By Yan (80.194.105.141) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 08:55 am:

That got your attention! (or maybe it didn't)

Hey. I live here in Lonodn, and have done all my life; however in about two weeks time I'm off to Canada. I have a years working VISA for the country, and am going to Vancouver first off. (might not stay there the whole time though) Obviously I'm more excited/pleased than you could imagine about the whole thing (I've never even been outside of Europe before)- however the one thing besides friends/family I fear I might miss about London is how spoilt for choice I am here as far as music goes.

So does anyone from this forum either live in Vancouver, or know the city?? What are the soulful music shops....what is the best place to pick up Ace/Kent/Westside/Goldmine stuff?? Or U.S doowop/rocknroll CDs (like the Itzy Pittsburgh stuff)Any good clubs/bars playing 6Ts/7Ts soul?? What about radio shows?? And in other Canadian cities?? Okay, I'll stop now!

If anyone can be of any help I'd really appreciate it; if not it's not the biggest deal- I'm sure I can work things out once I am there.

By Yan (80.194.105.141) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 09:07 am:

.....actually if anyone can just recommned a good pub that would be more than enough!

By Davie Gordon (193.122.21.26) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 02:55 pm:

Yan,

Buy a copy of the US collector's mag."Discoveries" if you can find it - try
Borders bookstores - you'll find ads
for the main mail-order dealers in the US
who import Ace/Kent and the other labels.

You'll probably find that the CD's are cheaper over there than in London.

If you can't find "Discoveries" have a look at
the other mag. "Goldmine" - but "Discoveries"
is a better magazine for our sort of music.

Friends of mine have visited Vancouver and from the hundreds of photos they showed me it's a
beautiful place. Definitely an improvement on
London !

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 03:09 pm:

GREETINGS YAN: HEY...WHILE IN VANCOUVER...YOU MIGHT WANT TO CHECK OUT MARTIN YAN'S RESTAURANT IN "CHINATOWN"!!!...IT IS ONE OF THE FAMOUS WOK CHEFS STRING OF RESTAURANTS...AND I BELIEVE THAT HE USED TO DO HIS TV SHOW FROM VANCOUVER!!!...YOU MAY EVEN FIND OUT THAT HE IS RELATED TO YOU!!!... WOULDN'T THAT BE COOL!!!...STU

By MEL&THEN SOME (195.219.7.116) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 04:01 pm:

Yan,
You could always ask a 'Mountie'(hee hee).
Mel

By douglasm (68.113.15.28) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 04:11 pm:

Yan...
.....Both Vancouver and Victoria (on Vancouver Island) are about the most tourist friendly cities you're ever going to discover. Even if you visit them blind (without any information) you're not going to have any trouble gaining information on where to go or what to do.
Vancouver has one of the largest "Chinatowns" on the west coast, as Stubass illuded to. Stanley Park, the Vancouver Zoo, The University of British Columbia....Victoria's inner harbor, Buchart Gardens.
And, assuming you can fight your way across the border, you're only about 160 miles from Seattle, which has one of the best vinal shops around---and whose name is just on the tip of my tongue (Stu...I got my mouth to open), and when I remember it, I'll post it for you.
You made a good choice of a place to start. Have fun!!

By Yan (62.30.112.1) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 04:52 pm:

Hey-

...thanks to everyone for the good advice and kind words. Davie- I'll definitely try and get a copy of "Discoveries". Douglas- freinds have already told me about Stanley Park and the Gardens and their high on my list; and yes please get back to me on the Seattle shop- as I have a freind in Seattle I will be visiting. Stu- I kind of doubt it as I'm greek-cypriot! Mel; in the words of Dangermouse to Penfold- "Hush"!

By Lynn Bruce (65.60.200.153) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 05:19 pm:

I hear that certain things that grow out of the ground aren't so illegal in Vancover,kind of like Amsterdam. Anybody know if this is true?
Ahem,of course this info is for a science project for gonzo tourism that I'm working on.

By STUBASS (206.135.204.2) on Wednesday, February 12, 2003 - 05:22 pm:

HEY LYNN: YOUR ABSOLUTLY RIGHT!!!...I UNDERSTAND THAT DANDELINES AND PANZIES ARE STILL...AT THIS POINT...LEGAL IN VANCOUVER!!!...STU

By douglasm (68.113.15.28) on Thursday, February 13, 2003 - 10:58 am:

OK, try this place, although it tends towards rock and roll. Golden Oldies. They have 4 shops in the Seattle area.
Remember, having said that, this is a white bread world, to the extent that when I heard The Wailers were playing in Seattle, I thought "I wonder if they're going to save 'Tall Cool One' for the encore", not thinking about Bob Marley. The Four Tops around here are Paul Revere, The Fleetwoods, The Ventures and Nirvana. I guess what I'm saying is that your selection may be a bit limited.
NOW, HAVING SAID THAT, Jeff Hofman runs a soul/R&B show on KSER in Lynwood (surburban Seattle) called Dusties. Go to www.KSER.org and click on Dusties (friday nights) on their programing schedule. That will get you to his site. Now...you can e-mail him at dusties66@hotmail.com I don't know if he'll respond, but near as I can tell, he appears to be about the most knowledgable person in thePortland/Seattle/Vancouver area when it comes to soul. Hope that helps.
If I can be of any other assistance (limited as it might be), give me a shout.

By douglasm (68.113.15.28) on Thursday, February 13, 2003 - 05:32 pm:

Lynn....
.....I think you're reefer ing to what we call around here "B.C. bud".
That reminds me of a great qoute I heard probably 20 years ago......
"What do ya mean it's not 10 buck an ounce anymore?"

By ErikT.O. (64.228.108.156) on Thursday, March 06, 2003 - 07:23 pm:

It's still definately illegal in Canada, at least for now(!) I believe there are several cafes which do however operate reliably & hassle free (as opposed to talking to someone hanging out in downtown-east). There used to be ads in High Times & Cannibas Culture (formerly Cannibas Canada) magazines, maybe they still advertise... according to Cannibas Culture though, one used to get busted and/or robbed occasionally.

By Yan (209.53.180.16) on Monday, March 10, 2003 - 07:16 pm:

Hi to everyone- quick message to say that I've arrived ('bout a week an a half ago) and to say thanks again for the tips. I'm having a great time, the city is fantastic; but yes- the only big drawback so far (as compared to London) is the music- all the CD shops I've seen so far are pretty terrible. I was looking for just a Jerry Butler greatest hits type CD (wanted to play "Never Give You Up" REALLY badly; I have the Mercury LPs on vinyl and didn't yet get around to buying them on CD) the other day and had no luck- madness! One of the problems is that for political correctness or whatever reasons; soul/r&b isn't kept seperate from genearl rock/pop- makes it very hard to find the good stuff. Ah, well- I shouldn't be spending money on CDs now anyway; I'm spending enough going out every night anyway! When I do I can propably get everything through the net- and I have taken 208 CDs with me!

Oh, and courtesy of my new housemate (I'm sharing a house with some cool UBC students in Kerrsidale) I've tried some of BC's finest- and it's damn good stuff! - better than what we've been getting in London for the last few months. Yeah, it is still illegal- but from what I understand it's not really enforced.

By douglasm (68.113.15.28) on Tuesday, March 11, 2003 - 08:50 am:

Yan....
.....welcome to the great Pacific Northwest.
If you remember my earlier post, you're going to run into problems finding "non-commercial" soul up here, but keep trying. If you find a good place, let ME know.
Two more places to check in Seattle, although I don't know if they're still in business.
One is Bud's Jazz downtown. I figure any record store owner that remembers Steve Allen/Al Collins's "Grimm Fairy Tales For Hep Kids" is worth a shot.
The other is Philippi's (sp?) Books about half way up Capitol Hill. It's been a l-o-n-g time since I've been there, but I remember a large and eclectic collection of used LP's there.
And if you get to the Experience Music Project at the Seattle Center, let me know what it's like.
Again, welcome. I hope you enjoy your time up here.
Doug Shirk
Wenatchee, WA