Mr Levine 'is northern soul dead' or were you miss quoted ?

Mr Levine 'is northern soul dead' or were you miss quoted ?

It was dead in 1980.

It came back to life after that.

It was dead in 1980.

It came back to life after that.

I have to disagree northern soul has never been dead nor will the music fade away, and this comes from an old man well some say that me I'm 59 and never left the scene since day one 1967 at the wheel

It was dead in 1980.

It came back to life after that.

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it wasnt dead at the casino - as the data on another thread on here suggests!

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it wasnt dead at the casino - as the data on another thread on here suggests!

I really don't know how any one can say northern soul was dead in 1980

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it wasnt dead at the casino - as the data on another thread on here suggests!

I was joking Mark. It was the most wickedly amusing answer I could come up with to the question.

I really don't know how any one can say northern soul was dead in 1980

It was certainly on it's last legs!

It was certainly on it's last legs!

No, Wigan was.

No, Wigan was.

Can't really answer for Wigan as I stopped going in late 78. I just remember a lot of people going off the scene and the music taking a turn for the worse.

Can't really answer for Wigan as I stopped going in late 78. I just remember a lot of people going off the scene and the music taking a turn for the worse.

In London we were re-discovering the 60s club rhythm and soul sounds (and discovering new ones at the same time) along with the better end of Northern and the whole scene was buzzing; far from dead. This is a rare case of London being off the Northern musical radar at the time, though we had the likes of John Farrell, Richie Andrew, your very own Ian Popple and others travelling down to the nights even though they finished at 12 sometimes.

Can't really answer for Wigan as I stopped going in late 78. I just remember a lot of people going off the scene and the music taking a turn for the worse.

You're correct that a lot of people were leaving the scene Pete , but DJ's like Richard S. and Gary Rushbrooke were keeping the flag flying at Wigan with some of the best ever discoveries IMO, like Mr Soul , The Combinations , Jimmy Delphs, Eric Mercury , Johnny Honeycut , Ernestine Edie etc .Also it's been largely airbrushed out of Northern Soul history , but Keith Minshull was playing some great sets of forgotten oldies .Best wishes ,Eddie

In London we were re-discovering the 60s club rhythm and soul sounds (and discovering new ones at the same time) along with the better end of Northern and the whole scene was buzzing; far from dead. This is a rare case of London being off the Northern musical radar at the time, though we had the likes of John Farrell, Richie Andrew, your very own Ian Popple and others travelling down to the nights even though they finished at 12 sometimes.

Happy days Indeed @ the 60's. As far as I was concerned the archtypical "Northern" 4x4 Dancer" that was prevelent up to 1976 was being featured less and less as the "Modern" sound took a hold @ certain venues, hence true Northern Soul died in 1976, and was immediatley reborn with a lot more core styles in its makeup. Ian regarding your 'Rarest of the rare' articles in Togetherness magazine in the early nineties, in hindsight some of the featured titles have proved to be exceptionally rare, whilst others have not. I know you sold a large amount of those records to Pat Brady, but did you keep any, and do you have any more obscure titles that you would consider to be your new 'Rarest of the rare'.

Best regards Ritchie.

Ian regarding your 'Rarest of the rare' articles in Togetherness magazine in the early nineties, in hindsight some of the featured titles have proved to be exceptionally rare, whilst others have not. I know you sold a large amount of those records to Pat Brady, but did you keep any, and do you have any more obscure titles that you would consider to be your new 'Rarest of the rare'.

Best regards Ritchie.

I sold all the well known Northern rarities. But I still have two DJ boxes full of really obscure rare unknowns that I never sold, because either I never got the price I wanted for them, or I couldn't bring myself to part with them, or I just haven't offered them to anyone. There are probably about 400 of them, and they're full of really really unheard of rare unknowns that I've been in no hurry to sell, many of these being the ones I reviewed in Togetherness. Most of them ended up being put back in the box when Tim Brown or Pat Brady bought a ton of records and there was just a small pile at the end of the ones we simply couldn't agree on. And some of them are unknowns on major labels where people said "I'm bound to find that cheaper on Gemm.Com", so basically they never did get sold.

Happy days Indeed @ the 60's. As far as I was concerned the archtypical "Northern" 4x4 Dancer" that was prevelent up to 1976 was being featured less and less as the "Modern" sound took a hold @ certain venues, hence true Northern Soul died in 1976, and was immediatley reborn with a lot more core styles in its makeup. Ian regarding your 'Rarest of the rare' articles in Togetherness magazine in the early nineties, in hindsight some of the featured titles have proved to be exceptionally rare, whilst others have not. I know you sold a large amount of those records to Pat Brady, but did you keep any, and do you have any more obscure titles that you would consider to be your new 'Rarest of the rare'.

Best regards Ritchie.

I've also got eighty thousand assorted soul sevens. I did a deal before Christmas with Swifty, and sold him 300 all different soul records, including tons of small label oddities, for £300, and when I sorted them for him, I was gobsmacked at the quality of the stuff I still have sitting on my shelves.

If Swifty is on here, I'm still waiting to find out what you thought of the stuff. Please tell us.

If anyone else wants the same deal, just let me know.

I sold all the well known Northern rarities. But I still have two DJ boxes full of really obscure rare unknowns that I never sold, because either I never got the price I wanted for them, or I couldn't bring myself to part with them, or I just haven't offered them to anyone. There are probably about 400 of them, and they're full of really really unheard of rare unknowns that I've been in no hurry to sell, many of these being the ones I reviewed in Togetherness. Most of them ended up being put back in the box when Tim Brown or Pat Brady bought a ton of records and there was just a small pile at the end of the ones we simply couldn't agree on. And some of them are unknowns on major labels where people said "I'm bound to find that cheaper on Gemm.Com", so basically they never did get sold.

Do you still have all your favourite oldies on original?

Do you still have all your favourite oldies on original?

No Ady. Just a handful. Financial necessity plus the cost of funding my productions made me sell most of them. But I do have two DJ boxes full of great stuff still.

And some of them are unknowns on major labels where people said "I'm bound to find that cheaper on Gemm.Com", so basically they never did get sold.

I take it you mean things like The Spontaines on UA & Third Tuesday on Tower ? Also do you still have the 'Quasar one' acetate ?

Regards Ritchie.

Edited January 8, 200916 yr by RitchieAndrew

And some of them are unknowns on major labels where people said "I'm bound to find that cheaper on Gemm.Com", so basically they never did get sold.

I take it you mean things like The Spontaines on UA & Third Tuesday on Tower ? Also do you still have the 'Quasar one' acetate ?

Regards Ritchie.

There are some killer unknowns that I don't want to publicly reveal in case someone finds a copy for twenty quid. They're just what I kept back, like I said.

Happy to sell a batch if the price is right.

You're correct that a lot of people were leaving the scene Pete , but DJ's like Richard S. and Gary Rushbrooke were keeping the flag flying at Wigan with some of the best ever discoveries IMO, like Mr Soul , The Combinations , Jimmy Delphs, Eric Mercury , Johnny Honeycut , Ernestine Edie etc .Also it's been largely airbrushed out of Northern Soul history , but Keith Minshull was playing some great sets of forgotten oldies .Best wishes ,Eddie

Well, also at that time Northern Soul started to blossom in places like Germany, Spain, Italy... humble beginnings but hey ! It was a great new sound to a lot of people!! Now we have a lovely and passionate scene in Europe!

It was dead in 1980.

It came back to life after that.

Who brought it back to life?

The Tymes, before George Williams died.

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The Tymes, before George Williams died.

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" WWID " is certainly a leading contender as being the epitomy of a NS record . Classic on the fours beat , memorable / catchy chorus line , and great lead and backing vocals , but why single out The Tymes as the ones to have brought NS back to life Ian ?

Malc Burton

I didn't. It had nothing to do with the preceding post. I just posted it up for no other reason than it being a classic.

" WWID " is certainly a leading contender as being the epitomy of a NS record . Classic on the fours beat , memorable / catchy chorus line , and great lead and backing vocals , but why single out The Tymes as the ones to have brought NS back to life Ian ?

Malc Burton

Part of the "Golden Age" of Northern Soul - 1971 to 1974. Without doubt there were more quality tunes discovered & played in this period than any other time on the scene.

The Tymes, before George Williams died.

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moved from orig thread

No, Wigan was.

RIGHT! Some of us carried on and whats Mr Levines view on Stafford, 100 club etc. The venues that really moved the scene forward? Had he given up to make pop records then?

I joined the Army in 1980 and basically stopped going to niters regularly for 10 years.......but during that period of 10yrs i still got to see Maj Lance at Hinkley and got to few other allnighters 100Club, Bedford and even one in Plymouth. So the scene certainly wasnt dead for me and many others who had been regulars at the casino.

Rick

I sold all the well known Northern rarities. But I still have two DJ boxes full of really obscure rare unknowns that I never sold, because either I never got the price I wanted for them, or I couldn't bring myself to part with them, or I just haven't offered them to anyone. There are probably about 400 of them, and they're full of really really unheard of rare unknowns that I've been in no hurry to sell, many of these being the ones I reviewed in Togetherness. Most of them ended up being put back in the box when Tim Brown or Pat Brady bought a ton of records and there was just a small pile at the end of the ones we simply couldn't agree on. And some of them are unknowns on major labels where people said "I'm bound to find that cheaper on Gemm.Com", so basically they never did get sold.

You've got a hot box with 400 great and unknown records but you won't tell us what these killer unknowns are? That's fantastic news.

How about doing 30 second sound clips with cover up names?

Edited January 8, 200916 yr by James Trouble

Mr Levine 'is northern soul dead' or were you miss quoted ?[

Edited January 8, 200916 yr by soulboy

Mr Levine 'is northern soul dead' or were you miss quoted ?

So did you ever say that northern soul was dead,and what was your game plan back then, to be the uk's Berry Gordy ? you seem to have made a living on the back of northern soul not that im knocking you good luck to you..........There for the grace of god go I....but i had a paper round

Part of the "Golden Age" of Northern Soul - 1971 to 1974. Without doubt there were more quality tunes discovered & played in this period than any other time on the scene.

I wasn't around way back then and I suppose there were a huge amount of things begging to be played. Nowadays there may be less to pick from but for some reason certain dj's, ( and I have to say there are an awful lot of them), won't play something unless its a classic or really well established. I hope 2009 sees Dj's (not all of them of course) trying to revive great forgotten tunes as well as records they have but for some reason are afraid of playing in case they clear the floor for a few minutes. I've only been on the scene for 20 odd years (15-20 years less than some) and familiarity sometimes brings contempt. If Stafford, the 100 Club etc etc hadn't played newer discoveries (and not just the standard 4x4 beat), me, I'd be bored shi#less ! The Stewartby Allniter near Bedford recently gave me fresh hope with a fresh mix of old and new...I hope similiar policies are adopted elsewhere and people open up their minds to that.

Grumpy Old Tigger

PS Stanky get funky .... soulless or what ??

Mr Levine 'is northern soul dead' or were you miss quoted ?

The reason I took the piss out of the quote is that for thirty years I am supposed to have said this, but for the same thirty years, no-one has ever once come up with the time, the place, or the context in which I am supposed to have said it.

It was dead in 1980.

It came back to life after that.

Who brought it back to life?

Should now be known as Lazarus soul maybe something new will come to light with the discovery off the mecca sea scrolls , maybe just maybe have something to do with them 400 killer tunes

You're correct that a lot of people were leaving the scene Pete , but DJ's like Richard S. and Gary Rushbrooke were keeping the flag flying at Wigan with some of the best ever discoveries IMO, like Mr Soul , The Combinations , Jimmy Delphs, Eric Mercury , Johnny Honeycut , Ernestine Edie etc .Also it's been largely airbrushed out of Northern Soul history , but Keith Minshull was playing some great sets of forgotten oldies .Best wishes ,Eddie

Good post

People were entering the scene as well, the mod revival / renewall discovering the original sounds, roots.

IMHO Keith Minshull has always played great sets, in my travels, and is one of the true unsung heroes of the soul scene!!!!!!

Well, also at that time Northern Soul started to blossom in places like Germany, Spain, Italy... humble beginnings but hey ! It was a great new sound to a lot of people!! Now we have a lovely and passionate scene in Europe!

And in Australia 1981/2 when I started promoting the first nights.

To me Northern soul has never been dead. It has just had a period say 80's and 90's where less attended cause they got married. had kids and so on and now in the 00's come back

There was still people going out and DJing etc. just not as much as period of the late 60's to 70's

To me Northern soul has never been dead. It has just had a period say 80's and 90's where less attended cause they got married. had kids and so on and now in the 00's come back

There was still people going out and DJing etc. just not as much as period of the late 60's to 70's

Spot on and people seem to forget that the scene would not exist today, but for the small group of people who carried on, with passion, through the 80s and 90s. They return and pontificate, as if the scene died when they left and as though its going to thank them for coming back, like a long lost messiah's to claim their former glory. The 80s and 90s were just as important as the 60s and 70s, yet people seem to forget this! Dj's carried on discovering and breaking new tunes and we carried on dancing.

I watched Sky News the other day and saw how that current affairs program, that masquerades as news, zoom in on a quote and hook the whole story around a throw away comment.

Baroness Vadera was asked on ITV's Lunchtime News when she believed the UK could expect to see "green shoots", she was then villainised and every thing else she said was disregarded.

When Ian said "Northernsoul was dead" he was echoing what was happening throughout the length and breadth of our glorious nation, a comment that has haunted him because its "fashionable" to bandwagon and join in slating him, the scene was never supposed to be about fashion! It prided itself on not following like sheep.

It really makes my blood boil when I hear people slated some one that most have never met and few have got to know.

Ady is the only true champion of our scene and the only one who in my opinion can stand the Pepsi challenge.

The eighties was very dry indeed, yes there where venues and Stafford, Cleathorpse, Bradford and The 100 Club gave the Nouveau Soulies what they wanted but the scene as it was did die, there weren't many of the old guard left.

Tracks like "Born to Be Alive" carried the scene over some difficult times.

I chuckle each time I see a new "cheque book Charlie" collector or DJ offer an opinion about Ian Levine as if rubbishing him gives them some modicum of credibility.

I remember bumping into keb Darge at Camden Market and talking to him about Northernsoul, he said that it was very dead and didn't want to know; a few years later I am interviewing him for Manifesto! I did mention the Levine must go T Shirts.

Any way that's my rant and rave over with today, I will finish off with a short clip that encapsulates what I want to say, I didn't make the clip and you will need to substitute the names but it conveys my sentiment.........

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I watched Sky News the other day and saw how that current affairs program, that masquerades as news, zoom in on a quote and hook the whole story around a throw away comment.

Baroness Vadera was asked on ITV's Lunchtime News when she believed the UK could expect to see "green shoots", she was then villainised and every thing else she said was disregarded.

When Ian said "Northernsoul was dead" he was echoing what was happening throughout the length and breadth of our glorious nation, a comment that has haunted him because its "fashionable" to bandwagon and join in slating him, the scene was never supposed to be about fashion! It prided itself on not following like sheep.

It really makes my blood boil when I hear people slated some one that most have never met and few have got to know.

Ady is the only true champion of our scene and the only one who in my opinion can stand the Pepsi challenge.

The eighties was very dry indeed, yes there where venues and Stafford, Cleathorpse, Bradford and The 100 Club gave the Nouveau Soulies what they wanted but the scene as it was did die, there weren't many of the old guard left.

Tracks like "Born to Be Alive" carried the scene over some difficult times.

I chuckle each time I see a new "cheque book Charlie" collector or DJ offer an opinion about Ian Levine as if rubbishing him gives them some modicum of credibility.

I remember bumping into keb Darge at Camden Market and talking to him about Northernsoul, he said that it was very dead and didn't want to know; a few years later I am interviewing him for Manifesto! I did mention the Levine must go T Shirts.

Any way that's my rant and rave over with today, I will finish off with a short clip that encapsulates what I want to say, I didn't make the clip and you will need to substitute the names but it conveys my sentiment.........

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Edited January 15, 200916 yr by jocko

Jocko I do remember you mate at most of the venues dancing to this...............