"Bubblerock Is Here To Stay! The British Pop Explosion 1970-1973" by VARIOUS ARTISTS – featuring David Essex, The Sweet, Middle Of The Road, Bay City Rollers, Mungo Jerry, Lieutenant Pigeon, White Plains, Harmony Grass, Terry Dactyl & The Dinosaurs, Blue Mink, Marmalade, Kenny, Bill Fay, Peter Skellern, Millie, pre 10cc groups with Kevin Godley - Graham Gouldman and Lol Crème - Hotlegs - Festival - Grumble and more, The Tremeloes, Pickettywitch, Fumble, Paintbox, Piglets, Sparky, Pluto, Jonathan King – Pseudonym Acts and UK Records, Fickle Pickle, Design, Pete Dello, Flanelcat and more (October 2020 UK Grapefruit Records 3CD Capacity Wallet with Card Sleeve Artwork and Booklet – Simon Murphy Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With 290+ Others Is Available In My

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites

REASON TO BELIEVE

Classic Rock and Beyond 

1970 to 1974 - Volume 2 of 2 

Artists from M to Z 

Exceptional CD Remasters

Just Click Below To Purchase for £4.95

Thousands of E-Pages - All Details and In-Depth Reviews From Discs

(No Cut and Paste Crap)

<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-eu.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=GB&source=ss&ref=as_ss_li_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mabasreofcdbl-21&language=en_GB&marketplace=amazon&region=GB&placement=B086VQBG78&asins=B086VQBG78&linkId=65f8e1ff844fb101a5710229b9b601a1&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true"></iframe>

"...Don't Stick Stickers On My Paper Knickers..."

Fab 208, Pan's People, Ray Dorset's humungous sideburns, British DJs Dave Lee Travis and Kid Jensen with equally bulbous headphones grinning like Marty Feldman as they plug the latest 45-hitmaker, The Sweet in a wigwam bam, Lead Vocalist Sally Car of Middle Of The Hot in her Hot Pants (oh yes), The Bay City Rollers dreaming of shortbread, midriffs and tartan scarves and those earnest Strawberry Studios geezers in 10cc pre Rubber Bullets and The Wall Street Shuffle - God bless em all!

My fellow-sufferer/reviewer of all things Pop and Rock – The Punk Panther - has called this fascinating October 2020 3CD 85-Track trawl through the whiffy lavatories of English bubblegum rock (and other suchlike horrors) both appalling and thrilling at one and the same time. And you know what, I think the erudite lad has it nailed. I was kind of dreading this 1970 to 1973 pop-light listen (and I was right too in some cases), but then something weird happened – tune discoveries, an open mind and several bottles of paint-stripping Grappa convinced me otherwise. 

Grapefruit Records has built up a rep amongst bonkers-collectors and ancient aficionados like moi and "Bubblerock Is Here To Stay! The British Pop Explosion 1970-1973" is surely a good example as to why. Having said that, I can't in all honesty say that everything here is going tickle many fancies. But it will make anyone who was there for those first four astonishing years of the Seventies smile and occasionally even move them. The 1971 original of Mungo Jerry's "Lady Rose" on that Dawn Records EP for instance is quite rightly featured because it isn't dismissive cack – "Lady Rose" is perfectly lovely melodic harmonica-shuffling Pop that crosses over into the Rock genre (a nugget you overlooked). And I found quite a few more similar veins like that (the wickedly good pre 10cc band called Festival and the Northern Soul vibe of Brenda Arnau). 

So let's get to the Neanderthal Man, Groove with Mr. Bloe and lay it on Johnny Reggae (Reggae) - you big girl's blouse...

UK released Friday, 30 October 2020 - "Bubblerock Is Here To Stay! The British Pop Explosion 1970-1973" by VARIOUS ARTISTS on Grapefruit Records CRSEG080T (Barcode 5013929188020) is a 3CD Capacity Wallet set of 85 Remastered Tracks and plays out as follows: 

CD1 (79:14 minutes):
1. Groovin' With Mr. Bloe - MR. BLOE (March 1970 UK 45-single on DJM Records DJS 216, A)
2. It's The Same Old Song - THE WEATHERMEN (December 1970 UK 45-single on B&C Records CB 139, A)
3. The Banner Man - BLUE MINK (June 1971 UK 45-single on Regal Zonophone RZ 3034, A)
4. Come On Around - PAINTBOX (October 1972 UK 45-single on President PT 384, A)
5. 17 - SIMON TURNER (November 1972 UK 45-single on UK Records UK 20, A)
6. That Same Old Feeling - PICKETTYWITCH (January 1970 UK 45-single on Pye 7N 17887, A)
7. Friend Of Mine - Dr. MARIGOLD'S (April 1972 UK 45-single on CBS Records 7986, A)
8. Feedback - MAJORITY ONE (from the July 1971 Italian LP "Majority One" on Jolly LPJ 5109) 
9. Pollution - GINGERBREAD (April 1971 UK 45-single on Pye 7N 45054, A)
10. Neanderthal Man - HOTLEGS (June 1970 UK 45-single on Fontana 6007 019, A)
11. I Fought The Law - POSSE (November 1973 UK 45-single on Santa Ponsa PNS 9, A)
12. Alexander Park (Palisades Park) - FUMBLE (July 1973 UK 45-single on Sovereign SDV 121, A)
13. Emma Louise - STUD LEATHER (February 1973 UK 45-single on Dart ART 2024, A)
14. Circus Girl - CLIFFORD T. WARD (from the September 1972 UK LP "Singer Songwriter" on Dandelion 2310 216)
15. My Little One - THE MARMALADE (February 1971 UK 45-single on Decca F 13135, A)
16. Gay Girl - JONATHAN KING (August 1970 UK 45-single on Decca F 13069, B-side of "Cherry, Cherry")
17. Dirty Old Man - LIEUTENANT PIGEON (from the February 1973 UK LP "Mouldy Old Music" on Decca SKL 5154)
18. Summer Feeling - PAUL GABRIEL (June 1972 UK 45-single on UK Records UK 3, A)
19. Tawny Wood - THE ANSWERS (January 1972 UK 45-single on Spark Records SRL 1058, B-side to "Give Me All That I Need")
20. My Little Girl - AUTUMN (August 1971 UK 45-single on Pye 7N 45090, A, a Harmony Grass cover version)
21. Hello, Hello, Hello - STORMY PETREL (June 1971 UK 45-single on CBS Records 7271, A)
22. Turn Me On - THE MATCHMAKERS (from the April 1971 UK LP "Bubblegum A-Go-Go" on Chapter One CMS-R 1004)
23. Sha La Ley - THE SECRETS (November 1972 UK 45-single on Spark SRL 1083, A)
24. Hello Goodbye - SPARROW [featuring Elaine Paige] (April 1971 UK 45-single on Spark SRL 1052, A)
25. Travellin' Man - TRISTAR AIRBUS (January 1972 UK 45-single on RCA Victor RCA 2170, B-side to "Willie Morgan" - B-side "Travellin' Man" written by Graham Gouldman and features most of 10cc as the backing band)
26. Sunday Girl - DUNNO (November 1971 UK 45-single on M and M Records FFMS 10013, A)
27. Top Ten Record - RICK PRICE (January 1971 UK 45-single on Gemini GMS 017, A)
28. Leap Up And Down - ST. CECELIA (April 1971 UK 45-single on Polydor 2058 104, A)

CD2 (79:41 minutes):
1. Johnny Reggae - THE PIGLETS (October 1971 UK 45-single on Bell BLL 1180, A)
2. Dreams Are Ten A Penny - KINCADE (September 1972 UK 45-singl eon Penny Farthing PEN 796, A)
3. Wig-Wam Bam - THE SWEET (September 1972 UK 45-single on RCA Victor RCA 2260, A)
4. I Like It That Way - THE TREMELOES (May 1972 UK 45-single on CBS Records CBS 8048, A)
5. It Ain't Easy - THE SAD (November 1971 UK 45-single on Phoenix NIX 124, A)
6. Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing In The Shadow? - TINA HARVEY (September 1973 US 45-single on UK Records 45-49016, A - a Rolling Stones cover)
7. Baby Walk Back - GUMM (November 1970 UK 45-single on M and M Records FFM 10001, A)
8. Popsicles And Icicles - THE ANGELETTES (August 1972 UK 45-single on UK Records UK 11, A)
9. Da Doo Ron Ron - GRUMBLE (June 1973 UK 45-single on RCA Victor RCA 2384, A - a Crystals cover)
10. Big Fat Oranguman - JUNGLE JIM (August 1971 UK 45-single on Pye 7N 45092, A)
11. Loop Of Love - SHAG (August 1972 UK 45-single on UK Records UK 7, A)
12. Don't Stick Stickers On My Paper Knickers - X-CERTIFICATE (September 1973 UK 45-single on Spark SRL 1096, A)
13. Mayfair - MILLIE (March 1970 UK 45-single Trojan TR 7744, A)
14. On The Dole - ARTHUR'S MOTHER (March 1971 UK 45-single on Polydor 2058 093, A)
15. When You Are A King - WHITE PLAINS (May 1971 UK 45-single on Deram DM 333, A)
16. Cowboy Convention - CALIFORNIA BREAKMEN (April 1972 UK 45-single on M and M Records FFMS 10016, A)
17. Lady Rose - MUNGO JERRY (May 1971 UK 45-single 4-Track EP on Dawn DNX 2510, Track 1, Side A)
18. Sweet Water - JEFF ASTLE (November 1971 UK 45-single on RCA Victor RCA 2147, A)
19. Cecilia - HARMONY GRASS (February 1970 UK 45-single on RCA Records RCA 1932, A - a Simon & Garfunkel cover)
20. It's My Party - BUBBLEROCK (from the August 1972 UK LP "Bubblerock Is Here To Stay!" on UK Records UKA 1 – a Leslie Gore cover)
21. Rupert - JACKIE LEE (November 1970 UK 45-single on Pye 7N 45003, A)
22. Crickets - PETER COWAP (July 1970 UK 45-single on Pye 7N 17976, A)
23. Rag-A-Bone Joe - PLUTO (October 1971 UK 45-single on Dawn DNS 1017, A)
24. Round And Round - RICKY WILDE (February 1973 UK 45-single on UK Records UK 28, a Marty Wilde song and B-side of "April Love")
25. Come Into My Heart - RUSTY HARNESS (November 1970 UK 45-single on Ember EMBS 295, A)
26. Warm Me - FESTIVAL (October 1972 UK 45-single on RCA Victor RCA 2275, A)
27. She Left I Died - TERRY DACTYL & THE DINOSAURS (May 1973 UK 45-single on UK Records UK R 39, A)
28. Hang On Sloopy - SAKKARIN - (July 1971 UK 45-single on RCA Victor RCA 2107, A - a McCoys cover)

CD3 (79:46 minutes):
1. Suspicion - VIVIAN STANSHALL and GARGANTUAN CHUMS (December 1970 UK 45-single on Fly Records BUG 4, A - an Elvis Presley cover - 'chums' included Keith Moon and John Entwistle of The Who)
2. Golden Oldie Show - STARDUST (August 1973 UK 45-single on Sonet 2036, A)
3. I Can't Hide - BILL FAY - PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED (Recorded 1972)
4. Harry The Earwig - PETE DELLO & FRIENDS (from the July 1971 UK LP "Into Your Eyes” on Nepantha 6437 001)
5. The Rolly Pole Coaster - BUGGY (February 1970 UK 45-single on Parlophone R 5832, A)
6. I Want To Go Back There Again - (BRENDA) B.J. ARNAU (January 1972 UK 45-single on Mojo 2092 028, A - Berry Gordy song, Chris Clark cover)
7. The Jet Song (When The Weekend's Over) - DESIGN (April 1971 UK 45-single on Epic EPC S 7119, A)
8. Lamplight - DAVID ESSEX (November 1973 UK 45-single on CBS Records S 1902, A)
9. California Calling - FICKLE PICKLE (November 1971 Dutch 45-single on Negram DEX 03, A)
10. My Sweet Potato - BUTTERWICK (February 1972 UK 45-single on MAM Records MAM 63, A)
11. You Got A Good Thing - TOUCHWOOD (March 1972 UK 45-single on Ember EMBS 314, A)
12. Jennifer Please - GARY WARREN (August 1971 UK 45-single on President PT 344, A)
13. Keep On Dancing - BAY CITY ROLLERS (June 1971 UK 45-single on Bell Records BLL 1164, A)
14. Hello Blinkers - KEV and LOL (Original 1970 Release, Uncredited Promo-Only 45 on Inter City/Strawberry Studios IC 1215)
15. Our Jackie's Getting Married - PETER SKELLERN (November 1972 UK 45-single on Decca F 13360, A)
16. Nursery Lane - CHRISTYAN (November 1972 UK 45-single on Decca F 13275, A - featuring David Paton and Billy Lyall pre formation of Pilot)
17. Today - RICH TEA (September 1972 UK 45-single on Dart ART 2014, B-side of "Sing Me, Swing Me")
18. Samson And Delilah - MIDDLE OF THE ROAD (June 1972 UK 45-single on RCA Victor RCA 2237, A)
19. You Gotta Have It Sometime - SPARKY (October 1972 UK 45-single on UK Records UK 16, B-side of "(Do You Remember That) Summertime Woman?")
20. Who Is The Doctor? - JON PERTWEE (November 1972 UK 45-single on Purple Records PUR 111, A - features Rupert Hine)
21. Timothy Jones - ROD THOMAS (May 1972 UK 45-single on Cube records BUG 19, A)
22. Today's A Tomorrow - CRUSH (June 1973 UK 45-single on Santa Ponsa PNS 3, A)
23. Don't You Know (She Said Hello) - BUTTERSCOTCH (March 1970 UK 45-single on RCA Victor RCA 1937, A)
24. Heart Of Stone - KENNY (January 1973 UK 45-single on RAK Records RAK 144, A)
25. Living Right Next Door To An Angel - SUMMER WINE (March 1973 UK 45-single on Philips 6006 238, A)
26. Beep Beep - THE BUMBLES (June 1972 UK 45-single on Purple Records PUR 107, A - featuring David Curtiss of Curtiss Maldoon and John Cann of Atomic Rooster and Hard Stuff)
27. Drivin' Drivin' - HIGH NOON (May 1970 UK 45-single on CBS Records S 4972, A)
28. Yer Big Girl's Blouse - FLANELCAT (March 1973 UK 45-single on UK Records UK 33, A - by Mike Hugg of Manfred Mann)
29. Bubblerock Is Here To Stay - BUBBLEROCK (September 1972 UK 45-single on UK Records UK 14, B-side of "(We're Gonna) Rock Around The Clock") - Jonathan King using a Pseudonym

Some have decried Grapefruit for abandoning the glossy 'clamshell mini box set' format and instead lumbering us with what is now called a 'capacity wallet' - a sort of thin card slipcase housing (in this case) individual card sleeves (generous playing times too in all three cases, a snip below 80-minutes) and a 40-page booklet (see photos provided). I'm easy one-way or the other, but for sure the clamshell box is sturdier and feels more substantial. Still, let's deal with what we do have. 

DAVID WELLS has done stunning liner notes before, packed with info and titbits that amaze and make you giggle into the bargain. Here DW digs deeper still, providing individual entries for each song sat alongside the photo displays that are both awesome. Speaking of displays in the booklet. As you can see from the listings above, each CD is largely made up of UK 7" singles and as anyone knows, most only came with label bags - UK Records, CBS, Decca, RCA Victor and so on. In order to provide visuals, someone has sought out those rare 'Euro' variants almost all of which came with exclusive pic sleeves of the bands/artists – the kind of shots collectors love. On top of that you are treated to period photos of 'Look In' magazine, sheet music for "Neanderthal Man" by Hotlegs (pre 10cc) and snaps of both the ladies in the audience of 'Top Of The Pops' and Pan's People as a trio posing in gold lame on its stage (Louise Clark, Babs Lord and Dee Dee Wilde looking hotter than a pepper sprout).  

Some of this stuff is funny and even plain weird. Little will prepare you for the shot of both The Who's Keith Moon and The Bonzo's Vivian Stanshall dressed up in Nazi uniforms to promote a Christmas single in 1970 (well of course they were) or the cherubic nice-tie and haircut teen Gary Warren sat straight-faced by the demonically-bearded Catweazle from the popular British TV show (Warren was literally one of The Railway Children in that Jennifer Agutter film) about to sing a B-side penned by the writer of Psych classics for City Smoke and Orange Seaweed. 
And if that wasn't enough, on disc 2, the playlist veers into rude innuendo and Benny Hill smut when X Certificate urges you to "Don't Stick Stickers On My Paper Knickers" while "My Boy Lollipop" Millie poses literally in the buff for her "Mayfair" 45. Disappointingly (and I know many will weep over this) - St. Cecilia's loose undergarments tune "Leap Up And Down" on CD1 where the picture sleeve is them literally in oversized underpants (apparently knickers was a very funny word in the early 70ts) – have been denied their topical follow-up "C'mon Ma (Burn Your Bra)" on this naughty clotheshorse of a compilation - a devastating blow I think you'll agree. What japes indeed! 

The 40-page booklet to "Bubblerock Is Here To Stay! The British Pop Explosion 1970-1973" is a fantastic and varied read, absolutely crammed to the gunnels with factoids that throw light onto artists and their tangled career trees. The SIMON MURPHY masters are a mixed bag of the good, the great and the just so-so. But I was so busy enjoying myself (or not) to notice audio compromises in such a huge number of acts. To the music...

CD1 opens strongly with the crowd-pleasing instrumental "Groovin' With Mr. Bloe" – the kind of cool tune that ends up in movies. But there are horrors lurking too – The Weathermen doing an insipid cover of The Four Tops Motown hit "It's The Same Old Song", the teen mulch that is "17" by Simon Turner and Jonathan King doing "Gay Girl" (oh dear). Discoveries and clever inclusions include a European LP-only track from Majority One and cracking songs from Stormy Petrel and Paintbox. Great Pop too from The Secrets and the lovely "Tawny Wood" by an obscure group called The Answers. And it still amazes me to think that the pre 10cc half-hearted seaside shuffle of "Neanderthal man" shifted over two million copies. 

We enter the world of the musically bizarre with Disc 2 where Nick Drake fans will find out that an unissued song of his called "Mayfair" was brought by his ace arranger Robert Kirby to Millie (of My Boy Lollipop fame) who then Reggae-fied it into a surprisingly dull effort on Trojan Records (God this is wrong on so many levels). With regard to the fab unsung hero that is Robert Kirby - see my review for the Ace Records CD compilation "When The Day Is Done - The Orchestrations Of Robert Kirby" (use Barcode 029667088022 to locate it). 

Jonathan King, his pseudonym bands and the UK Records label in general appear across all the discs - Shag, Sakkarin, Bubblerock and opening CD2 is the right tasty geezer Mavis of "Johnny Reggae" – a great deal more fun than I remember it. Productions values jump leaps and bounds for The Hollies meets The Moody Blues acoustic Rock of Kincade and their excellent "Dreams Are Ten A Penny". Discoveries include a creepy re-working of the Stones drug-tune "Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing In The Shadow?" by Tina Harvey, the wife who finds it hard to live with her bisexual husband in "It Ain't Easy" by The Sad (the BBC banned it for a while), and again the voices and productions of Gouldman and Crème in "Crickets" by Peter Cowap. Speaking of that band – the Festival tune "Warm Me" is such a hit but again didn’t make it. Neither here nor there looms large too in the West Bromwich Albion centre-forward come singer Jeff Astle or the awful "Rupert" by Jackie Lee. 

By the time we get to Disc 3, a case of diminishing returns and patience testing kicks in big time with tripe like Buggy or Pete Dello or Butterwick or Touchwood. But there is fun in the guitar pop of the Rich Tea B-side, the second 45 from David Essex "Lamplight" is welcome too (even if it borrows from a Leon Russell tune), and the lovely cover of the Berry Gordy-written Chris Clark tune "I Want To Go Back There Again" by B. J. Arnau – is a surprisingly sweet Northern Soul vibe in a compilation a million miles away from such things. Jon Pertwee tells Dr. Who fans "...through the cosmic waste, the Tardis flies..." in his distinctive and cool voice on "Who Is The Doctor?” while Design has those, Rotary Connection meets The Association harmonies on the go in a rather good tune called "The Jet Song..."

For sure, Grapefruit could be accused of trying to hold-in the fat belly of Seventies pop-light detritus with "Bubblerock Is Here To Stay! The British Pop Explosion 1970-1973", when they should lock it all up in a nuclear bunker and never let it out again for fear of contamination of vulnerable younger minds. But isn't that half the fun?

Where is a musical Playtex Girdle when you need one – right here baby...in a Capacity Wallet...

"Spectromorphic Iridescence: The Complete Ffolly" by RAINBOW FFOLLY - featuring their May 1968 UK Debut Album "Sallies Fforth" on Parlophone Records in Both Mono and Stereo, Period Rarities and Their 2016 "Ffollow Up" Album (February 2019 UK Grapefruit Records 3CD Clamshell Box Set – Simon Murphy Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

This Review Along With Over 310 Others Is Available In My

SOUNDS GOOD E-Book on all Amazon sites
CADENCE /CASCADE 

PROG ROCK, PSYCH, AVANT GARDE...
And Others Genres Thereabouts
Exceptional CD Remasters

Covering 1967 to 1977 - It Also Focuses On

Fusion Rock, Acid Folk, Art Rock and Underground 

Just Click Below To Purchase

Thousands of E-Pages - All Details and In-Depth Reviews From Discs

(No Cut and Paste Crap)

"...Ffollow Up..."

You have to love the sheer hutzpah of England's Grapefruit Records – I had to do a spellcheck on Spectromorphic Iridescence, let alone rack my brains on whether or not I actually remember 'Rainbow Ffolly' in my advanced dotage (hard to remember anything at 62). Turns out, these reissue madmen want me to hear a whole lotta Rainbow, and in the best moments, I can now hear why...

Born out of the burgeoning Psych musical explosion consuming 1967 and beyond - Buckinghamshire's Force Four were in a studio recording song appetisers when they realised they needed a hipper identity and so became RAINBOW FFOLLY. Slinging their demo album at the behemoth that was all things Electrical and Musical Industries - EMI's label imprint Parlophone (home of The Beatles) figured why not - "Peppers" and "Magical Mystery Tour" had blown the world open the year prior – so had the Floyd with "Pipers" and people raved about the Pretties and their curate's egg "SF Sorrow" (even if it didn't shift copies by the crate-load like the Fabs did).

And so in May 1968 (and the whole LP apparently still in all but demo form), our heroes get their one Beach Boys-sounding platter of the period "Sallies Fforth" to appear in Blighty in Mono and Stereo – all sexy pants in its appropriately far out sleeve. But despite favourable press reviews about original material and great ideas ("Drive My Car" is their own and not a Beatles cover), the public felt they had other things to do on the King's Road.

Flash-forward to 2016 and remaining members of the 60ts band put together a 'belated' second LP cleverly called "Ffollow Up" on their own Footprints Vinyl label (500 copies only) that featured similar drawn artwork to their much prized and expensive 60ts original LP (at times in the last few years, "Sallies Fforth" has reached four figures on auction sites). Always ones to do something wildly un-commercial and naughtily over-the-top, Grapefruit Records of the UK (part of Cherry Red) decided in 2019 to damn the lysergic mushrooms and clump the whole shebang into one place along with a wad of rare and previously unreleased accompaniments. So my pimply iridescent lava-lamp types - let's board the p-p-p-purple bus and multi-coloured sailing ship to yesteryear...

UK released 1 February 2019 – "Spectromorphic Iridescence: The Complete Ffolly" by RAINBOW FFOLLY on Grapefruit Records WCRSEGBOX052 (Barcode 5013929185203) is a 3CD Clamshell Box Set of Remasters that plays out as follows:

CD1 "Sallies Fforth (Stereo)" – May 1968 UK Debut LP on Parlophone PCS 7050 in STEREO (52:18 minutes):

1. She's Alright [Side 1]

2. I'm So Happy

3. Montgolfier '67

4. Drive My Car

5. Goodbye

6. Hey You

7. Sun Sing

8. Sun And Sand

9. Labour Exchange

10. They'm

11. No

12. Sighing Game

13. Come On Go

BONUS TRACKS:

14. Drive My Car (Single Mix)

15. Go Girl

Tracks 14 and 15 are their debut UK 45 from May 1968 on Parlophone R 5701

16. Sun Sing (Early Demo)

17. Come On Go (Early Demo)

18. The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill (Studio Demo)

Tracks 16 and 17 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED Studio Demos recorded May 1967 as FORCE FOUR

Track 18 is a PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED Studio Demo recorded circa December 1968 as RAINBOW FFOLLY

CD2 "Sallies Fforth (Mono)" – May 1968 UK Debut LP on Parlophone PMC 7050 in MONO (75:23 minutes):

Tracks 1 to 13 as per the LP on CD1

BONUS TRACKS:

14. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 1

15. Sunshine Of Your Love 16. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 2

17. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds 18. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 3

19. Gimme Little Sign 20. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 4

21. I Can't Let Maggie Go 22. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 5

23. Sabrosa 24. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 6

25. The Bells Of Rhymney 26. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 7

27. Bonita 28. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 8

29. I Can Hear The Grass Grow 30. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 9

31. Something Else 32. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 10

33. Hold Me Tight 34. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 11

35. I'm So Happy (Part) 36. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 12

37. She's Alright 38. Hospital Radio Jingle No. 13

Tracks 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 25 and 27 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED Home Demos recorded 1968

Tracks 29, 31, 33, 35, and 37 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED BBC Radio Broadcasts recorded December 1968

Tracks 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36 and 38 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED Hospital Jingles recorded late 1967 and early 1968 

CD3: "Ffollow Up" - July 2016 UK LP on Footprints Vinyl Records FV 16002 (58:34 minutes):

1. Single Cell Amoeba

2. Postcard

3. My Love Has Gone

4. White Swan

5. Cars

6. Sky Angels

7. Noah

8. Slow Down Zone

9. Countdown

10. Shoes

11. Is It Over?

12. Wot Do They Know?

13. Crazy Woman

14. All We Have Left

15. Parcel of Pigs

16. Nonesuch Sweetness

17. Tour De Fforce

18. Bathers Of The Lost Ark

Tracks 1 to 11 and 17 and 18 are the 2016 LP

Tracks 3, 6 and 10 were Subsequently Remixed 

Tracks 12 to 16 are Extras and PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

RAINBOW FFOLLY was:

JOHN DUNSTERVILLE - Lead Guitar and Vocals

RICHARD DUNSTERVILLE - Rhythm Guitar and Vocals

ROGER NEWELL - Bass and Vocals

STEWART OSBORN - Drums and Percussion

The 20-page booklet inside the clamshell box set features new liner notes from Grapefruit's DAVID WELLS, period photos, London Evening News cuttings from October 1968, seven-inch single demo and French picture sleeve for their "Drive My Car" 45, live photos, gig posters from 1968 where they shared stages with artists as diverse as The Skatalites, Keef Hartley and Edwin Starr and an uppercoming bunch of Glam Rockers called The Sweet. It is informative and affectionate and the mastering is care of long-time Audio Engineer associate SIMON MURPHY over at Another Planet. The audio is a mixed bag - the STEREO variant superb (I prefer it over the Mono) but those Dave Cash Show and seven Previously Unreleased home demos on Disc 2 betray a lo-fi recording process. Then I dare say, if you're buying a Box Set like this, you know to take the rough with the smooth when it comes to 60ts fidelity...

Excepting three songs - "Sun And Sand", "No" and "Sighing Game" which were co-writes - the majority of the tunes were solely provided by the Lead Guitarist part of the Dunsterville brothers - John. "She's Alright" opens the English whimsical proceedings with a French voice lead-in followed by Beach Boys harmonies that sound like an outtake from "Pet Sounds" - I think that she's fine. Immediately followed by the dooby-dooby-do of "I'm So Happy" where the Rainbows sound like The Beatles meets Buddy Holly meets an embryonic 10cc - such is the fiendishly clever melodies cascading out of your speakers. Two tunes in and already you're thinking 'forgotten and overlooked masterpiece'. Yellow, blue and green - the finest colours ever seen in "Montgolfier '67" is brilliant and you really wish they had been given the benefit of a decent production by EMI (it's good but could have been so much more). Other winners include the pretty acoustic ballad "Goodbye" (your eyes betray the setting sun) while the fuzzed-up geetar of "Hey You" is mad Psych that feels like Jeff Beck having a stop-start whig-out on his Fender. By the time you get to "Labour Exchange" where our boys bemoan the English dole system and the very Byrds/Association vibe to "Sighing Game" - you're beginning to be very impressed indeed by the musical breaks in each tune - not just copyist but original and harmonious. I have to say I love the STEREO version of this, which brings out those fab and groovy harmony vocals more.

Fans are going to go after the cover-versions fest that is most of Disc 2 - very crude (but acceptable) versions of Cream's "Sunshine Of My Love" and The Beatles "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds" (from "Peppers") and the White Album's whimsical "The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill". Better is their 60ts R&B cover of Brenton Wood's wonderful "Gimme Little Sign" and The Move's "I Can Hear The Grass Grow". For sure most of the six and seven-second jingles will test your patience and its arguable they should have stayed in the can - but they can easily be forgotten when you hear their frantic Freakbeat cover of Eddie Cochran's "Something Else".

Amongst collectors with deep pockets and much love for the period and its genres - the core album of "Sallies "Fforth" commands big money for a reason (its so bloody good). So it’s cool to hear both variants of this unfairly forgotten LP (Mono and Stereo) be given a tasty brushing-up on this exemplary box set. For sure, the average listener will never need much of the rest, but I for one am a tad chuffed to see such a missed opportunity in 1968 be given its proper due all these decades later. 2019 followed up rather well really...

"Gathered From Coincidence: The British Folk-Pop Sound Of 1965-66" by VARIOUS ARTISTS – featuring Donovan, The Searchers, Marc Bolan, The Hollies, Peter and Gordon, Chad and Jeremy, The Kytes, Tony Jackson, The Chosen Few, Beverley, Folk Blues Incorporated, Barbara Ruskin, The Kinks, Manfred Mann, Davey Graham, Mick Softley, Murray Head, Heinz and more (June 2018 UK Grapefruit Records 3CD 78-Track Mini Clamshell Box Set – Simon Murphy Remasters) - A Review by Mark Barry...

"...Jingle Jangle Morning..."

In the chock-a-block 44-page booklet that accompanies this superb little theme trek through our jingle jangle mornings of old - there's an advert for the Rickenbacker Guitar as endorsed by John Lennon (The Beatle Backer they cleverly tell us) above a photo of The Uglys making grimace-faces and sticking out their tongues at the camera – a shot that mimics their band name and a promo session they undoubtedly had a hoot doing. Only in one of these Grapefruit Records 3CD Box Sets do you get such detail - and bluntly - images we old farts haven't generally seen before.

Three discs with seventy-nine tracks (last song on Disc 3, Track 27, is hidden and not documented on the box or in the booklet) and all of it compiled by good men and true with faded Donovan tattoos on their willies, radioactive hair on their chests and passports to non-extradition countries – JOHN REED and Grapefruit's own DAVID WELLS. Fans of the humble 45 will also notice that almost every entry here is a 7" single from years that are largely underrepresented (many rare B-sides seeing the digital light of day for the first time) - so they too will be looking at "Gathered From Coincidence..." with a lusty eye.

It’s not all plain sailing however. 1965 and 1966 were about innovators – Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, The Stones, The Byrds, Jefferson Airplane, Love, Buffalo Springfield and especially Bob Dylan. The problem with this set is that so many copyists slipped quickly into their wake and at times, "Gathered From Coincidence: The British Folk-Pop Sound Of 1965-66" feels like a collection of those that followed – those that jumped on a bandwagon – even slagged it off at times because it might get them some chart action. Some of this music is great, but there is fair whack of it that feels derivative and you can so hear why much of it was forgotten and makes for an uncomfortable listen now.

Still, there is a sunset mountain of info to wade through, wind to catch, mornings to call and times that had the sheer audacity to be changin' - so let's have at it...

UK released 29 June 2018 – "Gathered From Coincidence: The British Folk-Pop Sound Of 1965-66" on Grapefruit Records CRSEGBOX043 (Barcode 5013929184305) is a 3CD 79-Track Mini Clamshell Box Set of Remasters that plays out as follows (note: the box has 26 tracks listed on each disc, so a visual total of 78, but Disc 3 has a hidden Track 27, hence 79-tracks in total):

CD1 "In The Jingle Jangle Morning" (66:18 minutes):

1. Take Me For What I'm Worth - THE SEARCHERS (November 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15992, A-side)

2. Morning's Calling - PETER and GORDON (September 1966 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 8003, B-side of "Lady Godiva")

3. Come And Stay With Me - MARIANNE FAITHFULL (February 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F 12075, A-side)

4. Follow Me - THE TONY JACKSON GROUP (September 1966 UK 7" single on CBS 202297, A-side)

5. It's Your Turn To Cry - TERRY KENNEDY and JOHN CARTER (June 1966 UK 7" single on Piccadilly 7N 35324, B-side of "Doesn't Anybody Make Short Movies Any More)

6. Rejected - THE FENMEN (August 1966 UK 7" single on CBS 202236, A-side)

7. I Love Her Still - THE POETS (July 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F 12195, B-side of "I Am So Blue")

8. Frosted Panes - THE KYTES (September 1966 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17179, A-side)

9. Golden Lights - TWINKLE (February 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F 12076, A-side)

10. I Won't Be Round You Anymore - THE CHOSEN FEW (30 July 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15905, A-side)

11. Absolutely Sweet Marie - THE FACTOTUMS (November 1966 UK 7" single on Piccadilly 7N 35355, B-side of "I Can't Give You Anything But Love")

12. Hey Woman - KENNY BERNARD (December 1966 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17233, A-side)

13. Hey Mama You've Been On My Mind - THE CARAVELLES (January 1967 UK 7" single on Polydor BM 56137, A-side)

14. Don't Go Away - THE ZOMBIES (November 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F 12296, B-side of "Is This The Dream")

15. Now The Sun Has Gone - THE BEATMEN (March 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15792, A-side)

16. Think About The Times - THE TIMES (January 1966 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 7804, A-side)

17. Penny Arcade - MICHAEL LESLIE (August 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15908, A-side)

18. Beyond The Risin' Sun - MARC BOLAN (November 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F 12288, B-side of "The Wizard")

19. Till You Say You'll Be Mine - OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (May 1966 UK 7" single on Decca F 12396, A-side)

20. Go Away - THE MIRAGE featuring GRAHAM NASH (not originally issued Demo version, recorded circa September 1965)

21. It's All Leading Up To Saturday Night - THE KNACK (PREVIOUSLY UNISSUED, Recorded July 1966)

22. You've Cooled - FIVE STEPS BEYOND (not originally issued, recorded August 1966)

23. There's Just No Pleasing You - THE EPICS (April 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15829, A-side)

24. Splendor In The Grass - GULLIVER'S PEOPLE (April 1966 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5435, A-side)

25. Mr. Smith - THE FORESTERS (December 1966 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 8086, A-side)

26. It's All Over Now Baby Blue - THE COPS 'N ROBBERS (August 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15928, A-side)

Track 21 is PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED  

CD2 "Too Many Protest Singers, Not Enough Protest Songs" (71:40 minutes):

1. Like A Rolling Stone - THE OTHER SIDE (March 1966 Swedish 7" single on Karussell KFF 664, A-side)

2. Well, How Does It Feel? - BARBARA RUSKIN (October 1965 UK 7" single on Piccadilly 7N 35274, A-side)

3. Lovers Of The World Unite - DAVID and JONATHAN (June 1966 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 7950, A-side)

4. Catch The Wind - DONOVAN (March 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15801, A-side)

5. Age Of Corruption - ALAN KLEIN (November 1965 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5370, A-side)

6. Blessed - GUY DARRELL (June 1966 UK 7" single on CBS 202082, B-side of "I've Been Hurt")

7. That Man's Got No Luck - GARY BENSON (January 1966 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17032, A-side)

8. It's Good News Week - HEDGEHOPPERS ANONYMOUS (September 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F 12241, A-side)

9. The Bells - DAVE HELLING (December 1965 UK 7" single on Planet PLF 101, B-side of "Christine")

10. Very Last Day - THE HOLLIES (from their September 1965 UK debut LP "The Hollies" on Parlophone PMC 1261 in Mono)

11. Sometime Never Day - BILL FAY (not originally issued, recorded circa mid-1966)

12. Don't You Cry Over Me - THE SLADE BROTHERS (October 1965 UK 7" single on Piccadilly 7N 15966, A-side)

13. When The Ship Comes In - FOLK BLUES INCORPORATED (August 1966 UK 7" single on Eyemark EMS 1006, A-side)

14. Wake Up My Mind - THE UGLY'S (May 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15858, A-side)

15. Please Don't Switch Off The Moon Mr. Spaceman - NICHOLAS HAMMOND (March 1966 UK 7" single on Piccadilly 7N 35302, A-side)

16. The Protest Singer - MICHA (October 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15982, A-side)

17. Square Peg - THE FOUR PENNIES (June 1966 UK 7" single on Philips BF 1491, B-side of "Keep The Freeway Open")

18. Gotta Make Their Future Bright - FIRST GEAR (January 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15763, B-side of "The 'In' Crowd")

19. The Bells Of Rhymney - MURRAY HEAD (November 1965 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 7771, A-side)

20. Don't Talk To Me Of Protest - JONATHAN KING (November 1965 UK 7" single on Decca F 12286, B-side of "Where The Sun Has Never Shone")

21. Dejection - FIVE'S COMPANY (not originally issued Demo version, recorded December 1965)

22. That's Not My Kind Of Love - MICK SOFTLEY with THE SUMMER SUNS (December 1966 UK 7" single on CBS 202469, B-side of "Am I The Red One")

23. Don't Sing No Sad Songs For Me – THE SORROWS (from their November 1965 UK LP "Take A Heart" on Piccadilly NPL 38023 in Mono)

24. Rattle Of A Toy - TOMMY YATES (November 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15980, A-side)

25. Talkin' Denmark Street - JOHN CASSIDIE (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED, recorded late 1965)

26. The Times They Are A-Changin' - THE IAN CAMPBELL FOLK GROUP (March 1965 UK 7" single on Transatlantic TRA SP 5, A-side)

Track 25 is PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED

CD3 "Gather Round, All You Clowns" (70:50 minutes):

1. You've Got To Hide Your Love Away - THE SILKIE (September 1965 UK 7" single on Fontana TF 603, A-side)

2. Wait Till The Summer Comes Along - THE KINKS (from the September 1965 "Kwyet Kinks" UK 4-Track EP on Pye NEP 24221, Track 1 on Side 1)

3. Don't Make Promises (You Can't Keep) - PETER NELSON (April 1966 UK 7" single on Piccadilly 7N 35314, A-side)

4. Cheryl's Going Home - ADAM FAITH (October 1966 UK 7" single on Parlophone R 5516, A-side)

5. If You Gotta Go, Go Now - MANFRED MANN (September 1965 UK 7" single on HMV POP 1466, A-side)

6. I'm Looking Through You - DAVEY GRAHAM (from the July 1966 UK LP "Midnight Man" on Decca LK 4780 in Mono)

7. Night Comes Down - JON-MARK (February 1965 UK 7" single on Brunswick 05929, B-side of "Baby I Got A Long Way To Go")

8. Early Morning Rain - THE SETTLERS (May 1966 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17104, A-side)

9. Sadness Hides The Sun - GRETA ANN (June 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15856, A-side)

10. Thank You Boy - DANA GILLESPIE (October 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15962, A-side)

11. Love Minus Zero No Limit - THE COMPROMISE (March 1966 UK 7" single on CBS 202050, B-side of "You Will Think Of Me")

12. Day Must Come - JUSTIN HAYWARD of The Moody Blues (December 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17014, B-side of "London Is Behind Me")

13. The Clown In The Alley - MEIC STEVENS (not originally issued, recorded September 1965)

14. I'm On Your Side - THE FRUGAL SOUND (June 1966 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17129, B-side of "Just Outside The Door")

15. London Town - THE PRETTY THINGS (from the August 1965 "Rainin' In My Heart" UK EP Four-Track single on Fontana TE 17442, Track 2 on Side 1)

16. Picking Up The Sunshine (aka "Bert's Blues") - BEVERLEY [later became Beverley Martyn, John Martyn's wife] (not originally issued, recorded March 1966)

17. Corrina Corrina - THE NIGHTSHIFT (May 1965 UK 7" single on Piccadilly 7N 35243, A-side)

18. Listen People - SARAH JANE (May 1966 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17114, A-side - written by Graham Gouldman of 10cc)

19. Four Strong Winds - CHAD and JEREMY (from the January 1965 US LP "Sing For You" on World Artists WAM 2005 in Mono)

20. So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad) - THE GREENBEATS (April 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15843, A-side)

21. Don't Think Twice It's Alright - HEINZ with THE WILD BOYS (30 April 1965 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 7559, A-side)

22. Today Is The Highway - THE RAMBLERS TWO (November 1965 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 15989, A-side)

23. Love Is Strange - THE OVERLANDERS (from the December 1966 UK LP "Go With The Overlanders And The Settlers" (shared with The Settlers) on Pye NPL 18163 in Mono)

24. Subterranean Homesick Blues - CHAS McDEVITT and SHIRLEY DOUGLAS (from the August 1965 UK LP "Sixteen Big Folk Hits" on Columbia 33SX 1738 in Mono)

25. Mary Anne - THE SHADOWS (February 1965 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 7476, A-side)

26. The Carnival Is Over - THE SEEKERS (October 1965 UK 7" single on Columbia DB 7711, A-side)

BONUS TRACK (unannounced, undocumented):

27. Crossroads – TONY HATCH SOUND (September 1966 UK 7" single on Pye 7N 17169, A-side, Theme Music to the Famous British TV show)

There are two catalogue number errors in the otherwise exemplary booklet - The Caravelles single on Disc One is listed as Polydor BM 13657 when it's BM 56137 and the Dave Helling B-side on Disc Two is listed as Planet PLF 001 when its PLF 101. Outside of that you page-after-page of fabulous cover art, promo photos, trade adverts, concert posters, flyers and even Beat instrumental magazine covers. Every single song is embellished with the kind of in-depth info that can only come from research that borders on mental instability - or worse - people in the music business who gives a damn. It's a properly informative and entertaining read and fantastic to look at. The individually crafted card sleeves have rear artwork that's made to look like a British flip-back LP sleeve of the mid 60ts and feature The Searchers pictured on Disc 1, Donovan on Disc 2 with Chad & Jeremy on Disc 3 (well done ANDY MORTEN).

As you can imagine, the largely Mono Audio is a wildly varied affair - swaying between glorious and just ok - but always better than expected - with the SIMON MURPHY Remasters impressing more times than not. To the pop folks...

With "Bringing It All Back Home" and "Highway 61 Revisited" in 1965 and the mighty double-album "Blonde On Blonde" in the spring of 1966 - the long shadow of Bob Dylan's titanic influence is everywhere. Cops 'N Robbers did "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" - The Other Side interpreted "Like A Rolling Stones" - Folk Blues Incorporated attacked "When The Ship Comes In" and Manfred Mann had a lash at "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" to name but a few. And even if it wasn't a Zim-cover (The Nightshift dug deep and covered Dylan's "Corrina Corrina") - Bob's style and political leanings are so inherent in the catch-that-trend musings of Barbara Ruskin, Guy Darrell, Heinz and so many others. The Sorrows went one further and slyly slagged him off in their "Don't Sing No Sad Songs For Me" - not that I think the Bobster was listening somehow.

That other huge sound (always unfairly overlooked too) is the chiming guitar-jangle of America's The Byrds and the melodious beauty so often found in England's own Donovan and his best work (his own "Catch The Wind" s on Disc 2 while John Martyn's future wife Beverley has a go at "Picking Up The Sunshine" on Disc 3). Even the Beatles, who's more easy-to-interpret tunes like "I'm Looking Through You" and "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away" got a swinging Acoustic makeover by the likes of Davey Graham and The Silkie. Covers of American Folkies too include Gordon Lightfoot (The Settlers on Disc 3), Tim Hardin (Peter Nelson on Disc 3), Pete Seeger (Murray Head on Disc 2), Peter, Paul & Mary (The Hollies on Disc 2), Jackie DeShannon (Gulliver's People on Disc 2), Ian Tyson (Chad & Jeremy on Disc 3) and even Mickey & Sylvia (The Overlanders on Disc 3) - all get a feature here.

Highlights and discoveries for me include ex Searchers Lead Singer and Bassist Tony Jackson and his excellent "Follow Me", the unbelievably pretty John Carter B-side "It's Your Turn To Cry" while pastoral-string lovers will dig The Kytes doing "Frosted Panes". The Kenny Bernard song "Hey Woman" will be instantly recognised as he claimed Chas Chandler nicked it for Hendrix who would of course change the word woman to Joe and do a note-for-note copy. The Times and Michael Leslie channel their inner Monkees and Herman’s Hermits for "Think About The Times" and "Penny Arcade". I wasn’t expecting much from The Mirage demo with Graham Nash clearly singing and strumming but it’s a pleasant discovery and I dig the Eric Burdon and The Animals raw vibe to "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" by The Cops ‘N Robbers (lyrics from the song give this box set its name).

Cook and Greenway supplied the irrepressibly chirp "Lovers Of The World Unite" for David & Jonathan (great audio) but it's trounced by a song of genuine beauty – Donovan doing his (try and) "Catch The Wind". Alan Klein speaks some staggeringly uncomfortable truths about deliberately recorded records you hope will be banned from the airwaves, infamy gained through obscure lyrics and politico-themes directed at the youth in his brilliant and Alien-acidic "Age Of Corruption" – as vicious a song as you've ever heard about singers and the music business. Countering that is "It's Good News Week", a genuinely heartfelt and sincere appraisal of a screwed-up world - while future Judas Iscariot vocalist ("Jesus Christ Superstar") Murray Head worries about vandals and social dropouts in Cardiff. Unable to resist parodying the real deal - John Cassidie is practically aping every Dylan nuance is his fab guitar/harmonica commentary on all things Bob - "Talkin' Denmark Street" And on it goes...to a hidden track on Disc 3, Tony Hatch and His Orchestra doing the theme music to the famous British TV show "Crossroads" (UK hotels do Folk and Protest as well you know).

For sure not everything here is going to make folks dance for joy and the argument that lots of it is derivative and hence not of value is a valid one (hence the three stars).

But you have to hand it to Grapefruit Records – they know how to dig deep and show us a corner of music and its staggering canopy we’d forgotten about and should shelter under again. And ain't that best, baby blue...