Gary Bartlett

When I first heard the music that we play I was 13 years old working on a fairground. One particular day I was working on the ferris wheel and from one of the other rides they were pumping out a particular music which I’d never heard before, so I turned to another boy and asked, what is that music to which he replied, that’s Tamla Motown. I said wow Tamla Motown. In the latter part of that season in 1973 I worked on the carousel or the merry-go-round as it’s called in England when they played the same Four Tops album 3 times a day 7 days a week.

 

From that memory I decided to change our jazz funk band to a Motown band and next year The SoulTrippers format will be 10 years old. Most of the original members are still with us.

 

I have many influences in music and have a rather eclectic taste genres and artists

Soul, Jazz, pop, classical, some Rapp

 

Favourite singers who influence me: Levi Stubbs from the Four Tops. David Ruffin and Eddie Kendricks from the Temptations. Philip Bailey from Earth, Wind & Fire and from the jazz world Kurt Elling and Curtis Stigers. Some with unique voices

 

On my 18th birthday I managed to be on stage with the Detroit Spinners, but my biggest regret was seeing the Temptations and not being quick enough to be one of five people allowed on stage to sing with them.

 

I could talk forever about my influences and the memories of music.

 

But nowadays I prefer in certain gigs to tell them on stage.