Greg Belson

Please join me on dublab.com, Wednesday 22nd July @ 2pm US PST (10pm UK time), for the next installment of the Divine Chord Gospel Show pt. 49.http://dublab.com/Fresh back from the wonder that is the NYC Downlow located at the Block 9 field at this years Glastonbury Festival, and man, what another incredible session! This show is dedicated to some of the tracks that kicked the whole weekend off, playing nothing but 100% gospel disco to 2,000 or so happy, smilin', hot and sweaty clubbers. Once again, this will be my landmark gig of the year, so please tune in for an interrupted dose of the holy ghost, brought to you from West LA to the West Country of the UK.If you missed the last 'soundclash' show featuring my special guest DJ Aaron Bushman, here's the archived mixcloud link; https://www.mixcloud.com/gregbelson/divine-chord-gospel-show-pt-48-with-guest-dj-aaron-bushman/ Also, please feel free to explore and subscribe to our youtube channel featuring some of the choicest 45's to be played on the show. We've just surpassed our 200th video, so please check it out and subscribe here; http://www.youtube.com/user/DivineChordGospel/videos?flow=grid&view=0 Thanks everyone and see you there!

Finally managing to gather my thoughts after what was a stunning Soul Funk-tion gathering last Saturday. I was still feeling a little under the weather, so had every intention of getting home after my set.....oh how wrong was I......I crossed the SF line at 9pm and waddled out at 6am, after being blessed with some of the most forward thinking music to be played in one night. Marvelous sets from all the DJ's involved.....stepping behind the decks just brought it on home how up for it you lot really are. Mr Haydon insisted on me breaking out a mahoosive gun or two, which was when my tempo's peaked.....really hard-as-nails aggro soul, which blew out a few cobwebs, then it was back to the serious business of the rarities. I think we might well have found our new Sacred Four too.....Rance Allen, stand up! Thanks to Southside and Sean for the invite to play for you guys.....see you lovely people again sometime soon! One for the ages.

Finally managing to gather my thoughts after what was a stunning Soul Funk-tion gathering last Saturday. I was still feeling a little under the weather, so had every intention of getting home after my set.....oh how wrong was I......I crossed the SF line at 9pm and waddled out at 6am, after being blessed with some of the most forward thinking music to be played in one night. Marvelous sets from all the DJ's involved.....stepping behind the decks just brought it on home how up for it you lot really are. Mr Haydon insisted on me breaking out a mahoosive gun or two, which was when my tempo's peaked.....really hard-as-nails aggro soul, which blew out a few cobwebs, then it was back to the serious business of the rarities. I think we might well have found our new Sacred Four too.....Rance Allen, stand up! Thanks to Southside and Sean for the invite to play for you guys.....see you lovely people again sometime soon! One for the ages.

This weekends worth of gigs looks a little like this....tonight in Dalston Kingsland, East London, I'll be pulling out the righteous gospel disco beats at this smashin' event to raise awareness in Nepal. Lookin' forward to dropping the dancefloor beats at this great venue.....set time is around 10.30pm....get there early, find your space on the floor.....and I'll see you there! Then tomorrow, I'm Birmingham bound for the wonder that is Soul Funk-tion pt. 12. One of those gigs that it's a complete honor to be asked to play at....widely known on the underground circuit as at the forefront of cutting edge underplayed and freshly discovered 45's that others elsewhere might latch on to several years down the line. Legends are made at this venue, and tomorrow night has an all star stellar cast assembled for your dancing pleasure. Proper.

This weekends worth of gigs looks a little like this....tonight in Dalston Kingsland, East London, I'll be pulling out the righteous gospel disco beats at this smashin' event to raise awareness in Nepal. Lookin' forward to dropping the dancefloor beats at this great venue.....set time is around 10.30pm....get there early, find your space on the floor.....and I'll see you there! Then tomorrow, I'm Birmingham bound for the wonder that is Soul Funk-tion pt. 12. One of those gigs that it's a complete honor to be asked to play at....widely known on the underground circuit as at the forefront of cutting edge underplayed and freshly discovered 45's that others elsewhere might latch on to several years down the line. Legends are made at this venue, and tomorrow night has an all star stellar cast assembled for your dancing pleasure. Proper.

Please join me on dublab.com, Wednesday 22nd July @ 2pm US PST (10pm UK time), for the next installment of the Divine Chord Gospel Show pt. 49.https://dublab.com/Fresh back from the wonder that is the NYC Downlow located at the Block 9 field at this years Glastonbury Festival, and man, what another incredible session! This show is dedicated to some of the tracks that kicked the whole weekend off, playing nothing but 100% gospel disco to 2,000 or so happy, smilin', hot and sweaty clubbers. Once again, this will be my landmark gig of the year, so please tune in for an interrupted dose of the holy ghost, brought to you from West LA to the West Country of the UK.If you missed the last 'soundclash' show featuring my special guest DJ Aaron Bushman, here's the archived mixcloud link; https://www.mixcloud.com/gregbelson/divine-chord-gospel-show-pt-48-with-guest-dj-aaron-bushman/ Also, please feel free to explore and subscribe to our youtube channel featuring some of the choicest 45's to be played on the show. We've just surpassed our 200th video, so please check it out and subscribe here; https://www.youtube.com/user/DivineChordGospel/videos?flow=grid&view=0 Thanks everyone and see you there!

So quite frankly, I'm still in recovery mode from last nights gig....and not just the coughing and spluttering stuff, on my part. Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens hit it squarely out of the park, delivering a bounteous set of classic funk cuts, a couple of inspired cover versions and of course, their own great material. The show started with a minor hiccup, with Naomi finding the onstage entrance a tad difficult for her ailing leg....but not to worry....she called for her wheelchair, and performed the whole show sat right there in front of the audience, like royalty seated resplendent on a throne. In a bizarre twist, it almost gave the night a whole new meaning....I for one, had a tear tumble down my cheek when her wonderous voice hit time and again those magical, gritty, down home notes that only a seasoned vocalist can reach. None more so than when she unleashed a monstrous version of Sam Cooke's 'A change is gonna come'....a tune that resonates hard to this day....Naomi delivered it with such eloquence and an underlying layer of angst, pleading for a change to come....it was the defining moment, that right there for me, was the gig in a nutshell. Everything else, was a bonus. The Gospel Queens themselves are truly a nod to how the Daptone organization are so revered. A perfect compliment that other labels might overlook....it's not just about the lead vocalist, it's about the complete package. We're lucky to have such a marvelous resource at Daptone....littered with jewels and gems of pure quality. And last night, Naomi Shelton's light shone so bright. It was an absolute privilege to be there. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jviZ66DccJo

So quite frankly, I'm still in recovery mode from last nights gig....and not just the coughing and spluttering stuff, on my part. Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens hit it squarely out of the park, delivering a bounteous set of classic funk cuts, a couple of inspired cover versions and of course, their own great material. The show started with a minor hiccup, with Naomi finding the onstage entrance a tad difficult for her ailing leg....but not to worry....she called for her wheelchair, and performed the whole show sat right there in front of the audience, like royalty seated resplendent on a throne. In a bizarre twist, it almost gave the night a whole new meaning....I for one, had a tear tumble down my cheek when her wonderous voice hit time and again those magical, gritty, down home notes that only a seasoned vocalist can reach. None more so than when she unleashed a monstrous version of Sam Cooke's 'A change is gonna come'....a tune that resonates hard to this day....Naomi delivered it with such eloquence and an underlying layer of angst, pleading for a change to come....it was the defining moment, that right there for me, was the gig in a nutshell. Everything else, was a bonus. The Gospel Queens themselves are truly a nod to how the Daptone organization are so revered. A perfect compliment that other labels might overlook....it's not just about the lead vocalist, it's about the complete package. We're lucky to have such a marvelous resource at Daptone....littered with jewels and gems of pure quality. And last night, Naomi Shelton's light shone so bright. It was an absolute privilege to be there. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jviZ66DccJo

London Town....are you ready? Tonight, quite simply one of the gigs of the year. At 7pm sharp, I'll be guiding you through 2 hours of top shelf gospel soul and funk 45's....y'know....the GOOD stuff. Then at 9pm, Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens will take to the stage, delivering their unique blend of soulful euphoria....an education in spiritual soul and mindful messages. A word to the wise....this will be one for the books!

London Town....are you ready? Tonight, quite simply one of the gigs of the year. At 7pm sharp, I'll be guiding you through 2 hours of top shelf gospel soul and funk 45's....y'know....the GOOD stuff. Then at 9pm, Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens will take to the stage, delivering their unique blend of soulful euphoria....an education in spiritual soul and mindful messages. A word to the wise....this will be one for the books!

Here are the next series of back-to-back gigs, making for a long weekend of soul covering a few corners of my record box. Starting with the Immaculately concepted 'Soul Slice' @ Farr's School of Dancing In London town on Thursday 9th July with my learned friend Mr James Pogson. Gospel disco and modern soul sides will be the order of the day, as requested by the boss man. Then it's off to Leeds on Friday for another sparkling 'Empty Bottles' session @ Santiago's, breaking out the heavy hitting 60's raw soul leviathans for all your dancing needs. Saturday it's a jaunt to the South West and a 4pm start joining the 'Seriously Soulful' crew @ The Bristol FRINGE Cafe-Bar for an exquisite session of rare modern and 70's based soul. And then Sunday, I'll be staying in the Bristol locale and returning to The Love Inn for another sweet soul, heavy vocal harmony night @ Slow & Low: Greg Belson (L.A.) Round II, resident DJ Tommy Charles presiding. It's gonna be one epic journey, no doubt....why not join us.

Here are the next series of back-to-back gigs, making for a long weekend of soul covering a few corners of my record box. Starting with the Immaculately concepted 'Soul Slice' @ Farr's School of Dancing In London town on Thursday 9th July with my learned friend Mr James Pogson. Gospel disco and modern soul sides will be the order of the day, as requested by the boss man. Then it's off to Leeds on Friday for another sparkling 'Empty Bottles' session @ Santiago's, breaking out the heavy hitting 60's raw soul leviathans for all your dancing needs. Saturday it's a jaunt to the South West and a 4pm start joining the 'Seriously Soulful' crew @ The Bristol FRINGE Cafe-Bar for an exquisite session of rare modern and 70's based soul. And then Sunday, I'll be staying in the Bristol locale and returning to The Love Inn for another sweet soul, heavy vocal harmony night @ Slow & Low: Greg Belson (L.A.) Round II, resident DJ Tommy Charles presiding. It's gonna be one epic journey, no doubt....why not join us.

The weekends set of gigs brought practically euphoric highs mixed with health issue lows resulting in a much needed bout of Sunday downtime….but not without having a mahoosive smile on my face. Friday night at the Havelock was epic…..a bar under brand new management, looking to shake up the seaside town a tad with some quality music sessions. And yeah, it’s a venue worth seeking out….quality space and for those of you that feel like dancin’ a great wooden dancefloor too. The fast food grab-a-bite option before the gig though was not a good option. For the first hour or so of my 4 hour set, I was fighting the colly wobbles……still, fast food should never be an option in the first place, right kids!? Still, check out this great establishment if you're in the locale.....a great space to just have a bevvy, no matter what the occasion. After the 5 hour car journey eastwards, it was time to get serious for the first Go Go Children Allnighter….and what a session it was. Musically, it was off the chain…..some pearlers were played in particular by Callum Simpson in his second set (Junius Bugs Hughes sounded so big on that system), and Des Parker delivered some new nuggets to my ears. If I had to pick the light shining moment though, it was George Mahood playing my number one gospel want (sorry kids, can’t tell you what that is yet, until I find a copy!) Everyone stepped up to the plate for what was a proper hoedown of quality music….sadly for me, the 4 hours on my feet the night before brought back the revenge of my Glastonbury toe, (big blisters ahoy!), and I spent most of the night, sat around just absorbing. Apologies to all for not being my usual spritely self….but trust me, inside my soul was dancin’. An amazing session, and one of the top UK soul clubs, without a shadow of doubt......to Nicci, John & Dean...thanks so much for inviting me to play this fantastic, landmark night. Wonderous.

The weekends set of gigs brought practically euphoric highs mixed with health issue lows resulting in a much needed bout of Sunday downtime….but not without having a mahoosive smile on my face. Friday night at the Havelock was epic…..a bar under brand new management, looking to shake up the seaside town a tad with some quality music sessions. And yeah, it’s a venue worth seeking out….quality space and for those of you that feel like dancin’ a great wooden dancefloor too. The fast food grab-a-bite option before the gig though was not a good option. For the first hour or so of my 4 hour set, I was fighting the colly wobbles……still, fast food should never be an option in the first place, right kids!? Still, check out this great establishment if you're in the locale.....a great space to just have a bevvy, no matter what the occasion. After the 5 hour car journey eastwards, it was time to get serious for the first Go Go Children Allnighter….and what a session it was. Musically, it was off the chain…..some pearlers were played in particular by Callum Simpson in his second set (Junius Bugs Hughes sounded so big on that system), and Des Parker delivered some new nuggets to my ears. If I had to pick the light shining moment though, it was George Mahood playing my number one gospel want (sorry kids, can’t tell you what that is yet, until I find a copy!) Everyone stepped up to the plate for what was a proper hoedown of quality music….sadly for me, the 4 hours on my feet the night before brought back the revenge of my Glastonbury toe, (big blisters ahoy!), and I spent most of the night, sat around just absorbing. Apologies to all for not being my usual spritely self….but trust me, inside my soul was dancin’. An amazing session, and one of the top UK soul clubs, without a shadow of doubt......to Nicci, John & Dean...thanks so much for inviting me to play this fantastic, landmark night. Wonderous.

Onwards to the weekend and here's where I'll be on Friday and Saturday....kicking it all off with a selection of righteous dusties from the known to unknown soul, funk & r&b 45's @ The General Havelock, Hastings. We'll be running from 8pm onwards so come along and get with this very cool bar, under new management, and definitely going places on the south coast. Then on Saturday, it's the Big Bristol Bash....Go Go Children's first all-nighter, and it promises to be a cracker. This one's a SELL OUT so if you don't already have tickets, then sorry, you're out of luck....musically,this is gonna be a bit good, like. Seriously.

Onwards to the weekend and here's where I'll be on Friday and Saturday....kicking it all off with a selection of righteous dusties from the known to unknown soul, funk & r&b 45's @ The General Havelock, Hastings. We'll be running from 8pm onwards so come along and get with this very cool bar, under new management, and definitely going places on the south coast. Then on Saturday, it's the Big Bristol Bash....Go Go Children's first all-nighter, and it promises to be a cracker. This one's a SELL OUT so if you don't already have tickets, then sorry, you're out of luck....musically,this is gonna be a bit good, like. Seriously.

Woke up this morning to a nice, lovely shower and scrubbed off the last of the Pilton countryside that came home with me. Glastonbury 2015 delivered on every level....just an amazing few days.....I need to say thanks so much to the Block 9 crew and the Da Nycdownlow for having me play for them. Just the most perfect sound system for a DJ to play on, bringing the gospel disco beats well and truly to life. A stage of what seemed like 1,000's of dancin' folk right there with you in the sweatiest club setting outside of the Bronx in '77.....just so on point. Here's my set starter, the tune that started the whole weekend off for the Downlow massive. The smiles were there from the get go.....a beautiful club session, run by beautiful people. ;) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atVpStfAPEI

Woke up this morning to a nice, lovely shower and scrubbed off the last of the Pilton countryside that came home with me. Glastonbury 2015 delivered on every level....just an amazing few days.....I need to say thanks so much to the Block 9 crew and the Da Nycdownlow for having me play for them. Just the most perfect sound system for a DJ to play on, bringing the gospel disco beats well and truly to life. A stage of what seemed like 1,000's of dancin' folk right there with you in the sweatiest club setting outside of the Bronx in '77.....just so on point. Here's my set starter, the tune that started the whole weekend off for the Downlow massive. The smiles were there from the get go.....a beautiful club session, run by beautiful people. ;) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atVpStfAPEI

In just two days time, dublab will be hosting the second in a series of Gospel Soundclashes.....please join me on Wednesday 24th June @ 2pm US PST (10pm UK time) as I welcome from Virginia, DJ Aaron Bushman into the studio. This is the second in an intermittent 'Soundclash' series.....more DJ's to follow, so keep 'em peeled. Cheers! https://www.facebook.com/events/453362924836960/

In just two days time, dublab will be hosting the second in a series of Gospel Soundclashes.....please join me on Wednesday 24th June @ 2pm US PST (10pm UK time) as I welcome from Virginia, DJ Aaron Bushman into the studio. Once again, we delve into the collection of those who dig a littler deeper into the gospel racks, and discover these long lost treasures, finally documenting artists that have gone unrecognized for too long. This two hour special will feature a back to back session of one hour from each of the DJ's, harking back to 'soundclash' territory. Vote with your ears or just sit back and embrace the music, whilst we present to you 120 minutes of music you might not have heard before. This is the second in an intermittent 'Soundclash' series.....more DJ's to follow, so keep 'em peeled. Cheers!

In just two days time, dublab will be hosting the second in a series of Gospel Soundclashes.....please join me on Wednesday 24th June @ 2pm US PST (10pm UK time) as I welcome from Virginia, DJ Aaron Bushman into the studio. Once again, we delve into the collection of those who dig a littler deeper into the gospel racks, and discover these long lost treasures, finally documenting artists that have gone unrecognized for too long. This two hour special will feature a back to back session of one hour from each of the DJ's, harking back to 'soundclash' territory. Vote with your ears or just sit back and embrace the music, whilst we present to you 120 minutes of music you might not have heard before. This is the second in an intermittent 'Soundclash' series.....more DJ's to follow, so keep 'em peeled. Cheers!

The drive from London to Manchester wasn't the joliest....3 lorries crashed on the M25, making the journey somewhat rubbish. After I arrived at the DJ pad though, all o'that went out of the window. I'd heard great things about the Black Bee Soul Club, so I was chomping at the bit to get things crackin'. Thanks so much to the BB crew for their great hospitality, and for throwing one of the key nights in the rare soul scene. Great venue, on target sound system, and a crowd that wanted to hear new music instead of the tried and trusted also rans. I played a whole bunch of new additions to the box, including a coupla things that made their UK debut, so it was awesome to see the dancefloor explode, and for folk to rush the decks. Cap doffed, kind sirs of The Hive.....magnificent. Here's my set starter, for those that were curious.

The drive from London to Manchester wasn't the joliest....3 lorries crashed on the M25, making the journey somewhat rubbish. After I arrived at the DJ pad though, all o'that went out of the window. I'd heard great things about the Black Bee Soul Club, so I was chomping at the bit to get things crackin'. Thanks so much to the BB crew for their great hospitality, and for throwing one of the key nights in the rare soul scene. Great venue, on target sound system, and a crowd that wanted to hear new music instead of the tried and trusted also rans. I played a whole bunch of new additions to the box, including a coupla things that made their UK debut, so it was awesome to see the dancefloor explode, and for folk to rush the decks. Cap doffed, kind sirs of The Hive.....magnificent. Here's my set starter, for those that were curious.

Radio One DJ Trevor Nelson hosted a program about Northern Soul where he interviewed amongst others, Keb Darge. I remember seeing Kebby taking Trevor to a ballroom venue and explaining the whole 'nighter experience. My memory's a bit sketchy and sadly I can't remember the 'documentary' right now, but during that interview, Trevor commented on the 'fact' that he was the only black person in the room and I think I'm right in saying, he felt a little uncomfortable about that. This program would have aired at least 10 years ago....if I can think of the name of the show, I'll come back to the thread.