Northern Soul
Northern Soul is less a neat genre than a nightlife obsession: a dancer’s culture built on rare, fast soul records and the thrill of discovery. Its story is inseparable from northern English clubs, record-hunting, and a canon of cherished American singles that found a second life on British dance floors.
Origins and context
A British youth and club culture built around collecting, trading, and dancing to rare American soul records in the late 1960s and 1970s.
The sound
Instrument palette
The voices and tools most associated with this sound.
- Vocals
- Drums
- Bass
- Horns
- Guitar
- Organ
History
Northern Soul took shape in Northern England in the late 1960s, when DJs and dancers built a scene around obscure American soul records rather than current hits. Histories of the movement trace its club life through venues such as Manchester’s Twisted Wheel, the Golden Torch in Stoke-on-Trent, and especially Wigan Casino, which became one of the best-known all-night homes for the scene in the 1970s. The movement’s taste was shaped by records that could sound like Motown, Chicago soul, or New York soul, but were often by lesser-known artists whose singles were discovered and cherished far from their original release markets. Motown’s own catalog later fed the scene’s mythology, with recordings by Frank Wilson, Gloria Jones, and Edwin Starr becoming touchstones for collectors and dancers.
Notable artists
- FWFrank Wilson
- GJGloria Jones
- ESEdwin Starr
Essential listening
- 1
- 2
Explore connected genres
Sources and further reading
- wiganlocalhistory.org
Northern Soul formed in Northern England in the late 1960s and developed through key club venues including the Twisted Wheel and Wigan Casino.
- Northern Soul Music Artists
- classic.motown.com
Motown’s official artist pages note that Frank Wilson’s, Gloria Jones’s, and Edwin Starr’s recordings became important to Northern Soul listeners.
- classic.motown.com
Gloria Jones’s original version of Tainted Love later became a Northern Soul sensation.
- classic.motown.com
Edwin Starr’s Motown recordings were prized on the Northern Soul circuit.
- Classic Motown artists page
- Keeping the Faith: a History of Northern Soul