Patrick has been a DJ in and around the London music scene since the mid 80’s.
Known to play a diverse selection across the capital for the likes of @wahwah45s , @handsonfam, @muchosoul, @makinmovesuk + more on home turf, but is also no stranger to a jaunt overseas to play some records too, having appeared at Soul in the Algarve (Portugal) @vocalboothweekender (Spain) and at @suncebeat (Croatia)
Patrick is also championing the vinyl format through his own ‘open deck’ vinyl sessions called ‘Bring Your Own Vinyl’ (BYOV) at various venues in London.
Over the last few years he has been awarded the Mixcloud “Listener’s Choice” award for best Soul/ Funk radio show and has been keeping busy on the decks at @the_bbe_store and guesting at Stop & Listen sessions in Brixton.
Show some love, follow 👉 @patsteele
Each week we will be taking a dip into the crates and minds of some of the digging scenes most prolific collectors.
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What were your earliest musical influences?
“My earliest musical influences were my mum and dad use to play ska and reggae in the house. They threw small parties and I remember running around the legs of the grown-ups in the house. Later, my older brother started buying and playing jazz and funk at home which was when I really fell in love with music.”
What is your first memory of collecting records?
“My first memory of collecting records was with my older brother and jumping on the tube to the Soho in the West End to scour the record shops for the tunes that we were hunting for. So many great memories of going to Groove Records, Black Market Records, Unity, Reckless, Sounds of the Universe and so many more! Back then Soho was the mecca for record collectors, particularly for soul, jazz and funk and then later house music.”
Name one institution that changed your musical influence and why?
“Dingwalls in Camden. It was completely unique and so important to the jazz/funk scene at the time.
This was my education into jazz dancing and where some of the best jazz dancers in the UK would ‘dance battle. Paul ‘Trouble’ Anderson and Sir Norman Jay also had residencies there.”
First record purchased and where you bought it?
“The first record I bought was ‘Strawberry Letter 23’ by The Brothers Johnson on a 7″ at Woolworths! I later discovered that ‘Strawberry Letter 23’ was a cover of a song by Shugie Otis.”
Favourite record labels of all time?
“Way before ‘Candy’ or ‘Word Up’, Cameo were making incredible records and their label at the time was ‘Chocolate City’. But in the late 60’s and 70’s Polydor, Elektra, MCA, Cotillion Records, Arista, Vanguard and Atlantic were all my fav labels.”
