Thursday 31 March 2011

THE INVITATIONS - LOOK ON THE GOOD SIDE

Northern / Modern Soul _ A Brothers Guiding Light - Getting Together

Harold Melvin and the Blue notes - The love i lost ( dimitri from paris ...

Northern Soul Records Tracks to Look For

One of the great things about being a music lover is that there are endless genres, movements, and artists to explore. There are types of music designed to match your every mood and experience, from the excitement and adventure of young adulthood, to the melancholy blues of experience. If you're looking for a new musical genre to explore, there's a good chance you've probably never heard of northern soul records before. Popular for a little over a decade in the late 1960s to early 1980's, this soul music had its origins in America, but was cherished and encouraged in England.As a music lover, it's easy to get caught up in the endless vortex that is the American music scene. There's no denying that the United States has been the birth place of many different types and styles of music, but it's important to remember that it isn't the only place a musical movement was ever started. Northern soul records are considered to those that are part of a large collection of tunes played by disc jockeys in Britain during the final days of the mod scene. Mostly consisting of little-known singles from rare artists in Motown, New York and Chicago, this "outdated" music became the inspiration for a movement of thousands of fans that still lives today.

These days it might seem funny to think about young kids getting fanatical about Motown records, but in the late 1960's an entire underground subculture built around dancing to and listening to these northern soul records was erected. Kids would gather in ultra cool clubs like the Twisted Wheel in Manchester, the King Mojo in Sheffield, and the Catacombs in Wolverhampton. Northern soul lovers would gather in these venues for all night dance parties, similar to the dance music raves of today.

Determining the best northern soul records is always a subjective classification, but there are some lists that have been widely agreed upon by the lingering leaders of the movement. Near the top of any of these lists you're likely to find Do I Love You (Indeed I Do) by Frank Wilson, Out on the Floor by Dobie Gray, Long After Tonight is Over by Jimmy Radcliffe, Seven Day Lover by James Fountain, and Only the Strong Survive by Jerry Butler. Northern soul has a characteristically upbeat attitude, and the dance moves that went along with it were incredibly active and exciting.

Garland Green - It Rained Forty Days & Nights

Northern soul biggie...Dynells

JEFF PERRY --- LOVE DON'T COME NO STRONGER

Oh Baby, Its All About Memphis Soul Music

In the late 1950s a genre of music was born that was to become Memphis Soul Music. Soul is a style of music that combines R&B music with Gospel music. It has been said that Memphis Soul Music is similar to Gospel in almost every way. The only difference between the two would be to replace the word Lord in Gospel to the word Baby and its all Soul from there.

The catchy, new, unique blend of R&B and Gospel quickly spread through the African American communities in Chicago, Philadelphia, Memphis, and Detroit. Memphis Soul music was most heavily influenced by gospel. The unique sound of Memphis Soul music was described as unpolished and raw. Up North, the sound had been more polished and smooth. Memphis was gritty and raspy.

Memphis Soul music gradually spread through Beale Street to Sun Studio, where both Black people and White people worked together to make and record the music. Just south of the Downtown Memphis area is where the deep hearted Memphis Soul music continued, giving the area the name Soulville, USA. It was in these small neighborhoods that Memphis Soul music was born and raised.

In the middle of Memphis Soul music was the label Stax Records. The local Soul talent focused its efforts on the little record company, and soon the label was producing just about every major artist in the local area. Although Stax Records began as a small company, it wasnt long before they were producing artists like Maurice White, Al Green, and Aretha Franklin.

Another studio that catered to the Memphis Soul music was Royal Studio. Royal Studio would become one of the most important studios in Memphis, and it supported artists like Bill Blacks Combo and Ann Peebles, and Al Green. Royal Studio, along with Hi Records added a depth to the number of local artists that went beyond any comparison in other cities in the country. Even today, Royal Studio still records the music of Memphis Soul artists and others.

1957 is considered the year that Memphis Soul music was born. In 2007, the city of Memphis held a celebration in homage to the 50th anniversary of Memphis Soul, hailing Soulville, USA for bringing the genre to the place in music history that can only be from Memphis.