Latest Additions

Sister Beat Ballad Heaven at its most movin'.

Horace Ott's genius harnesses the dynamic versatility of the beautiful Marva Josie. Long term producer of Marva, Norman Blagman, surrounds her with a full-blown orchestra to match her undeniably powerful vocal presence. The original a-side is another great song "I Love New York" but more suited to a Broadway stage, than a motivational spin in an underground London Club. So it was "Don't" that resounded around the the subterranean "100 Club", rumbling deep below Oxford Street.

"Don't" had all the ingredients to become a 100 Club anthem, taking pride of place as the last track, side one on Kent's 1986 album "Kissing Her, Crying For You". Also featuring in more than one DJ set as it was used as their "ender" leaving lingering impression. Which is exactly what Marva does

An inviting simplistic piano leads you into what changes up to become a mountainous NS beater. Subtle trumpeting, punctuated by handheld rattling of a big bold casaba. Horace Ott directing Marva's warnings to rise and fall on waves of brilliantly conducted orchestration; pulling a masterstroke of ignoring the temptation of shrill girls, that so many of these styles call upon. Instead, Horace summons a deep mellow voiced male-choir to ring out the choruses, the effect is stunning.

Top-drawer, top of its genre, Northern Soul.

It would be challenging to find slicker vocal-group harmonies, whilst trawling through the real-deal Northern Soul classics, that enhanced our lives in the late 70's. Or indeed a more impressive saxophone intrusion, or a more compelling Hammond driven 4 beats to the bar, Neal Davenport's keyboard pulses relentlessly hammering out Northern Soul credibility. No wonder this discovery became an instant dancefloor favourite.

THIS IS PROPER NORTHERN SOUL!

Today standing as one of the few enduring classics, seldom surfacing for sale, it's rarity within the constrains of OVO making it a tune you only generally hear when an A-list DJ is at the controls.

As an oldie it is always a delight to hear, not suffering a jot from over-exposure, still saturated in all the ingredients that triggered the dancefloor energy that lifted Wigan Casino & Cleethoropes Pier nights into gymnastic mayhem.

It's got everything required including eternally-rare validity..

a TUNE indeed...!

A very elusive Los Angeles double-sider with a huge reputation for bringing the crowd to the dancefloor. With it's addictive fusion of stabbing horns, heavenly girls, caressed piano keys; whilst a relentless burping Sax decorates the rhythm.
Choppy, captivating arrangement is embellished throughout with delicious additions, as the Saxophonist changes direction to squealing out some piercing notes, as the girl-choir encouraging chant "Treat Her Harder" takes to the air.

The production is way above anything you could ever expect from a street-level private press. Rich, flowing over with imagination, drenched in quality moments and classy additions...

A skilled stand alone D.I.Y. creation from Milton Parker himself, who wrote & produced this "Closet" production ..

But he's not finish impressing you yet, flip this rarity over to be greeted by a jabbing piano intro, inviting a positive snarling vocal-edge from Milton, as if the a-side had buoyed his attitude. Still using all the components of the a-side, Sax, Horns, celestial girl-choruses but changing the approach to hammering home his message, just a little harder.

Who ever the mysterious Milton Parker was, he certainly never recorded enough 45's. This as far as we know is his only 45, and both sides are truly memorable. With their fullness of both instruments and girls, not overlooking Milton's rich vocal..
Two sides of brilliance on one very hard to acquire disc.

Not this is the VINYL press not the notoriously stylus afraid styrene press that also has a tendency to shed labels. This is the high desirable VINYL press in fine clean. Some mild surface marks revealed when angled in the light, but very little interferes with the sound. Check out the double sound file provided and spy that rather special label design

Fine clean and complete with of the iconic British label dedicated to Northern Soul, from 1977 though 1980

Read the full listing of Promo copies and stock and the conditions.

All to be auction as a complete lot of 47 7" 45's.

This is the very first time we have listed the full run, for auction. A huge investment opportunity that gained in value year on year for the last 54 years.

Quite simply one of the greatest Northern Soul records ever! Here is the hugely sought-after 27th Mar 1975 single-sided PROMO with the blank flipside. The rarest format for this timeless Northern Soul anthem, that rose up to become an absolute dancefloor gargantuan after Wigan Casino opened its doors on 23th. September 1973.

UK only release at the time, overlooked in October 1972 to be passed over by everyone except those investigative Northern Soul foragers looking for new candidates for those hallowed Northern Soul turntables.

Later that Wigan Casino dancefloor passion triggered this 27th March 1975 single sided UK promo to meet the huge build up of demand. The power of Wigan Casino's and Northern Soul's defining year of 1975, the song reached the breathtaking heights of no. 7 in the British charts. Later used in inspiring TV adverts, bringing "Edinburgh Gin" right into public focus with their Northern Soul dance footage, riding an edited snippet of this great song.

"The Night" suffered from inferior cover versions through the decades, all attempts to recapture its magic failed, this original song now universally considered impossible to improve upon.

This was Bob Gaudio re-crowning Northern Soul moment after the booming bassline used in the anthem "I'm Gonna Change" fiver years earlier, Gaudio raises the bass-bar even higher with a grandiose guitar intro underpinned with an atmospheric church organ foundation coated with eerie male vocal harmony setting the scene for Frankie Valli's penetrating falsetto to crash through those ever increasing crescendos. Then Bob Gaudio flexes his production muscle by adding an abyss of deep brass, the introduction of a low-blown, perfectly timed Tuber hinting at the impending storm that is about to break...

elevated to a high-plane by a soaring male harmony choir and Frankie's ear-piercing vocal drilling deep into your brain. Heavy duty percussion keep the "Northern-beat" running ... as my memories of a full dancefloor are rekindled... the finale of the spacecraft lift off again demonstrates the producer's prowess, as the Jersey Boys hit heights nobody has replicated since, and leave seasoned Northern Soul students hanging in a dreamscape of their youth.

Arguably the greatest crowd migration to the dancefloor production ever presented to a NS faithful. Today it still makes me shiver, as it rockets me back to my formative years of Northern Soul indoctrination.