manus

A very nice easy going man and very knowledgeable and always very friendly on the occasions we spoke. Very sad news for his family and for the British Soul scene. Respect Manus

The Contours Just a little misunderstanding timeless call to the dancefloor

Not my thing at all it used to crack me up along with Sue Lynne and all , different strokes and all that

Great to hear all went well , speedy recovery

Love Heartbreak Avenue wonderful record the intro reminds me of the Robinson Crusoe theme from TV in the 60s but soon gives way to a cracking slice of Soul music the flipside is good too. Another one worth a mention is Joe Valentine I can't stand to see you go which is brilliant despite Joe sounding a wee bit like Phil Silvers on the spoken bit.

Here's a few of my favourites Joe Valentines A Woman's Love Ronn Don Hollinger Let Him Go Alberta/Mercede Irma Thomas I'm gonna cry until my tears run dry Junior McCants Help My love King Lot's of great deep stuff around and mostly won't break the bank. Cheers Manus

I always thought stomper just meant uptempo , 100mph. It was often said as " 100mph stomper" records like James Carr That's what I want to know , Sandi Sheldon etc. I think later when a dance style emerged to records like Seventh Wonder , Willie Mitchell etc folks started calling it stomping and records that they could stomp to as stompers but I still use the term just to describe a 100mph sound. Don't know what a banger is

Yes it's as if they just couldn't be bothered to come up with a name although they could have meant it in a premier sense. There's also the Crystal Clear record I still love you released on A Major Label.

He's very trustworthy and straight up , I'm sure it'll be sorted out to your satisfaction.

Always remember him rummaging through the deletions box in Callers Records in Newcastle on a Saturday morning in the 70s , he was a an extremely knowledgeable guy. And I recall visiting his house around 1975/76 and being astounded at the quality of the records he had doubles of for sale and that was before looking at his collection which was the best I have ever seen. He was a true Soul man. All the best Manus

I agree it's very detailed and informative and a genuinely important addition to the Soul canon of essential reference books I think.

Well done John fantastic achievement All the best Manus

I bought it as new release (Demon) and was living in London at the time and I remember there being quite a buzz about it certainly amongst the crowd who were going to the Up North weekenders and the like. Maybe it was a wee bit of an underground buzz and as you say not going to events you missed out on the word of mouth buzz. All the best Manus

Agree if only certain DJs could adopt the less is more ethos it would be a breath of fresh air.

I remember a promoter in the 70s who wanted the local DJs who did his events to not only do it for free but to sign an agreement not to DJ for other promotions and also to put their records into a collective pot to be held by the promoter. He was a very nice guy but it was a time of venue wars and heavy friction between rival promoters and I think rational thought disappeared.

Yes for some folks oldies are only the records that they heard during their "era" on the scene ( often short lived) and they have no understanding of what went before or after nor do they seem to want to understand unfortunately.

Thankfully it still happens at certain smaller venues I was at Soul Session in Sussex last week and there was 60s , Crossover and Modern all in the same room and no one blinked an eye or skipped a beat. All the best

Yes I agree the dancing seems fine to me and folks are just getting into the music and enjoying themselves. What I don't get is the need for a "press opening" and suchlike and it looks more like the preview night of an art show than a down and dirty Soul event.

Jimmy Ruffin Farewell is a Lonely Sound still gets me every time after many years

Yes knees and shoulder problems for me, I think the other Manus ( Fallon) goes to Bletsoe he's from that area , all the best

Just a wee bit Len It's a fair cop. Cheers Manus

Met some very good people during my years on the hod Chiefy and had some great craic but fairly pleased I don't have to get up and go and do that now , it's a hard old station as they say.

Ha ha yes I should be reading the sun shouldn't I and then I could spout words of wisdom like you

As another smug Guardian reader ( working class , left school at 15 , spent a lot of years as a hod carrier so largely unaware of the real world) I'm now hoping that if I take out a subscription that I'll get a free kitchen but I'd settle for a decent armchair.

I was really saddened to hear of Phil's passing , remember him well as always being in Mr Ms all those years back and it was always a pleasure to see him at events in the North East in recent years , a genuinely nice guy and very well liked and respected , he'll be much missed, deepest condolences to his family RIP Phil