendous (sigh....).I cut and pasted the clip number but obviously no cigar........too clunky mate. There's easier ways to drive yourself mad on a Sunday night......Ian D

I'm with Ian on refosoul. It's easier to google the title and get the refosoul clip directly or through some other source than try to search through the refosoul function on SS. As to loading something not sure I've ever managed it without some moderator instantly posting it is in the wrong place! Disagree with Ian about the SAPS accounting system, just get a new accountant / SAPS admin, not that I work anymore but have done loads of SAPS implementations / upgrades for my sins and come year-end it's a godsend, full year accounts in 5 days.

There was a project launched to catalogue all the soul-clips on You Tube but I'm not sure of it's progress. I found it on an excellent site run by a guy in the NW of England.

I still think as a regular traveller to the US nothing beats looking and listening for new stuff and being in touch with the many dealers in the UK who still put in the hard yards. It is hard now but can still be worthwhile. The important thing is to be open minded about what you hear / find. If it's good buy it. If it's crap, don't and be happy about what you find.

Just a few thoughts, Ady

You tube is wonderful and sometimes i will seek music on it. I hear stuff i didn't know and it's great

i try and upload videos of Northern soul tracks. i do get comments on some and better then what i would posting a normal video.