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Fats Domino goes back to The Wheel, possibly before and so would have been Mr M's rather than main room. It's sound was also fairly anachronistic in Northern Soul as a main play by the mid-1970s with its mid-tempo New Orleans style.

It is probably in the impassable store room next door packed floor to ceiling and only visible from the window outside. Rob's was changed a bit during a building redevelopment a few years ago. The upstairs is gone now as a store for.overspill. I will take a photo of the other room next time I pass.

Top feller who was helpful to me above and beyond the call of duty when I was buying a lot of vinyl from him. His notes and guidance were invaluable.

A legend. I have many stories, amazing finds under bags of unsorted records, feet almost coming through the old ceiling, endless cups of tea, hours of anecdotes such as Junior Walker in just underwear and a turban chatting with Rob after a gig, constant generosity on prices, remembering where a single is amongst the piles and racks, his innocence at normal life, his incredible travels to DJ for a quick gig, the intimate Sunday night gig he ran in the 1990's that helped bring back many to the scene in Nottingham, writing those legendary notes on single sleeves, the treasure troves almost forgotten in his shop if you knew where to look, the characters hanging around, his bemusement at CDs yet boxes of the most obscure ones, Kev R popping in with the latest Goldmine ones, his never ending enthusiasm telling label, artist and club history, dozens of collections bought and never sorted left in bags on the floor, records piled up the stairs, putting on singles during the day with noone around, being roped in to sort and serve as a teenager being paid in singles from my ever growing pile on the window of wants to buy, his lack of snobbery about Northern Soul accepting it for all its diversity, asking for a record and being told 'I will start looking and should find it within a few weeks' in all the piles, later walking in weeks or months away working and him saying 'That record you wanted is in a carrier bag over there with some others you will like'.. Ah happy days. I dare not go in anymore as it will all start over again, I spent thousands with him. I get my hair cut opposite his shop and just put my head around the door to inhale the vinyl smell. I am 47 now and was going in at 13, Rob did not seem young even then. I give him a nod and a hello, but I think he can only really see people properly infront of him talking Northern Soul. It genuinely is his life. I cannot really imagine any other aspect to his life. When Rob finally has to shut up shop part of me and many of us in Nottingham will go with him. I suspect he will be found underneath his records when he finally becomes too weak to move them! Hopefully that is a long way off yet. Thanks Rob.

I still enjoy it. A formative record in early stages of getting into the music. It is part of the weird, diverse mix that makes Northern Soul what it is.

That's a shame, best wishes for recovery. I am enjoying the new album which has some songs that those who appreciate Northern Soul will enjoy.

Yes download the BBC radio app, then you can search for it,add it to always be in your 'My Radio's section and download it for listening in the app over next 30 days on any device with the app on. Both the BBC Manchester and Stoke shows are available. You can do the same on a computer too but I do it all via Android every week. On Android the BBC radio app is available on the Play Store (no charge).

The Jades - I'm Where It's At is literally made for clapping to at the start and in the break. Also Mel Wynn & The Rhythm Aces - Stop Sign. A clappin' Casino classic.

The Vel-vets - I've Got To Find Me Somebody has always been a monster clapper in the East Midlands. 'I'm So Happy' too with the big single clap near the start.

PayPal sent Pete. Let's keep the fundraising going.

This is a brilliant set, now playing on rotation here. Delighted to see future Kent releases will capture subsequent discoveries from this Northern Soul 'Holy Grail' source. Clearly the master tapes to the Hesitations and Freddy Butler albums are available as used in the Pied Piper releases so it will be great to have them released by Kent Records if possible with the upgraded sound quality possible. The earlier Goldmine releases are I think the only time those two albums have been on CD.

Download the iPlayer app, set a reminder in MyRadio there and can easily stream or download at your choice of time

I feel gutted at this news. During this week I had been thinking about who is left from the 60s-70s with Leon still forward looking and active. I always looked out for anything he was involved in and tried to obtain his own works over the years. Huge thanks for his contribution, often inside the release name of others.

Loving Manhattan Soul 3 and the Screamin' Jay Hawkins when listening to them new this morning over breakfast.

To avoid any issues in running this site which is careful to respect copyright I suggest the link is now removed. There are huge amounts of music in copyright within that link that some readers of this site who are legal label owners will be unhappy about. Links to such sites can see a call and desist notice issued to all sites promoting the link and a heavy handed block put on by search engines seeking to protect themselves.

The book will be a lifetime of reading and re-reading, which is a great thing.

Thanks Tommy for the joy of your music and the positive impact it has on those who hear it. I am listening to 'I Can't Do Enough For You Baby' with a smile on face as I type.

It's Torture is an old Kent LP and not a CD. I had all those Joe Boy EP CDs, they were quite nice but fundamentally useless at only four tracks. The Dean Parrish is in the mono 7" version on the Cleethorpes CD (the version heard at events) and is a lush stereo version on the 'Kent's Magic Touch' CD. Goldmine's 'Big City Soul volume 4' double CD has a lot of Scepter-Wand tracks only compiled on that set but the sound isn't up to that of Kent.

I do not believe there has been. His songs are spread across the following various artist CDs: - 'The Class of Mayfield High' CD (x11 songs, also covers non-Okeh Billy Butler and Major Lance). - 'The Brunswick Years' (best CD version of 'I Love You') - 'The Blue Rock Records Story' (x4 songs) - 'Keep On Loving You' is on 'Soul Time volume 1' (which has been repackaged as a few other double CDs I think) - 'Gotta Right To Try' is on Goldmine's 'Cream of Vintage Soul' CD box set - 'Boomerang' is on Goldmine's 'Out On The Floor Tonight' CD - 'Nobody But You' is on Goldmine's 'Northern Soul Lost & Found' CD Hope that helps. Thanks Mark

Yes a good book. The interviews are those for DJ History site when it was most active. You may enjoy the earlier 'DJ saved my life' by the same authors and the recent book by Dave Haslam. The USA early dance/soul DJs are very interesting too in the book. Venues such as The Loft, Paradise Garage are legendary. If you haven't read it the Keith Rylatt book on Twisted Wheel is a vital addition to Record Players. Good also to have such as Jeff Dexter properly interviewed in the book, I wish such as Guy Stevens, Steve Barrow and Count Suckle were in there too. Also later DJs such as Greg Edwards are interesting to read interviews with.

Although tracks licenced to compilations at last no major Cameo Parkway soul set yet. I would welcome a proper one on Buddah too.

Although tracks licenced to compilations at last no major Cameo Parkway soul set yet. I would welcome a proper one on Buddah too.

Oh I wish I still had all my Kent vinyl. I loaned it to a friend while I was working away off the scene who within a year ruined all it all by playing them out and at parties. Nearly thirty years later it still annoys me. I never got to the bottom of it but he also seemed to have given away a lot of it, we were young and dumb so didn't know the deep personal value to us of the vinyl from that time. We're still friends though. I had almost all the Kent LPs, all the Soul Supply/Goldmine, Grapevine, Inferno and other cheapo compilations (remember the 'Keeping The Faith' volumes sold in Woolworths?). I get my hair cut opposite Rob's Records in Nottingham which was a second home for decades and I'm constantly tempted to go in and just start buying up all the old compilations I can find. I have to treat it like a minor addiction and not let myself step back into the shop though, once I start that will be it again - subscribed to all the lists and spending far too much on vinyl I then dare not play. Actually....I do now have a separate building outside the house I could store and play it but......no stop that!! I've had at least four Northern Soul collections and inbetween early House and others. Those Kent LPs especially seemed to alluring and mysterious when I was younger. I used to buy as many as my Saturday wages would get me from the racks of Northern Soul at Pendulum Records stall in Nottingham Victoria Market. Sorry I'm getting nostalgic, but vinyl does that. The memory of the covers, the smell. I really do wish Kent would put out a book of the front/back covers of all their compilations. I would prize it for life. I've got almost all the songs now, but it's the covers I crave I think. Ian Clark's work on those covers was important. I featured it at my blog a while back (which I must get back to) at: https://squareendknittedtie.tumblr.com

Normally PRS is covered and where relevant paid in the country of the performance unless there is a partnership arrangement with another country to collect it. This page sets out all the arrangements between UK including the one with China: https://www.bmi.com/international/entry/reciprocal_representation_agreements_foreign_performing_rights_societies The Chinese PRS equivalent details including direct email and phone numbers are at: https://www.ifrro.org/members/music-copyright-society-china Their main page is at: https://www.mcsc.com.cn/ It may be worth a quick call to PRS in UK who through their partnership with China's body may be able to give a bit of advice.

Yes the Stuart Cosgrove book was very good I thought. I haven't read it but Gethro Jones' 'They Danced All Night' was also published last year. In a different way, the Dave Rimmer Rare Soul Bible reissued books were invaluable too. Checking my shelf I also got the 'Motown - Sound of Young America' by Adam White in 2016 as a new book. It was a lavish book that while great had odd omissions. Some major artists are not featured at all while others get too much attention. Still, a great book that is excellent to dip into.