Taken from the 1979 SRT album "Flying High" (SRTY/79/CUS323). A cracking take on the Deep Purple hit from this trio from Sleaford, Lincolnshire lead by drummer and vocalist Mark Molyneux, featuring Neil West on guitar and Phil Mitchell (no relation) on bass. Molyneux had been playing in cabaret bands since his teenage years, clocking up an early appearance behind the kit for a previous band on Opportunity Knocks. Fantasy came together in 1975 and soon built up steady work in clubs up and down the country with their set of rocking covers. Their management heard about the SRT label and, without further ado, an album was cut in two days at Fairview Studios in Willerby with house engineer Keith Herd; everything recorded on the first take of course. Mark Molyneux recalls that SRT paid the fees for the session and gave the band a starter kit of 200 copies of the LP for free. Every Monday after that, the man from SRT rang up to enquire how sales were going. The band placed an order every month and posted off the SRT cut of the sales thus far achieved. By return of post, SRT shipped another batch of albums for the band - these sold for £2 each at gigs, making an even split of a pound each for SRT and the band. Up to 60 copies a night could be snapped up at gigs by eager punters and somewhere approaching 4,500 copies were shifted in total. After the LP, the band soon expanded to a five piece, with Molyneux moving to just vocals with a new line up under the name of Pure Fantasy. That band has been gigging steadily ever since on the club and corporate entertainment circuit with a 70s flavoured show. Mark Molyneux admits that he never really got close to the big time, but nevertheless has been happy to carve out an understated but happily successful career as an entertainer these last thirty years. |
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