Russ Vickers

I helped with the Cover Up title of the Clara Hardy

Absolutely.....if you wanna stay in the game, you dig, dig, dig, then dig some more, its pretty much the same as its always been, one way or another....

I thought Anna Ford & others were invited for one of the Anniversaries by the management, apparently there was a cake n everything.... ???

Shane McGowan was the cloak room attendant for a bit....

Doesnt matter if it was, it may not have been right at the time....

We all have different tastes, thats all part n parcel n that break in the Sir Joe not so many years ago would have been unacceptable to a lot of people.....thank good ness some people dont always go with the flow.....

No mention of 'Upfront' here.....https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10212413164143242&set=a.10200175209802032.8133682.1205119204&type=3

No, I do understand Kirsty, not everyone likes every record & records like the Triads have to be placed correctly within a set to get the best response, but there have always been records that not everyone likes, its not just a more recent phenomena ...I love your honesty.....if records wernt at least tried out though, how would we know, there are accounts of some now classic records taking a very long time to gain exceptance...

Try this for size too....took years to eventually break, but by all accounts is filling dance floors now.....

As for particular records, its difficult because different DJ's & venues could be playing lots of different things & 'Upfront' doesnt describe a genre....I dropped this into a set over Xmas, the crowd were a mix of soul people who only had one thing in common, they wanted to dance....this record has been played at various venues up & down the country for a while now, so Im not suggesting that for one moment that its unknown or unplayed, just a bit different from the norm....& for what ever reason, the already busy floor, not only remained busy, but went up a notch or too.....this will hopefully cause some debate, but it rather proves that non classic style records will be excepted if programmed correctly within a set at the right time in the right venue....& I am not the type of DJ who can drop anything in & it would fill a floor regardless either.....

I think 'Upfront' is just a loose term used to differentiate from the main stream, I dont know anyone personally that would describe themselves as an 'Upfront' DJ....I can't think of a venue either that describes itself as 'Upfront' either, altho I am happy to be proven wrong on that. If there is such a term, I dont think its used to describe a genre per se, IMO its venues, rooms & DJ's that are playing something different within the mix. That could be anything from an underplayed traditional oldie, to a new release, with lots of other stuff in-between, usually aimed solidly at the dance floor.....its what the Northern Soul scene used to be about, cherry picking from all genres of dance music, usually black, to find sounds that will make people wanna dance....depending upon your personal taste, some will be good, some bad & some indifferent. I think we should be pleased that there are still diggers n DJ's out there, that are prepared to spend the time finding n playing these lesser known things, as ever, some will eventually go mainstream, some may even become classics. But, lets also not forget the venues & promoters that encourage & support them, past & present. These kinda venues are the ones we now herald as legendary, Wheel, Mecca, Torch, Casino, Stafford, 100 Club & others, what makes them legendary in our hearts & memories, is the records played there, which, on the whole were newies, or maybe another word that could be used is 'Upfront' ? Food for thought maybe....... Russ

It was originally played from the LP, the 45 was released in the UK due to demand, so theyre all re issues lol....

I think aal of them boots have the tell tale 'swirly' labels. Russ

A sad state of affairs when an iconic club like this, playing literalily the best Rare Soul in the country cant sustain a monthly night any more, because of lack of support, then we're f*cked, I am deffo going to have to revue my personal position after this shocking news, working abroad doesnt help with my personal support, but with half empty venues all over the country at best, Im sick of travelling for hours only to be disappointed, not by the musical content of where I choose to go, but the lack of support for quality events....what is wrong with people, I despair, I truly do. Russ