Frankie Crocker

Don’t give the few drunken wallies who used to stagger around any credit for their presence. Getting off the last train from Manchester was an uplifting experience as every carriage was packed with soulies - there were hundreds of people filing up the road to the Casino so there was never any feeling of being intimidated. Same with the last train from Bank Quay, especially with a crowd of mates - never saw any aggro from the locals. I think it was the early-birds in the pubs that got the beady eye and maybe got chased off, but that was the 70’s for you anywhere. I never saw any real trouble inside or outside the Casino despite the place being packed with plenty of ‘likely lads’ from all over the country.

The record must have suffered distribution problems as many copies were pressed up with labels reversed. A small number of copies turned up in the 90’s so it was given the exposure it deserved being a decent, mellow mid-pace dancer. Turned out to be another Chicago flop in a sea of more commercially successful records, but that’s what makes it a little bit extra special for those of us who appreciate overlooked sounds.

I heard someone went dressed up as a palm tree. How they got up the escalator in fancy dress, I do not know. Is this another urban myth or can anyone remember seeing a palm tree at the Mecca?

Some interesting points here Joey. On the one hand, the OVO thing has become more accentuated with rising prices being paid for genuine records selling to dedicated collector-DJ’s. On the other though, you have the arriviste DJing to a pub full of half-sloshed youngsters and authenticity of the records is of no real significance, as long as the tune is catchy. The proliferation of soul-nights has enticed newcomers into DJing and at the same time, exposed fresh ears to the sounds - in time, some of the more committed listeners travel further afield to the bigger events featuring a top DJ, keeping the stream of young blood flowing. Many of these event-goers not surprisingly expect to hear genuine records that are worth the trouble of travelling for, especially if they have modest collections of Grapevine 45’s or OOTP boots etc. Nothing the matter with original vinyl except there’s just not enough of it to go around.

Well, you had to wear a tie to get in. This was usually of the kipper variety so went well with giant rounded collar shirts. Think Harry Hill but not pointed collars, semi-circular ones instead. Can’t remember if you had to wear a jacket? The doormen at the top of the escalator made a thorough search of your holdall in case you had a tape recorder. I think it was otherwise standard Northern gear in the mid 70’s morphing into pegs, capped T shirts etc towards the end of the decade.

Holly St James has featured on several Northern Soul LP’s and CD’s over the last three decades so that qualifies it as Northern Soul in my book. At venues I’ve attended in the last year, it’s gone down well with the dancers and packed the floor, especially with the younger crowd coming onto the scene. The younger fans have brought an ‘up for anything’ attitude with them so dance to funkier stuff, crossover and RnB, you name it, they want to listen to it, dance to it and who knows, maybe buy it in some form or other. This can only be good for scene in the long run as us old fogeys stuck in a rut, shuffle from the dancefloor to the doctors’ waiting rooms... I like to see folk in the venues making an effort to dress up for the occasion. I like to see youngsters carrying holdalls of clothes to change into - no objection to patches either... if it was good enough for us in the 70’s, it’s certainly OK in the ‘anything goes Teenies decade’ whether we’re talking about sons and daughters of Stafford goers, the grandchildren of Wheel/Torch/Catacombs attenders or anyone just dropping in for a look. The scene continues to evolve so there’s no point in hankering after the golden days...the best times are right now and it’s up to soulies of all ages to make the most of them. The scene is becoming increasingly youthful, not just in Britain but across several continents, so the omens are good for the continued appreciation of the 57 varieties soulful music.

I don’t own this record, but other multicoloured Revilot records I do have, were pressed on styrene. This material is notorious for its fragility and cracks easily. Styrene also suffers from the wear and tear of a heavy tone arm and worn stylus, so after a few plays, the dreaded hiss develops. Paper labels spoil more easily than moulded ones. I guess more than a few copies were disposed of for these reasons.

I agree Chalky. More to do with the sound and the buying public. Back then, record players were somewhat crude so a sound like this would not stand out as catchy. Today, our appreciation of the Detroit Sound, acceptance of slower tempo and Jackey’s gritty vocals make this a record to hunt down.

Looking at Popsike, the numbers suggest this is a scarce record but not really rare. The condition of those on Popsike indicate plenty went into circulation but few mint unplayed copies actually survived. Maybe only small numbers were pressed up because the calibre of the composition was less catchy than other offerings on the label. Whilst we might revere the sound today, it would have been overshadowed by the Motown/Tamla/Gordy/Soul/VIP stable of labels that dominated the airwaves. Other records on the label suffered a similar fate - the Parliaments ‘Don’t Be Sore At Me’ is a nice, happy, catchy song that was largely overlooked then and now.

Just seen the programme on iPlayer. Very interesting in lots of ways. I didn’t know John - was he the guy with a beard or the bloke on the right? Tim Brown popped up and showed us his Big Daddy’... So, John had virtually no records left as he had moved them on - now I’m really intrigued as I would like to know more about John, what records he had before he sold up, why he actually sold his collection etc.

No, just bin the totally unplayable, absolutely knackered records that are not fit to put in a picture frame. Mould them into ashtrays or nail them on the record shop wall.

Sure, he’s a highly regarded dealer and often sells records on consignment for others. My point was that any dealer with high standards would not offer such rubbish to the public. So, it sold for over $300 but look at the negative publicity it is generating. The bidding also looks suspicious. There is no prestige in selling records like this - most reputable dealers would be embarrassed to be associated with this Constellations record in such condition.

When you really think about it, what sort of seller puts a record like this up for auction? Personally, I would just throw it away rather than offer it for sale.

Probably haven’t read the blurb. Would not even look nice in a picture frame or glued on a record box.

On line with eBay...guess the USA dealers are a week ahead. Most importantly, I got it at a low price from a bricks and mortar store. Get in there before scalpers I say.

Just ordered mine. Let’s face it, I’ll never own an original and the test press is not for sale. This special issue seems to be the next best option for collectors of US imports. I might even get rid of the Eddie Foster bootleg now.

Are you 100% certain it’s the Sunday Times? I read the Sunday Times and don’t recall the article. Certainly looks like a national Sunday supplement but could it be the Express, Telegraph or Observer? Could be 1984 looking at the car number plate or 1986 if you count seven years beyond 1979. If you knew when Brian Rea started DJing, you could pin it down exactly: the reference to Brian suggests it’s later than August that year. Maybe October to December 1986 if that helps?

Maybe Russ or Richard have a record of the dates. Maybe some of the other DJ’s such as Kev or Pat have a note of the dates or photographs of the events. Is Russ on here? If he isn’t, he should be and someone could perhaps talk to him.

So, is there such a thing as Southern Soul? What were Londoners listening to in the early 70’s? Dave Godin really could have coined the term Northerners’ Soul as it was reputedly lads from north of London asking after U.S. black music in the Motown style. Probably just as well he called it ‘Northern’ as Northerners’ is right ‘ard t’get tongue ‘round ain’t it. The term Southern Soul is associated with the sounds of U.S. states in the south such as Louisiana, Tennessee etc - there is no name attached to what Londoners and southerners were listening to in 70’s or was there?

Did L. J. Johnson feature with Barbara Pennington and Evelyn King? I vaguely recall Ian Levine’s three-act show at The Casino and then again at The Ritz next day (or shortly after)?

Not the First Anniversary as I’ve never seen her perform live.

Yes, I saw the Exciters at The Casino. Didn’t keep a diary back then so no idea of the date. If I had to guess, it could be an anniversary, possibly the first.

Sounds of Lancashire maybe? Stoke Soul came later. Staffordshire Soul later still. Not sure where we are now...

The LP collector is in luck. The seeker of soul 45’s will find more records advertised on Soul Source. The few 7 inch records on the shelf would not whet my appetite. I need to see square cartons with Marvlus or Onderful stamped on them to get excited.

Condition. Condition. Condition. In the last week or so, Four Voices on Voice went for about 3K, Charades on MGM for over £800 and Betty O’Brien on Liberty for over £350 These are PB’s for these records, probably due to their pristine condition. George Lemons on Gold Soul went for over 2K in Excellent condition, another price topper. This one rarely turns up in nice shape so what price for a minter?