"Soul or nothing": The formation of cultural identity on the British Northern Soul scene.

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This dissertation documents obscure African American soul music (from Motown and other record labels) and its affective work in forming emotional, social, economic, and cultural identity in the predominantly male, white, and working class Northern Soul scene based in England from 1967 to present. The study is based on fieldwork in this "underground" community in England, Wales, and the Republic of Ireland. The community is a disparate, heterogeneous representation of the wide diversity of British culture, but following the model and outline of four components of a music culture set forth by Mark Slobin and Jeff Todd Titon, it can be viewed as an intact quasi-homogeneous music culture. A history of soul music and Northern Soul is presented. Music consumption (e.g., genres, dancing, collecting, venues) and music production (e.g., deejaying, "breaking" or popularizing records, new compilations of rare soul recordings, and live performances) within the community are examined, along with fans' collectively shared ideas about music, belief systems, contexts, aesthetics, and musical and social traditions.
The Northern Soul subculture comprises working class people in the post-industrial north of England who have adopted African American cultural products as their own cultural expression. Northern Soul fans discuss the impact of their working-class status on their activities and their attraction and loyalty to the Northern scene. Formation of cultural identity is analyzed in terms of material culture, specifically the 45-RPM 7-inch vinyl record as a metaphor for personal power and legitimacy, since these working-class white males have established their place in society through the material culture of "others" (i.e., collections of African American soul music records). A descriptive and phenomenological analysis of selected Northern Soul songs is presented. Conversations with Dave Godin, the 'Godfather of R&B in the U.K.,' who coined the terms "Northern Soul" and "Deep Soul," composer/performer Frank Wilson, and Northern Soul DJ Steve Cato (an example of what it means to be young, black, and male in today's Northern Soul community) are included, as is a detailed discussion of the scene's geography.