Ann Taylor

My first guest to be washed ashore on a lonely island in the sea this year is Northern Soul Promoter and DJ, Ann Taylor.

Ann runs a monthly soul club in Teddington and the Dome Alldayers with Derek Mead in Tufnell Park. A resident DJ at Hoodoo Soul Club in Hersham, Ann has also DJ’d at Bisley, Oxford Soul Club, Isle of Wight Soul Club Rally Weekend and at various other clubs around the country.

"I grew up in Lancashire, loving Motown and other Soul music since the age of about 11 and started going to Wigan Casino in 1974  (and like a lot of people – pretending to stay at a friends house overnight!!).  I went to Blackpool Mecca as well as local clubs around, finding new friends who had a real passion for the music and not simply a 'liking' for it. My 'normal' friends thought we were all crazy and never got the feeling we all had.

Having left the North of England in 1980 to attend college, I was away from the scene for several decades (like a lot of people for one reason or another) and then I had, what I suppose you might call, a 'mid-life crisis' and decided to explore the Soul scene down South.

I had a yearning to promote and DJ. I saw Martha Reeves at the Jazz Café and an ex-Wigan Soul fan I met that night encouraged me to go for it!  So I bought some decks, mixer and, of course, MORE records and started in a local pub in Teddington on Thursday nights. Some local Soul fans and DJs became regulars, we outgrew the pub so I set up at Teddington Constitutional Club down the road. And that’s how it all re-started…
 

When Bill asked me to send him my choices for the blog, I thought 5… only 5 records!  That’s so hard to choose.

Anyway here goes….

Some of my all time favourites on the list and those would always be there and some which may have been different if I was writing this next week!"

The Belles - Don't Pretend

"Great stomper!  I love the beat and Mirwood was a great label output too.. Brenda and Patrice Holloway, Sherlie Matthews : This seemingly 'unofficial' recording was made by these three as the Holloway sisters could not sign a contract under their own names as Brenda was already signed to Motown. I often like to start off a DJ set with this. I love the voices, especially Brenda - some of her best music (imho) was never released."

Jackie Wilson - This Love Is Real

"I find it difficult to play a set without Jackie – he can do no wrong… his voice was like a musical instrument and what a showman. I love the unexpected start to the record – quite laid back and then everything kicks in (love a big arrangement). 

What a beauty."

Martha Reeves & The Vandellas - Love Guess Who

"It's very hard to select a tune by her. I especially love the violins in this one. I think Martha was underrated and I love her edgy voice."

Constellations - I Didn’t Know How To

“There’s a flame deep within my soul – and it’s burning (burning burning) out of control. I wanna speak, but can’t find the words.. and you pass me by baby having never heard”.

"What a tune…sends a huge shiver down my spine even as I write this.. I do like big round whole sounds and orchestration and I adore it played in a bigger venue. I lose myself."

Little Anthony and the Imperials - Better Use Your Head

"This again has a big dramatic orchestral sound and what a voice Anthony has – I like many other songs by them. Now… this one would actually be the one record I keep if I really was on a desert island and everything else was washed away. For me this sums up everything about my passion and love for the music and people, especially my teenage memories of Wigan Casino."

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If you love the tracks that Ann has chosen, then you are guaranteed to have a great night out here...

And click on the logo below for details of all the Soulnites :

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