Vinyl in May

May is here and with it the car boot sale season. I've been scouting f0r vinyl and despite competition from an ever increasing number of dealers and collectors I've had a few successes. Today I picked up the only EP released by Zoot Money's Big Roll Band (on Columbia in 1966) and was pleasantly surprised to see that it's listed in the Rare Record Guide at £300. It's not in perfect condition but pretty good, but I won't be tempted to sell it just yet. Of all the British R and B bands of the 60s Zoot Money's was among the best, so I'll add it to my collection, until times get hard. The band played the Flamingo, as did Georgie Fame's band of course, and Zoot earned a reputation for his showmanship, and after flirting with the prog rock scene, a spell with Eric Burdon's new Animals and some time in the US he is still around making music.

Another single I picked up was the Guy Stevens produced I Keep Singing That Same Old Song by Heavy Jelly which was issued on the Island label in 1969. This eight minute epic - the longest 45 to have been issued up to that time - was in fact made by Skip Bifferty, who apparently wanted to escape from a contract with Don Arden and sign up with Chris Blackwell's label. But it was a one off and the band never recorded under that name again (although at least one other band did). The record is too prog for me, but I can forgive Guy Stevens for this error of judgment. After all he masterminded the UK Sue label and hosted the wonderful Scene club which, along with the Flamingo, was where you went for great music in London in the 60s.