VARIOUS ARTISTS
DOUBLE COOKIN CLASSIC NORTHERN

Kent’s first ever all-instrumental collection brings together some of the most popular “wordless wonders” to have livened up Northern Soul dance floors in the past 40+ years. From the pioneering Twisted Wheel and Blackpool Mecca/Torch eras, the instrumental has been as integral a part of Northern Soul as has its vocal counterpart. “Double Cookin’” embraces the whole spectrum of the Northern Dance instrumental, from early and seemingly unlikely floor-fillers by the likes of Hugo Montenegro and Bill Black’s Combo to more orthodox Northern perennials such as ‘Thumb A Ride’, ‘California Montage’ and ‘Stirrin’ Up Some Soul’ – all first massive when instrumentals were at their peak of Northern Soul popularity (1972-75). As well as featuring numerous proven crowd-pleasers, the CD features a handful of instrumental versions of long-time vocal favourites that were created especially for – and are mostly exclusive to – “Double Cookin’”. Also included are new stereo versions, taken from original master tapes, of several tracks that were first refashioned as instrumentals in the mid-70s by Simon Soussan and released variously as “Arthur Wright and his Orchestra”, “The Fred Smith Orchestra” and so on. The debate as to whether or not an instrumental can have soul has raged on the scene for decades. They are always inspirational: there’s no doubt that instro devotees will have a field day with the contents of “Double Cookin’”.