Month: March 2025

It has taken me a little while to get around to this post, considering the inspiration for it came out mid 2024. Before I explain what this compilation is all about, I need to get a little thing off of my chest. There is a definite theme with some of my posts down the years in that I complain about record companies not servicing the needs of the punters/collectors when it comes to reissuing certain bands. One of these is Fleetwood Mac, especially the period before Lindsay Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined. Even more so, the period between founder Peter Green leaving and Buckingham/Nicks’ arrival. There has been a few attempts at brining this era to greater attention but there has been a major lack of unreleased material. Either the band did not record very much or there is a reluctance to really open the archives. Do the powers at be not want to put the effort in thinking there will not be much of a return on the investment? 

What brought about my compilation was a collaboration between Rhino Records and Warner Brothers called ‘Best Of 1969-1974’. This essentially the era the band were signed to Reprise Records (a subsidiary of Warner Brothers), but not quite. The first LP of the Buckingham/Nicks era originally came out on Reprise before the label was deactivated and the majority of the roster moved to the parent company. The label wasn’t completely mothballed as their final studio album, 2003’s ‘Say You Will’ came out on Reprise. 

The problem I have with the ‘Best Of 1969-1974’ compilation is that there is little in the way of rarities to entice the Mac collector, such as myself. Singles that were released at the time are presented in, for the most part, as their album equivalents. These single versions have been released on a few compilations and box sets down the years, but it would have been nice to have had them on one place. It is also missing the lovely ‘Dragonfly’ which was good enough to include on the 1971 ‘Greatest Hits’ album, even though it failed to break the top 50 in the UK, and didn’t break into any chart anywhere else. 

I felt that this should be a more comprehensive collection of the Rerpsie years. This mean including the the singles that Mac released when Buckingham/Nicks joined the band. Once again, some of these have different mixes to the versions included on the parent LP, with ‘Over My Head’ being a different take altogether. This was enough material for a CD. However, I do like to think that if any of my compilations were to actually be released officially, there would be a vinyl version. There was too many songs for a single LP but not enough for a double so I took up side four of the LP for some rarities. If this was actually released, I would make it so that there was a limited edition 12” single which included of additional rarities. 

I have not included any singles from this era that were the same as the LP versions. A unique B-Sides that were included on the original singles are are included here.

Side A

1. Oh Well, Part 1
2. Oh Well, Part 2
3. The Green Manalishi (With The Two Pronged Crown)
4. World In Harmony
5. Dragonfly

Side B

1. Purple Dancer
2. Jewel Eyed Judy (Single Version)
3. Station Man (Single Version)
4. Sands Of Time (Single Version)
5. Sentimental Lady (Single Version)

Side C

1. For Your Love (Mono Promo Edit)
2. Heroes Are Hard To Find (Single Version)
3. Over My Head (Single Version)
4. Blue Letter (Single Version)
5. Rhiannon (Single Version)
6. Say You Love Me (Single Version)

Side D

1. Stone (Future Games Outtake)
2. What A Shame (Unedited)
3. Trinity (Stereo Version)
4. Good Things (Come To Those Who Wait) (Mystery To Me Outtake)

12” Single

Side A

1. Trinity (Mono Version)
2. Sometimes (Alternative Version)

Side B 

1. Lay It All Down (Alternative Version)
2. Show Me A Smile (Alternative Version)

I used the same cover that was used for the ‘Best of 1969-1974’ collection, with the title amended and the Reprise Records label added. 

Described in retrospect as the missing link between the later Beatles and 10cc, Fickle Pickle were made up up four multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/producers whose one and only album failed to gain a release in their native UK. What they did manage to achieve during their short life time was a hit single in the Netherlands (where they also toured) as well as numerous unreleased tracks. 

The story beings in Willesden, North London where two independent producers/businessmen founded Morgan Studios and a spin-off label in the form of Morgan Blue Town. Behind the production desk in the early days of the studio was Geoff Gill who had been the drummer in the legendary band,The Smoke, best known these days for the classic single ‘My Friend Jack’. Also knocking around the studio was multi-instrumentalist, Will Malone. Gill knew a certain Cliff Wade, the former inviting the later down the studio set up. Last to join the party was Steven Howden who had been part of the Morgan stable of bands when he was a member of Red Dirt. 

With all the members of Fickle Pickle in place, but not yet as a band, the quartet would pool their resources as musicians on whatever sessions needed to be recorded. The first Fickle Pickle single was a cover of Paul McCartney’s ‘Maybe I’m Amazed’, the stand out track from his first solo album. The single didn’t sell and the musicians returned top their day jobs as producers and backing musicians. The Working together would eventually lead to the four musicians working together on songs that would eventually find their way onto vinyl under the Fickle Pickle name. This was due to the fact that the single of ‘Maybe I’m Amazed’ became an unexpected hit in the Netherlands. Feeling it was time to take things a bit more seriously, an albums worth of material was recorded. 

The album would be released only in the Netherlands and was not a big hit. The album cover of the band seemingly behind a pig in a pig stye was not the strongest of selling points, but it did contain some very good music. The band did try with another single in an attempt to break in the UK market, and recorded a version of Don McLean’s ‘American Pie’. The McLean version was rushed released in response and the Fickle Pickle version disappeared without a trace, but what if it hadn’t. What if the band had had a genuine hit in the UK and needed to rush release another album in response. 

Well, this is what it could have sounded like. As was shown with the box set from 2018, the band had a wealth of material languishing in the archives. In fact, the notes from the set says that there were more songs that what was presented on there but they have been lost or misplaced down the years. As can be seen, there was enough material for not only another album, but three more singles and b-sides. Being as this would have been the early 70s, there was still a tendency not to include singles on the album. There are wo versions of ‘Time To Go’, but there is a different vocalist on each and they differ in length quite considerably. 

All the members of Fickle Pickle went on to success in the music business, but their time as Fickle Pickle was all but forgotten until their material was given a new lease of life due to labels looking to exploit their archives and if their are other gems like this to come, I cannot wait. 

Side A

1. Time To Go (Will Malone Vocal)
2. Ring Me
3. Do You Remember My Name
4. Holiday Farm
5. Jesus Cristo
6. Old Feet, New Socks
7. Goodnight

Side B

1. Like An Good Man Should
2. Sweet Wilfred – A Rodent Of Note
3. I Need You
4. Buena Vista
5. Tell Me
6. Through The Days
7. Everyday

Singles

1. Playing With Magic
2. Brining It All Back Home

1. Time To Go (Cliff Wade Vocal)
2. Keep On Doing What You Do To Me

1. Ride Ride Ride
2. Guy Fawkes

There was such a limited choice of images I could use for the band that I thought I would just create my own. The title is from one of the songs on the album and the sleeve is adapted from a 1970s advert for Wigwam Socks and Covers All Stars shoes. 

Last month, I put together a compilation of artists from the USA who had had some success in the mid 1950’s up until the arrival of The Beatles. These artists continued to produce music through to the late 60 and early 70s but with limited success. I wondered if it was possible to put together another compilation looking at UK artists from a similar period who also produced music after their heyday. Well, I could but unlike the previous collection, this is a single album with fourteen songs. 

Side 1

1. Cowman, Milk Your Cow – Adam Faith
2. Listen To The Rover Roll Along – Wee Willie Harris
3. Movin’ In – Heinz
4. A Prelude Top Old Age – Marty Wilde
5. Send For That Girl – Johnny Kidd & The Pirates
6. Silly Boy Blue – Billy Fury
7. If The Rain Got To Fall – Tommy Steele

Side 2

1. Give Me Muddy Water – Joe Brown
2. Take Down A Note Miss Smith – Helen Shapiro
3. My Lady – Jet Harris
4. Riversong – John Leyton
5. Dear Old Mrs. Bell – The Shadows
6. I’m All I Need – Antony Newley
7. Who Knows Where The Time Goes – Lonnie Donegan

As all of these artists come from the British Isles, all of the chart information is based on how successful these artists were on the UK charts.

Cowman, Milk Your Cow – Adam Faith (Single A-Side 1967)

Adam Faith was born Terence Nelhams Wright and was spotted by TV producer Jack Good whilst playing at the legendary 2i’s Coffee Bar. After a quick name change, it would take three singles before he had a hit with ‘What Do You Want?’ hitting number one in 1959. Between then and 1964, Faith lodged twenty consecutive hits in the UK charts. He even managed to score one top 40 hit in the US riding on the coat tails of The Beatles. However, by 1964, his days as a major hit maker were gone. he still continued to make records including this one which was written by Robin and Barry Gibb from The Bee Gees. The line up for this single included the legendary Peter Green on guitar. Faith would later go on to appear in a number of acting roles as well as working as Leo Sayer’s manager. 

Listen To The River Roll Along – Wee Willie Harris (Single A-Side 1966)

Like Faith, Wee Willie Harris (born Charles William Harris) was spotted by Jack Good playing the 2i’s Coffee Bar as the resident piano player. His first single was unusual for this time it that it was self composed. Know for his energetic performances that earned him the label “Britain’s Wild Man of Rock ’n’ Roll”. None of his records were hits in the UK charts but he continued to record off and on in the mid 70s before making a more substantial recoding come back in the 2000s. He was mentioned Ian Dury’s song, ‘Reasons To Be Cheerful – Part 3’. 

Movin’ In – Heinz (Single A-Side 1966)

Heinz was born Heinz Burt in Germany during World War 2 but after his father was killed during the conflict, his mother decided to resettle in Britain. Heinz was a member of The Tornados, one of the first bands UK bands to have a hit in the USA. The Tornadoes were managed by legendary producer, Joe Meek and Meek wanted to push Heinz as a solo artist. Even though he had a couple of minor hits, he did hit the top five with ‘Just Like Eddie’ with a backing band including future stars Ritchie Blackmore, Chas Hodges and Mick Underwood. ‘Movie In’ was the last single Heinz released in the 1960’s and his career suffered after the death of Joe Meek in 1967. 

A Prelude Top Old Age – Marty Wilde (B-Side to the single ‘No Trams To Lime Street’ 1970)

Reginald Smith would become Marty Wilder once he became a part of the stable of artists that were under the management of Larry Parnes. He released a number of hit singles between 1957 and 1962 but like so many other on this list, his career suffered with the rise of The Beatles. However, Wilde did not rest on his hit making past and continued to release singles on a regular basis into the mid 1970s. He was also making a name for himself as a song writer, writing songs for the likes of Status Quo, Lulu and the Causals before writing numerous hits for his daughter, Kim, in the 80s. 

Send For That Girl – Johnny Kidd & The Pirates (Single A-Side 1966)

Frederick Heath, better known to the world as Johnny Kidd was backed by the band The Pirates on arguably the greatest British rock ’n’ roll record of all time. That song was the Kidd penned, ‘Shakin’ All Over’. He did have a number of other hits but none reached the heights of ‘Shakin’. Kidd would die in a car crash in 1966, with the single    ‘Send For That Girl’ being released posthumously. 

Silly Boy Blue – Billy Fury (Single A-Side 1968)

Ronald Wycherley was the original Liverpool rocker, long before The Beatles came to prominence. He had gone to meet with impresario Larry Parnes to try and interest him in some songs he had written in the hope that Marty Wilde would record them. Legend has it that Parnes was so impressed by the songs that he thrust Wycherley on stage, rechristening him Billy Fury. Fury started to have hits in 1959 and managed to survive the rise of Merseybeat until 1966 but health issues meant he had gone into semi-retirement by the 1970s. These health issues would lead to his untimely death in 1983. This song was written by a then little known David Bowie.  

If The Rain Got To Fall – Tommy Steele (B-Side to the single ‘Half A Sixpence’ 1968)

Thomas Hicks had served in the Merchant Navy before forming the band, The Cavemen. Whilst performing at the 2i’s Coffee Bar, he was seen by publicity man John Kennedy who along with Larry Parnes, managed to secure a record deal with Decca. Now known as Tommy Steele, he released one of the first British rock ’n’ roll singles with ‘Rock With The Cavemen’. Steel would continue to have hits until the early 60s but unlike others on this list, his hits had dried up before The Beatles rose to prominence. However, Steele continued to find success by becoming a an actor, writer and a sculptor.   

Give Me Muddy Water – Joe Brown (B-Side to the single ‘Come Up & See Me Sometime’ 1970)

Joe Brown, which unlike many other on this list as he used his real name. He had worked as a fireman on the railways before he was spotted by Jack Good and given a job on his TV show, ‘Boy Meets Girls’. Brown was also part of Larry Parnes stable of stars but would not change his name to ‘Elmer Twitch’. He had a number of hits in the pre Beatles era but once they came on the scene, the hits dried up. Brown, like Steele was able to diversify and started to appear in musicals and children’s TV shows. He would marry Vernon Girl Victoria Haseman and is the father of Sam Brown who would have her own chart run in the late 80s as well as singing backing vocals for artists such as Pink Floyd. 

Take Down A Note Miss Smith – Helen Shapiro (Single A-Side 1970)

Helen Shapiro has been singling in bands since she was ten years old, including one that featured the future Marc Bolan on guitar. She is known for the deep timbre in her voice which was unusual, especially for a girl of fourteen. That was how old she was when she released her first single. She would have two number one singles and would take The Beatles on tour with her as her backing band but by the time that band had become popular, her time as a hit making wax coming to an end. She continued to release new music but these days she is more famous as a jazz singer having performed with trumpet player Humphrey Lyttleton for many years. 

My Lady – Jet Harris (Single A-Side 1967)

Terence ‘Jet’ Harris was an early member The Shadows, Cliff Richard’s backing band. Harris left the band after he started drinking heavily and falling into depression after finding out that Richard was having an affair with his wife, even though they were separated at the time. Harris would release a number of singles including a number one hit single called ‘Diamonds’. However, as with so many of the other artists on this list, the rise of The Beatles would see his sound being seen as old fashioned. Harris would give Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones their first breaks in the music business but a car crash in late 1963 derailed his career which never fully recovered. 

Riversong – John Leyton (B-Side to the single ‘Dancing In The Graveyard’ 1973)

John Leyton was already an established actor when he persuaded his manager, Robert Stigwood to allow him to audition for producer Joe Meek. Leyton released a version of ‘Tell Laura I Love Her’ but it was withdrawn from sale by his label after they decided to push the version by Ricky Valance instead. He would have a couple of major hits with ‘Johnny Remember Me’ and ‘Wild Wind’ but like so many others on this list, by the time The Beatle showed up, his sound was seen to be out of date. Leyton did have his acting career to fall back on and appeared in such classic films such as ‘The Great Escape’ and ‘Von Ryan’s Express’. He did continue to release the odd single including this one from 1963. 

Dear Old Mrs. Bell – The Shadows (Single A-Side 1968)

Formed as the backing band for Cliff Richard, The Shadows were able to form a success career under their own name. Their albums, EP’s and singles would all reach the higher echelons of the charts and unlike most of the people on this list, they were able to continue having hits even after The Beatles. By the late 60s, the hits were not a big, even though they did produce a number of songs that included vocals. The Shadows continued to be a live draw and album band until their finally called it a day in 2020. 

I’m All I Need – Antony Newley (Single A-Side 1969)

Antony Newley had a varied career. Child actor, adult actor, songwriter and famously he was also married to Joan Collins. His heyday as a hit maker was in the late 50s and 60s but that did not stop him from releasing new music. He would famously write the score for the film, ‘Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory’ and his vocal style would be a major influence on a young David Bowie. 

Who Knows Where The Time Goes – Lonnie Donegan (Single A-Side 1970)

Anthony ‘Lonnie’ Donegan is arguably one of the most influential British artists of all time. Starting off in trad jazz, Donegan was at the forefront of the skiffle movement which led to a number of British musicians taking up the guitar and forming bands. He was the first British singer to have two US top ten hits but like so many others, his fall in chart places coincided with the rise of The Beatles, ironically, one of the bands he helped to inspire. 

The cover is adapted from a 1965 poster by James Rosenquist called F-111

I also thought being an LP, this should have a gatefold sleeve.