A brief history of the changing RCA Victor single sleeve.

Late 60s the old red 45 bag design with the black label was updated to the orange label colour and bold logo type. Early 1975 a new sleeve appeared, designed by my work colleague Dick Whitbread and artworked by yours truly. (Modestly, I still get a kick out of seeing this single sleeve in shops). 

RCA single sleeve evolution - (L-R) 1967, 1971 and 1975.

The last 45 pictured above is one of the first releases with this new sleeve: 'Fox On The Run' by Sweet came out on 7th March 1975. It was the first Sweet single written by the band, rather than producers Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman - gone was the make up of the glam rock look and the group finally had their own 'A' side record and hit of their making. 

Not that some of their previous hits hadn't been good, just that some had been a bit dodgy (see below for a Sweet reminder). 

By the end of March 'Fox On The Run' was a Top 10 hit, reaching No.2 in April. 

Here's a YouTube compiled Top 10 hits list > www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwOVua9IEd0

Some very poppy early numbers BUT their pick as No.1: 'Fox On The Run' !

Garry Blakeley is a virtuoso fiddle player and performed at the original Hayloft Folk Club with a number of house bands and in the group Brian Boru and Burgess & Blakeley.
Garry is also a full time member of the celebrated supergroup Feast of Fiddles.

Performing with his good friend Bear Lucas, on guitar and vocals, together they produce an eclectic range of songs and sounds.

Here's a taster with a couple of videos of Garry, firstly playing in Hastings at The Stag. And then below taking the lead with Feast of Fiddles from a couple of years ago (he is far right on the stage). 

The Hayloft Folk Club

Following the success of last year’s two shows that featured artists who’d performed at the Folk Club in the 1970s. This show provides another chapter in the fascinating history of The Cove.

View The COVE pub in Fairlight for additional information: thecovefairlight.co.uk/events/ 

  

Part Two: of Nico and Jackson Browne:-

Also featured on Nico's 1967 'Chelsea Girls' album was a version of 'These Days' (one of my all time favourites). A song written when Jackson Browne was only 16 years old, but not recorded by him until 1973, by which time thanks to a Gregg Allman version, the arrangement had changed. 

Another song also written by Jackson, shortly after he returned to California in 1967, was titled ‘The Birds of St. Marks’. Rediscovered in 1994 it was only properly recorded for the first time on his 2014 LP 'Standing in the Breach'.

It's apparently written about Nico, and has a very 60s Byrds feel to it (probably why I like it so much). The middle guitar break with Greg Leisz and Val McCallum (on 12 & 6 string guitars) is wonderful and they return for the instrumental ending. 

Another great track from a teenage Jackson Browne

> Article on Nico’s version of 'These Days' -  https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-story-behind-the-song-the-contrasting-origin-of-nicos-these-days/

   

Within the space of a few weeks I heard two tracks off the 1967 ‘Chelsea Girls’ album by Nico (she of The Velvet Underground & Nico fame) I'd not previously known. 

She was born Christa Päffgen in Cologne, Germany and after being introduced by The Stones Brian Jones, she began working in New York with Andy Warhol.

This is part one of a two part story involving her and a young Jackson Browne, who she had a brief romance with in 1967, and who wrote both songs in question.

The first track is ‘The Fairest of the Season’ from the album that apparently Nico didn’t approve of once producer Tom Wilson had filled it out with strings and flutes... (I rather like them) - the LP also contains contributions by Velvet Underground members. 

Part Two of this romance will be next Friday

   

We been down the Motorway and the Highway. Today "Wir fahr'n, fahr'n, fahr'n, auf der Autobahn" for the latest 'One For The Road' track.
Issued today to mark the 50th anniversary of Kraftwerk's iconic 'Autobahn' album, with releases on three different formats including a Picture disc. 

Funnily I always thought they sang 'Fun, Fun, Fun on the Autobahn'...

Band member Wolfgang Flür explains: 

No! Someone else told me that they [the misinterpreters] thought the way we speak in German "Fahren", which means driving, sounds like the English word "fun". "Fahren fahren fahren", "fun fun fun". That is wrong. But it works. Driving is fun. We had no speed limit on the autobahn, we could race through the highways, through the Alps, so yes, fahren fahren fahren, fun fun fun.

Even the video uses 'Fun, Fun, Fun' > beep, beep 

The original album version of the song lasts 22 minutes, but the track was edited down to 3 minutes for its single version, b/w ‘Morning Walk’ (Morganspariezgang), released Feb 1975. 

  

While Timothee Chalamet performed the songs of Bob Dylan in the movie 'A Complete Unknown', so to did Edward Norton as Pete Seeger: 'Dusty Old Dust, 'This Land is Your Land' and 'Wimoweh' all featured him. 

You maybe surprised at how many of Pete Seeger's songs you grew up with. 'Where Have All the Flowers Gone', 'We Shall Overcome', his hit version of Malvina Reynolds 'Little Boxes' and of course 'Turn, Turn, Turn' (lyrics from the Book of Ecclesiastes) and 'Bells of Rhymney' (words by Welsh Poet Idris Davies) both set to music by Seeger and covered by the Byrds.

Another famous song he wrote with Lee Hays and covered by many artists was the 1949 composition 'The Hammer Song', released in 1950 by their group The Weavers. Peter, Paul & Mary had a big hit in 1962 and so to did Trini Lopez a year later with the song titled 'If I Had a Hammer'. 

Video is from a 60s TV show in grainy black & white >

Trini Lopez and 'If I Had a Hammer' was one of my mum's favourite records and she had the 45 single, which I now have.

  

An alternative (and occasional) music posting highlighting something out of the ordinary. Perhaps of limited appeal, unconventional, experimental or just far-out ! Call it what you like (or switch it off, if you don't like). 

A COMPLETE UNKNOWN: the American biographical music film directed by James Mangold and starring Timothee Chalamet as Bob Dylan. Have you seen it ?

It's really good and among many things it presented a number of Dylan songs I either wasn't familiar with or at least I'd forgotten them completely (almost completely unknown) !

 

From his debut LP there was his version of 'Baby Let Me Follow You Down' learnt from Eric von Schmidt (as per the track intro):  https://youtu.be/QgJ9oUX1pbA?si=PLQNUrL60w8ll19I

The Animals version of this song called ‘Baby Can I Take You Home’ is very different and was apparently a key influence on Dylan's change to electric music - [we will 'Take You Home', soon]. 

Then from the album 'The Times They Are a-Changin' came the song 'When the Ship Comes In': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c9_XkYYjTU  

Dylan performed this song during 'Live Aid' on July 13, 1985, accompanied by Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones. So I'd forgotten that !

Finally during the movie the song 'Railroad Bill', a traditional blues ballad dating back to the 19th century, was sung by Bobby Neuwirth and Bob Dylan together in the recording studio. The track was never released until a bootleg series of LPs were made available: Vol 10 'Another Self Portrait (1969–1971)' contained 'Railroad Bill' >

'Railroad Bill' version from 1929 by Frank Hutchison FYI here

Another notable from the film was the performance of Edward Norton as Pete Seeger. This Friday coming we'll be heading down that road... 

   

The sincerest form of flattery is imitation.

This is more a case of philately.

Issued earlier this week were 12 Special Stamps by the Royal Mail. The stamps mark the 50th anniversary of AC/DC's debut album ‘High Voltage’ and depict the group in live performances in venues around the world - [read story here]. 

AC/DC were formed in Sydney, Australia in 1973 by Scottish born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. They become the eighth music artists to be honoured with their own dedicated Royal Mail stamp range. See story for the other artists. 
So this month's 'One For The Road' track is, like the stamps, a 'live' show from 2009 at the River Plate stadium, Argentina: 'Highway to Hell' 

Watch on 'Full Screen' for full effect [  ]

   

A brief studio story:

During the early months of 1971, Los Angeles saw the recording of albums by three now legendary artists. A&M studios located on La Brea Avenue near Sunset Boulevard saw a host of artists come and go. James Taylor, who was recording his 'Mud Slide Slim' LP at Crystal studios a handful of blocks away, down the road at ‘Sunset and Vine’, dropped in frequently. Joni Mitchell was in Studio C at A&M making her 'Blue' album, while in Studio A, a famous New York composer, new to LA and yet to be known for her singing, was producing her second LP 'Tapestry'. In just three weeks, with help from those mentioned the record was complete and released on February 10th. It went on to spend over three months at No.1 on the Billboard chart and received the Grammy for 'Album of the Year'.

'Tapestry' was an instant success and so to was Carole King.

Many songs were very personal and selecting a track especially for today wasn't easy. But I narrowed it down to two: 'Beautiful' and 'So Far Away'. 

I couldn't find a video, other than a still of the album cover, for 'Beautiful' that contained the piano play-out. So you'll just have to stare at the other star of the photoshoot, the cat Telemachus. 

However this video is full of images and lyrics - 'So Far Away' - click play 

  

Here's a newly released record that sounds like it's 50 years old. 

Having mentioned Bad Company during the Free Star Track in mid January, today's music sounds very much like them. This is in part down to Simon Kirke, the former drummer of both these bands. In the early 80s he was in a group with singer Steve Overland called Wildlife. In 2019 the Overland-Kirke alliance was rekindled, accompanied by guitarist/keyboard player Steve Morris and bassist Chris Childs they formed Lonerider.

For their latest LP 'Down in the Dust' they added Steve Mann on Hammond organ and the link up between Morris and Mann works to further the Bad Company style vibes. 

What really sets this off is the fantastic video to 'Getting Closer' - full screen to make the most of this >

Further listening from the album:- check out tracks > ‘Cool Hand’ and ‘Mystery Man’. 

FYI: Simon Kirke - born in Lambeth, now lives in New York City and Montauk NY with his wife.