Not as easy a question as it first appears as, which one person is able to deem a track worthy of the 'Northern Soul' mantle?

No one person can deem a track as such obviously as the masses on the floor have always made a track worthy of being called a 'NS' track - the dancefloor has always dictated.

The majority swings things generally, elections, Big Brother etc.

Therefore the term 'Northern Soul' and the huge volume of musical history behind it must be a democratic based term, no?

Bringing about the question:

Are people who spend their life banging on about one given area of NS (60's, &0's, Modern, whatever) clueless?

I do think that different people have different levels of appreciation of music, to some it is just something in the background that means very little to them while to others it is the most important thing in there life (us on here for instance).

I have only ever met one person who as told me that they "can't stand music of any type".

I have also noticed that people who play/sing musics are not the best listeners of music and can quickly get fed up listening to it and only want to play.

Who decides what's Northern? Is a bit like saying what kind of music do you like?

In the end it's down to the listener I suppose!

I love music, any kind of music

I love music, just as long as it's groovy

I love music, sweet sweet music

Long as it's swinging, all the joy that it's bringing

I love music, any kind of music

I love music, just as long as it's groovy

I love music, sweet sweet music

Long as it's swinging, all the joy that it's bringing

Determining an answer to Barry's original question , may be never known , as achieving and agreeing on the statement made in another part of the lyrics of " ILM " - " happy to be in complete harmony " , could be a very long journey ..........

Malc Burton

reading some threads on here isnt it more a case of you are told what to listen to by a hand full of people,I know and im sure you all know tracks you have picked up on years ago tryed to push and got no where only for a well know dj to play it,the price go's up and its the best thing since sliced bread,

I remember year ago the tony blackburn song getting played for a few weeks [ i think it was for a joke to be honest] but for a few weeks it was the dogs b*****ks,I myself have played kylie Time will pass you by off a cd slowed down and had loads of people dancing and rushing up to the decks to see what it was,

AND have you noticed how most of the top dj's who sell records sell pressings but condemn ebay or the fact they get played by some dj's out and about ,

AND have you noticed how most of the top dj's who sell records sell pressings but condemn ebay or the fact they get played by some dj's out and about ,

yes

I think Northern Soul is a very broad church and one i subscribe to. I'm not adverse to playing soul, 60s garage, RnB, blue eyed 'soul' etc... and calling it all 'Northern Soul'. We all know the Northern scene has never been solely (some might say unfortunatley) about soul music. If it's dancable and uplifting and hits the right chord... I suppose (rightly or wrongly) at the end of the day the dancefloor does dictate whether it's Northern or not.

AND have you noticed how most of the top dj's who sell records sell pressings but condemn ebay or the fact they get played by some dj's out and about ,

it's bl88dy true is that!

Jayne.x

Bringing about the question:

Are people who spend their life banging on about one given area of NS (60's, &0's, Modern, whatever) clueless?

No, I wouldn't say clueless. Each to their own but those who won't give a record a chance because it's not 6T's or it's not crossover,etc are perhaps narrow minded and frustrate me the most.

"It's gonna be great/shite because it's crossover or whatever" or "it's shite because it's a ballad...", etc.

It would be baffling to me not to judge a track on its individual sound but hey!.

Jayne.x

Edited January 16, 200916 yr by Miss BurySoul

i love music...always have....had records bought for me from the age of 6....played my dads before that.....spent my pocket money as a teen on them (instead of pacman like my mates)....got a criminal record shoplifting them to order from school mates !....

but ofcourse i dont like all music....but i can get the same buzz i get from a soul tune from a reggae/ska/indie/mod or punk tune.....but not rock...except a few 70s who tracks or the doors maybe....but thats what i love about music...you have no control , if you are honest and dont follow the pack..its something inside...

i once saw a programme with louie farou (however you spell it) in south africa...talkin to a racist afrikaans bloke and his whole vinyl collection was us soul !...mainly 60s but also some more political 70s....when louie pulled him on it he got stroppy and walked off.....just like rascist skins at the yarmouth scooter rally 86 liking desmond dekkar one minute and sieg heiling and kicking off the next !...odd

but as marley said... 'ONE GOOD THING ABOUT MUSIC...WHEN IT HITS YOU ...YOU FEEL NO PAIN !'

well i love musi and to point out as in a lot of my you tube blogs all music and anyone who knows me. Knows i have interest in music from Northern soul to Metal music and so on

i guess some is more favourable like Northern soul since i go to places that play it but for a music fan should there be a live act on i want to go and see and it could clash with a Northern event i would go weather it's some motown live act or Feeder (last band i saw live last year).

what i hate is the certain people who think cause you like a certain musi then your no longer able to fit in with them. well that is stupid i don't go and talk all avout say the latest chart hits if i was out at some Northern soul event same as i wouldn't say about Northern soul if i was off seeing an Indie band.

Ive always been a 60ts with the odd 70ts track northern stalwart for the last twenty odd years

but recently ive been listening to craig charles soul and funk show and am starting to appreciate the funkier side of things more and more when i listen to his show.

then the other week a mate of mine gave me a load of drum and base stuff which i must admit isnt as bad as i thought it would be

Its probably just a mid life crisis im going through

got a criminal record shoplifting them to order from school mates

Shame on you!

Nobody has answered the question.

Stop reading these sad forays of mine and utilisiing them as a forum to quote 'clever' musical quotations relevant to yourselves - it's lovely to read for me, yes, but answer the question.

It's not hard.

I truly believe that there are good and bad productions in every named sphere of music....how many posts have you read on forums such as this whereby a given person believes that a certain track is a paltry one, not worthy of the note it is given on the scene?

Flip backward to their school years - it may be a punk track, new romantic or a plain pop track that they at heart, love.

At what point does accepting personally that a non-Northern Soul track has made an impression on yourself (your youth, your life) become a vehement denial of other forms of music?

Judy Street - deemed overplayed and cheesey - not cool.

The Clash - Rock The Casbah - a truly fantastic moment in time...musically.

As Harry Hill would say on 'The Burp'...

"FIIIIIIGHT!"

i love northern soul and i love music.it must be me but it seems like a question that doesnt need answering.if you love northern soul and understand the joy it brings to you then it must follow that you can comprehend how other people feel about their chosen music.just because a music doesn't suit my ears doesn't make it crap,it just doesn't suit my ears.but music is something that evolves and takes influence from other music around it.would we have northern soul without the music that came before it ? rock and roll or doo wop?quite a few northern records are by artists that dabbled in this genre.so do i love music and northern soul.YES.

Edited January 23, 200916 yr by 111spider

soul music only....wether black or white....the term northern was taken from a comment from DAVE GODIN and in my view barstadised to give us this silly term.One of the reasons the scene is compartmentalised these days is because no1 when you go to a nighter and you're gonna stay up all night and dance you want dance music ie 60's/some 70's if you go to a proper soul night the emphasise may be on 70's/onwards and thats great too, a lot of quality soul music may suit sitting at home chilling with a glass of wine looking over ya ornimental koi carp pond lol.Some places play across the board,but that quite often in my view is all over the place and not really for me,but obviously a lot like this format.I think an awful lot of people on this scene are not musical at all,long as theres a beat that'll do or as long as it's a top 500 that l remember from the 70's thats all l want and so on.I wish we could drop the NORTHERN tag completely,but we live in hope ...tezzzzza

ffs get out more Barry !!!!!

As you know there will always be more questions than answers and everytime you get an answer you sit and think up another question i for one will not give you an answer. Go work it out for yourself as i am sure you already have.

..music. .....that has 'soul', truth and meaning.

As Roddy says Barry... you do go on a bit sometimes with these in depth questions that don't have a straight answer ... ..

I love music... In many different forms..

And yes.. you must get out more

The majority swings things generally, elections, Big Brother etc.

Therefore the term 'Northern Soul' and the huge volume of musical history behind it must be a democratic based term, no?

I'm gonna regret getting mixed up in this, and it immediately brings home my dad's old adage that "you can't argue with a man you don't understand"

Nevertheless, I'm going to have a knock. I think your proposition is flawed from the start: Just because a lot of people do or say something doesn't make it democratic. A bunch of folks can get together and organise a lynching but that's hardly an example of democracy in action is it?

Are people who spend their life banging on about one given area of NS (60's, &0's, Modern, whatever) clueless?

Anyone spending their life just banging on about ALL given areas of Northern Soul are clueless. And naive.

I agree if you're asking this question then you need to get out more.

I'm off to the chippy.

Edited January 23, 200916 yr by mattbolton

Im not just a Northern Soul fan but a lover of Soul music in general be it 6ts,7ts,8ts, 9ts, 00's Rare Groove, Crossover, Modern, etc etc.

There is also plenty of other music with lots of passion driving the vocalist and musicians, this music, although not SOUL, has plenty of SOUL if you get my meaning.

There is lots of swing jazz, jump blues, 5ts R&B, Rock music, Punk, Jazz and folk music that has plenty of Soul to my ears.

I love music... In many different forms..

As usual , Mr Cato sums it up perfectly.

Matt B, go to the chippy, get a large portion of humility. Coz you dont know it all. Despite what you may think.

My heart is Soul, but I can "turn a blind eye" to a bit of Half Man Half Biscuit

Nigel (HMHB) , speaks for my childhood, for one thing, "writing on the sole of the slipper with a biro", not to mention "Precious McKenzie" and losing my heart in "Papworth General"

This Bloke has too much time on his hands or he is a Genius, I go for the latter, with their latest release "CSI:Ambleside" , He's a Wordsmith !!!

link to website https://cobweb.businesscollaborator.com/hmhb/

But I will just add here, HMHB have made 2 videos to their records to my knowledge, No Regrets (with quality actress Margi Clarke (????) https://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=PUMMtp8qQIk ) & Dickie Davis Eyes (https://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCvs2w_Mjeg) , these are cheap budget videos, filmed over 20 yrs ago on a mates video camera, so in comparison these new videos we are seeing on Soul Source of the people who sing the songs we love, are so Tacky, and to put it bluntly "crap"

And ok finally, sorry Denise, I never meant to upset you over the nose piercing thing at John Peel's Melt down Bisous xxxx Jed

Edited January 24, 200916 yr by DELORENZO

ffs get out more Barry !!!!!

As you know there will always be more questions than answers and everytime you get an answer you sit and think up another question i for one will not give you an answer. Go work it out for yourself as i am sure you already have.

Roddy...please.

Would you prefer that I don't set these ridiculous, self-answerable questions mate?

You just wasted time answering my sh*t question with a sh*t answer.

Two wrongs don't make a right.

As Roddy says Barry... you do go on a bit sometimes with these in depth questions that don't have a straight answer ... ..

I love music... In many different forms..

And yes.. you must get out more

Stevie, the last time I was in was a weekend in sometime in November1984.

Assumption is a poor secondary to fact.

I know I go on mate, but given the simple fact that you feel the need to reply gives my 'necessary ramblings' credence.

Think about it.

I'm gonna regret getting mixed up in this, and it immediately brings home my dad's old adage that "you can't argue with a man you don't understand"

Nevertheless, I'm going to have a knock. I think your proposition is flawed from the start: Just because a lot of people do or say something doesn't make it democratic. A bunch of folks can get together and organise a lynching but that's hardly an example of democracy in action is it?

I don't know what to say to that reply.

Half Man Half Biscuit

My mate Gerry (Kenny) used to produce some of their stuff.

He lives down the end of a country lane in Burtonwood adjoining his next door neighbours, who breed Alsatians.

They have a kind of agreement whereby Gerry can knock out 'white noise' all night (all anologue valved noise as it happens) as the Ally's make so much noise during the day.

Karma.

https://www.discogs.com/artist/Sir+Freddie+Viadukt

Edited January 24, 200916 yr by Barry

I simply have to add that we should put this 'high-brow' nonsense that surrounds boots/pressings to bed.

Without the business acumen of said booters, thousands of early Soulies would have been denied access to 'out if reach' tracks in their youth.

Boots are part and parcel of this scene, the simple fact that this process went on added to the mystique of the NS scene.

Fair do's, bootleggers made money only for themeselves - but - at the same time allowed 15 year olds like myself to get off the bus at 8.30am and able to stick 'Manifesto' on my teenage deck at home by 8.40.

Again it brings up the question 'Is bootlegging any less detrimental to US artists than covering a track up?'

Is it Father Jack!

Btw, as an aside, anyone know why Pete Lawson sped up his George Blackwell boot?

Cant shed any light on george blackwell sorry, but i still think you need to give your brain a rest mate. btw i dont think there is wifi at cleethorpes but you will enjoy it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

just about up to 60s stuff now used to love all the records at rotherham and stafford in the 80s but now they just sound like bad pop to me i remember dancing to the only way is up (not the yazz one ) and it still makes me cringe with embarrassment and also the bottle which i still think is a quallity record but isnt northern if it is you may as well put clean up the ghetto by the philly all stars which is a record i really like but would rather saw my foot off than dance to at a northern doo. to be honest though ive no idea what most of you are talking about when you go on about crossover popcorn or r&b i thought it was r&b and soul before a certain blues and soul journalist put his foot in his mouth and fooooked it up i say 4 4 beat and the occasional variation will do me should i run for cover. Ill get me coat

Edited January 24, 200916 yr by spudmurphy

Not as easy a question as it first appears as, which one person is able to deem a track worthy of the 'Northern Soul' mantle?

No one person can deem a track as such obviously as the masses on the floor have always made a track worthy of being called a 'NS' track - the dancefloor has always dictated.

The majority swings things generally, elections, Big Brother etc.

Therefore the term 'Northern Soul' and the huge volume of musical history behind it must be a democratic based term, no?

Bringing about the question:

Are people who spend their life banging on about one given area of NS (60's, &0's, Modern, whatever) clueless?

in my home it's northern or northern and i have been this way for 40 odd years i know i must be a sad b------ but each to there own

btw i dont think there is wifi at cleethorpes but you will enjoy it

Good answer Rod.

if you like it, you like it, if you dont, you dont, if its in the context of northern, modern,crossover,r and b, oldies, newies or whatever, if its music thats not connected to the scene and its good, you like it, i like green door by wynder k frog as it brings back good memories, i also like 16 tons by tennesee ernie ford, as it brings back memories of something else,

a lot of good songs are played on the northern scene, is sherlock holmes "standing at a standstill" a good song or a good northern tune, alternatively are some of the obviously real soul items good songs or just rare therefore good

just put a post up about "the tin man" and the hippy version being good, know what i mean

Edited January 26, 200916 yr by codfromderby

Wow Barry!

Can I have a pint of what you've had??

Wow Barry!

Can I have a pint of what you've had??

The pint I've had takes a good while to brew Andy, costs a feckin' fortune and doesn't do your innards a whole lot of good...done me know harm though ay?