LOOP
Another obscurity. Loop appears to have been the label of the Inter
City / Strawberry Studios, of Stockport. If the catalogue number of Don
and Denny's 'Feelin' Groovy' b/w 'Just Like Me', LOO-504, is anything to
go by, the company issued a short run of singles in the 1960s - a 'KT'
impressed on the 'B' side label narrows the date of that one down to 1963-68 -
but judging by the few of its other records that I have seen it looks as though Loop was mainly a custom recording concern. These other Loops were
numbered in an IC-100 (later 200) or IC-1000 series, both of which were used by Inter City
/ Strawberry for custom recordings on various labels. Sadly there are no dates
on any of the records but Robert Bowes, who was kind enough to draw Loop
to my attention and supply the scan of 'Selection From West Side Story' by Jackie
Anderson and the Happy Music (IC-1336), puts that particular disc at 1970. He also
reports the existence of an earlier EP, 'Nowhere - Songs For Shelter' by
the Manchester Grammar School Christian Music Group (IC-1191), the proceeds of
which went to the Shelter charity. That same group was responsible for another
Loop EP, 'Tell Me - Songs For Christian Aid' (IC-1293). Both EPs had labels of the same design as the Jackie Anderson one, but the 'Shelter' one was green and the 'Christian Aid' one yellow. The
MGSCMG recorded an LP ('Young Folk In Worship'; REC-75) for BBC Records in 1971, which
suggests that these EPs may be from a little earlier than that.
Finally, a football record in support of Bury F.C. surfaced: it was
'Up The Shakers' by the Bury-Tones, which was backed with the
Eagley Mills Brass Band playing 'Shake-Us-Away'. The catalogue number of that particular record
was IC-290, which suggests a date of 1973 or 1974. For
other products of the studios, see the 'IC' page. Thanks to HarvestmanMan of the 45cat site
for permission to use his Don and Denny scan here. The text
on the label indicates that that single was also distributed in the USA, which is rather
surprising for a record made by a small independent concern.
Copyright 2011 Robert
Lyons.