Street Sounds

Alnmouth from the King Charles III England Coast Path

I was returning home by train from a weekend spent off grid in Alnmouth, supposedly writing and I did do a bit of that, just not as much as I thought I might.

The train was approaching Berwick, Berwick-upon-Tweed that is, not my beloved North Berwick. I always get confused with Berwick, can never remember if it’s Scotland or England, to be fair it’s had a confusing - and bloody - history, passing between the two nations 13 times. Having said that it last changed hands as it were over 500 years back, in 1482 when the town was captured by Richard Duke of Gloucester, the future King Richard III, still doesn’t explain why Berwick Rangers F.C. play in the Scottish Lowland League East.

Now I don’t know much about what might pass as traditional Berwickshire music, perhaps border ballads, smallpipes, fiddles, but as the train is coming into Berwick station I start thinking about the Street Sounds compilations that were knocking about in the early to mid 1980s, I know, WTF?

Street Sounds was a record label specialising in electro, hip hop and house founded in 1982 by producer and promotor Morgan Khan. From the Street Sounds website:

Street Sounds was conceived from the need to expose and make available the latest, most upfront music from the streets of America to UK and European audiences. The concept was born from Morgan Khan's love of music as a fan and from his own frustration of not being able to get hold of certain tracks because they were either US imports, that cost up to 10 times that of a UK 12 inch single, or album AND that’s if you could even find the import.

Let us not forget that the majority of record shops in the early 80's, where ‘Mama and Papa’ type shops, which were totally oblivious to the new music being listened to by a new generation. Also, until the birth of Street Sounds the perception of compilation albums were ‘Ktel’ type albums, featuring mainstream pop hits, or cover versions, sometimes so butchered in length, to fit as many tracks as possible on each album.

In 1982 a 12” single imported from New York would retail here for £5. Khan trusted his instincts, bought the rights to a bunch of them, packaged them up half a dozen at a time and released them on compilation, also for a fiver. He’d just turned 24.

Street Sounds went into liquidation in 1988 as a result of losses incurred by Khan’s Street Scene club music magazine (a club music magazine???) but not before releasing over 60 - no one seems to know quite how many - banging compilations to cater for ever increasing musical niches: Jazz Juice, House Trax, West Coast Hip Hop, New Africa.

Street Sounds Electro 1, 1983 © Street Sounds

I loved them, played them in my bedroom on a wee red Dansette record player, must have driven my Mum bonkers, but my favourite was side A of the very first Street Sounds Electro, The Packman “I'm The Packman”, Newcleus “Jam On Revenge”, West Street Mob “Break Dancin’ - Electric Boogie”, 19 minutes 26 seconds of pure electro heaven.

Spin your body on the floor
And show no shame
Dance!
Break-Dance!
Electric-Boogie!