Various Artists - Manchester North Of England - A Story Of Independent Music From Greater Manchester (1977-1993)

Manchester: North Of England is a 2017 seven-CD, 146-track deluxe box set compiled by Cherry Red Records that chronicles the independent music scene of Greater Manchester from 1977 to 1993, covering punk, post-punk, dance, electronic, hip-hop, and Britpop eras. It features major Manchester bands such as The Fall, Joy Division, New Order, The Stone Roses, and Oasis, as well as many lesser-known independent acts.

It explores various independent sub-genres including electronic music, dance, hip-hop, reggae, soul, and avant-garde. The set is notable for including a deep dive into a wide range of artists beyond the obvious big names, showcasing a rich tapestry of the region's independent output. 

Compiled by the team behind other acclaimed Cherry Red compilations, the set received positive reviews for its comprehensive coverage. It provides an exhaustive look at how Manchester's independent scene developed, transformed, and solidified its position as a major musical center in the UK.

London may lay claim to siring punk in the UK, but Manchester’s role in what happened next should never be underestimated. Regional TV stalwarts Granada dared to put the pre-Bill Grundy Sex Pistols on the box; Rotten and company played their two legendary Free Trade Hall gigs galvanising every Manc band of note from Joy Division to The Smiths and in January ’77, Buzzcocks self-released their grail-like Spiral Scratch EP, inspiring the post-punk era’s avalanche of DIY releases.

These apparently random events which together conspired to change the course of rock’n’roll are inevitably revisited in author Mick Middles’ sleeve-notes for the multi-disc Manchester: North Of England passionately setting the scene for a staggering wealth of future-shaping sounds to ooze from the 143 tracks in this monumental box set. Influential? Well, suffice to say the cumulative effect of this music has ensured the industry’s major players still follow their noses to this iconic northern metropolis, repeatedly chasing the sweet smell of success regardless of the rain and (until recently) the all-pervasive tang of Boddington’s Brewery.

As this chronologically-compiled compendium proves, however, Manchester got off to a less than salubrious start when punk began to genetically mutate. After opening with an (arguably superior) demo of Buzzcocks’ Breakdown, Disc One proffers a motley crew of have-a-go scenesters (The Drones, Wythenshawe glamsters Slaughter & The Dogs) and inspired chancers (Jilted John) before the equally influential and adored likes of Joy Division and Magazine begin to emerge from the trenches.

Commencing with The Fall’s absurdly trebly Rowche Rumble, the second disc chronicles the city’s steady rise to artistic prominence on the cusp of the 80s. This halcyon post-punk period is vividly recalled through contributions by an eclectic bunch of cult heroes ranging from progressive Talking Heads-esque funksters Manicured Noise’s strident Faith to the door-slamming intensity of The Chameleons’ In Shreds and the bubblegum brilliance of The Freshies’ immortal I’m In Love With The Girl On The Manchester Virgin Megastore Checkout Desk. A shoulda-been massive hit which narrowly missed the Top 40 three times, the latter has a back story which is a saga in itself.

Kicking off with New Order’s evergreen, electro-pop breakthrough Temptation, Disc Three plots Manchester’s increasing mastery of the dancefloor. 52nd Street’s Cool As Ice and Love Tempo from Mike Pickering’s pre-M People outfit Quando Quango reflect the influence of cutting-edge New York discotheques on vinyl bearing Factory’s stamp in the early-to-mid 80s, while the smooth, Philly-style soul of Marcel King’s Reach For Love wowed the more discerning punters at The Hacienda during the Mancunian super-club’s pre-acid house era.

CDs Four and Five reflect the rainy city as it negotiates C86 and the best of its guitar-wielding classicists set their sights on the mainstream. Jangly pop craftsmen The Bodines and muscular arena-rock contenders Easterhouse have withstood the ravages of time especially admirably, though Happy Mondays’ brash, hedonism-fuelled 24 Hour Party People and A Guy Called Gerald’s hypnotic club hit Voodoo Ray serve advance notice of the indie-dance revolution preparing to sweep the nation.

Opening with The Stone Roses’ effortless What The World Is Waiting For and featuring contributions from Electronic, 808 State, The Charlatans and nascent hip-hop luminaries MC Tunes and Ruthless Rap Assassins, the penultimate disc captures the city at its trend-setting 1990 peak, while Disc Seven charts the post-Madchester comedown, with superstar DJs-in-waiting The Chemical Brothers and a swaggering soon-to-go supernova Oasis vying for supremacy at the dawn of Britpop.

All in all, it’s an exhaustive trawl through this proud provincial stronghold’s extraordinary creative archive and arguably the definitive guide to our trends in the north.

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CD ONE:

1. BREAKDOWN (Demo) – Buzzcocks

2. CRANKED UP REALLY HIGH – Slaughter And The Dogs

3. AIN’T BIN TO NO MUSIC SCHOOL – The Nosebleeds

4. JUST WANT TO BE MYSELF (LP Version) – The Drones

5. PSYCLE SLUTS Pts. 1 & 2 – John Cooper Clarke

6. GOING STEADY – Jilted John

7. LOUIE LOUIE (Edit) – John The Postman

8. HEADS DOWN NO NONSENSE MINDLESS BOOGIE – Albertos Y Lost Trios Paranoias

9. THE LIGHT POURS OUT OF ME – Magazine

10. THE KILL – Spherical Objects

11. UP AND ABOUT – Steve Miro

12. MAN IN THE BOX – V2

13. MAYBE IT’S LOVE – The Distractions

14. STAY AWAKE – Grow-Up

15. VOICE IN THE DARK – Frantic Elevators

16. SHE’S LOST CONTROL – Joy Division

17. BAISER – Chris Sievey

18. TO YOU – The Smirks

19. MANCHESTER BOYS – Salford Jets

20. SNAP IT AROUND – 48 Chairs

21. DOWNPOUR – Foreign Press

22. WARREN ROW – She Cracked

23. ENGLISH BLACK BOYS (Edit) – X-O-Dus

24. DEM A SUS (IN THE MOSS) – Harlem Spirit

CD TWO:

1. ROWCHE RUMBLE – The Fall

2. THE KIDS JUST WANNA DANCE – Fast Cars

3. DOES IT MATTER IRENE? – The Mothmen

4. YESTERDAY’S LOVE – Any Trouble

5. BIG NOISE IN THE JUNGLE – The Tiller Boys

6. NO FORGETTING – Manchester Mekon

7. FAITH – Manicured Noise

8. EDWARD FOX – Smack

9. SOME LIKE IT HOT – Bet Lynch’s Legs

10. LIPS THAT WOULD KISS (FORM PRAYERS TO BROKEN STONE) – Durutti Column

11. THE FLOOD – Blue Orchids

12. I’M IN LOVE WITH THE GIRL ON THE MANCHESTER VIRGIN MEGASTORE CHECKOUT DESK – The Freshies

13. CLOUD OF FLIES – The Hamsters

14. ACID TABLA DUB – Suns Of Arqa

15. THE FOX – A Certain Ratio

16. DEAF – Crispy Ambulance

17. MY CHERRY IS IN SHERRY – Ludus

18. BRICKS – The Diagram Bros.

19. SUBLIMINAL – Eric Random

20. VALIUM GIRLS – Bee Vamp

21. IN SHREDS – The Chameleons

CD THREE:

1. TEMPTATION (7” Version) – New Order

2. MARKING TIME – Syncopation

3. ROSEMARY – Dislocation Dance

4. SUGAR DADDY – Carmel

5. YOU’VE GOT ME BEAT – Swamp Children

6. DISCIPLINE – Gods Gift

7. PROCESSION – Nico & The Invisible Girls

8. COOL AS ICE (U.S. 7” Edit) – 52nd Street

9. SHARP TONGUE – The Passage

10. AAIR CARE – Biting Tongues

11. OF ALL – LEAVES WERE FALLING – Jane

12. WORKING AND SHOPPING – Tools You Can Trust

13. LOVE TEMPO (Benelux Edit) – Quando Quango

14. GRUNT CADILLAC HOTEL – Inca Babies

15. REACH FOR LOVE – Marcel King

16. LOOKING FROM A HILLTOP – Section 25

17. TELL ME – Life

18. ALL AT ONCE – Stockholm Monsters

19. SPIKE MILLIGAN’S TAPE RECORDER – The Membranes

20. KITCHEN SINK DRAMA – A Witness

21. LOVE AT THE HACIENDA – Graham Fellows

CD FOUR:

1. CHAIN MAIL – James

2. BELLE VUE – Miaow

3. WHISTLING IN THE DARK – Easterhouse

4. SCAR TISSUE – The Bodines

5. WHY POPSTARS CAN’T DANCE – Big Flame

6. CHINA DOLL – The Weeds

7. GET HIGH – Yargo

8. SHARP – Twang

9. ME AND MY MINI – Edward Barton

10. D’YOU THINK I LOOK LIKE ELVIS PRESLEY? – Big Ed & His Rocking Rattlesnakes

11. GARAGE FULL OF FLOWERS (Flexi Version) – Inspiral Carpets

12. DAYS OF THE WEEK – The Danny Boys

13. LET GO – Thirst

14. DRIVE DRIVE DRIVE (TWENTY TWO AND STILL IN LOVE WITH YOU) – The Man From Delmonte

15. FALLING UPSTAIRS – The Monkey Run

16. SPEND MY WHOLE LIFE LOVING YOU – Metro Trinity

17. TAKE ME DOWN – Mirrors Over Kiev

18. THIS IS HOW I FEEL – The Paperboys

19. A PECK ON THE CHEEK À LA POLITIQUÉ – The Great Leap Forward

20. KILL ALL THE BOYS – Tot

21. MEAT MOUTH IS MURDER – Meat Mouth

22. CARIÑO – T-Coy

CD FIVE:

1. 24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE – Happy Mondays

2. MAN IN A SUIT – Ambitious Beggars

3. SKIN STORM – Bradford

4. TIME TO LOSE IT (John Peel Radio Session Version) – Laugh

5. HURRY ON DOWN (WHEN WILL I SEE YOU AGAIN) – Too Much Texas

6. PESSIMISTIC MAN – Fallover 24

7. THE DEEPEST – The Waltones

8. NICE TIME AT THE DISCO – Raintree Country

9. SUBWAY LIFE – Johnny Dangerously

10. IN SALFORD THE SUN DOESN’T SHINE – Jean Go Solo

11. PASSION IN THE AFTERNOON – The Desert Wolves

12. THE LAST OF THE FAMOUS INTERNATIONAL PLAYBOYS – Morrissey

13. FANCIABLE HEADCASE – King Of The Slums

14. C’EST LA VIE – The Sun And The Moon

15. CHORUS OF THE LOST – The Reegs

16. THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN ARM – Barry Adamson

17. OOH! THIS FEELING – The Jazz Defektors

18. ALL THIS AND HEAVEN TOO (Radio Edit) – Chapter And The Verse

19. VOODOO RAY – A Guy Called Gerald

20. BORN IN THE NORTH – Us

CD SIX:

1. WHAT THE WORLD IS WAITING FOR – The Stone Roses

2. VEIN – What? Noise

3. SWERVE – Dub Sex

4. HOLD ON – The Train Set

5. WATERSKIN – The Jerks

6. AND THEN SHE SMILES – The Mock Turtles

7. 7 REASONS (Demo) – Revenge

8. GETTING AWAY WITH IT – Electronic

9. HOW SLEEP THE BRAVE (Jazz Mix Vocal Edit) – MC Buzz B

10. THE ONLY RHYME THAT BITES – MC Tunes vs 808 State

11. BIG – New Fast Automatic Daffodils

12. SHALL WE TAKE A TRIP – Northside

13. GET READY – The Rainkings

14. PERFUME – Paris Angels

15. BOX SET GO – The High

16. 18 DAZE – The Cygnet Ring

17. DAZED – Asia Fields

18. AND IT WASN’T A DREAM – Ruthless Rap Assassins

19. COMING THROUGH CLEAR – Krispy 3

20. LET OFF (7” Mix) – Kiss AMC featuring Ruthless Rap Assassins

CD SEVEN:

1. SPROSTON GREEN – The Charlatans

2. GIANT SEA – Swirl

3. SONS OF THE STAGE – World Of Twist

4. DREAM BEAM (7″ Edit By Ben Chapman) – Hypnotone

5. CUBIK (Original Mix) – 808 State

6. SPACE FACE – Sub Sub

7. CAMPER VAN – The Adventure Babies

8. FLY – The Days

9. MURDER – Kill Laura

10. CATERPILLARS – Wonky Alice

11. SOUP – Robinson

12. LIONROCK – Lionrock

13. SONG TO THE SIREN – The Chemical Brothers

14. CAN YOU FLY LIKE YOU MEAN IT (GUNGADIN) – Intastella feat. Shaun Ryder

15. OFFSHORE – Puressence

16. DIRT AND SOUL – Bandit Queen

17. BARNY – Molly Half Head

18. COLUMBIA (Demo)- Oasis