60s RARE HARMONY NORTHERN SOUL FANTASTICS 2SIDER SS7 DJ

£ 46

$ 61

£ 46 Sold For

Jul 10, 2009 Sold Date

Jun 30, 2009 Start Date

£ 30 Start price

4 Number Of Bids

Great Britain Country Of Seller

eBay Auctioned at

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Description

I've made the decision to sell some of my very large collection of 7", 12" and LPs.

ALL THE ITEMS I AM SELLING COME FROM OVER THIRTY YEARS OF COLLECTING.

I AM NOT A DEALER.

There will be some real gems, so make sure you keep your eyes open.

SOME OF MY LISTINGS NOW CARRY 'BORROWED' SOUND CLIPS BENEATH THE TITLE.

I AREN'T QUITE ADVANCED ENOUGH YET TO PROVIDE MY OWN!

From now on, most of my items will start at just 99p, unless they are valued at £50 or more.

60s RARE GROUP HARMONY NORTHERN SOUL/R&B/MOD

TWO AMAZING DANCERS

THE FANTASTICS

"HIGH NOTE"

HEAR HERE! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKm7CFDBkug

b/w

"THAT ONE"

HEAR HERE! http://www.raresoulman.co.uk/d/51724/FANTASTICS

(US: Sound Stage 7 45-2548, 1965; Disc Jockey Copy)

Vinyl

Record conditon: Excellent +++ (plays Excellent ++++)

Labels condition: Excellent ++++

I feel a bit of an idiot sticking this one up for sale so soon after I bought it. At the time I spotted this copy, I was unaware of it coming out on another label first, and paid a goodly sum for it. I'd been after it for years, but immediately afterwards, I saw it had earlier been released on Copa, a small label based in Houston, Texas.

There have been several groups called The Fantastics, but this isn't the most famous. That honour falls on the "Something Old, Something New" bunch - they had been recording for many years as The Velours, before moving to the UK. The Fantastics we have here were a soul outfit of the highest order, steeped in the traditions of 50s doo-wop, coupled with more traditional mid-60s soul rhythms. I have to assume the obvious, and conclude that this Fantastics were a trio, along the lines of The Impressions. The first statement comes from the opening verse of "High Note", which starts "three guys on stage, don't you know they look so fine". The similarity to The Impressions goes much further than the number of singers. Towards the end, they break out with the line "I'm the one who loves you" a few times, while the lead responds with a "keep on pushing". Which proves that you don't have to live way up north to sing Chicago soul. All four of their SS7 sides were produced by Fred Kibble, who also recorded solo for Copa. Was he the lead singer?

Group harmony has never sounded any better, and the opening burbles of "That One" say it all. Fortunately, John Manship has opted to give a sound clip of the side in question, so you can listen for yourselves. The official 'black star' side has a whole youtube posting that I found on a site choc-full of rare Northern Soul harmonies (including The Arabians, Anthony & The Delsonics, The Topics, The New Yorkers, The Fascinators, etc). Not only that, there's The Fantastics' other Sound Stage 7 single, plus the same group's rare Impresario 45.

Manship prices a demo copy like this one at £150, so my starting price is very competitive.

A. Mid-tempo heaven part one; listen in full on the above youtube link.

B. Mid-tempo heaven part two; listen to a clip above.

The vinyl is in virtually mint condition, and both sides play like new.

Both labels are a very faint spot of ring-wear off immaculate.

The edges are completely chip-free.

This record has been played on both sides to verify condition, but there's a full money-back guarantee on all my sales, and I'll refund anyone who isn't totally captivated.

New postal rates:

One 7" single: £1.80; 30p per 7" afterwards.

One 12" single/LP: £2.80; 50p per 12"/LP afterwards.

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