Blues & Soul

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Name of Magazine: Blues and Soul (The Seventies)

Frequency: Fortnightly

Price: N/A

Subscription Details: N/A

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Having recently looked at a contemporary 'Blues and Soul' I thought I'd take a trip down memory lane and review what the same magazine was like twenty-five years ago. It was at a time when Northern Soul was at its height with both the Casino and the Mecca pulling the punters in. The issue I have chosen is number 168 which went on sale during the first two weeks of September 1975.

The magazine begins with a Datesheet listing all imminent concerts. The list of artists appearing in England was impressive; The Chi-Lites, Earth Wind and Fire, The Exciters, Linda Carr, The Supremes, The Platters and a double bill of The Four Tops with Blue Magic. Disco Tex and the Sexolettes was also listed, but the less said about them the better.

Like its contemporary, the magazine published an ample supply of soul charts including; the top 65 US Albums (Why 65?), New US Singles (which interestingly enough was entirely funk dominated), the top twenty jazz albums incorporating reviews of three new releases, 'The Disco Dozen' (the top twelve tracks on the disco scene), the top hundred British soul singles (which showed a roughly 50/50 split between 'soul' and 'Disco'). The struggle between 'soul' and 'disco' was at its most intense, what a pity that the wrong genre eventually came to dominate. KC and the Sunshine Band was top of the British Singles with 'That's The Way I Like It' as he was of the American charts but with 'Get Down Tonight'.

The heavy reliance on reviews which features in contemporary 'Blues and Soul' was much less evident in the seventies. 'On Disc Singles' listed the latest single's releases, whilst 'On Disc Albums' listed the latest Albums. There was also a review of a Jnr. Walker/K.C. and the Sunshine Band concert. What the seventies publication included in their place were far more interviews. This edition had some in depth profiles of 'Earth Wind and Fire', 'Faith Hope and Charity', JR Bailey, Hamilton Bohannon and 'The 20th. Century Steel Band'. More miscellaneous articles included 'Dateline USA' (a review of the American scene covering concerts, emerging groups, and other news), 'Pen and Paper' (which published readers letters), A review of a Casino all-nighter, 'Dust My Blues' (a commentary on the politics of the record industry and information about which artist had signed for which label). 'Air to soul' was a piece about soul on the radio.

If asked, most people at that time considered either 'The Dave Godin Column' or Frank Elson's 'Checkin It Out' to be the best articles in the magazine. Dave Godin was unquestionably the soul 'guru' of the time, a real intellectual with in depth knowledge of black music. It was he more than anyone else who explained the social conditions, the philosophy and the rationale behind soul music. More than that it was his enthusiasm and ability to convey his empathy for a song that 'educated' so many others to appreciate soul. In this particular issue he paid tribute to Radio DJ Andy Peebles, identified his 'significant sides', reflected on the state of the soul scene five years previously and through his 'Run Out Groove' feature took an in depth look at the politics of the soul scene at that time.

'Checkin It Out' by Frank Elson reviewed the 'club scene', not only Northern but Funk clubs as well. In this edition he paid tribute to the Casino's DJ Billy Paul. He also considered some of the reasons why Trentham Gardens was getting poor attendance's. The column also ran a competition to win an LP. There was his usual letters section which amongst other things acted as a lonely heart club and provided some medium for girls to trace boys they had met at a club (or vice versa) and subsequently lost contact with. The column also included Frank's personal reviews of recent releases and a few other 'odds and ends'.

I cannot leave the magazine without commenting on how lavishly illustrated it was. 'Soul on Camera' had a variety of photographs to which readers were invited to submit captions. There were also pull out posters of JR Dailey and Hamilton Bohannon.

In summary the magazine had a broad spectrum of articles. They were generally well written and handled their subject matter in depth. How I wish the same could be said of 'Blues and Soul' today.