Popcorn

Club Popcorn Vrasene, Belgium

Jimmy Hughes My Loving Time Guyden

Readers may have seen the term Popcorn bandied around record sales lists or Ebay listings and wondered what it was all about.

Popcorn is a Belgian phenomenon and has nothing to do with Northern Sou has similarities to the US Beach Music scene. It is a very collectible genre with prices fetching the same heights as Northern Soul. It is especially collected by vinyl junkies in France, Italy, Japan, Holland, and Belgium of course.

The scene started at the Club Popcorn in Vrasene, near St. Niklaas (Antwerp) around 1974. You can find out more information here:

">Popcorn Scene

In the early years the DJ's played a selection of different styles of 50's and 60's music; Doo Wop, R&B, Tamla, Ska and Latin flavoured Jazz like Boogaloo or crazy instrumentals from the 60's like 'Quiet Village' by Martin Denny.

The styles may differ but there is one thing that unites and defines the sound and that is the mid-tempo speed and the ambiance created by the sequencing of the records played. The DJ slowed down the tempo to make it more easy to dance what is called 'soulswing' which is a mid-tempo swing or walking tempo.

Try these top Popcorn scene biggies for size:

Jimmy Hughes –My loving time (Guyten)

Sam Fletcher –I'd think it over (Tollie)

David Coleman –Drown my heart (Barrie)

Joe Torres –Get out of my way (World Pacific)

Prince Buster –Dance Cleopatra dance (Blue Beat)

The Temptations -I want a love I can see (Gordy)

Mel Torme –Comin home baby (Atlantic)

Edwin Starr- S.O.S (stop her onsight) (Ric Tic)

Manny Corchado –Pow Wow (Decca)