Old Skool Anthems

Allister Whitehead Interview​

Allister Whitehead began DJ'ing back in 1987 when he was 17 years old, he quickly found his feet and gained residencies at Nottinghams Koolkat, Venus and then the legendary Hacienda in Manchester....​

Thanks for taking time out to have a chat Allister. What's been your favourite year for both the music and the clubs youve played?

For the music I would say 1991 was a vintage year. Lot's of big tracks from producers like C&C, Steve 'Silk' Hurley and David Morales to name but a few. Tracks like Shay Jones 'Are You Gonna Be There', Let the Beat Hit'em' by Lisa Lisa Cult Jam, Too Blind To See by Kym Sims, Pride (A Deeper Love) By C&C Music Factory, Also Degrees in Motion 'Do You Want It Right Now', the list goes on and on so you can see it really was a vintage year for music.

For night clubs I think 95 was a great year. Cream and Golden had a fantastic year but new clubs like Gatecrasher and Godskitchen started to do really well also before the whole Trance thing started to take off.

What was your first break and any advice to newbie dj's out there wanting to make it big?

As a DJ you have lot's of little breaks that add up as you progress, you have to constantly...

Chris & James Interview​

Chris & James are up there with the most prolific DJ's/remixers in the UK. With hundreds of pieces of work under their belt. We catch up with Chris to ask what when and how. And why the hell did they stop!​

Hi Chris - let's chat about Chris and James, how did the tag team come about?

I knew James's twin brother, Ian, really well and he mentioned James was a budding dj as well, although neither of us could actually mix properly at this point! We all used to hang out at The Gardening Club in Covent Garden (next to the rock garden) around 1991 at Yellow Book and then Ophelia, plus we'd go to Sign of the Times, Flying and Puscha parties.

The guy in James's local pub in Romford offered us a Monday night slot, hoping we'd bring all our clubbing mates with us - no pay but a chance at some real, rather than bedroom djing! Ian printed up some flyers and put dj's CHRIS + JAMES, and the name stuck from then on.

We did this Monday night thing for about 3 months at which point we'd learnt the basics of djing and decided to put a tape together. We knew Shelley Boswell who ran The Gardening Club and also Glenn Gunner (one of the Flying dj's) and gave them a tape...

DJ Welly Interview​

DJ Welly is one of the most consistent DJ's on the old skool scene, with residencies at huge events such as Bowlers, The Pleasuredrome and Wigan Pier. We had chat with him back in 2012 to find out how the hell he got there and where that name came from..​

Paul, thanks for taking time out for a chat mate. Let's begin... How did you get into DJ'ing and what was your first big break?

As a young teenager 14-15, I used to do pause button mixes with two tape decks, I was obsessed with Electro/Early Hip-Hop and it was the natural progression, all I ever wanted to do, was to be able to scratch.

I used to watch DMC Mixing Championship videos in awe of the skills on show, and as soon as I could afford it I bought some decks.

My first real break came in 1987 when I landed the warm up spot at Wigan Pier.I used to go to the club with a bag of Hip-Hop and early house tunes, and get the DJ to play them for us, as at that time Wigan Pier was just a commercial club night.

After much pestering and hassle, I was offered the warm up spot and was playing the under 18's nights, I was 17. Around the time of the Blackburn warehouse parties 1989/90 I began to...

Tony Ross Interview​

Tony Ross was one of the regular players on the scene back in the day, he has toured the world with 808 state and been on many a line up alongside some chap called Sasha...​

Tony, thanks for taking time out to have a chat mate - how long have you been DJ'ing for and what got you started?

I've been dj'ing since '87, my brother was a mobile dj and we worked together in his shop in Salford, he used to send me to spin inn records on a sat and I got talking to Russ behind the counter when house first filtering through. I was hooked straight away and it all went from there.

Whats your biggest memory from back in the day?

My biggest memory would be when I dj'ed at the gmex supporting 808 state, it was the height of the Madchester scene and tickets were like gold dust, the night was just unbelievable.

What's your favourite track?

Fave track is Frankie Knuckles - Your Love, I was at the first all night rave in Rochdale in 89, id just sold Jon Da Silva your love on the Wednesday at spin inn and he played it just as the sun was coming up. Magical.


You were billed here there and everywhere...