The Completely Unknown Tapes

These are all the tracks which we really cannot identify. These date from about forty to fifty years ago and the details have since slipped from Phil's memory.

Reel 5

Two tracks contained on a 7.5ips compilation tape from The Marquee Studios. The first track has Barry de Souza as the drummer, and Phil thinks both tracks were produced by Kaplan Kaye.

Reel 6

15ips tape labelled "Anon backing tracks, punchy" Phil reckons the drummer was Roger Pope. Tracks 1 and 3 could be different mixes of the same backing track, and track 2 is a very short bass sample attached here because it sounds good.

Reel 12

This is a 15ips large reel of tape with leader between titles. Tracks 1 & 2 were possibly Eurovision entry titles (they sound like it) and tracks 3, 4, and 5 were possibly for Dandelion records. Thanks to an email from Benjamin MacHale, these tracks appear to be by John Bromley and a band called Les Fleurs de Lys.

Reel 15

This is one track on a 15ips compilation tape of tracks done at Advision Studios, the track is "Motherless Children" but we don't know who the singer is.

Reel 18

One track on a small spool of 15ips tape, sandwiched between two Brian Auger tracks and sounding very American. The song is "Cry Like a Baby" but is not the Betty Wright version. I'm sure I can hear a small click right at the end so it may have been a copy off vinyl of someone very famous that we really should have recognised.

Reel 31

This 7.5ips copy is a cover of the classic "Delia" song, and the unknown artist was a protege of Charles Victor Lowndes who in the early seventies was planning to build a prestigious recording studio in Jersey and who had approached Gus Dudgeon and Phil Dunne with a view to a partnership for the ambitious project. The studio was unfortunately never built.

Reel 37

Three tracks contained on a 7.5ips compilation tape possibly from Advision Studios. There is some sibilant distortion on the tapes.

Reel 40

This was on a 7.5ips reel and labelled "anonymous folk" which is a pity as they shouldn't be, and Phil thinks it was recorded at The Marquee Studios some time in the early seventies.
I have now identified this artist as Wizz Jones.

Reel 44

This is a small 7.5 ips reel labelled "Jo Lustig good", referring to the producer Jo Lustig and containing six tracks of folk style songs with a female vocalist that Phil thinks may be Maddy Prior. Probably recorded at The Marquee Studios in the early seventies.
Several names have been put forward for the artistes here, Shelagh MacDonald, Artisan with Hilary Spencer, Anne Briggs, and Celia Humphris with The Trees, although Celia has kindly listened to the tracks and tells me they they are not The Trees. This reel is remaining elusive.

Reel 48

15 ips tape of a pop track which stops and starts quite often with solo buttons prevalent, done at The Marquee Studios.

Reel 51

This is one track on a compilation tape from The Marquee Studios, and the female vocalist on this track is the only artist we can't identify on the tape.

Reel 56

This is a 15ips tape with leader between each title, of orchestral backing tracks done at The Marquee Studios. Possibly by the arranger Johnny Harris but we're not sure.

Reel 57

One track on a small spool of 7.5ips tape, this was probably recorded at The Marquee Studios, but we have no idea of when or by whom. It's prog-rock and I keep thinking of "Yes" but Phil says No, and besides the singer doesn't sound anything like Jon Anderson. It's a long track and contains some fine playing.

Reel 59

This is another single track on a compilation tape, this time from Advision Studios and is a short instrumental or backing track dating probably from late sixties to early seventies. It sounds like it could be a television theme tune.

Reel 63

This is a well known and covered rock and roll track ("Some of These Days") spliced onto the end of the Olympic idiots tape, so there's a good chance it's from Olympic and dates from the late sixties, but we've no idea of who it may be or who produced it. It's mono and sounds very good.

Reel 66

One track on a small spool of 15ips tape. Consisting of male vocal, piano and synth, we have no idea of when, where or by whom.

Reel 77

This was a simple rehearsal session recorded with several female vocalists gathered round a piano in The Marquee Studios, and Phil is sure the producer was Vicky Wickham.

Reel 85

This is a 7.5ips tape labelled "some film or other" and it does sound like a film score, but we don't know which, where, by whom or when it was recorded. There is a low level 3.1kHz whistle on the tape which comes and goes, and some distortion on the tape. Track 13 is the only song in the collection.

The complete duration of each track is shown, however all playable samples have been edited to 30 seconds in length.