Granada Television's 'Celebration: Madchester - The Sound of the North'

A great and rare documentary that delves deep into the Mac music scene in the early 90’s. Ok, it’s not all dance, but there’s some great footage in there of the Hacienda in all it’s sweaty glory, with a sneaky appearance by Hardcore Uproar and lots of interviews with ace faces at the time. This was at the height of the so-called 'Madchester' scene or 'baggy' if you will, and captures everything from lost indie stars Northside, to 808 State and MC Tunes in the studio, to the Happy Mondays in Amsterdam - including Derek Ryder soundchecking for his son! Celebration was a Granada Television arts strand and undoubtedly Anthony H Wilson (So It Goes, The Other Side of Midnight, Remote Control, Content) must have had some influence in the making of a programme featuring Northside from his own record label. Well worth a watch, takes ya right back.

The night Rick Astley died.

I think we all have our own memories of how we first discovered house music and how we first caught the bug. I remember the exact night vividly. In 1987 I was starting to discover dance music for the first time, but in Wakefield, West Yorkshire it was a confusing mixed up mess of different sounds. Nights out would be a cocktail of Top of the Pops pap, Stock Aitken and Waterman, HI NRG and US soul sounds all thrown in together. Yes I had heard Jack Trax and liked it, but the pieces weren’t falling into place. I couldn’t work out how to respond to the music we would call house today. I loved Mantronix, Got To Have Your Love, but this was quite slow electro funk and I thought Kon Kan - ‘I Beg Your Pardon (I Never Promised You a Rose Garden)’ was like the coolest thing ever committed to vinyl. Later in life this proved to be seriously incorrect judgment. So yes, I knew I liked dance music but the lines were very blurred, as you can tell. Now I’d just like to say at this point, probably my entire social life for the next 20 years was in the balance in 1987. I didn’t know what I liked, I was musically unsure. But all that was about to change. It was just another night out in Wakefield, a small Northern City, close to Leeds. It had a rep as a crazy town for drinkers, with the main attraction being a club called Rooftop Gardens. It was legendary in the region and the only place to go when you want beer, women and late night action. I was wearing brogues, cream chinos, a pale blue shirt, stripy tie and blazer, which had a gold sailing emblem stitched on the pocket. But it was OK, because to look like Rick Astley was all the fashion. Or so I thought, until I walked into a small club connected to Rooftop Gardens called Casanovas. There on the dance floor was a throng of people going wild to house and acid. I know that night they played Royal House – ‘Can You Party’ and Marshall Jefferson - The House Music Anthem, but I couldn’t possibly ID the others, but hey it didn’t matter. Within about 10 seconds of seeing and hearing what was going on, I knew I wanted to be involved. Rick Astley was dead. I was about to become Acid Ted. I rapidly got into the tunes and the fashion, but above all, it all made sense, there was a purpose to going out, beyond beer, fights and putting your hand up a girl’s skirt. This was the new beginning, like a big flashing ‘Las Vegas’ style sign with my name on it. The missing jigsaw puzzle piece was found and I would never wear that stupid blazer again.

Another house music blog? Wait, let me explain!

Ok, first things first. What made me start this blog? Well it’s about 24 years ago since I first discovered house music and to this day, I still have a huge opinion on those crazy days gone by and the music as it stands today. I don’t claim to know every tune, I don’t claim to know every DJ or club, but I can say I have lived through some pretty amazing, unforgettable times. This photo was taken in late 1988 I think. (I’m the one with the Adamski N-R-G t-shirt on, by the way). This picture captures what was one of the most exciting times of my life! I was young, I’d left college, I had cash and I was going out and partying. Better still, it was all accompanied by a new pounding dance soundtrack, which I was completely hooked on!Now a hell of a lot has happened since those heady days, but the passion for this genre of music has hardly ever wavered. First and foremost, I’m a music fan, with a love for many different musical styles. But what has always fascinated me, is music that has the ability to get people dancing. I love the fact that electronic sounds, played in a specific order can bring people together, on mass to celebrate. That a round, flat disk with tiny little grooves can get people to express themselves in such a way, that looking back, it almost seems unreal. As a clubber, a DJ, a producer and an all round 24hr party person, I wanted to share my thoughts on the music that moved an entire nation. This is a chance for me to tell my stories as well as hear and publish those of fellow clubbers, which I’ll gladly include if the content is good. Oh and the name of the blog! It came from the feeling you get on the dance floor, when you’re totally caught up in the music and lights. I call it strobe struck.