Timbo58

Pretty much the only times I've bought totally blind were mystery packs. One very large pack (500) from a very well known ex DJ -absolute rubbish in quality & condition, and took me years to get a fraction of the money back by selling on, kept virtually nothing, never bought again. One set of 7 or 8 packs from an online shop -great condition but very little mainstream northern (although much was advertised as exactly that) and again took years to shift elsewhere. Several sets from another well known ex DJ with his own website (but sadly he no longer sells), these were the higher priced 'packs' but always worth more on paper than I paid and I almost always made a small profit eventually selling on. I've kept almost nothing from any of those blind packs but trading up to better stuff was the name of the game, so at least the latter source worked for that anyway.

Good luck Jim, there is absolutely nothing of any quality* within 30 miles of us in the west country (except our own events naturally) and we regularly travel 2 hours each way every weekend as a result. *To be scrupulously fair there are some Micky mouse bootleg and top 100 do's locally, but each to their own & all that. I'd think I'd died and gone to heaven to live your way as Ashton Ukrainian is nirvana in our opinion, sadly it's a 7 hour round trip, so we tend to only make it once or twice a year max. When we're 'up north' we make a beeline to Rochdale 45revolutions, Ashton, East Lancs & Blackburn oldies, those really have to be some of the very best in the country IMHO.

3 or 4 from 83-85 all on 'SOS' double A sides. SOS 001 Beverly Ann - He's Comin' Home b/w Dynatones - Fife Piper SOS 005 The Majestics - I Love Her So Much (it hurts me) b/w Bobby Paris - Night Owl SOS 010 Mr Charles - I Don't Need No Doctor b/w N.F. Porter - Keep On Keeping On

Brid this year (1st visit to the soul weekender, but been to Bridlington many times before) Aberdeen beach ballroom this year (1st visit to Scotland!) RS & F weekender this year (1st visit) WSM weekender next year (3rd visit & guesting) Lake Garda weekender next April (3-5) not advertised on SS yet (1st visit although we know Italy very well) Croatia soul week May 2026 -(3rd visit)

I don't mind ska/reggae being played in a separate room on OV of course, but mixed in the same room? No way. It's simply desperately trying to attract the casual mod/scooter crowd by mixed music genres IMHO.

at the risk of being attacked, nowadays I'd invariably say it's the sign of a venue/promotor that is catering for a locals only audience of predominantly non soulies. Although, I came into NS/rare via underplayed motown as many would have of course.

Very, very sad loss to the soul community. RIP Ted.

I think those are a boilerplate cut & paste from another website since they cover stuff she isn't offering and don't cover what she is. In the unlikely event anyone would report her to trading standards and the even more unlikely event they'd have time/manpower to deal with a complaint then her terms/privacy policy are pretty much a fine example of what NOT to do. Not to forget - Really poor spacing, random capitalisation throughout and contradictory terms. She'd have a fairly major issue in trying to enforce those terms on any customer.

I've met Sally a few times before the 'championship' and she certainly seemed a level headed nice person & I do think that dance classes can be used to encourage the wallflowers new to the scene to get onto the floor. If she's determined to make her web offerings work I'd prompt her to look at her responses given to FAQs as they are confusing and potentially even misleading. It's also best practice to make the annual sub significantly cheaper than 12 x monthly subs. (Just my previous experience in digital marketing with a leading genealogy company.) Seriously though: The 'world championships' are no more than a marketing gimmick for the Blackpool Tower weekender, legally someone 'winning' that competition has no more right to be declared a world champion than anyone winning a similar dance off anywhere else in the world. It isn't adjudicated independently or scrutinised by any professional dance body, it matters not how many take part or believe it to be a real competition, it isn't. The comments about NS being freestyle with lots of 'set moves' is hokum IMHO also - those set moves are merely a result of others copying another dancer they've seen. I've actually seen a instagram video this morning of one of the country's absolute best dancers (not just my opinion either) being ridiculed for not doing 'NS dance style' -it's this very sort of 'dance classes' - pretending there are defined sets of 'moves' that can be classified & categorised -that caused those ignorant comments. Just my twopenneth but NS/Rare soul should be both absolutely freestyle & best done in as dark an event as is possible. High time video makers & social media grifters were positively discouraged from invading our hobby.

Totally agree with TS, classic oldies is what you've described you like, so take their advice. I am more familiar with the south west so if in their area: Weston super mare soul mafia weekender, soul on wax Dowtys gloucester, you'd probably enjoy should mafia on wax cinderford too (a little more across the board at that one), Taunton lawns soul club a definite, new forest soul or poole soul likewise -totally up your street.

I've bought & played out many new releases over the past 5 or so years, so I'm certainly not immune to newer artists appeal. I've played Westbeech/Sunlight Square/Lee McDonald/Kings go Forth out many times for instance, but this tune doesn't do it for me personally. Perhaps it's precisely because it is openly aimed at the NS market, rather than something certain DJs discover, adopt and make our own?

Someone needs to buy the Brighouse Ritz which is still for sale -sad thing is after the £650k asking price it'd need another £1m at least to put it back in usable condition. A travesty, every time we're up there we weep at the state of it.