Junk Box Jury

Taken from the LP ‘Winchester Cathedral’ | (Fontana SRF-67560) November 1966

The New Vaudeville Band | “Diana Goodbye” | (Fontana) | Geoff Stephens likes old records. He liked them so much that he spent considerable time rambling in old junk shops for out-of-date 78 rpm’s from the 1920’s and 1930’s.

And when this former school teacher gave up the books a few years ago and became involved in the music business as a songwriter, producer, and manager, it figured that, sooner or later, he’d do something about his first love . . . the sound of old records.

One day, Geoff Stephens turned out a song that, by now, virtually everyone has heard. It was “Winchester Cathedral,” and Stephens knew exactly how it must sound.

So, he sang it himself—in a high-pitched tenor right out of those 1920 and 1930 recordings he had collected. The result? Not only the fastest selling record in Fontana’s history, but also a huge public demand for more of the “new” old sound.

The New Vaudeville Band | “Diana Goodbye” | (Fontana)

The New Vaudeville Band was born. The New Vaudeville Band soon was seen on major pro-grams like Ed Sullivan’s Show. A new musical trend was underway.

Here is a collection of that new “old” sound as put together in the inimitable fashion of the New Vaudeville Band. We think it’s out of sight, just too much . . . or, er . . . uh . . . better yet, the cat’s whiskers. Or how about the bees’ knees ?
—(Jere Real)

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cost of record: 50p
from: charity shop