Richard Bayley

Great work - and a fantastic read!

Superb article Rob - thank you! As soon as I saw Paul Riser's name in the header I thought of "Ain't no Mountain....." This article gives such great insight into how the music was made, as well as paying respect to a great talent.

Was it compulsory in the 70s to play "Band of Gold" at fairgrounds?

On the whole, I thought the show on R2 tonight wasn't bad. Obviously it was "Oldies" based, both in music and outlook, and raised Dave Godin's nightmare scenario of the soul scene becoming like the "Teddy Boy" scene - approvingly! When it was at its best, it was people talking about the thrill and passion of the music, the excitement of dancing and the strong social bonds built around the scene. Elaine and Tony Palmer's contributions were very entertaining, IMHO. Palmer's account of picking up the buzz from going to WC to film a couple of times (and his very obvious enthusiasm) was a great testimonial from an outsider's point of view. His observations about the fierce sense of collective ownership of the scene and its music he experienced were well put, too. I enjoyed Elaine's comments about the "otherness" of the music, the sight of guys dancing and way that the soul scene was, for so many, real chance to break away from small towns and small minds...... Obviously, the scene ceased to exist after Wigan closed...... until the over 50's found it kept them young at the Wheel Sunday sessions. The irony is, that without those DJs and promoters who kept the scene going in the 80s and 90s, and who helped expand the musical range of NS enormously, there would have been no scene to return to. A scene purely built on nostalgia for certain 60's records that were played in the '70's would not have lasted 40 years (and wouldn't deserve to) Oh, and Pete Roberts on drugs and the scene was honest and humerous!

Excellent news, I'm able to come down tonight on the 2nd leg of my Birthday weekend! Looking forward to the usual fun and frolics, the opportunity to have a dance in both rooms, and to talk complete and utter rubbish at various points of the night

A small (but perfectly formed ) posse will be over from York - heard good things about the venue, looking forward to it!

Looking forward to an excellent night ....... good to have Mr Banks on board too!

Top post Azza (and mlad's too....) There's been far too much "they might enjoy it, but they won't enjoy it like we do..." on this thread - I guess old hands from the Wheel and Torch said much the same when they saw hordes of pilled-up teenagers descend on Wigan . A few canards on this thread - "they like city centre bars, but won't travel" - completely unfair! Quite a few get around a lot - and the sentiment masks the fact that the majority of the UK's northern soul scene these days largely sticks to its own environs, attending largely oldies-based soul nights (sad but true). Access to nighters is a real issue for newer punters - usually solved by a healthy interaction between the soul generations. And hasn't that always been the case? I couldn't begin to count the number of times old soul veterans have told me when starting out, how they were taken under the wing, so to speak, of an older crew, who told them what was what, got them to nighters, bent their ears about taste in music, sorted their gear..... Also etiquette........ as far as I can see, the scene's "unwritten rules" are a plus point for newcomers - why not come to a night where there's no need for gorillas in suits to police the venue, where you can leave your coat, bags drinks where you like, largely free from the threat of thieving scrotes, and where the dancefloor isn't a moshpit - what's not to like? Oh, and if the grizzled nature of today's NS crowd is a problem, we just have to think about making venues a bit darker

See you all at the Church of Gospel Bob on Saturday

Do you do dance classes?

Save some seats for me, Trevski and Andy Hudson please, Ali And if you're arriving extra sparkly, give us some notice and we'll bring shades

A great summary of my views Gareth - how did you know?

It was like watching an episode of "Home Improvement" ! And for newcomers, please remember your crampons, as the stairs can seem quite steep if you're the worse for wear....... what was that, Rosemary?

Hope folks had a good Brid....... see you there