Documentary - Northern Soul: Keeping The Faith

Northern Soul: Keeping The Faith. The Culture Show BBC2

> At Northern Soul's peak people travelled hundreds of miles to dance all night.

> Old dance halls become some of the coolest nightclubs in the world.

> Usually young, white, working class people enjoying obscure black music.

> Late 1970s -  Industrial unrest, football violence, terrorism, electricity black outs.

> People bored of pop music - Northern soul created as a reaction.

> At its height Wigan Casino was drawing in crowds of 2000 people every Saturday night from 2am to 8am.

> People sold records and drugs in the clubs.

> "Like Motown but rougher, the emotions more raw".

> Music made by unknown black singers in tiny studios for local labels.

> Most of the time people didn't know what the singer looked like, tracks were often just demos and for many of the records only a few 100 were pressed.

> Some DJs travelled to America to look through warehouses of records.

> Northern soul was about finding records that had been overlooked because they had flopped, finding the hit that no one else had found, artists trying to be The Supremes, The Temptations but who didn't have the money to make sophisticated records so some were out of tune/rough around the edges.

> The term Northern Soul was coined by record shop owner Dave Godin when northern football fans came to his shop in London asking for heavy dance beat records no one had heard of.

> The Twisted Wheel shut down in the early 70s - inspired other places such as The Golden Torch in Stoke and Blackpool Mecca.

> Dance halls that used to house people listening to top of the pops turned into clubs with people practising their kicks and backdrops.

> The idea that northern soul didn't sound 'cheesy' or popular on the charts was appealing.

> Felt exotic/romantic because white people who didn't even know any black people were listening to black voices from America.

> A lot of people who were involved in the original scene are still involved in it today and so honour to Northern soul slogan of "Keep the Faith".

> Trousers got wider and wider as people tried to one up each other.

> Jackets featured multiple pockets on the front and rows and rows of buttons on the sleeves.

> A large family mentality to the Northern soul scene - people feel welcome wherever they go/feel like they belong.

> Described as a way of life.

> The dance style links with scenes of Bruce Lee films of the 1970s.

> Illegal drugs - speed/amphetamines usually stolen from pharmacists were a big part of the subculture.

> Basically dancers were overdosing on slimming pills or anti depressants.

> The drugs helped people to be able to keep up with the fast music and to keep dancing.

> By the late 70s the Northern soul scene was splintering into different factions. - some people wanted to stick with the 60s music/some people found how black music was evolving into disco/pop/funk interesting.

> 1977 film about Wigan Casino was seen by 20 million people - brought light to a largely underground scene.

> Wigan Casino closed it doors forever in 1981.

> Wigan Young Soul - A group in Wigan of young people of the 'Spotify generation' partaking in the Northern Soul scene.

> Northern Soul today has become part of a global culture with northern soul nights held across the world from Japan to Dubai.

> Influenced music, fashion and choreography.

> Some of the scenes best known songs have been reimagined as hits e.g. Tainted Love by Gloria Jones redone by Soft Cell, an 80s synth band.

> Feels the same to people today as it did in the 70s because it's the same music.

> Provides an escape for people.