IT'S held once every two months at a York working men's club, giving northern soul fans a chance to hear the music they love.

The event is called York Soultrain, because it was held for many years at the Junction pub with its railway connotations.

But organisers revealed today how they had been told to change the event's name - because it is breaches copyright laws. They said the request came in a text message from Soultrain, soul promoters and DJs based in Bristol.

Organiser Dave Smith said the message stated: "Please note: Soultrain name is copyrighted in the UK. Please refrain from using this name for your events with immediate effect. Thank you."

Dave said that, with the latest event taking place in York tomorrow night, he had no intention of abandoning the name after receiving such a message.

"If they had rung up and spoken to me about the problem, we might have been able to sort it out. It's a bit of a David and Goliath thing," he said. "We are just a small event. We have between 50 and 120 max turn up, people who love the music, and we charge £3.50 on the door.

"We don't make a lot of money out of it. If I wanted to make money, I wouldn't hold it in a venue capable of holding only 120 people.

Harry Crosby, who helped set up the York Soultrain evenings at the Junction about seven years ago, and still gets involved in organising the events even though he lives away from York, said: "They are a major company. We are a little thing based in York."

Paul Alexander, a director at Soultrain, said he had sent the text message after someone had got in touch, asking whether it was holding an event in York. "It's just a shot across the bows," he said. "We have spent 15 years building up the Soultrain brand."

He said that provided the York event organisers made it clear it was "York Soultrain," he wouldn't have a problem with it.

But if they didn't, they would be hearing from his legal representative.