The empty and unassuming Bolton building that was once a legendary northern soul club by Thomas Malloy of the Manchester Evening News

 

When it comes to northern soul clubs, there are usually a few that immediately come to mind; Wigan Casino, The Twisted Wheel in Manchester and slightly further afield, The Golden Torch in Stoke-on-Trent.

However for a short moment in time, a small Bolton venue became the place to be to hear the exciting sounds of rare American soul music.

In the 1960s, the Twisted Wheel was the undisputed king of northern soul, with the term originally being coined by journalist Dave Godin following a visit to the club.

Once it closed in 1971, The Golden Torch took its crown and reigned over the scene for the next two years until Stoke-on-Trent Council refused to renew its licence in March 1973.

Until Wigan Casino opened in September of that year, there was an overwhelming demand for northern soul all-nighters, which Va Va in Bolton gladly took advantage of.

Hidden down the stairs of Elizabeth House, just off Great Moor Street, the venue held around 400 people but it was its futuristic decor that raised eyebrows.

In his book 'Young Soul Rebels', Scottish journalist and author Stuart Cosgrove notes that the "short-lived" Va Va was "memorable for its mirrored walls and the paranoia they induced" in those who caught a glimpse of themselves while dancing under the influence.

A review of the club in an old issue of Blues and Soul Magazine said that the club contained more than £10,000 worth of equipment and lights. Writer Pete Fell also described the dancefloor as "small but adequate" and said that the drinks prices were "extortionate".

One of the people who regularly helped to pack the club out on a Friday night is Brent Howarth and the former Smithills Moor Grammar School pupil remembers his local northern soul club fondly.

Brent, who also worked at the venue during the week, said: "Bolton for some strange reason seems to have had more than its fair share of these clubs, record collectors and DJs, as well as soul enthusiasts and good dancers.

"Va Va was quite unique in that it had an all-nighter on Fridays. This was due to a local by-law that stated that the only premises that could obtain a music licence to play records after 2am on Sunday mornings were members only clubs.

"A few of us would often take a few records down on a Saturday night and when the locals had fallen asleep we would dance away to our favourite music.

"I worked at the venue during the week, and knew the management well. After a while, and having borrowed records from older soulies such as Jimmy Muirhead and Mick Gooding, Hank and Dave Urmston, the management were approached and the question of playing soul from the start of the session was posed. We were told 'find a DJ and you're on'.

"Legendary Bolton DJ Wycliffe 'Wick' Barratt was asked and he said that he knew a mate who worked at Global Records in Manchester.

"Within weeks, what had been an all-nighter littered with sleeping bodies became a hot sweaty mass of dancing soulies that came from as far as Scotland, Barnsley, Sheffield, as we spread the word about a Friday 'nighter in Bolton.

"All this on two dance floors; the biggest of which was about the size of my bedroom and the other as big as the rug in it."

Wick Barratt's friend from Global Records was the, at that time, relatively unknown DJ Richard Searling.

Richard, from Tonge Moor, has since become a legend of the Northern Soul scene as the resident DJ at Wigan Casino and fronting soul shows on stations such as Smooth FM and BBC Radio Manchester.

But in 1973, he relished the chance to make a name for himself playing the music he was so passionate about in his hometown.

Richard said: "I remember taking the call one afternoon when I worked at Global Records in Manchester from Wick Barrett, asking if I wanted to DJ and I jumped at the chance. Had it been six months earlier, I wouldn't have been interested because it was only when I went to Global that I started to accumulate records during a trip to Philadelphia.

"I walked into Bolton from where I lived in Tonge Fold, about a mile away, with a couple of little record boxes and it was enough to get me through most of the night. Other DJs like Ian 'Pep' Pereira, Alan Day and Martin Ellis would come in the odd half hour to help me and give me a break.

"The venue was state-of-the-art but the weird thing was that the all-nighter went on straight after a Bowie and Roxy Music night and they started letting our crowd in before they'd kicked them out.

"The DJ booth, or the 'cockpit' as I call it, was below dancefloor level so if someone wanted a song they had to lean down and tap you on the back of the head. The dancefloor itself was really small, it was the size of someone's front room.

"If you went in now, you'd say 'there's no way a northern soul all-nighter would work here' but it did work because of the void between the Golden Torch closing and Wigan Casino opening. Va Va filled it perfectly."

One of the records that Richard had in his box was an obscure single by American recording artist Gloria Jones, that he had bought on a trip to the United States.

The song, which was almost 10 years old at the time was completely unheard of in the UK but Richard used it to pack dancefloors at Va Va and it eventually became a staple of the Northern Soul scene.

That track was Tainted Love, which has since taken on a life of its own due to various covers, including the most popular by Soft Cell.

Other Northern Soul classics spun inside the small venue include My Dear Heart by Shawn Robinson, I got to find me somebody by the Vel-Vets, Slow Fizz by The Sapphires, and Lynn Randell's Stranger in my Arms - which Richard notes was one of the last songs to be played at Va Va.

"We'd had issues with the drug squad in around July 1973 but we managed to reopen," Richard said.

"However when Wigan Casino opened in September, it became a waste of time.

"I got a call on the Wednesday or Thurdsay, prior to the all-nighter on Friday, and I was told that we'd lost our licence, meaning that we had to finish at 2am.

"As we finished at 2am, people were still arriving. I remember a coach rolling in and they had to sit on the car park.

"Obviously there was no social media or email in those days so it was difficult to really tell anybody. It was very disappointing."

As Richard alluded to, Va Va was eventually closed down due to drug use inside the venue.

Bouncer Fred 'Dicky' Dickinson said: "People took amphetamines to keep them awake and dancing all night long.

"The effects of the drug made it easy to tell who was on it - their eyes would be like saucers and they wouldn't be able to stop talking or chewing. That meant it was always easy to spot the drug squad whenever they sent cadets into mingle. They stood out like a sore thumb.

"I only ever threw one person out and that was because he was a p***head rather than a soulie, and he was causing trouble."

After Va Va closed, the venue went through a number a name changes over the years including Pips, Rotters, Space City, High Society, Kiss and Club Liquid.

Today it is completely empty, as it has been for some time, with the unit available to rent on Rightmove.