Frankie Crocker

No, definitely not mainstream, well not yet anyway. A little bit of media coverage does not automatically mean popular culture, particularly as the dim-witted journalists/presenters just don’t geddit. Yes, we all get sick of pathetic puns on ‘Northern Soul’ headlining articles on weekend breaks in the Yorkshire Dales etc, but virtually all references in the press are mistaken, stereotypical and so far wide of the truth, they are not worth printing. Most of the time, it’s some saddo with a Media Studies degree trying to be hip but actually coming across as a total ignoramus. The time to be really concerned will be when there’s a ‘Top Of The Pops’ type show featuring Northern re-releases, free Northern patches in the Kelloggs box, Prince Harry carrying an adidas holdall, Theresa May on Desert Island Discs telling us why she picked the Professionals... No, fortunately the scene is light years from becoming truly mainstream but it remains surrounded by mystique that prompts some with a few brain cells to take a closer look.

Was there a Volume 5 on CD? if so, I must have missed it...

Great find Pete and a terrific story unfolding. Not an expert on this, but the Quality Control stamps on the sleeve, Test Press and demos appear identical. The hand written date and the OK appear to be penned by the same hand. The sleeve of the Test Press looks to be the ‘Birth Sleeve’ so the record could be in pristine condition. A date of 1965 surely places this recording in Detroit rather than Los Angeles - maybe someone can clarify. Now speculating that the master tape was sent to the Nashville Matrix pressing plant, probably in a batch with others from that day’s studio output. The mastertapes were processed one by one, and the Test Presses stacked up as the quality control workers did their job. Later on, the demos were cut (at this plant or another) and the Test Presses disposed of as per usual. One Frank Wilson Test Press was mixed up with other discards and tapes etc, swiftly removed from the premises and recently turned up outside Detroit. All the white demos bar two and any remaining Test Presses were destroyed in line with Berry Gordy’s wishes so this recent find is of considerable importance. The matrix details suggest the Test Press is genuine but more research needs to be done on the sequence of numbers to clarify the timing ie are there any other Test Presses in the hoard that turned up in the store? There are enough experts out there to prove the Test Press is genuine - I for one believe and hope it is.

Nicely put, but you missed the badges...lots and lots of them stuck on their tops to convey vast experience of dancing at Allnighters up and down the country...

Much ado about nothing... Saw a big Northern Soul CD in the background... A bit of Nashville line dancing mixed up with Run DMC breakers and some of the cast of Fame...sub-standard Junior School Christmas Concert fare... Over in about three minutes, a few bars of Frank and a feeble cover of Edwin Starr. Somebody at the BBC should get a bollocking for mis-naming this dross. I was all set to take the poster of Lev off my bedroom wall but it can stay there now. Anton, Craig and Bruno, I invite you to dance on the 100 Club rutted parquet whilst Jud films you... Darcy, you are given the night off to swan around on a lake someplace...

Trying hard to look on the bright side, I think it might be quite comical. Sure, it’ll be watching-through-one-eye cringing behind the sofa stuff, but the last laugh is ours. Here’s a trashy TV programme put on by a useless TV company, fronted by washed-up has beens (sorry Darcy) with inept paticipants floundering around to tuneless garbage. Since the demise of the popular music industry, the virtual disappearance of musical talent has been replaced by endless troops of dancers who can’t even mime, let alone sing. Mass dancing has now become the latest but lowest form of popular culture. Go to any school concert and there’ll be dozens of out-of-step show-offs desperate for attention in this me-me-me age: watch Strictly and witness the grown-ups’ version. As we all know, cream rises to the top, so the sad saps at Strictly Prancing, running low on ideas, have reached for the Northern manual to salvage the programme. The music is guaranteed to be laughable and the dance steps even worse. But, hey, who cares? None of us watch rubbish on Saturday night TV anyway...

Best to have records sent to a convenient point in the States and have a mate post them in batches. If the import duty is ridiculously high, just don't pay it; leave the packet at the sorting office and it will be sent back to the States. The seller will then come to an arrangement of sorts... Always possible to liaise with US sellers re ‘best practice’ so transactions are mutually satisfactory. Most dealers are very accommodating and will help out.

It was big at Wigan back in the day. Possibly a Mecca spin at first but then on the ‘newies’ conveyor belt at the Casino with Prince George, Black Nasty, Kim Tolliver, Lloyd Michaels etc. A good tune then and now, but dwarfed by the sheer weight of later 70’s discoveries so unlikely to be revived.

Can’t remember the title but it’s by someone called Dean... Think he used to be in a group with Jimmy and Tobi but not sure - confused really as lots of places just play Dean or Jimmy or Tobi at the end of the night.

The Servicemen’s original is now fetching over £1,000 and pushing £1,500 in perfect condition. The Magicians bootleg which is on vinyl and looks pretty smart has sold for over £100 recently. On eBay, the latter could fetch more or less due to the fickle regard for bootlegs but this format will be the only way most likers of the tracks will get to own them. One of the very, very best double-siders of all time.

Fewer biggies than usual. Supplies are evidently drying up. Professionals did. well jumping up from a solid £3,000 to over £4,000 in a year or so. Condition of some of the big ticket items is wavering also but punters are not deterred.

Presumably the question refers to buying records as a financial investment. Most of us probably regard the gathering of records as an entertainment investment, something to listen to for pleasure. If a record appreciates in value over time, so much the better, especially if it is no longer wanted and can be sold for a profit. Now, if several collectors decide to move discs on by selling for financial gain, the market becomes overloaded. Too many records are currently hitting the market at sky-high prices and not selling - expect prices for expensive items to fall in the months ahead as UK sellers cash in but in the face of growing competition.

Four Seasons New Gold Hits LP has I’m Gonna Change On it. A huge track at Wigan. Robert Knight LP has Branded on it. Not released on US 45 but released in Britain.

How about the Skullsnaps, My Hangup Is You and I’m Your Pimp? I remember talking to Russ in his Wigan shop about this as I broke my journey between Manchester and Southport. Russ said it would be a great double-header and indeed it is on the white label bootleg.

Not seen this clip before. Sure looks like the Easter 1977 BBC visit at a very early stage of the night. Cameraman’s spotted a backdropper so he’s zoomed in on the lad. Trouble is, you shove a camera in someone’s face, they perform for the camera. Mind you, it could have been far worse - imagine Wigan today with 500 self-obsessed dancers holding selfie-sticks with 1,500 onlookers recording the action on mobile phones... Perhaps it’s just as well that cameras weren’t that common in the mid 70’s.

No, it’s more like the old-timers having a last shake of the dice to bag that favourite track that’s been eluding them for decades. Very few youngsters can throw away silly money of the sort that’s being discussed here.

It’s a lot to do with how many actually survived. Given the small number that have surfaced at auction in recent years, I would say very few sold initially so many must have been scrapped or still await discovery in a forgotten hoard. Even those snapped up in the hey-day of Wigan don’t seem to be too numerous given DJ playlists, set sales offers and recent collections put on the open market.

We have entered a strange period. Finally, a number of collectors are selling up due to old age and not surprisingly, want as much money for their rare records. However, many of these raritites are being offered at unrealistcally high prices. The supply side of the equation is changing with multiple copies of rarities being offered at any given time. Some, but not all, dealers are offering their stock at competitive prices that are hard to ignore - look at what Pete Smith has moved on this week to see that bargains are still to be had. The situation is going to change further in favour of the buyer. Already the market is being flooded by tasty items, too many at once if the truth be told, many of which are overvalued given what they cost just a few months ago. Buyers should sit tight and wait for high-end prices to drop.

The dead wax details would in fact be of great significance! If there are no details whatsoever, this would make it a bootleg. If there are actually details scribed in the run-out, this is the main way of confirming authenticity, or in this case, fakery. Don't understand this cat-and-mouse stuff - total openess is the best way forward. A price tag of $600 will get some free publicity, but you would have to be crackers to pay even $60 for this piece of forgery.

Hi Ted. Are you asking what makes Craig's repro a clear-cut repro? I'm sure several of us would like to know what the giveaway features are so we don't burn our fingers in future. He has another record by the Empires up for sale at present so maybe one looks dubious alongside the real one? Funny that the price is set at $600 - how was this arrived at given there is a single source of the replica?

Casey and the Sunshine Band - Queen Of Clubs Playthings -Stop What You're Doing I Like It John Miles - One Minute Every Hour Jesse Green - Nice And Slow Tony Etoria - I Can Prove It Hamilton Bohannon - Foot Stomping Music Lesser known, but soulful party tunes. Hope this helps. Let hs know what you played and how it went.

Sorry Julian, but I don't have a copy of this. Are you looking at the one on Craig Moerer's site in the hope that it is an original? It's a sad era now such a great record has been booted, but too risky to shell out $600 in the hope it's a real one.

Avoid having to buy them by recycling the packets from the States. Buy loads of records and keep the packaging materials - the range of boxes out there suits all sorts of consignments from single styrene records to mega-bucks 45's.

Well worth seeing Kev. Thanks for posting. I applied for a job there in 1979 and was glad I didn't get it - perhaps I missed out later? Always good to hear Searling speak as he talks so much sense. I made it to Cleethorpes Pier - can anyone compare the experience with Morecambe?

Too many Wannabe DJ's with hot boxes wanting to put on an event for their mates to spin at... Who is this Winstanley anyway? Really, promoters do not even need to meet up - just look at the calendar and find a free weekend. There is no central planning system to apply to (thankfully) so promoters need to be aware of what's happening where if they are to start up a successful event. Event clashes should be avoided when planning a new event.