Amsterdam Russ

A great selection of tunes from you both that certainly made the night go with a bang! Thank you!!

Both country and soul share the same roots - they're forms of folk music. While the term "folk music" has taken on a different meaning over the years to something involving woollen jumpers and homely rocking chairs, it originally meant exactly what it says - the music of the people. Both are connected intrinsically by their common theme - that in the space of three minutes, or there abouts, each song exists to tell a story. Blues, of course, just like other folk music styles such as prison songs and gospel, is all about story telling, usually in a vernacular style - and from that comes soul. It's interesting to note that in the 2nd half of the 60s, Atlantic made a conscious move towards country soul/blues. If I remember correctly Jerry Wexler was interviewed multiple times in the likes of Billboard magazine on exactly this topic - and it was his deliberate choice to move Atlantic from New York and the soulful South to Nashville and thus helped create a type of music for white people thinking he was doing for the same deep-pocketed Caucasians that Berry Gordy did when he blanched Detroit's "soul music". For me it's just as important to understand "country" music as it is "soul" if you wish to get an insight into how the latter developed. They're both intrinsically linked to the culture of the USA, and the home of the music we love. And the ultimate conclusion for me is that hating one because it's "white" in favour of the other because it's "black" just doesn't make sense. It's all about the folk.

Can only echo the sentiments of others and express sadness and hope for a full recovery. A terrible thing to have happened!

Thanks, Steve. When it's foggy here, it's really foggy. The pics don't do it justice in may respects. Seeing the early morning mist in the Amsterdam woods when cycling back in the wee hours from a soul night is something to behold! When it's really foggy though, you can't see a blooming' thing - and for sure it's always incredibly atmospheric.

On the other side of the coin, when you're cycling around Amsterdam on your bike tourists are a major hazard. They haven't a clue. Still, tinging your bell furiously at them is great self-affirmation that you're a local. Indeed, a lovely place in spring, summer and autumn - except for the tourist hordes.

Here you go - wintery vista and ice skating combined in a classic Dutch scene. This is in the Amsterdam woods. We were standing on the ice when this pic was taken. Have to say the loud creaking noises coming from the ice give pause for thought. Never actually ice skated, and based on my childhood experiences with roller skates, I doubt if I ever will.

Got to agree - but at the same time there is some considerable charm in a wintery Netherlands. Certainly that's what the ice-skating-loving Dutch would have you believe. Brrr...

Two summers ago I started a photo project. The idea being to take photos across a year of the changing weather, light and seasons in central Aalsmeer where we live. I finished that last summer, put the project to one side and eventually forgot about it until recently. So, I spent a few hours today compiling the images and uploading it to YouTube. Have to say I'm somewhat disappointed with the amount of compression YouTube has done during the upload process. The actual images - although taken on an iPad - are far superior. Hope that doesn't spoil anyone's enjoyment and that you get the gist of what I was wanted to achieve. One important lesson I learned in doing this - next time take the pics landscape instead of portrait!

Friday afternoon trip to the goat farm in the Amsterdam woods. A bit rainy, but nothing to stop us from enjoying ourselves. Have to say though that for mid-August there was a real autumnal feel in the air.

Rather sadly, the swifts in our locale departed about two weeks ago. Don't think I've ever known them to leave so early. We had a small number of swallows take their place in the skies, but in many respects that just showed they were flying further to find food as normally their domain is the nearby lake. Wish they'd stayed because for the last week we've been absolutely plagued with mosquitos, a problem that's affecting not just us locally, but also the Netherlands as a whole thanks to what's been a rather rainy summer.

Larry, it's a real privilege to be able to communicate with you! Wow, the marvel that is the Internet! You mention an "initial" pressing of 10,000 copies, and that most of those sold. That must have been incredible at the time. What of the second run - how many, and... did you get to a third?

Standing just now at Hoofddorp station waiting for a train into Amsterdam and heard the unmistakable cry of a peregrine. Looked up and spied two of them. Most unexpected!

Since starting this thread I've been surprised at just how commonplace the word "banger" has become in describing a certain types of tunes. It's pretty much mainstream now, to my mind, so is sure to become ubiquitous. Seems about the only place it's not being used with any great frequency is Soul Source. Perhaps that has something to do with membership demographics.

Not so much the name, but the tag line – "Our bombs are direct hits" – is pretty bizarre and in rather poor taste considering the lasting damage the attack on Pearl Harbour did to the national psyche of the US.

£200 about right these days.

Billy Storm...

Others seen using the term "banger" to describe tunes are Colin Law and Chris Anderton. Dave Thorley mentioned previously... Possibly much more widely used than first thought. And possibly not used by old-timers with walking sticks - as referred to by Wood Butcher - because of the implicit risks to health of anything involving a bang.

A tune that has an "explosive reaction" on the dance floor is what I was thinking, so you're pretty spot on.

So, four useful points of view on what a "banger" might be. Thanks for those. The consensus of opinion (from those not obsessed by sausages) is that a "banger" is an adjective used to describe a "top tune" and can mean great/good/fantastic and any other superlative you care to think of. There seems to be no association with a specific musical style or genre. An upbeat tempo appears to be a factor in whether a tune can be a "banger" or not. To my mind "banger" appears to be replacing "stomper" in certain circles, possibly by elements of those who have moved beyond the frequently strict signature tempos of "traditional" Northern Soul tracks and have embraced the broader spheres of funkier tempos and crossover grooves that have expanded the nature of the scene over the last ten years or so. Like it, dislike it, or couldn't care less, I reckon the word "banger" is going to become even more widely used in the future than it is already.

Back when would you say?

Depends on your definition of a banger. Which is...?

Just spotted another well known record dealer applying the term "banger" to an uptempo track - this time to The Traditions, Twinkle little star... Tempo seems to be everything...

Exactly what I'm trying to find out. Never seen a sweet soul tunes described as a banger, so tempo seems to be a factor. It also seems that an unhealthy number of people on here have an obsession with sausages.

"Banger" certainly does appear to be widely in use out there. Just seen Dave Thorley post up a tune on Facebook and describe it as a "banger". The tune in question? The C.O.Ds - She's fire. A banger stomper if ever there was one!

Hmm, having read the article I'm sceptical about the claim that they'll be playing vinyl in space. Apparently a "space-proof" turntable will be sent up attached to a high-altitude balloon. A quick check reveals that high-altitude balloons go only as far as the stratosphere, the "second lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere" (so says Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Earth), above which lie the mesosphere, thermosphere and, ultimately, the exosphere. So, exactly as you say, all bit of a PR stunt. To keep with the theme though, this one might be appropriate...