A Sprinkling Of Northern Soul

A Sprinkling Of Northern Soul In The Wigan Casino

This may not mean anything to our transatlantic friends, but Northern Soul was eventually centred around Wigan Casino., but The Golden Torch in Stoke and The Twisted Wheel were important.

Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged in Northern England and the English Midlands in the late 1960s from the British mod scene, based on a particular style of Black American Soul Music, especially from the mid-1960s, with a heavy beat and fast tempo (100 bpm and above) or American soul music from northern cities such as Detroit, Chicago and others.

The northern soul movement generally eschews Motown or Motown-influenced music that has had significant mainstream commercial success.

The recordings most prized by enthusiasts of the genre are usually by lesser-known artists, released only in limited numbers, often by American labels such as Vee-Jay Records, Chess Records, Brunswick Records, Ric-Tic, Gordy Records, Golden World Records, Mirwood Records (Los Angeles), Shout Records and Okeh.

Timing is everything, the Golden Torch in Stoke-on-Trent had been forced to close prematurely and the burgeoning underground scene that had been slowly moulding since the heady days of the Twisted Wheel was set to explode.

Wigan Casino, known locally as the Empress Ballroom, proved to be the ultimate venue. It featured a cavernous main hall with a wooden sprung dance floor and a first-floor balcony on three sides (reminding me of the Public Hall in Preston and The Mayfair in Newcastle).

It also had an adjoining cabaret club, The Palais (aka Mr M's), extending the already enormous capacity to over 1,500.

It was an awesome prospect for an All-Nighter and a gamble for its then-owner Gerry Marshall.

On the first night, September 23rd, 1973, club manager Mike Walker opened the doors to an unexpected but eager crowd of 652 and DJ Russ Winstanley played the first disc that heralded a new era of Northern Soul.

Ten Slices of Northern Soul For Your Delectation

1: Sliced Tomatoes - Just Brothers

This is bread and butter to samplers like Fatboy Slim, and one of my favourites at School Discos in the seventies when for a brief time I even wore two-tones and a mod haircut. It didn't last long but I still love the music.

2: Do I Love You (Yes I Do) - Frank Wilson

This is one of my favourite soul records ever and was first pressed in 1965 on the Motown subsidiary label Soul. It is Wilson's only Motown single.

Approximately 250 demo 45s of the song were pressed in 1965 and scheduled for release on 23 December 1965.

Owing to a combination of Wilson deciding that he would rather focus on producing and Motown's Berry Gordy's lukewarm reception of the vocals and wish to prevent his producers from having a successful recording career, the demos were destroyed.

At least two, and maybe as many as five, copies survived, one of which fetched £25,742 in May 2009.

One is rumoured to be owned by Berry Gordy.

Due to its scarcity it remains one of the most collectable discs, especially by followers of Northern soul.

3: Bok To Bach - Fathers Angels

Similar to "Sliced Tomatoes" a class Northern Soul instrumental and I love the harp strums.

4: The Snake - Al Wilson

A brilliant soul take on the parable of the snake, another favourite of mine.

5: Tainted Love - Gloria Jones

Most people will know the Soft Cell or Marilyn Manson covers, but this is the original by Gloria Jones (Marc Bolan's widow)

6: Gotta See Jane - R Dean Taylor

I believe the first white male artist on Motown and responsible for a lot of class singles including this, "Indiana Wants Me" and "There's A Ghost In My House". His records often contained impressive sound effects.

7: The Night - Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons

The Four Seasons were not known as a soul band but this gem was picked up by Northern Soul DJs and became one of their best-known songs.

8: Love on a Mountain Top - Robert Knight

Another that was constantly on the radio and a staple of the Northern Soul dance floors

9: Band of Gold - Freda Payne

A brilliant evergreen number one single with that excellent loping riff, still sounding as fresh today as when it first came out.

10: (Blame It) On The Pony Express - Johnny Johnson And The Bandwagon

One of my dad's favourites and a wonderful upbeat closer to this short playlist.

Concluding On Northern Soul

This is just a tiny sample of some great Northern Soul songs but if you want to explore more check out the compilation and film below.

There are lots of compilations available for a hundred songs is an economical way to explore this genre.