2013 August

Funk Night At The Haçienda

It was 30 years ago that I launched my specialist weekly dance night on Friday August 19th 1983 at The Haçienda in Manchester, then very much a club struggling to find its identity. It was a case of too much space and not enough people during those difficult early years of its existence (having opened in May 1982), and, as I’ve said previously, had it not been for New Order’s success (the band were co-directors of The Haçienda) it would never have survived – Peter Hook’s book ‘The Haçienda – How Not To Run A Club’ is testament to the [...]

By Greg Wilson|2025-04-07T10:37:47+00:00August 19, 2013|Black Culture, DJ / Club Culture, Manchester, The Eighties|2 Comments

From Garrard To Technics – How British DJs Began To Mix

In 2009 I wrote an article on the history of mixing in this country called ‘How The Talking Stopped’. It was the most in depth piece I’d ever written, the research alone had taken many months, including a couple of trips to the British Library in London to comb through the copies of Record Mirror they have archived there, for it was within this magazine that the person who I’d certainly argue did more to promote UK DJ culture than any other human being, connected (via his essential weekly dance column) with fellow DJs in every corner of the country. [...]

By Greg Wilson|2025-04-07T10:37:47+00:00August 8, 2013|Black Culture, Disco, DJ / Club Culture, The Eighties, The Seventies|35 Comments

The Tears Of A Clown – A Classic That Nearly Never Was

“Man goes to doctor. Says he’s depressed. Says life seems harsh and cruel. Says he feels all alone in a threatening world where what lies ahead is vague and uncertain. Doctor says ‘treatment is simple. Great clown Pagliacci is in town tonight. Go and see him. That should pick you up.’ Man bursts into tears. Says ‘but, doctor…I am Pagliacci.’ Good joke. Everybody laugh. Roll on snare drum. Curtains.” Alan Moore ‘Watchmen’ (1987) […]

By Greg Wilson|2025-04-07T10:37:47+00:00August 1, 2013|Black Culture, Comics, The Seventies, The Sixties|5 Comments

2026 DJ DATES:

31.12 Todmorden – NYE @ The Golden Lion

17.01 Belfast – The Deer’s Head

23.01 Bristol – Lost Horizon

05.02 New York – Jeans

07.02 Upstate New York – Disco Chalet

13.02 Los Angeles – Spotlight

14.02 San Francisco – Great Northern

21.02 London – Fac 51 Haçienda @ Drumsheds

06.03 Brussels – C12 Brussels

08.03 Bognor Regis – Bugged Out

21.03 Leeds – Downtown Disco @ Archive

03.04 Carlisle – The Brickyard

04.04 Dewsbury – The Terrace

05.04 Liverpool – Gloria’s

18.04 Margate – Margate Arts Club

19.04 London – Jazz Cafe

24.04 Manchester – Manchester Cathedral

02.05 London – Disco Disco @ Queens Yard

16.05 Bristol – Where We Belong Festival

23.05 Hastings – The Print Works

30.05 Steyning – Steyning Festival

12.06 Stockport – Moovin Festival

20.06 Newcastle – Frate

27.06 Penzance – Golowan Festival

11.07 London – Brixton Freight Island

26.07 Manchester Freight Island

26.07 Hertfordshire – Campo Sanchez

31.07 Oxfordshire – Wilderness Festival

I’m a DJ from Merseyside. I started out in 1975, but stopped for almost 20 years, between 1984 and the end of 2003, at which point I started again.

One night during the period I wasn’t deejaying, turning off my mind, relaxing, and floating downstream I had what might be termed a moment of clarity. Paradoxically, although I was no longer a DJ in the literal sense I suddenly became aware that I’d never actually stopped being a DJ, for even if I was in a room with just one person I couldn’t help but ask them ‘have you heard this?’, and not only ‘heard’, but ‘have you seen this / read this?’, for it goes beyond music. Already taken somewhat aback by this nugget of self-discovery, I realised, in true eureka style, that this all pre-dates my being a DJ and goes back as far as I can remember – I’ve always had an inherent need to share, it’s absolutely central to my nature. This was quite a revelation.

So it’s no wonder that I became a Disc Jockey, for once I fell in love with those circular pieces of magical plastic during my formative years, it wasn’t a matter of choosing this as a path, the path pretty much chose me.

I don’t intend this to be a DJ blog as such, but more a blog by someone who happens to be a DJ – a place where personal emphasis takes precedence over professional, although, as I’ve already explained, the two aspects are, of course, inescapably entwined.

If you want info about my DJ appearances, email greg@gregwilson.co.uk for regular updates.

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