It is unlikely that it we will shown in a cinema where I live, but there still is the option of a DVD.

I admit to like Northern Soul since I bought my first Kent lp back in the day in my diaspora. Still like to listen and dance to it, although I think the status and perception of the genre in Germany is a lot different to that in the U.K.

NS found its way to my country via the Mod scene of the early 80s, was kept alive in the scooter scene and by small pockets of enthusiasts all over the country. From an outsider's view I am under the impression that in the UK, there are various scenes Northern Soul / Soul / Mod which don't overlap and have much in common. Here, it is a bit different. I like it very much, when I go to a soul event with a very mixed crowd, people who just like the music and who don't make a "culture" out of it. Mostly, they don't even know about the cultural backpack. You hardly won't find anyone who uses the "official" moves.

Yes, from a "serious" music lover's pov it may be too much pop, but I like it.

I'm just kidding with you guys.  I know what Northern Soul is.

Had an interesting conversation with two Northern Soulies today, both colleagues. One a Mancunian and one from near Wigan. Both near retirement age and both knew the scene, as it was then.

The Mancunian used to go to the Twisted Wheel and said the early dress, around the mid-sixties was mod-inspired. Mohair suits and the like. One thing he said was that both males and females danced on their own and if there were any really good dancers people would form a ring around them to watch them. A bit like breakdancing in the 80's

The Wigan cadet, who is a about 5 years younger got into the scene in Wigan, which was a slightly different vibe as it came latter. He said, the design of the clothes was primarily to allow ease of movement when dancing.

The Wigan chap, has just watched the film and pointed out a few problems. Firstly he said the drug aspect is completely overplayed, probably to create some resonance with the modern viewer. He also pointed out that some of the choice of music was anachronistic.

The Mancunian was of the opinion that Wigan Northern Soul Fans are a bit precious and protective about the scene. Claiming it as their own.

Both laughed about the 'exclusivity' aspect of the music (IRL not film). I've always found this a turn-off.

It was an enjoyable conversation, as reminiscences and the attendant teasing and disagreements can sometimes be.

I have not seen the film.

There are a relatively small number of slower n soul tunes though, which is one thing the NS film failed to acknowledge and that I think would have made a very good contrast with the other music used. (I prefer slower music in general, and it's the best tempo for dancing.)

Also I think a nice bit of blues would have been perfect for the film, and would have illustrated where the scene came from.

Last edited by Yuca (2014-10-24 14:42:38)

Hi everyone

I used to post as Natural Sole Brother but am back now under this name.

Lots of the the above is slightly misinformed. So much of what Northern Soul is and was is misrepresented. To think that it wasn't a drug scene is laughable. It wouldn't have existed without them and it really started as a nationwide network for post-Mods to sell grey-market amphet to each other. The music just happened to be the discotheque music of the time: uptown American soul. Obviously as the cult picked up new converts the music assumed far more importance. Bear in mind that by the time Wigan had been open of six months the entire thing was starting to go overground. Many young teenagers started around then and it became their pop music if you will. Many who hadn't been to the Wheel, the Torch, Troggs, Kelmarsh, Up the Junction etc. would have been blissfully unaware of the scene's roots.

Lots of reviews of the film have said that the drug element is maybe too strong but if you were genuinely close to the subject matter you would acknowledge that it's completely accurate. If you look at the soul-source response to the film a lot of lifelong soul fans have praised the unflinching look at the drug-culture.

In short there was always a very edgy strata of the scene—a criminal and pseudo-criminal element has always been there. One of the ways in which the word was spread in the early underground days was through word of mouth in borstals and prisons. The way it was explained to me from one scene figure who started at the Wheel was thus:

"Gear used to be counted in tens. People didn’t take twenty Bombers. If you did that you would be seriously ill. You might take ten and you’d be completely off your box from an hour after you’d taken them for another twelve hours. You got wired. You weren’t ‘nicely buzzed’—you were off your tree. You’d get out of the ’nighter in the morning and think, ‘Shit‑hot night. What happened?’ The less you knew, the better the night. We laugh now, but it’s true. We were literally travelling at speed.

“The scene was something different. It wasn’t mainstream. It was exciting: you met loads of interesting people; you met loads of crooks. Part of the reason for the longevity of it was that there was quite a high turnover of people. People would go and disappear for a couple of years ’cause they’d got a sentence. In certain places it was a bit like an old lags’ convention! Young youths had been to YP, borstal etc. Anybody who got sent down at that particular time would come out with loads more mates who were ’nighter boys, from all over the place. Of all things you nick, if you nick a telly or a car or anything else, the resale value comes down by 90 per cent. You nick gear and it’s actual value has gone up by at least 200 per cent. Even the dumbest criminal can understand those economics. That’s basically what happened. More people came on and it was never a place of innocence.

“There were frightening people from other towns. Gaff lads. That’s the other thing, there were lots of gaff lads—fairground workers. They’d always been on the scene. You went to the fairs from about ’68 and you’d see some of the smartest youths you’d ever laid eyes on. The latest Lee Rider suits, stuff you’d never seen before because they were always moving around. Obviously, from working on fairs they had no scruples, and a first‑class supply of gear. They saw everywhere and everyone as an opportunity. If you came across anyone with ‘Gaff Lad’ tattooed in boot‑polish on their hands, you knew damn well not to mess around with them.

“If you looked at any particular gang it was a real mixture: you had your hard‑men, another one would be a pretty boy, some were smooth talkers. It wasn’t just like all tough guys. That wouldn’t have worked. It was a complete mixture. You’d see them and think, ‘What’s the mixture there?’ You see them in action and see those two do this, the others do that; there’s the clever bastard who looks after the money, there’s the guy who knows about cars. There’s the guy who pulls all the birds. There was always an Indentikit mix to all of the gangs.”

I've spoken to the first guy to sell non-pharmecuetical whiz to the scene from '76 onwards. He was holding the equivalent of thirty-grand every week from the Casino alone. Factor in sales at St. Ives, Samanthas, Cleethorpes Pier, Notts Palais etc. and you can see how significant the drug culture was.

The difference with the later club scenes like rave was that the criminals were from outside the scenes themselves. With Northern it was fans selling to other fans.

Lots of misinformation about the music too. If it wasn't for the Northern scene there wouldn't be any of the 'digging' culture which has cultural currency now. Yes, there are examples of dodgy pop records masquerading as some kind of soul which were popular in the past, but at its best the music—sampled in the right atmosphere and context—is simply phenomenal. It's easy to castigate the scene for finding Judy Street, but it also found Eddie Parker too.

Can I move this to the Wardrobe...?

A DJ, mistakenly connected with the scene gives his view:

http://www.gregwilson.co.uk/2013/11/northern-renaissance/