Southern Soul vs. Northern Soul
In western music, there are numerous genres, and each one of them has also several subgenres, and sometimes each type might mix with another type or other types. For example, R&B is a music genre blending rap music into the blues; soul music combines R&B and gospel music. Here, I’m going to introduce two special subgenres of soul music—southern soul and northern soul—and see what they are and how they sound like respectively.
Southern soul, also called deep soul, emerging from the southern United States, is driving and energetic. It combines with styles: blues, country and western, early rock and roll, and southern United States gospel music sounds. The focus of the music is not on its lyrics but on the “feel” or the groove. Originally, it was contributed to by Stax Records, and their house band Booker T. & the MGs. Stax Record put vocals further back in the mix than most contemporary R&B records, using vibrant horn parts in place of background vocals, and focused on the low end of the frequency spectrum. Moreover, groundbreaking pioneers of this genre also include singers Georgia natives Ray Charles and James Brown. The peak of southern soul was during the 1960s. In that time, there were lots of notable artists such as Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin and many others. The following are two specific examples of southern soul from Wilson Pickett.
Wilson Pickett—In the Midnight Hour
Wilson Pickett—Everybody Needs Someone to Love
On the other hand, northern soul, also modern soul, is a type of mid-tempo and up-tempo heavy-beat soul music that was popularized in Northern England in the mid 1960s. The term was primarily coined by journalist Dave Godin and popularized in 1970 through his column in Blues and Soul magazine and now used in the United Kingdom. At first, the term northern soul referred to rare soul music that was played by DJs at nightclubs in northern England. Therefore, gradually it involves with dancing as well. Now, northern soul also means the associated dance styles and fashions that emanated from the Twisted Wheel club in Manchester and spread to other dancehalls and nightclubs, such as the Golden Torch in Stoke on Trent, the Wigan Casino, and the Blackpool Mecca. The dancing was usually athletic, resembling the later dance styles of disco and break dancing. Featuring spins, flips, and backdrops, the northern soul dancing style was inspired by the stage performances of visiting American Soul Acts such as Jackie Wilson and Little Anthony & The Imperials. The following are their videos.
Jackie Wilson—Lonely Teardrops
Northern Soul Dancers
As a result, we can find that basically, the biggest differences between southern soul and northern soul are the region and the mode. While southern soul mainly emphasizes on the vocals and music, northern soul focuses on the dancing style. Southern soul represents a type of southern American music, yet northern soul means a dancing fashion from northern England. Some confusion regarding the two terms is due to the prevalence of the two contemporary genres, but the “southern” and the “northern” doesn’t indicate the same geographic location (one in the U.S. while the other in the U. K.), despite the fact that the music is almost exclusively American in origin.
written by Angel
References:
“Soul Music.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.” 01 June, 2008. 01 June, 2008. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_music>.
“Southern Soul.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.” 03 May, 2008. 01 June, 2008. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_soul>.
“Northern Soul.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.” 28 May, 2008. 01 June, 2008. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_soul>.
NORTHERNSOUL.NET. 02 June, 2008. <http://www.northernsoul.net/>
Southern Soul RnB.Com. June, 2008. SouthernSoulRnB.com, LLC. 02 June, 2008. <http://www.southernsoulrnb.com/>.
In western music, there are numerous genres, and each one of them has also several subgenres, and sometimes each type might mix with another type or other types. For example, R&B is a music genre blending rap music into the blues; soul music combines R&B and gospel music. Here, I’m going to introduce two special subgenres of soul music—southern soul and northern soul—and see what they are and how they sound like respectively.
Southern soul, also called deep soul, emerging from the southern United States, is driving and energetic. It combines with styles: blues, country and western, early rock and roll, and southern United States gospel music sounds. The focus of the music is not on its lyrics but on the “feel” or the groove. Originally, it was contributed to by Stax Records, and their house band Booker T. & the MGs. Stax Record put vocals further back in the mix than most contemporary R&B records, using vibrant horn parts in place of background vocals, and focused on the low end of the frequency spectrum. Moreover, groundbreaking pioneers of this genre also include singers Georgia natives Ray Charles and James Brown. The peak of southern soul was during the 1960s. In that time, there were lots of notable artists such as Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin and many others. The following are two specific examples of southern soul from Wilson Pickett.
Wilson Pickett—In the Midnight Hour
Wilson Pickett—Everybody Needs Someone to Love
On the other hand, northern soul, also modern soul, is a type of mid-tempo and up-tempo heavy-beat soul music that was popularized in Northern England in the mid 1960s. The term was primarily coined by journalist Dave Godin and popularized in 1970 through his column in Blues and Soul magazine and now used in the United Kingdom. At first, the term northern soul referred to rare soul music that was played by DJs at nightclubs in northern England. Therefore, gradually it involves with dancing as well. Now, northern soul also means the associated dance styles and fashions that emanated from the Twisted Wheel club in Manchester and spread to other dancehalls and nightclubs, such as the Golden Torch in Stoke on Trent, the Wigan Casino, and the Blackpool Mecca. The dancing was usually athletic, resembling the later dance styles of disco and break dancing. Featuring spins, flips, and backdrops, the northern soul dancing style was inspired by the stage performances of visiting American Soul Acts such as Jackie Wilson and Little Anthony & The Imperials. The following are their videos.
Jackie Wilson—Lonely Teardrops
Northern Soul Dancers
As a result, we can find that basically, the biggest differences between southern soul and northern soul are the region and the mode. While southern soul mainly emphasizes on the vocals and music, northern soul focuses on the dancing style. Southern soul represents a type of southern American music, yet northern soul means a dancing fashion from northern England. Some confusion regarding the two terms is due to the prevalence of the two contemporary genres, but the “southern” and the “northern” doesn’t indicate the same geographic location (one in the U.S. while the other in the U. K.), despite the fact that the music is almost exclusively American in origin.
written by Angel
References:
“Soul Music.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.” 01 June, 2008. 01 June, 2008
“Southern Soul.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.” 03 May, 2008. 01 June, 2008
“Northern Soul.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.” 28 May, 2008. 01 June, 2008
NORTHERNSOUL.NET. 02 June, 2008
Southern Soul RnB.Com. June, 2008. SouthernSoulRnB.com, LLC. 02 June, 2008
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