Various - Richard Sen Presents : This Ain't Chicago - The Underground Sound Of UK House - Acid 1987-1991

UK 2012 2xCD; Strut: STRUT085CD

6:17 Annette - "Dream 17"
5:18 US - "Born In The North"

Released:

25th June 2012.

Credits:

US - BORN IN THE NORTH

Taken from the Wooden Records 12" single (WOOD 6).
Written by Leo Stanley, Steven Gibbs, Chapter And The Verse, Edward Barton, Gerald Simpson, Patrick Mooney, Adam Lesser end Rebecce Pont.
Publishing: Copyright Control.
(P) 1988 Wooden Records.
Licensed courtesy of A Guy Called Gereld and Edward Barton.

A North of England super-group converges for this one-off back-slapping single in 1988 on Edward Barton's' Wooden Records imprint. A Guy Called Gerald was exploding with 'Voodoo Ray' during the same year, soul and hip hop collective Chapter And The Verse were taking root ahead of their crossover album 'Great Western Street' and classic jazz rap single 'Back Whip' in '94 and Edward Barton was already a renowned artist, poet and musician in Manchester, penning the song 'It's A Fine Day' (covered by Opus III) among many other acclaimed audio and visual projects. The raw acid gem 'Born In The North' features Barton's cold vocal delivery cocking a snook at Maggie Thatcher and the media's obsession with the South - "I am, you are, we are, they're not... born in the North." As well as scoring a club hit, Us performed the track on UK TV Granada television show, 'The Other Side Of Midnight', featuring a guest appearance by Graham Massey of 808 State.

ANNETTE - DREAM 17

Written by Close / Pickering / Topping / R. Rouge.
Publishing: Copyright Control.
Produced by R. Rouge and T-Coy.
(P) 1988 BMG Records (UK) Ltd.
Licensed courtesy of A Guy Called Gerald.

Manchester was always proud of adopting house music at an early stage and, indeed, embraced the genre more widely and more quickly than clubs in London during its early development. In the liner notes for the seminal Manchester compilation, 'North', DJ Graeme Park enthuses, "It was Summer 1986 and clubs in London are rocking to the sounds of East coast hip hop and Washington go go. Meanwhile, dancefloors "North of Watford" (especially in Nottingham, Sheffield and Manchester) are crammed with people jacking to a new sound from Chicago called "house" and for two years a North / South divide of a different kind was established."

'The 'North' album from '88 celebrated the new wave of Manchester talent creating their own new house hybrids, particularly surrounding the Hacienda and its Nude night, with tracks produced by DJ Mike Pickering, A Guy Called Gerald and more. Annette's 'Dream 17' featured as the opening track, a firing acidic groover which became a staple on the day's key pirates including Centreforce and Dance FM.

Press Release:

From the Strut website:

Strut presents an all new compilation placing the spotlight on early house music and acid emerging from the UK during the mid to late ‘80s, ‘This Ain’t Chicago’. Compiled by respected DJ / producer Richard Sen (Padded Cell, Bronx Dogs), the album celebrates the heady era when UK producers were responding to the first wave of Chicago house and documents the underground clubs that first championed the music – as the early rave scene and acid house kicked in at London clubs like Shoom and Spectrum, deeper and darker house nights thrived like RIP at Clink Street, Confusion and The Jungle and in warehouse parties around East London. Manchester too adopted house music at an early stage, most famously at The Hacienda’s Nude night. As well as an in-depth look at the music and the accompanying scene through the DJs and producers that were there, ‘This Ain’t Chicago’ investigates media and clubland's attitude to the emerging sound during house music’s early days, as early resistance from London’s rare groove and hip hop scene gave way to an explosion of dance music and rave culture. Musically, the album draws on both underground classics and lesser known tracks including early outings by producer Julian Jonah, A Guy Called Gerald, Trevor Fung’s Playtime Toons, Eddie Richards and Ian B’s Rio Rhythm Band and Baby Ford. The compilation also celebrates a host of excellent but short-lived UK DIY labels including Ruby Red from West Midlands, G-Force out of Essex, Rhythmbeat, Chill and Catt. “This album features many personal favourites and the tracks were particularly inspirational to me as a DJ and clubber at the time,” reflects Richard Sen. With current productions drawing heavily on early house sounds and production techniques, this album brings to light many previously unsung classics from the UK underground, still sounding as vibrant and relevant as during the early days of house.

Comments:

Annette are Gerald (using the pseudonym 'R. Rouge' aka 'Ricky Rouge') and T-Coy who released a single, "Dream 17" back in 1988. T-Coy (the co-writers of the single) were an early Manchester-based UK house project of Mike Pickering (Hacienda DJ, Quando Quango, M-People), Simon Topping (A Certain Ratio) and Ritchie Close. 'T-Coy' allegedly stands for 'Take Care Of Yourself'.

US were a collective that produced the solitary single, "Born In The North" and consisted of Leo Stanley, Steven Gibbs, Chapter And The Verse, Edward Barton, Gerald Simpson, Patrick Mooney, Adam Lesser end Rebecce Pont.