Greetings on this pinch punch first of the month and defo no returns 1st July 2016 Froback Friday. There certainly seems to be a massive “Ball Of Confusion” like The Temptations for peoples state of mind here in the UK since last weeks double Brexit and Punch & Judy show antics within politics in both the red and the blue camps. It’s been an emotive week of more twist and turns than a theme park roller coaster or an out of control tornado. But there is no Leroy Burgess “Confusion” about my digital memory of today’s post. 1986 was a vintage year that would impact on my life unknowingly for various reason. It was the spring and summer of that year when Kim Basinger and Mickey Rourke corrupted my not so innocent mind with the ‘sexsational’ at the time film “Nine And A Half Weeks”, but I just threw that in to get your attention.

Seriously 1986 was the year I started djing in the west end of London at a night club called “Oxfords” at the Tottenham Court Road end of Oxford Street, that apparently used to be Studio Valbourne, or so I’ve been advised. I made my debut alongside my fellow Pleasure loving music enthusiast Norman Cummins, on an Easter Bank Holiday Monday in April 1986, after contacting a fellow soul survivor comrade Joel Karamath, who had access to hiring the club. In short a now dearly departed and talented friend Debbie Miller, was leaving our front of house team at the musical “Starlight Express’s” home venue The Apollo Victoria Theatre, to do her first professional dance job. She was well loved and we managed with little time to pack the club out with those who were going to miss her presence. Joel teamed myself and Norman up with two guys I’d seen out but never previously conversed with Wayne Malcolm and Tony Francis who did the early set. This was the providential start of an Indeep “Last Night A DJ Saved My Life”

The night was an overwhelming success and as a bonus both myself and Norman were paid £50 each, when we were only doing this free for the love of a friend. A lightbulb went off in Joel’s head and he asked if we (myself ands Norman) would be interested in working with him and the other two dj’s, plus another who wasn’t present that night, on a regular Saturday night residency. I was most certainly interested and about 6 weeks later we got the nod it was actually going to happen. On the opening Saturday night in June 1986 it was then that I met this young man in the photo for the very first time. His name is Paul Martin and as collective of 6 we dj’d under the guise initially as “The Buzzboyz Inc”. This name concept as I’ve been advised was originally devised by Tony Francis who had been djing with his friend Wayne previously under this umbrella and working with Joel on various events. That may fill in the blanks as to why I was known initially as “Fitzroy from The Buzzboys” which became “Fitzroy The Buzzboy” which eventually morphed into “Da Buzzboy” Fitzroy, coined around 1998 by Summer Soulstice’s Jamie Topham then working in club promotions at Arista Records.

To cut a longer story short Norman left early after landing a dancing job abroad and the remaining Enid Blyton “Famous Five” did various gigs together until I left in February 1989 and went as Napoleon Solo free agent. Paul Martin who lived local to me in Wembley west London when I met him, was selling 7 inch imports with his mate a record dealer Mark, to some of the top underground warehouse and ‘Rare Groove’ funk Dj’s in London. I remember buying quite a few things like Kellee Patterson’s “I’m Gonna Love You More” on a 7 inch promo and The Chakachas “Jungle Fever” promo from him at his mums house. Paul went on to make his own history working at Steve Jervier’s Black Market Records in D’Arblay Street Soho, and was later snapped up by Giles Peterson to work at the newfound UK label division of Talking Loud. Myself and Paul forged our own musical paths outside of the our initial collective foundation, and over the years we have crossed paths many times. It’s always been good and mutually respectful whenever I see Paul when he is out and a “Jeremy Beadle About”. These days we tend to bump into each other at private industry parties, like last year at Louie Vega’s Ministry of Sound album launch, and on Tuesday 28th June 2016 at Angie Stone’s soiree in St Martin Lane’s The Library Gentleman’s club in WC2. I asked my IT consultant and magazine photographer Anna B to take this photograph, as it suddenly dawned upon me at Angie’s gathering, that Paul and I first met and dj’d together 30 years ago..That impromptu meeting was no accident. Happy 30th to us in my 30th year djing and 10 years in the making of The Soul Survivors Magazine that first hit the streets this month in 2006..”Happy Days” like Fonzie..”Ayyyyeeehhh” and a set of double thumbs up!!