Amsterdam Russ

Yup, not after the Carmichael release on Pam - need it and Alton Joseph to complete my set of the Loma label.

Had this recently with a seller in Germany. Opened up the package to see a 45 pic sleeve of some Dutch produced rap/pop nonsense from the 80s. After the initial wave of disappointment I realised that the seller had sandwiched my 45 in between two of these terrible discs. Reckon he was getting his own back by re-exporting them to the country they originated from!

Wanted - Loma 2006 - Lucky Carmichael - Hey Girl / Blues with a feeling Both sides preferably EX - inc'l labels. PM's please... Oh, also after a nice clean copy of Loma 2038 - Alton Joseph & The Jokers (Issue) - EX both sides inc labels. (Sorted, thanks, but still looking for Lucky Carmichael)

Just went through eBay's dispute process yesterday over a guy who overcharged me on postage and who wouldn't answer any of my requests for a partial refund. The dispute was resolved by eBay - in my favour - in a matter of hours. In fact, it took about three hours to sort out! If it's one thing eBay is especially good at it's protecting buyers. As Pete says, you can actually dispute the transaction based on the item being a counterfeit. When you go through the process you'll see that they have a check box specifically for fake items. You'll get your money back no problem at all.

Oh my God! That's my arse! I can prove it too as I just showed it (the flyer) to my girlfriend and she immediately recognised it (my arse). In the background is Ion the Greek and his unmistakable lean-back dance style! Always went to Drummonds back then and I remember that flyer - probably still have it somewhere! Arse is bigger nowadays unfortunately! LOL!

One of the songs listed on the sleeve - Lara's Theme by Roger Williams - was written specially for the film Doctor Zhivago. That came out in 1965. Online, I found a reference to an LP - Loving you is sweeter than ever - by a South African group called The Square Set (GALP 1573). Apparently that was released in 1968 on the Gallotone label, one of many that came out of Gallo Records, the licensed distributor of London Records in South Africa. The GALP release numbers on the sleeve must relate to the same Gallotone label. So, fairly obviously, if GALP 1573 came out in 1968, then the ones listed on the sleeve, GALP 1442, 1459, 1465 and 1467 were released earlier - but not before Lara's Theme was written in 1965. Further evidence then that the year on the disc is accurate.

As far as I can make out the sleeve is 60s. I've just been trawling though Google looking up the LP releases mentioned and seemingly they tie in perfectly with the year shown on the record label - 1967.

Still after a copy of this French EP and can now confirm that it is Barry 'Barefoot' Beefus himself who would like a copy. Now aged 76, he had no idea that this EP was ever released. Warner Bros didn't tell him of its release and rather typically he has never received any royalties for it. What makes this EP particularly interesting for him is that it contains two tracks that didn't get released on the original Loma imprint in 1966. He had always presumed that they had just sat on the shelf gathering dust and thus never saw the light of day. So, I would very much like to find a copy of this EP and send it to the artist. All help in doing so is greatly appreciated. Thanks...

Monsieur Petard is not just a collector of note, but was also president and founder of Motown in France! He's also had his own record labels, has been responsible for numerous compilations and is an ardent collector of original press photos of soul acts. If you dig through your CD collection, you just might find several with photos of obscure acts and which state "Photos courtesy of the Gilles Petard Collection". Here's a TV interview with him that serves as a useful introduction to the man... https://www.france24.com/en/20090708-the-interview-gilles-petard

Wikipedia: Gene McDaniels

Thanks. It does look like a word, doesn't it - and it's definitely not done in the Greek Cyrillic alphabet. Spent half an hour online trying to see if I could identify the script/language and wonder if it's Arabic, in which case the word reads from right to left. See attached image of the Arabic alphabet - it is possible to make out several, but not all of the characters. No idea what it means though and I could just be completely wrong - it really might just be a squiggle after all. Any Arabic speakers here? If it really is a word, you have the puzzle of why a record made in Greece has Arabic (or whatever language it is) on the sleeve...

Am looking for a copy of the Barry 'Barefoot' Beefus EP on French WB. Vinyl and picture sleeve in Ex condition, please. The copy is for someone involved in the writing/recording of the tracks. Until just recently they were not aware that this French EP existed and would very much like a copy for themselves. I'm a bit reluctant to let go of mine. However, I will if I can't find one in the near future. If you don't have one but know where a copy is available for sale that would be very helpful in making someone directly connected to these songs extremely happy. Thanks for reading...

Also released on UK Action. Love that luscious ballad on the flip "Can't get over you".

Interesting. According to the 'About' page...

A photo of Eddie Holman taken at that self-same event (I'm pretty sure). With Eddie is Kev Griffin. This would have been one of my first ever all nighters.

Not quite thrown away... I had a duplicate of The Soul Shakers 'I'm getting weaker' and couldn't find it anywhere when I came to sell it. I gave it up for lost, but it turned up about two years later. Seems I'd not taken it out of its packaging and had dumped it in a box full of empty mailers that I'd kept.

Possibly they slipped under the radar. Or, as I suggested, they were seen as harmless. You could always point them out to the legal owners of the Stax catalogue and see if they would like to comment...

As I understand it, one of the greatest considerations for judges in cases of copyright infringement is intent. What was the purpose of the infringement? Was it with a view to making money - and how much? The greater the intent to make money, the greater the likelihood that any decision will go against the infringer. Another consideration is the degree to which the infringement impacts upon the copyright holder. The bigger the scale of the infringement, the greater the impact is likely to be. Launching a record label called Mootown and using the Motown typeface, or one sufficiently close to it so as to make people think that it is indeed connected to Motown, will just land you in a lot of hot water. More so as the word is trademarked and thus has even more legal protection surrounding it. Using (as per the image above) the Stax finger click image on an actual, commercial record label would also have the legal forces bearing down on you. It is instantly recognisable as belonging to Stax. Using such a design on a flyer though, is probably of such insignificance that no one would care. Further, it might be possible to argue that the use of the logo was in fact aiding the Stax name and encouraging sales by promoting awareness of the music among those with a high purchasing intent! But... usual disclaimers apply: I am not a lawyer and any comment is merely uninformed opinion.

First heard it on one of Pat Brady's early cassettes and to this day it remains a firm favourite. Never tire of hearing it...

Ok - got a scan from Pete. I'm presuming the vertical line on the right is a mark on the scanner.

Happy to scan it for you, Pete.

Oops - my answers posted already!

Only touched the tip of the iceberg, of course, bur what can you do in just a week?

Hmm... yes, please...