By david, glasgow, scotland (213.107.27.25 - 213.107.27.25) on Monday, March 18, 2002 - 11:14 pm:

i can't thank keith rylatt enough for sending me a copy of this rare photograph from the halcyon days. it is taken from his (and phil scott's) excellent book 'CENtral1179' (which is an old manchester telephone number).
i will incorporate the pic into my northern soul tour. keith says the boxes at the top left of the pic are full of records.
what an awesome picture!

By Eli (205.188.192.58 - 205.188.192.58) on Monday, March 18, 2002 - 11:16 pm:

Where is the pic???? It did not download

By Carl Dixon (195.153.219.170 - 195.153.219.170) on Monday, March 18, 2002 - 11:23 pm:

I got it!

By Ade (193.129.220.205 - 193.129.220.205) on Tuesday, March 19, 2002 - 09:49 am:

The Infamous Phil Saxe! To all us "stuck in a timewarp"(tm) suedeheads, Phil is a bit of a legend, for his DJ'ing at the Wheel (and his sweeping up and serving drinks skills!!!!) I was interested to learn that he went on to play an important role in the Manchester music scene as a manager. Top feller (and check out those decks!

By Keith Rylatt (195.92.194.14 - 195.92.194.14) on Sunday, March 31, 2002 - 12:21 pm:

To the rest of the world! Manchester is an industrial city in the north of England, roughly about the size of Detroit, but not as sprawling. Because of World War 2 / Cold War there was a massive USAF base nearby called Burtonwood, the largest out side of the USA. To make the base `home from home` they shipped EVERYTHING in fom the US. including the family car, water, bathroom tissue (or to use the Queen's English-Bog Roll) etc. they of course brough in Soul / R&B 45s - by the box load. Black airmen would go to local dancehalls and clubs in the 60's demonstrating the Duck, Swim, Mashed Potato etc and swopping records. Earlier, immediatelly after the war and in the '50's, however, lots of US & Canadian airmen and GIs went AWOL and used to hang out in Manchester especially at the Band On The Wall jazz club. All of these ingredients, including the tough enviromnent of the city, Jewish guys with money, a shared language & culture, all fused into a passion for US R&B / Soul. It had been big in London and being the capital it got all of the best acts etc. but the love of R&B /Soul turned out to be a bit of a fad with most of them. (I said most of them John etc, I am now an honourary southerner!) Anyhow, a club called the Twisted Wheel emerged in Manchester as THE biggest and best R&B / Soul club outside of the USA. The list of acts reads like a Who's who of Soul, as far as Detroit is concerned we had Edwin Starr, Jr Walker, Jimmy Ruffin, John Lee Hooker, Wilson Pickett, Mary Wells & Marv Johnson. Berry Gordy would send records direct to the club for the DJs, we (the kids) would send to the US for records (Marilyn's Record Shop 7510 Beaubien, Sam's Jams Nine Mile Rd etc.) Marin Koppel would bring stuff back from university in Canada and sell it there.
At the end of the '60's when both the US & the UK either dropped Soul of went on to Funk this club retained and developed a passion for 60's soul, especially Detroit Soul, fans such as David Meikle though nothing of travelling a round trip of 500 + miles just to hear `Real Humdinger` or `You Got To Pay The Price`
The rest is history. I tell you this because we in the UK don't want you guys who made the music to dismiss it as some `Beach Scene` or similar. Over here it's a way of life for 1000's of us. Kids are named after artists, houses named after labels, people have RIC TIC etc tattooed on their arms, magazines are devoted to it etc. It is a religion. For those of us who have been fortunate enough to visit the Soul cities of the states it is a VERY emotional pilgrimage, to actually stand in a studio, of even walk down a street that is connected with our music is an honour to you all. AMEN. Keith

By John Lester (213.122.195.25 - 213.122.195.25) on Sunday, March 31, 2002 - 12:48 pm:

Mrs Edwards told me that the first time a guy came to Studio A and kissed the floor, she was startled. Now she says...."Oh he must be from England".

What Keith says is just So TRUE - Brits have even been married in Detroit cos of their association with the music.

If you want proof first hand, ask UK visitors of recent times, Ivy Jo Hunter, Edwin Starr, Frank Wilson, JJ Barnes, Brenda Holloway, Kim Weston, Frances Nero, Katherine Anderson, Martha Reeves.....and dearest Cal Street who I personally worship

By John Lester (213.122.195.25 - 213.122.195.25) on Sunday, March 31, 2002 - 01:20 pm:

Mrs Edwards told me that the first time a guy came to Studio A and kissed the floor, she was startled. Now she says...."Oh he must be from England".

What Keith says is just So TRUE - Brits have even been married in Detroit cos of their association with the music.

If you want proof first hand, ask UK visitors of recent times, Ivy Jo Hunter, Edwin Starr, Frank Wilson, JJ Barnes, Brenda Holloway, Kim Weston, Frances Nero, Katherine Anderson, Martha Reeves.....and dearest Cal Street who I personally worship

By Ralph (209.240.222.130 - 209.240.222.130) on Sunday, March 31, 2002 - 02:22 pm:

Keith,
Thanks for the history lesson. Very fascinating how the Nothern Soul movement
transpired.Until I was made aware of the Soulful Detroit web-site by Mike Theodore, I had no idea this even existed.

By Carl Dixon London (62.31.40.155 - 62.31.40.155) on Monday, April 01, 2002 - 10:06 am:

Maybe I was that guy that kissed the floor!

I did it a couple of years ago. I promised I would visit the studio and do it in recognition of how the music had influenced my life and still does. I have a photo of it and am proud I kept my promise. Mrs Edwards was in tears with my fiancé and me. I had just proposed to Michelle in the Snakepit too with an audience I might add!! All the staff wanted to see it as they knew there were two things going on, kissing the floor and the proposal. I read some lyrics I composed and was invited to remain in the studio, just the two of us for as long as we liked. It was a dream come true. To think that something I said in 1975 would come true in 1999 was amazing. Truly a special time. The lyrics and melody for �I suppose I propose� were written a couple of months before I planned all this. And believe this or not, I needed a spoken intro, not church bells ringing, and I turned to a song for inspiration that was from Philadelphia. I had admired a Blue Magic track that used a 'male voice' calling the audience to join him in looking at the saddest show in the world. I used the same principle to invite people to witness a happier occasion. �Sideshow� was the name of that tune and written by Bobby Eli/Vinnie Barret, two people�s names I only saw on records labels and sleeves in those days. Here I am all these years later chatting away with them both on this forum!! Can I ask when this song was first written maybe 1975? The year I was making a promise to go to Detroit and say thank you to everybody in my own little way!

There is a photo of me checking the Snakepit out on that visit, posted on this forum under the �posting images� thread. After everybody had left the studio I asked Michelle to take some photos of me � but I was shell-shocked and could not believe I had done it all, hence my posture.

So Keith - you are spot on. But please may I add the buckets I cry when I listen to some of the songs, because somebody connected with them is no longer with us, or it stirs up memories from years ago. The music is an institution. I learnt that on Thursday night at London�s Royal Albert Hall, where we saw The Four Tops and The Temptations. A wonderful evening with a full house. I chatted to a few people before the show. Mothers, with daughters there for the Motown Sound. �I grew up on it� said the daughter, �my parents were always playing it�. �That�s funny�, I said, �I grew up on it too� and I was double her age!