Northern Soul Christmas

Angelo Starr: Another Lonely Christmas (At The Motor City) / Back In The Middle Of A Broken Heart
(Motorcity / Sonic Wax Records, 4506, UK, 2023)

Last year Angelo Starr released a digital Christmas single on Motorcity Records, 'Another Lonely Christmas (In The Motor City)'. Usually soul songs about a lonely Christmas are ballads or downtempo songs. But not 'A Lonely Christmas (In The Motor City)', a song aimed at the Northern Soul dance floor. Motorcity Records is a British label run by Ian Levine, a label with one purpose: to recreate the sound of the Motown releases of the 1960s. If possible, by releasing new songs by former Motown artists. Mary Wilson, Martha Reeves & The Vandellas, The Marvelettes and Edwin Starr are among the former Motown artists who have recorded for Motorcity Records. Angelo Starr never recorded for Motown, but his brother did. Angelo is the brother of the late Edwin Starr. So there is still a clear connection to Motown. Motorcity had fallen on hard times in the late 1990s, but was relaunched on a smaller scale in 2007.

Motorcity's own Ian Levine was one of the four men who wrote and produced 'Another Lonely Christmas (In The Motor City)'. Levine has had a long and illustrious career as a collector of Motown and Northern Soul records and as a DJ in Blackpool and Stoke-On-Trent, playing a major role in changing the focus of the Blackpool clubs from oldies to modern Northern Soul inspired records. He became a producer, working in both the USA and England, and was responsible for some of the biggest hi-nRG hits, including Miquel Brown's 1983 UK #2 hit 'So Many Men, So Little Time' and Evelyn Thomas' 1984 dance hit 'High Energy'. A huge Doctor Who fan, in 1985 he recorded 'Doctors In Distress' with Who Cares?, a charity and protest record in one, featuring several Doctor Who cast members, Colin Baker (the Sixth Doctor), Nicola Bryant (his travelling companion Peri), Nicholas Courtney (Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart) and Anthony Ainley (the Master), plus members of the Moody Blues, Bucks Fizz, Matt Bianco, Tight Fit, Time UK and even Jona Lewie, among others. Organized and recorded in just a few weeks, the record was a protest against the BBC's decision to suspend production of new Doctor Who episodes for 18 months. Later, Levine also co-produced some of Take That's early hit singles (such as "A Million Love Songs" and "Could It Be Magic"). This Angelo Starr single was the first time in Levine's 48-year career that he was involved in the production and writing of a Christmas song.

Levine co-wrote and co-produced Another Lonely Christmas (In The Motor City) with Starr, Lee Jeffries and Matt Early. Jeffries and Early are both involved in the soul label Sonic Wax Records and the pressing plant Sonic Wax Pressings, as managing director and engineer respectively. They also record soul and soulful house as the duo Matt Early & Lee Jeffries. ‘A Lonely Christmas (In The Motor City)’ is sung from the perspective of someone who is alone at Christmas, but first and foremost it is a song of hope. Hope that next Christmas there will be someone to celebrate Christmas with. “Cause I've been so, so, so, so good / I've been patient and I've waited / And waited, baby / So the question that I have for you is / When the daylight comes / And the snowflakes fall / Will I find love after all / Or will I still be all alone.” The answer comes at the end of the song and is a loud and clear “No no this time beneath my / Christmas tree / Thank you Santa woo! / For bringing my baby / Back to me”.

When Edwin Starr died in 2003, Angelo, who was already involved with his backing band The Team, became the group's new frontman. His vocal style was similar to his brother's, which you can hear on 'Another Lonely Christmas (At The Motor City)'. With horns, church bells and hand claps, it sounds like the perfect Northern Soul Christmas song, a real floor filler. So it's a good thing that Sonic Wax Records pressed the song on a 7" single this year, because that's how Northern Soul should be played at a Northern Soul party: from a 7" single. Only 50 copies are available, so if you want to get one, you better hurry.

You can watch the video on Youtube:


And order the 7” at Sonic Wax