Sandie Shaw The EP Collection (LP)

The extended-play record, the four track EP, plays a fascinating role in 1950s and 1960s record collecting. At its most elementary, the EPs packaged two singles — A and B sides — or put four A sides together. Sometimes they featured the most memorable tracks from an LP and, par- ticularly with Cliff, Elvis and Ricky Nelson, an LP might be broken down into three EPs. Kids who did not have much money effectively bought the LPs they wanted by installments.

However, the most stimulating EPs were of new material, perhaps from a recording session that no-one was sure what to do with. Let's face it, few performers said, ‘I'm going to record an EP today.’ Sometimes though, an EP gave a per- former a chance to try something that might not work on a single.

The great EPs include the Beatles’ ‘Twist and Shout‘, Elvis Presley's ‘Jailhouse Rock’ (5 tracks and all gems), 'Kwyet Kinks’ with ‘Well Respected Man‘, and the Rolling Stones’ ‘Got Live If You Want It!‘ (again Stracks), but until See For Miles started this series ‘The EP Collection’, most people had forgotten about them. Sandie Shaw, the artist featured here, released 10 EPs, so there are 40 tracks to choose from. (Well, 37 actually -three are repeated!)

Sandra Goodrich was born in Dagenham, Essex on 26th February 1947, home of girl pipers and Dudley Moore. She worked as a machine operator for IBM and she wanted to be a singer. Adam Faith recalls, “The Roulettes and I were doing a charity concert in Hammersmith. They had the dressing-room next to mine. I went through the connecting-door because I had heard this girl's voice. This waif-like girl with no shoes on was singing while the boys played acoustic guitars. I was immediately struck by her and I ran to where my manager and agent were watching the show and made them come and see her."

Sandie Shaw was signed by Adam's manager, Eve Taylor, and she was given the stage name, San- die Shaw. Her first single, ‘As Long As You're Happy’, drew comparisons with Cilla Black, but the song was not strong enough for a new artist to breakthrough.

Burt Bacharach‘s jerky, melodic music and Hal David's tense, edgy lyrics made for some brillant pop songs -‘Anyone Who Had A Heart‘, ‘Walk On By’ and ‘24 Hours From Tulsa’. Lou Johnson, a much underrated pop-soul singer, recorded ’(There’s) Always Something There To Remind Me‘ for the American market. The pow- ers-that-be decided that Sandie Shaw should cover it and her arrangement was by the classical musician, Les Williams, making his pop debut. Although she was an inexperienced 17- year-old singer, she gave a very confident, mature performance on ’(There’s) Always Something There To Remind Me‘. She attempted the same vocal nuances as Dionne Warwick and she was well rewarded as her single entered the charts two weeks after release. She supplanted Roy Orbison‘s ‘Oh Pretty Woman’ at No. 1 in October 1964.

A few weeks later Sandie Shaw's first EP was released. Named after her hit single, it included both sides of her first two releases. The B-sides, ‘Ya-Ya-Da-Da' and ‘Don't You Know’, hardly sound inspired but they were pleasant, well per- formed records. Strangely enough, only two of Sandie’s ten EPs combined the A and B sides of two singles.

The general public was far more interested in Sandie Shaw's follow-up single than in her first EP. She could have taken the obvious course and chosen another Bacharach-David song - they were so prolific and many of their songs had not been UK hits. Shaw could have made hits out of ‘Another Tear Falls’, ‘Don't Make Me Over’ or ‘Make The Music Play‘. Instead, Eve Taylor encouraged Chris Andrews, a British writer who had written Adam Faith's raucous hits ‘The First Time’ and ‘We Are In Love’, to drop into the Bacharach-David mould.

From now on, most of Sandie Shaw's recordings were written by Chris Andrews and used similar instrumentation and arrangements to Burt Bacharach's productions. ‘I'd Be Far Better Off Without You’, Sandie’s third single, was a fine, sub-Bacharach starter, but record-buyers quite rightly preferred the B-side, ‘Girl Don't Come’, also by Chris Andrews, which made No.3. Its intriguing title and its rhymes like ‘fly, by’ and ‘try, guy’ were typical of Hal David.

Eve Taylor made great play of Sandie’s gim- micks - being short-sighted, performing barefooted — but it wasn't until February 1965 that she thought Shaw was ready for the stage. She was never a great showstopper of the 60s but she gave a competent show. At first, she was barred from America because she was “not of sufficiently distinguished ability to get a work permit". The authorities relented and she appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show with ‘Girl Don't Come‘ being a minor hit.

Chris Andrews was about to give Adam Faith ‘I‘II Stop At Nothing’ when he realised that it would suit Sandie Shaw better. The single went to No.4 and became Sandie’s personal favourite. The B- side was an American sounding record, ‘You Can't Blame Him‘. Those two sides, ‘Girl Don't Come’ and Sandie’s next single were combined for her second EP, ‘Long Live Love’.

Although Sandie Shaw was to win Eurovision with ‘Puppet On A String’ in 1967, her 1965 No.1 single ‘Long Live Love’, which was written and produced by Chris Andrews, sounds like a Eurovision winner. As if to emphasise the point, Shaw also recorded it in French, German and Italian. This collection includes the English, French and Italian versions of ‘Long Live Love’. Besides the lyrics, you will hear changes in the instrumentation. The foreign language versions are justified here as two EPs were released in the UK in 1967, ‘Sandie Shaw In French’ and ‘Sandie Shaw In Italian‘.

Although Adam had been passed over for ‘I'll Stop At Nothing‘, he was given Chris Andrews‘ best Bacharach-styled song, ‘Stop Feeling Sorry For Yourself’. Adam, unfortunately, didn't have the vocal power to do it justice and the single barely made the Top 30. Shaw’s version, on her third EP, is simply a terrific song terrifically per- formed. The title track, ‘Talk About Love’, was based on American girl group records, and the EP also included ‘Don't Be That Way’ and ‘Gotta See My Baby Every Day’, which was based on ‘Hi-Heel Sneakers.’

In single terms, ‘Long Live Love’ was followed by ‘Message Understood‘, an insidious Chris Andrews song which put its message across at first hearing. Reaching No.6 was hardly a failure but it deserved to make No.1. Her next single, ‘How Can You TeII?‘, again by Chris Andrews, stopped at No.21, although it was not measurably weaker than the songs before it. ‘Message Understood’ was the best packaged of her EPs and it included the two singles along with their B sides, ‘Don't You Count On It‘ and ‘If You Ever Need Me‘. If ever an EP cover captured a face of the 60s, it is Sandie’s on the cover of ‘Message Understood’.

By now Chris Andrews was a recording star in his own right, albeit one with a high-pitched squeaky voice, as ‘Yesterday Man’ and ‘To Whom It Concerns‘ were strong beaty hits for Decca. Shaw returned to the Top 10 for her first hit of 1966 and her seventh consecutive success, ‘Tomorrow’. It sounded like the Honeycombs while the B side, ‘Hurting You‘, had a reggae feel. Those two tracks, alongside ‘When I Was A Child’ and ‘I Know’, formed herfifth EP, ‘Nothing Comes Easy’.

Burt Bacharach and Hal David had written the theme song for Michael Caine's film, ‘Alfie’, and the song was offered to Sandie Shaw through Eve Taylor. Eve thought the terms were not attractive enough and so ‘Alfie’ went to Cilla Black. Her next success was with ‘Nothing Comes Easy‘, which was becoming true of her chart success as she stopped at No.14 this time. Pye used it as the title track on her sixth EP, along with its B side, ‘Stop Before You Start‘, and ‘Tomorrow’ and ‘Hurting You’.

I said ‘Tomorrow’ sounded like the Honey- combs, a group that was produced by Joe Meek, and Sandie Shaw and Chris went further into Meek's territory with ‘Run’. The wind and organ sounds, the echo-laden vocal and the paranoid lyrics were more in keeping with the eccentric record producer than Sandie Shaw but it was a fine reproduction of his style. Although ‘Run’ only made No.32, it deserved better success. Perhaps it was because Joe Meek's own career was falter- ing at the time and few people wanted to buy the sound from the man himself. An EP ‘Run With Sandie Shaw’ included the B-side, ‘The Long Walk Home‘, the pantomime-titled ‘Oh No He Don't and, again, ‘I Know’.

‘Think Sometimes About Me‘ also stopped at No.32, while ‘I Don't Need Anything‘ spent one week at No.50. Her fortunes changed when she represented Britain in the Eurovision Song Con- test. As if to prepare her, the aforementioned French and Italian EPs were released. (Sandie’s dress on the cover ofthe French EP is basic in the extreme: "I'd even fancy my chances at making that.") ‘Long Live Love’ and ‘Girl Don't Come’ were common to both, while she performed ‘I'll Stop At Nothing‘ and ‘Message Understood‘ in French and ‘Tomorrow’ and ‘Stop Feeling Sorry For Yourself’ in Italian.

‘Puppet On A String‘ won the Eurovision Song Contest and became a No.1 single here as well as across Europe. It was her third UK No.1 and it wasn't until Madonna that another girl singer achieved three No.1's. ‘Tell The Boys’, the B side of ‘Puppet On A String’ and the title track of her next EP, might also have won the 1967 contest for us. The three other contenders on the EP, ‘Had A Dream Last Night’, ‘Ask Any Woman’ and ‘I'll Cry Myself To Sleep’, show that ‘Puppet On A String‘, didn't have a clear run in being selected as Britain's entry.

‘Tonight In Tokyo’ was not a strong follow-up to ‘Puppet On A String’ and floundered at No.21. ‘You've Not Changed‘ reached No.18, and covering Mary Hopkins’ ‘Those Were The Days‘ was a tactical mistake. The Europop of ‘Monsieur Dupont' reached No.6 and was her last Top 10 entry.

She has called ‘Monsieur Dupont' the reason why she left the business, but surely it was the dire songs which weren't hits. Chris Andrews had lost his touch and she was recording lesser songs by inferior writers. Her paean to the Isle of Wight Festival, ‘Wight is Wight‘, was embarrassing and one of the worst records ever made by a major artist.

In 1968 Shaw married the designer Jeff Banks and when they divorced, she reduced her commitments so that she could bring up their daughter, Grace. She became a Nichiren Shoshu Buddhist and she married Nik Powell in a buddhist ceremony. Her second daughter, Amie, is 12 years younger than Grace. She wrote an album ‘Choose Life‘ to celebrate the World Peace Exposition in London in 1983.

In the 1980s, Heaven 17 showed an interest in Sandie Shaw by backing her on a revivial of ‘Anyone Who Had A Heart’ (now there's an interesting choice!) and then Morrissey showed his appreciation by giving her ‘Hand In Glove’, which she recorded with the Smiths and went to No.27. I recall her rolling on her back and kicking her legs in the air on TV and remember thinking that she never used to be like this. She wore a jacket which she had borrowed from her ex-husband, Jeff Banks. After the show he said that the coat she was chucking around was Bob Dylan's tour jacket!

‘Hand In Glove’ has helped Sandie Shaw to find a new audience and she has recorded worthwhile covers of Lloyd Cole's ‘Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?’ and Patti Smith's ‘Frederick‘~ She has also come up with contemporary-sounding material of her own like ‘Steven (You Don't Eat Meat)’.

Sandie Shaw is still skinny, short-sighted, stockingless and sexy - and I still like alliteration. She has an act which appeals to both her original and her new fans and ‘Sandie Shaw - The EP Collection‘ will please everyone. Not only am Ishaw — I am positive.

SANDIE SHAW

Für viele war sie das typische London-Girl der Swinging Sixties und schien die ganze Vitalität und das aufregende Lebensgefühl der Mitt-Sechziger-Popszene in sich zu vereinen.

Sie galt als rebellisch und eigenwillig und besaß zugleich den Charme naiver Unbeschwertheit. Schlank und hochgewachsen, dazu ein ausdrucksvolles Gesicht mit Wangenknochen wie gemeißelt, war sie auch optisch eine auffallende und aparte Erscheinung. Mit ihrem Sieg beim Grand Prix 1967 hat sie Schlagergeschichte geschrieben. Für Schlagzeilen sorgte auch immer wieder die Tatsache, daß sie stets barfuß auftrat.

Sandie Shaw - die Geschichte eines Mädchens aus einfachen Verhältnissen, das mit 17 Jahren fast über Nacht zum Star wird.

Als Sandra Goodrich wird sie am 26. Februar 1947 in Dagenham - östlich von London in der Grafschaft Essex gelegen - in England geboren. Nach der Schule verdient sie ihre Brötchen als Fabrikarbeiterin bei IBM, träumt aber insgeheim davon, Sängerin zu werden und tritt gelegentlich in den Clubs der Umgebung auf. Einer ihrer Lieblingssänger ist Adam Faith, ein bekannter Rock 'n' Roll-Star, der mit seinen Singles regelmäßig gute Plazierungen in den Hitlisten erreicht.

Als dieser im Rahmen einer Tournee in der Nähe gastiert, schafft sie es, in den Backstage-Bereich zu gelangen und demonstriert dort den Roulettes, Adams Begleitgruppe, ihre gesanglichen Talente, indem sie bei einer improvisierten Version von Everybody Loves A Lover einfach mitsingt. Dadurch wird Adam Faith auf sie aufmerksam, und er überredet seine Managerin Eve Taylor, sich um das Mädchen zu kümmern.

Aus Sandra Goodrich wird Sandie Shaw. Eve Taylor gewinnt den Produzenten Tony Hatch, der für die Hits der Searchers verantwortlich ist, Demos mit ihr zu machen, die dann verschiedenen Firmen angeboten werden. Pye nimmt die Sängerin unter Vertrag, und bereits im Juli 1964 erscheint die erste Single von Sandie Shaw As Long As You’re Happy, deren kommerzieller Erfolg sich allerdings in Grenzen hält.

Doch mit der zweiten Platte, einer von Sandie exzellent interpretierten Version des Burt Bacharach-Hal David-Titels Always Something There To Remind Me, der ein großer Hit in Amerika für Dionne Warwick war, schafft sie am 10. Oktober 1964 erstmals den Sprung in die Charts und steht kurz darauf sogar auf Platz 1. Sie nimmt auch eine deutsche Fassung davon auf, kommt damit bei uns aber nicht in die Hitparaden.

An so hervorragendes Songmaterial wie das von Bacharach kommt man natürlich nicht alle Tage, doch Eve Taylor kennt einen begabten jungen Mann namens Chris Andrews, der bereits einige gute Nummern für Adam Faith geschrieben hat. Dieser erhält nun die Chance, die beiden Songs für Sandies nächste Single zu komponieren.

Mit I’d Be Far Better Off Without You tritt sie im November in der populären TV-Musikshow 'Ready Steady Go' auf. Doch in den Charts plaziert sich die Rückseite Girl Don’t Come, die zu Weihnachten 1964 auf Platz 3 landet.

Ob Fernsehsendungen oder Live-Shows, die Sängerin tritt fast immer barfuß auf.

"Damit fühle ich den Rhythmus", soll Sandie auf die vielen diesbezüglichen Fragen der Reporter geantwortet haben. Später sagt sie, daß sie sehr kurzsichtig sei und deshalb barfuß singe, um nicht über die vielen Kabel in den Studios und auf der Bühne zu stolpern. Man kann aber davon ausgehen, daß das Ganze wohl die Idee von Eve Taylor gewesen ist, die damit einfach nur ein bißchen Aufsehen erregen wollte.

Kurzsichtig ist die Sängerin allerdings wirklich. Das bestätigt auch der ehemalige Studio-B-Moderator Chris Howland: "Wir liefen uns mal zufällig im Studio über den Weg und ich wunderte mich, weil sie mich nicht grüßte und mich nicht weiter beachtete. Doch das lag daran, daß sie mich ganz einfach nicht erkannt hat."

Nach einer ersten LP und einer weiteren erfolgreichen Single gelingt es ihr 1965 mit der Chris-Andrews-Komposition Long Live Love - einem scheppernden Stampf-Beat mit leichten Calypso-Anklängen - zum zweiten Mal die Spitzenposition der britischen Charts zu erklimmen und sich damit zugleich als Englands führende Sängerin zu etablieren...