The term Northern Soul was coined by Dave Godin who was a journalist for “Blues & Soul” magazine in 1968. Godin came up with the term when he was helping an employee stock music on the shelf of his music shop in London. As R&B was starting to get popular he wanted to be able to distinguish the older smoother R&B sounds from the newer funkier sounds that were beginning to appear. Back in the 1960’s clubs were changing their music as the trends dictated but many Northern clubs were choosing to keep soul music beats. This didn’t damage their business as their Mod patrons knew what they liked and didn’t feel the need the change their preferences when fashion trends changed.

Kool and the Gang, Gwen Guthrie and Bill Withers all added to the sound of Northern soul but there is no defining band or sound that can accurately define the genre. Northern soul isn’t a particular style, instrument, voice or even topic of song but it’s more of a feel, a rhythm and the ability to dance to the beats. It evolved from the Mod scene and has roots back to the Tamla Motown sounds and popular African American R&B artists of the time.

Northern Soul is also associated with the dance styles of the 60’s. Venues such as Twisted Wheel in Manchester played popular Rhythm & Soul music which cause hundreds of Mods to flock to it, this spread to other places such as Catacombs in Wolverhampton and Wigan Casino which were all extremely popular with Mods. By the early 70’s the style of dance became more athletic, more upbeat. This evolved into the styles of disco that we associate with this era today. Mods are still at large and Northern Soul is still very much alive.

This article was written by Elliot Drake. Copyright 2009.
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