Dancin

To the pop buying public Van McCoy is known for his 1975 Grammy Award chart-topper The Hustle, after which he sadly died of a heart attack in 1979 at the age of only 39. To rare soul fans Van McCoy is a hero: the most prolific writer and producer of Northern Soul of all time, working with a host of legendary artists including Kendra Spotswood (aka Sandi Sheldon) with whom he had a five-year relationship. Dancin’ was originally released by Shelby Singleton in 1976 on his SSS International label, although all the ten original songs were recorded much earlier, circa 1968-69. With its kitsch cover and out-of-kilter track list, copies soon filtered through to the UK and into the hands of club DJ’s at Wigan Casino with perhaps Help Is On The Way becoming the stand-out track. Richard Searling played the mid-tempo Just Another Dress Rehearsal in the latter days of the club while an unreleased instrumental version of Ain’t Got No Love was played post-Wigan from a studio acetate.