John Lewis Reports Roaring Sales of 'MOD' Inspired Fashion

I've just been forwarded the following article re: John Lewis and their take on Mod style. Please read and discuss: -

"John Lewis reports that 'Mod' style is staging a sartorial comeback, with pioneers including Alexa Chung and Bradley Wiggins helping to boost the sales of Mod-inspired fashion at the department store.

Mod-style has noticed a resurgence on the New York catwalks with razor sharp tailoring, cable knit sweaters and statement pea coats proving to be staples for autumn winter at Marc by Marc Jacobs and Victoria Beckham. At London Collections: Men, Tom Ford's AW13 menswear line also harked back to the sixties, drawing on Mod sub-culture with a strong anglophile undercurrent.

John Lewis has experienced a rise in the popularity of women's quilted jackets and the new midi heel, reminiscent of Twiggy. With the androgynous trend swinging back into full force for 2013, women's own brand trousers are up +600% on the year and the John Lewis Collection Weekend sixties style ankle crop chino in navy is currently the best-selling style. LK Bennet is one of many brands at John Lewis exhibiting some fresh mod inspired designs through their latest trench coat and shoe ranges. Menswear is also witnessing a revival of the trend with classic Mod brand Ben Sherman seeing an impressive sales uplift of +145% for spring summer 2013 compared to last year. Fred Perry has also proved exceptionally popular so far this season with an increase of +385% on last year.

Matt McCormack, Director of Buying, at John Lewis says, "Originally inspired by the American Ivy League look and European fashions, Mod style has experienced several reincarnations over the years. This season, we're seeing our customers tap into the trend whilst putting their own contemporary spin on the style. For example, our customers are taking a classic Mod item, such as the KIN by John Lewis Clark Delave linen double breasted jacket, and teaming it with dark, slim fitting jeans and Monk shoes, or pairing a pair of midi heel John Lewis Collection women's toe cap slingbacks with a pair of capri pants."

Matt McCormack continues, "Joe Casely-Hayford's recent collection for John Lewis also attracted the attention of customers looking for a modern update. Influenced by counter culture of the 1950s such as early English Rock and Roll, the Ace Café and The 59 Club, the collection took mid-20th century influences and translated them for a 21st century audience. The heat sealed Orde Ventile Mac, along with the Gloverall Duffle coat, provides the perfect injection of Mod into any man's wardrobe."

From women's pea coats and Chung-style shifts to men's Desert boots and knitted ties - the 'true Brit look' is set to become the zeitgeist of 2013. The dapper style is also attracting a younger male and female fan base - with pop sensations Harry Styles and Pixie Lott often seen sporting Mod staples such as parka jackets and Chelsea boots."

The Moment to release new 7" single on Heavy Soul Records

News has just reached The Modernist Society Blog HQ that 80s Mod favourites, The Moment, are coming back with a new 7" single with the release expected towards the end of March/early April.

The new record will be out on Adam Cooper's excellent Heavy Soul label (who also have the Karla Milton Collective single available to buy now) with the A-side of The Moment's 7" being a re-recording of 'Goodbye Tuesday', a song first released as a solo contribution by Adrian Holder to a compilation on my own Biff Bang Pow Records!!!

Breaking Nine Below Zero News

Breaking news regarding Nine Below Zero - as the band prepare to head off to Europe for the next three weeks to promote their ‘Live at the Marquee’ re-issue CD, there is more release news from Universal.

They are to re-release their two other A&M RECORDINGS, 'Don't Point your Finger' and 'Third Degree' with added bonus CD's.

‘Don't Point your Finger’ will have a ‘live’ recording bonus CD from a gig in October 1981 at the Granary in Bristol. 

‘Third Degree’ will have the bonus of an un-released CD made with Glyn Johns in the Summer of 1982 with previously unheard material.

Release dates will be announced soon.

Bobby Rogers, The Miracles co-founder, dies aged 73

Bobby Rogers, a founding member of the Motown group The Miracles along with Smokey Robinson, has died in the US aged 73.

The singer, who had been ill for several years, died at his home in Detroit on Sunday.

"Another soldier in my life has fallen. [He] was my brother and a really good friend", Robinson said in a statement.

Rogers formed The Miracles in 1956 with cousin Claudette Rogers, Pete Moore, Ronnie White and Robinson.

Their hits included 'The Tracks of My Tears', 'Shop Around', 'You've Really Got a Hold on Me' and 'I Second That Emotion'.

"People always commented on the tall one with the glasses," said Claudette Rogers.

"He was personable, approachable and he loved talking to the women, loved talking to the guys, loved to dance, loved to sing, loved to perform. That was the joy of his life."

Rogers' voice can be heard on Marvin Gaye's hit 'What's Going On', with Rogers saying: "It's just a groovy party, man, I can dig it."

Mary Wilson of The Supremes said that captured his essence.

"If people want to remember him, they should put that record on and listen to Bobby,'' she told the Detroit Free Press newspaper. "That's who he was."

The Miracles grew out of an earlier quintet of high school performers called the Five Chimes that formed in the mid-1950s and changed its name to the Matadors after several line-up changes capped by Claudette Rogers' admission to the group.

The group went on to record Motown's first million-selling hit single, 'Shop Around'.

One of Rogers' most notable vocal contributions with the group was his two-part harmony with Robinson on 'You've Really Got a Hold on Me', which was later covered by The Beatles.

He also shared song writing credits with Robinson on The Temptations' track 'The Way You Do The Things You Do', as well as on The Contours' 'First I Look At The Purse'.

Robinson said: "He and I were born on the exact same day in the same hospital in Detroit. I am really going to miss him. I loved him very much.''

Rogers and The Miracles were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012, however he was too ill to attend the ceremony.

Book Review: 'Mod: A Very British Style' by Richard Weight (Proof/Preview Copy)

Any book that has the final phrase, “We’re all modernists now”, is always going to be a broad brush generalisation of misinformation, quotes taken out of context, and another outsiders version of the truth to be taken with a large pinch of salt – and this latest book on our scene is no exception. Quite what the fascination is for non-Mods to spout on about our scene when they are neither part of it, nor even fully understand it, is beyond me. However, the danger is always that future generations looking to find out about the Mod scene in good faith are going to be given a slanted and incorrect text on which to rely.

The first part of this book is focused on the Mod scene from the modern jazz days of the late fifties through the R&B/Soul years of the sixties and on to the splintering of the Mod scene into Northern Soul, the Skinhead culture and Psychedelia. On reading the multitude of quotes, you quickly realise that you have read it all before within the numerous books already available (by Richard Barnes, Terry Rawlings etc.) and rapidly conclude that the author has done no original research of his own but a ‘desk job’ cut and paste of what is already in the public domain. Sadly, he leans heavily on the dreadfully flawed ‘We Are The Mods’ book from American Christine Feldman (whose main hypothesis was that Mod came from The Beatles!!!) and lots of quotes from Brian Eno and Gary Kemp (if Gary Kemp was so much into the whole Mod thing, as the author asserts, why did he form an iffy band with bad haircuts and dodgy clothes). Furthermore, I have never before seen the word ‘Bauhaus’ used so many times in a book, so was particularly surprised to see it used so many times in a text about Mod.

We are then told how Mod progressed into Glam Rock (yes, you read that correctly). Just because the Glam era contained many ex-Mods (Bolan, Bowie, Ferry etc.) it doesn’t make what they recorded in the seventies Mod (in the same way that Mods I knew in the revival years who moved on to the next fashion as new Romantics, were not reinventing Mod with their Flock of Seagull haircuts, make-up and pixie boots). Also, the author has clearly been reading too much Paolo Hewitt as he pushes Casuals as the new Mods (at the same time putting down those of us who became Mods in the late seventies as a pastiche and not Mod at all), totally disregards (probably due to lack of knowledge) the eighties Mod scene (no mention of the CCI rallies, Sneakers/Outrigger, Makin’ Time, The Prisoners, The Moment etc.) and then misquotes Paul Weller and Steve White by telling us that House Music was the new Mod and Kraftwerk are a Mod band. There is a lot of nonsense written that Mod is purely about being modern (and yes, that was originally part of it and we do still progress forwards through new styles, new records unearthed and new bands writing and recording new music), but let’s not forget that the word came from Modern Jazz (as opposed to Traditional Jazz) i.e. Mods v Trads.

Along the way there is the usual factual errors of these writers from outside of our scene – The Who’s ‘Sell Out’ album, we are told, was released in 1968 (it was 1967), the Torch Northern Soul Club was in Nottingham (it was in Stoke), Richard Barnes was an original Mod (Barney even says he was never a Mod in his ‘Mods!’ book, so it should be hard to get this wrong) and the Beat had their own label called Go Discs! (it was Go Feet). In addition, Billy Bragg is a Mod, as is Tiny Tempah, and Pete Townshend overestimated the power of youth because he didn’t die before he got old (which I’m sure he’s glad about). The target associated with Mod was a Pop Art aesthetic and not, as the author suggest, a protest about past wars and a demonstration that national service no longer applied to the youth of Britain.

However, perhaps the most cutting, and ignorant, comment is that Mods buy cheap, off the peg, suits and then have them tailored to look like expensive Savile Row suits. Bite your lip and count to 10!!! Better still, go and have some therapy at your tailors!!!

In summary then, you will not be surprised to know that I found this book of almost 400 pages hugely disappointing and somewhat annoying. It also means that I am now looking forward even more to ‘Mods: The New Religion’ by our scene’s very own Paul ‘Smiler’ Anderson that I am told contains all new research and unpublished photographs of the scene (by a Mod, about Mods and for Mods). Don’t waste your money on ‘Mod: A Very British Style’ unless you like shouting out in frustration uncontrollably – you have been warned.

‘Club Soul Volume 2 - The Twisted Wheel: Brazennose & Whitworth Street. Manchester 1963-1971’

Hot on the heels of ‘Club Soul Volume 1 – The Scene Club’ (actually, released at the same time) comes volume 2 in the series, this time focused on the sounds of Manchester’s Twisted Wheel. The official blurb says: -

“The Twisted Wheel in Manchester is one of the legendary names in British clubbing history. Originally born in coffee bar in the city's Brazennose Street in 1963, before later moving to a converted warehouse on Whitworth Street, it quickly developed a reputation as one of the country's finest venues for hearing obscure, imported soul, R&B and ska records. Music fans would flock from all around the country to the weekly all-nighters to hear live sets from some of the finest soul artists of the time. The term 'Northern Soul' was first coined by the journalist Dave Godin following a visit to the Twisted Wheel to describe the distinctive brand of music played there which couldn't be found in London clubs at the time. This new compilation collects some of the classic tracks that would have been played at the time. The 28 tracks include gems from Little Richard, Bo Didley, Benny Spellman, Ernie K Doe, Solomon Burke, Gene Chandler, Betty Everett, The Dells, Fats Domino and more.”

Track Listing: -

1. Bobby “Blue” Bland - Turn On Your Lovelight - Bobby 'Blue' Bland 

2. The Sharpees - Do The 45 - The Sharpees 

3. Little Richard - Dance What You Wanna - Little Richard 

4. Bobby Marchan - Get Down With It - Bobby Marchan 

5. Big Sambo and the House Wreckers - At The Party - Big Sambo and The House Wreckers 

6. Bo Didley - Road Runner - Bo Diddley 

7. Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels - Jenny Take A Ride - Mitch Ryder and The Detroit Wheels 

8. James Booker - Smacksie - James Booker 

9. Joe Haywood - Talk To Me Baby (Put Some Sugar In My Ear) - Joe Haywood 

10. Alvin Cash & The Registers - You Shot Me Through The Greese - Alvin Cash & The Registers 

11. Benny Spellman - Fortune Teller - Benny Spellman 

12. Ernie K Doe - A Certain Girl - Ernie K Doe 

13. Alvin Robinson- Searchin’ - Alvin Robinson 

14. Solomon Burke - Cry To Me - Solomon Burke 

15. Marv Johnson - I Love The Way You Love - Marv Johnson 

16. Ronnie And The Manhattans - Long Time No See - Ronnie and The Manhattans 

17. Gene Chandler - (Gonna Be) Good Times - Gene Chandler 

18. Betty Everett - Getting Mighty Crowded - Betty Everett 

19. The Ballads - I Can’t See Your Love (For The Tears In My Eyes) - The Ballads 

20. Ad Libs - Boy For New York City - The Ad Libs 

21. The Esquires - And Get Away - The Esquires 

22. The Dells - It’s Not Unusual - The Dells 

23. Sir Lattimore Brown- Shake And Vibrate - Sir Lattimore Brown 

24. Jackie Lee - Bring It Home - Jackie Lee 

25. Jamo Thomas & His Party Soul Brothers - I Spy For The FBI - Jamo Thomas & His Party Soul Brothers 

26. The Salem Travelers - Wade In The Water - The Salem Travelers 

27. Rubaiyats - Omar Khayyam - Rubaiyats 

28. Fats Domino - It Keeps Rainin’ - Fats Domino