simonb

Its true to say that there is no scene and its also true that the people who are associated with funk do drift between most styles of black music. However most of the people collecting are from a different generation - One that's far more open to music (the ones that are collecting - rather than generalising on a generation) and one that didn't develop when youth culture shaped you're ears. They are looking across all styles and listening. What gets taken out, is what they think is the best(sounds like the wheel or scene club to me). I'd say that implies they are simply looking for good music! How that can be regarded as superficial is beyond me. What the hell is Soul ????????????????????????????????????????????

I love good music - especially when its got Soul! Soul is found in all aspects of Black music, but equally its also lacking in a lot of Black music. I love R&B and SKA because its naughty - Its saying one thing and meaning another with the rhythm of pure SEX PRIMATIVE and NATURAL! I love a lot of sixties Soul because its full of hope - a better world. However I LOVE FUNK because it took the Rawness and Rhythm of R&B (via Boogaloo), but introduced the politics that followed the realisation of the sixties false hope. It dealt with a lot of issues directly and I know lots shy away from it for that very reason. In doing so its lineage is much truer to R&B than sixties soul - although it undoubtedly grew from legacy of sixties Soul. I think its easier to understand if introduced at a younger age, because its focus was young when made. There is a very real distinction between people who love SOUL music and people who love NORTHERN SOUL music.

Thats funny - I thought it sounded like Mitch Ryder covering"Universal Vagrant"! Nice track James - great dancefloor disc

3 of my fav's : What my baby needs Prisoner of Love Wake up'

Well Its not Northern! The A is Funk and the B is a Soul oddity - I love these styles, but I know its not everyones cup of tea. StompinCrazyLegg.mp3 Happy_Man.mp3

I have little knowledge of the GoldenWorld/RicTic set up though I know it was bought by Motown in the 60's (Was this to buy up an artists contract?). I take it it was relaunched in the 70s. I have Golden World EW 115 - Stompi' Crazy Legg/Happy Man - The Modern Times (1973). Is there a full discography anywhere? Simon

but a poor second to Betty Lavette... Betty Lavette's is a cover also

I think that he and his band backed Edwin Starr for a year or so.

Yes I've got a lot of his stuff, fantastic artist. The track MULIN' AROUND is a fairly new release - Its the SUGARMAN THREE from their "SOUL DONKEY" LP (Desco). Again the man Gabriel Roth producing those grubby sounds - like all the best producers back in the day. All the Desco/Soul Fire/Daptone/Truth and SOUL/Timmion releases should at least be heard, these guys have got Soul - even if its found in a hard funk instrumental, cue....................

R&B Style Boogaloo

Latin Soul/boogaloo

Traditional Latin Boogaloo

All the Latin soul stuff I know is, boogaloo with English vocals . Like I stated above it was the stuff which had greater commercial appeal, true crossover music. Like Motown, it was aimed at a greater audience. I'll try and post some sound files up when I return from work. Simon

Although Boogaloo was Latin in origin (it followed the same musical structure as the Mambo), it evolved out of the Barrio by fusing Mambo with R&B. It's cradle was the ghetto's of New York and was a direct result of the open mindedness of the young Porto Ricans and Blacks that shared the same landings in the Ghettos tenements. This peak was during the mid, and ended by the later part of the sixties. It was rejected by the older generations in the Barrio - because it lacked authenticity to their Latin Roots. Even Tito Puente was on record as hating it! - although during its peak he had no options commercially other than to follow the trend. It was often instrumental though not exclusively, which I think was deliberate to offer itself to all of the neighbourhoods. Being instrumental based it was obviously focused on the dance floor again linking it to the youth - who as always wanted to create something new and the fact that it didn't appeal to elder players on both sides of the fence was a bonus (we all know how much the youth like to be rebel's). The sound was very popular (because it was appealing to both camps) within New York and it spread. With the bigger artists like Ray Barretto and Joe Bataan singing a lot of their songs in English the sound was moving further away from its Mambo roots and closer to that of contemporary R&B. The R&B and Jazz instrumentation that had been the base of many black dance records, started to take on board the trickier rhythms of the Boogaloo and now the sound was not just based in the Barrio but was spreading through all the ghettos of all the major Towns and Cities. This was the turning point in the inception of Funk - Fusing the tricky rhythm's of Latin America with the primal R&B sounds of people such as JC Davies. The one thing that I've found is the rhythms of the more traditional Boogaloo artists (Lebron Brothers etc), are very much based on dancing with a partner ie slower with a stronger Mambo influence. Although this could also be that the favoured drugs of choice within the Porto Rican communities at this time were Cheeba and LSD - Hence only a few of the tunes being suitable for the dance floors of clubs in this country where we dance as individuals. Then BANG!!! Socially things changed after the assassination of MLK. Both the Blacks and Porto Ricans started to look back within their own societies and the music changed at grass roots level. It became more honest and harder with less focus on fun (the dance crazes of early to mid sixties) and more focused on the plight of the people and social commentary. Life wasn't Fun, the promises of equality had been broken and before the turn of the decade a lot of the black guys who had played it moved over to the heavier Funk sound - This was the sound of Anger, Helplessness and above all awareness. In the Barrio the Latin musicians returned to their roots, and just like the Blacks they felt their identity was perceived as negative so stopped focusing on what others thought or had, and their communities pulled together once again. The music reverted back to its South American origins and the massive boom in Salsa that followed right through the seventies was the result.

WARNING **** BUT REMEMBER TO PLAY IT ON 33rpm !!!

There is a great newish 45 by Manteca - Tremendo Boogaloo (Freestyle records) It rips up dancefloors and is getting missed by many. Although it is a Boogaloo rather than Latin Soul. Simon

Isley Bros - Soul on the rocks - Must be the best British Motown LP Got to have you back Thats the way love is WHispers (Gettin' Louder) ***** OUTSTANDING Tell me its just a rumor baby One too many heartaches Its out of the question Why when love is gone Save me for this Misery Little miss sweetness Good Things Satching up on time Behind a painted smile....................................... How good

You're just sounding obtuse Dan. Northern Soul's always been based on Song not artist. Many of the top Northern sounds are one hit wonders. Most recorded no more than a dozen songs during their whole career (I know there are exceptions). I'm not making the argument for you, you're ignoring the fact that James Brown's recorded more quality records (let alone just good ones), than most artists revered on the Northern scene, have even laid down to tape. Its got nothing to do with all the ones you dont like (Unless you're Perspective on life is negative or stupid). How many times have people tracked down artists to turn up copies of some gem, Only to be told I've not got any now - but listen to my latest recordings, which are way off the mark? James Brown is not everyone's cup of tea, this I understand. However, I bet most people like at least a few. Prisoner of Love for example is about as soulful as a song gets.

You sound more of a collector than a Soul lover if you've got 30 LP's by somebody you dont rate. I dont agree with some of SOULPOWERs comments - but the UK's slant on Soul is very twisted(not in a negative way). When he arranged the music on the One, he did Invent a style of Soul music that was to last until this day (be it influnced by JC Davies or not) - you might not like it (I dont much) but his legacy lives on in current R&B/Hip Hop. To knock a man who's output clocks up 30+LP's is stupid - he'd made at least a dozen outstanding tracks. That knocks more or less any individual artist championed by the Northern scene for six. Simon

Two of my all time favs are :- Prisoner of Love THis Guy This Girls in love (with Lyn Collins) So, So Soulful Simon

Agree

That sums up over 50% of anyone with any stature in America - he's no different - that's why saying he's "Defo one of the biggest hypocrites of all time" is indeed Bullshit. How about BUSH? Or for that matter any of Europe's Royalty or the Catholic church? it's a bullshit statement that's why I said Bullshit.

That's bullshit - he lived the life of a thousand Soulmen - When you're sat in another culture and another circumstance its easy to pass judgment. Whats you're background? I'm not saying these things are right, I'm saying circumstance shapes us. Simon

No - but I love most of his pre 75 output. Fu**ing brilliant.

As is" Yes,Yes Y'all" the birth of HipHop and an insight into the youth of 1970's Bronx.