if you're not already in the club, email Andy now to find out what you're missing (andy@fruitsdemerrecords.com), if you are, this will need no introduction so, in the words of the late, great Vivian Stanshall, "now read on"....
SIGNED COPIES OF 'WICKER MAN', ANYONE?
Anders, from Us & Them, tells us he still has a few copies of his supply of 'Summerisles' available. Ask him nicely and he might even be persuaded to sign a copy with Britt and post one to you from Scandinavia, in return for a fiver or so. Email Anders at us_and_them@ymail.com if you'd like to grab a copy
Andy's latest note to all members....
See, I know how it is. You're sat there being all Bah-Humbug, bemoaning Christmas as a commercially exploitative holiday that forces you to spend time with people you don't really want to spend that much time with, and, let's be honest, any wrapped gift anyone can get you will be a disappointment before it's even opened if it isn't record shaped.
But I really know that you can't stop sneaking a look at that advent calendar and willing it to be December 1st so that you can open the little door and snaffle a piece of chocolate. When I was a kid, advent calendars just had little pictures in. Except for number 24 – that had a bigger picture in. No chocolate. I don't think chocolate had been invented on our estate back in the 70s.
Thus it is that we are delighted to announce the 3 - that's THREE (like wise men) – FdM releases are in and ready. Lo and behold - and it's still November (OK, it isn't now).
There's gold aplenty in the Grass double-LPs - 22 quid a pop, with full colour gatefold sleeve and coloured vinyl (the plant was so impressed, they sent us a picture as it was being pressed!!).
Frankincense peppers the air around the Smellyvisual fantasticness of the Do Not Adjust Your Set EP - a fiver for that puppy.
Myrr...mirh....mirrrrr...the other thing is practically popping out of the double-ended cracker that is this year's ANNUAL double-7" malarkey. 8 spondoolies will paper hat that, so to speak.
And so it is that a full set will be 35 UKP.
Please note that the secret special extra free bonus doobry thing will only be sent to those who buy all of the above! So there. So, by my reckoning, that's at least 34 tracks for 35 quid posted to your lovely door with the mistletoe atop! Get in there. Give us a kiss for Christmas darling.
As always, me ducks, bulk buyers drop me a line, and if you don't like links because you're either wise with wisdom or petrified with paranoia, you can always wang the wedge via Paypal to info@fruitsdemerrecords.com
Quite a lot of alliteration in this email, which makes me moist amidst the mirth of the madness I've managed to make!
There you have it. If you only want select records from the above, email me. All orders will be acknowledged as soon as I can, but if no acknowledgement arrives within a few days, chase me (round the tree!).
Okay - aim is to try and get all these to Members by Christmas. Let's do it. Oh, and if you don't want your copies, please let me know, and we'll let them go to the over-subscribed reserve lists!
Okey-dokey - one, two, three, four, we three kings of orient are, one in a taxi, one in a car, one on a scooter bibbing his hooter, going to Leamington Spa. Or something.
Ho-Ho-Ho!
Wise King Andy (& Jonesy - he's more of a wizened old queen, if truth be told, and he's always flashing his baubles)
November missive to all Members...
As this label gets just a little bit bigger with every release, and has now hit a sort of tipping point, might I restate that the Member Club exists primarily to ensure the people who have been buying our records since back in the day, when we were resoundingly ignored by all but an enlightened few, get first dibs on our releases. It's also to ensure people who want everything we release can do so as effortlessly as possible. That means anyone on the Member list who joined in the belief that it will allow them to cherry-pick and still pick up their Christmas freebie will be politely asked to re-join our not-members-but-still-friends list.
In short, it's a place where we can identify and look after the people who look after us! Bless 'em.
Non-Members will always get the chance to reserve records, but that's not an unlimited state. Either as Members or 'Reservists', there is a time period during which records will be held and available. We have had to start 'reserve reserve' lists for some releases, and we can't hold copies indefinitely.
As I write there are 13 Members who haven't taken their Wicker Man and Luck Of Eden Hall EPs, yet we have 180 reserves on the Wicker re-press. Needless to say, I have now decided to let the records go.
Enough of all that - i feel better for clearing the air. Now for some sugar-coated sweeties with sherbet in the middle!
Recently, two examples of unprompted generosity have flushed our waters like a refreshing spring.
We get hammered on international postage, especially to Australia. We actually lose money on those orders, but it's off-set by others.
Last week two payments arrived in the FdM account that I couldn't, erm, account for. On investigation, they were unprompted 'extras' sent by two stockists, one in Oz and one in Germany. These are people who sell our records via ebay and suchlike, and gambled on them one day being worth a few quid.
Absolute fair play to them both. We expect nothing from that, and wish them every success. However, when they clocked what the postage of the last packages came to, they both sent extra money to us to cover some of that postage cost.
How refreshing is that, in this day and age? I have nothing but total respect for them both, and am honoured to have them as customers and Members.
Thank you to all who send sweet messages about our releases - keep 'em coming, as it keeps us going. One really resonated with me recently, because of who sent it.
I've been a fan of the Static Caravan label for years, and own much of their catalogue. Indeed, I've stated in more than one interview that it was an inspiration behind me starting a label.
I saw the email from Geoff at SC asking to join the list a few months back, but didn't say owt - didn't want to be too sycophantic, you know? Just acknowledged it and added him.
After he bought some of our stuff, we began corresponding. Whilst it didn't sit quite right, I was so flattered to hear Geoff refer to us thus: "firstly yes YES all you say is bang on, and inspirational.", along with the comment "All you can do is do what you think is right in your heart and if you love music it shines through, this my friend seems to be happening to you"
Not necessary to add anything to that. The highest of compliments from a top man. If you don#t have everything on Static Caravan, you should. Hunt them down!
Geoff, if you read this, hope you don't mind me putting it here, and we will arrange that meet up and get a few jars one day soon. Thanks, mate
. And now to the photo competition winners - here they be in all their glory. Gotta love 'em. Sweet indeed.
- Robert in Cyprus for his stunning shots of the more mountainous aspect of the island.
- Andy in Guildford for taking lovely snaps on his holiday long afore the competition was even announced.
- Johnny in New York for having the coolest looking lad I've seen in quite some time.
- Phil in Sussex for calming his daughter's nerves on her first day at school (no, really) by totally exploiting the situation to win a prize.
- Jani in Finland for the high-class artiness. I have a feeling Jani may be doing a sleeve for us one day soon.
- Sean in Hants for his Bagpuss-like crab and not at all for the other one he sent!
Note to self: whatever the next competition is, Kevin in Luton will be in the mix.
More sweetness coming your way if you've bought all our 2011 releases. We're planning a free slab of vinyl from the Bracken vaults with unique artwork and stuff for Christmas. It'll be sent with the records available in December. Do nothing - it shall be done.
Lots of interest in the Telly EP - people seem to be loving that idea. And thanks to Maconie on the Beeb for playing it on his Freak Zone show - a sweetie in a bag largely full of empty wrappers
The sweetness continues – pure cane at that. No artificial sweeteners here, peeps. Thank you to Johnny and Stefan for the CDs you sent, and to Ulrich for the free copy of the Cosmic Price Guide he authored. I am not worthy. If anyone is interested in the CPG book or any others available at http://www.cpg-books.com/index.php - they come hugely recommended. The Brain, Vertigo and CPG ones are essential.
Keep on licking up the sugary sound of vinyl...!
Till next time.
A & K
Now here are a big bunch of the entries for the photo competition that the bit above this rambled on about
confused..?
....here's the members-only email from Andy that triggered you sending in the photos....
Ah, alright Members - I shall pepper this email with colloquial terms from my youth, whilst imparting a great deal of pertinent information. You fit?
- DEAD IMPORTANT BIT - the CRANIUM PIE LP is set to land on Regal Crabomophone in early-September - and it'll blow your mind. Now, due to the deal we've worked with the band, we shall only have 350 copies available. To put that into perspective, we sold 400 of the last releases in about a week.
But fear not - as Members you're well in. But only at the level you bought the last 3 releases. Thus, if you're one of the nearly 30 Members who haven't bothered to buy the Earthling Society and Chemistry Set EPs, chances are you ain't getting a Pie LP - though the last 2 releases are still available - nudge, nudge, wink, wink!
But if you also happen to be one of the dozen or more Joeys who didn't buy the Spacerock LP, you're going to struggle a bit. Sorry, but it's the only fair way to do it.
So - I NEED numbers from all Members now on what they want. Please email me (andy@fruitsdemerrecords.com) with the quantity, and I'll start a list. I like lists. I've got loads of lists. I may even start a list of all the lists I have.
To reiterate - it's very important you do the emailing me the quantity thing. Failure to do so may well result in you missing out. By the end of July would be smashing. Thanks chaps (and chapattis).
COMPETITION time
Ha! Right - what we want are your pictures...not those ones! Low-res (80 dpi or something) jpeg or gif (or something) - don't fill my in-box with big ones, please! The picture must be - either literally or laterally - something to do with FdM. Perhaps a slab of our vinyl in "a situation" or an FdM scarf draped over an otherwise unclad....I'll stop there. Or any suitable seafood sign or image. Use your imaginations, peeps, I know I am.
Jonesy will then add them to our website, and we'll pick a few favourites to send some prizes to. We've got a couple of Test Pressings lying around, and there's a full set of Roq planes, and other goodies that I can't remember. Closing date for submissions is sometime around the middle of August.
Aside from that, there are loads of releases coming together for later in the year - we've got those Luck Of Eden Hall boys on a cracking EP, and Us & Them are back - and how!
With a Wicker Man EP - that's how!
Some seriously top stuff coming in the autumn, me ducks.
Stay alive to it...
Right - peg it!
Andy (& Jonesy, the daft apath). Fight, fight, fight.....teacher, teacher!
www.fruitsdemerrecords.com - it's where people who haven't bought the last 2 releases can buy the last 2 releases.
a new Fruits de Mer forum...
FdM members will, we hope, enjoy contributing to our new forum - hosted. handled, managed by Fruits de Mer fan and all-round social-network-savvy guy, Sean Gibbins. Sean's new forum is here... Fruits de Mer Forum - please check it out.
NEWS FLASH (oo-er, missus)
...assuming everybody remembered to move their clocks forward an hour, Andy Bracken will be live on the air on Steve Di Costanzo's RADIO BASE CAMP on WPKN in Connecticut, USA this Friday, April 1st (foolish?) at 7pm UK time. That's 2pm EST in the USA of A, and quite late in India, not to mention quite early in Australia. It can be listened to live at www.wpkn.org by clicking the LIVE button, and can also be found archived there after the event via the other blue button.
Hook up with Steve at his Facebook thingy here - www.facebook.com/radiobasecamp
Here's the station's blurb on proceedings:
Andy Bracken of Fruits de Mer Records will be joining us on Friday's show to explore his journey from inquisitive child to running one of the most collectible and innovative record labels out there (and it is "out there"). He'll choose a selection of tracks that illustrate just how one becomes obsessed with vinyl, and map out the path that took him from a rockabilly pioneer to acid tinged psych rock via goth and the indie underground...oh, and there's stuff about football as well! The journey will be driven by questions sent in by the Fruits de Mer Members Club, which is all terribly exciting!
Meanwhile, back at the Bracken mansion, Andy is feeling all communicative....
...Hiya, one and all, and welcome to more random pontificating from the Fruits de Mer reef on what we live. Why? Because it's nice and colourful down here, in a psychedelic way. And Jonesy likes the way the little fishes nibble his leg hair. Bless. Saves him a fortune on waxing.
Talking of nibbles, the Spacerock LP + 7" package 'Roqueting Through Space' will (hopefully) be available late-March, but none of you sensible sorts need worry about that just now, as Member copies are bagsied from the off, so you're all nicely covered. That said, I had a problem last time where a handful of Members didn't take copies, yet we were sold out on Vol 13 and 15. Please, if you don't intend taking your reserve on every record, either let me know, or ask to be removed. It's a nightmare, otherwise.
Thereafter, we'll have 2 7" EPs out by Earthling Society and our old mates Chemistry Set. Nice.
Anyone spot Member Trevor's letter of the month in the current Record Collector magazine? It's about FdM. Thank you Trevor lad.
And did you spot the FdM feature and lengthy interview with me in the latest Timemazine magazine? It's reasonably entertaining, I hope, as I compare record collecting with keeping pigeons.
I'll be doing a radio interview thing at the end of March. It's with Radio Base Camp on WPKN in Connecticut, which isn't easy to spell. It’s hosted by "me good man Steve". Should be fun as I get to choose some tracks and waffle on about stuff I don't really understand.
What else? An Eddie Cochran Instrumental EP (Vol 15) sold on ebay for $51 plus postage, a ridiculous situation, as Rough Trade and Norman still have copies at a fiver, or thereabouts. Madness, I tell you.
We've decided the new label will be called Regal Crabomophone in homage to our logo; thank you to all who offered advice on what form this should take, very much appreciated. This all means I can replicate the Regal Zonophone label, and cock about with old crabby by sticking a crown on his head and cladding him in purple velvet, and suchlike. What, with the royal wedding imminent, it seemed like the right thing to do.
Jonesy and I have come up with a new way of losing money - FdM football scarves - genius! I mean, if you're going to lose money, lose it on something as smart as that. They've got 'Fruits de Mer Records' and logos on one side, and 'VINYL - it's not life and death - it's more important than that' on the other, as I go a bit Bill Shankly on you They'll be $16 each (which includes postage worldwide) and we should have them just in time for the weather warming up. Oops. Didn't think of that. But hey - we live in the moment.
In my last email, I wrote "the wife picks the winners, and she has a memory like a bloody sieve". Hmmm. She read that, and asked me what I meant by it? It didn't matter, though, as half an hour later she'd forgotten about it.
Which brings me nicely to the latest COMPETITION. Oh yes - hold on tight there!
We've got a number of white label Test Pressings to give away - that's right, for free (vols 13 through 16). As well as some DVDs of old Sci-fi films Jonesy uses to make videos for the tracks. Fancy some of that action? Good, then here we go...
To win cool stuff, email a question "me good man Steve" at WPKN can ask me on the air. Send them to me by reply, and I'll feed them on. If "me good man Steve" uses it, you win lovely booty.
Right, get 'em in, and let's see what's what. Need them by mid-March.
Just a quick and sincere, 'thank you' to all the Members who sent me stuff over the Christmas thingy; lovely stuff, and very touching. From cards to gifts; Ron, loving the vinyl coasters; George, not seen the honey yet, but soon I hope.
Ah, I don't deserve you. Oh alright, yes I do.
Cheers all, till next time.
Andy (& Jonesy)
But I really know that you can't stop sneaking a look at that advent calendar and willing it to be December 1st so that you can open the little door and snaffle a piece of chocolate. When I was a kid, advent calendars just had little pictures in. Except for number 24 – that had a bigger picture in. No chocolate. I don't think chocolate had been invented on our estate back in the 70s.
Thus it is that we are delighted to announce the 3 - that's THREE (like wise men) – FdM releases are in and ready. Lo and behold - and it's still November (OK, it isn't now).
There's gold aplenty in the Grass double-LPs - 22 quid a pop, with full colour gatefold sleeve and coloured vinyl (the plant was so impressed, they sent us a picture as it was being pressed!!).
Frankincense peppers the air around the Smellyvisual fantasticness of the Do Not Adjust Your Set EP - a fiver for that puppy.
Myrr...mirh....mirrrrr...the other thing is practically popping out of the double-ended cracker that is this year's ANNUAL double-7" malarkey. 8 spondoolies will paper hat that, so to speak.
And so it is that a full set will be 35 UKP.
Please note that the secret special extra free bonus doobry thing will only be sent to those who buy all of the above! So there. So, by my reckoning, that's at least 34 tracks for 35 quid posted to your lovely door with the mistletoe atop! Get in there. Give us a kiss for Christmas darling.
As always, me ducks, bulk buyers drop me a line, and if you don't like links because you're either wise with wisdom or petrified with paranoia, you can always wang the wedge via Paypal to info@fruitsdemerrecords.com
Quite a lot of alliteration in this email, which makes me moist amidst the mirth of the madness I've managed to make!
There you have it. If you only want select records from the above, email me. All orders will be acknowledged as soon as I can, but if no acknowledgement arrives within a few days, chase me (round the tree!).
Okay - aim is to try and get all these to Members by Christmas. Let's do it. Oh, and if you don't want your copies, please let me know, and we'll let them go to the over-subscribed reserve lists!
Okey-dokey - one, two, three, four, we three kings of orient are, one in a taxi, one in a car, one on a scooter bibbing his hooter, going to Leamington Spa. Or something.
Ho-Ho-Ho!
Wise King Andy (& Jonesy - he's more of a wizened old queen, if truth be told, and he's always flashing his baubles)
- DEAD IMPORTANT BIT - the CRANIUM PIE LP is set to land on Regal Crabomophone in early-September - and it'll blow your mind. Now, due to the deal we've worked with the band, we shall only have 350 copies available. To put that into perspective, we sold 400 of the last releases in about a week.
But fear not - as Members you're well in. But only at the level you bought the last 3 releases. Thus, if you're one of the nearly 30 Members who haven't bothered to buy the Earthling Society and Chemistry Set EPs, chances are you ain't getting a Pie LP - though the last 2 releases are still available - nudge, nudge, wink, wink!
But if you also happen to be one of the dozen or more Joeys who didn't buy the Spacerock LP, you're going to struggle a bit. Sorry, but it's the only fair way to do it.
So - I NEED numbers from all Members now on what they want. Please email me (andy@fruitsdemerrecords.com) with the quantity, and I'll start a list. I like lists. I've got loads of lists. I may even start a list of all the lists I have.
To reiterate - it's very important you do the emailing me the quantity thing. Failure to do so may well result in you missing out. By the end of July would be smashing. Thanks chaps (and chapattis).
COMPETITION time
Ha! Right - what we want are your pictures...not those ones! Low-res (80 dpi or something) jpeg or gif (or something) - don't fill my in-box with big ones, please! The picture must be - either literally or laterally - something to do with FdM. Perhaps a slab of our vinyl in "a situation" or an FdM scarf draped over an otherwise unclad....I'll stop there. Or any suitable seafood sign or image. Use your imaginations, peeps, I know I am.
Jonesy will then add them to our website, and we'll pick a few favourites to send some prizes to. We've got a couple of Test Pressings lying around, and there's a full set of Roq planes, and other goodies that I can't remember. Closing date for submissions is sometime around the middle of August.
Aside from that, there are loads of releases coming together for later in the year - we've got those Luck Of Eden Hall boys on a cracking EP, and Us & Them are back - and how!
With a Wicker Man EP - that's how!
Some seriously top stuff coming in the autumn, me ducks.
Stay alive to it...
Right - peg it!
Andy (& Jonesy, the daft apath). Fight, fight, fight.....teacher, teacher!
www.fruitsdemerrecords.com - it's where people who haven't bought the last 2 releases can buy the last 2 releases.
Hook up with Steve at his Facebook thingy here - www.facebook.com/radiobasecamp
Here's the station's blurb on proceedings:
Andy Bracken of Fruits de Mer Records will be joining us on Friday's show to explore his journey from inquisitive child to running one of the most collectible and innovative record labels out there (and it is "out there"). He'll choose a selection of tracks that illustrate just how one becomes obsessed with vinyl, and map out the path that took him from a rockabilly pioneer to acid tinged psych rock via goth and the indie underground...oh, and there's stuff about football as well! The journey will be driven by questions sent in by the Fruits de Mer Members Club, which is all terribly exciting!
...Hiya, one and all, and welcome to more random pontificating from the Fruits de Mer reef on what we live. Why? Because it's nice and colourful down here, in a psychedelic way. And Jonesy likes the way the little fishes nibble his leg hair. Bless. Saves him a fortune on waxing.
Talking of nibbles, the Spacerock LP + 7" package 'Roqueting Through Space' will (hopefully) be available late-March, but none of you sensible sorts need worry about that just now, as Member copies are bagsied from the off, so you're all nicely covered. That said, I had a problem last time where a handful of Members didn't take copies, yet we were sold out on Vol 13 and 15. Please, if you don't intend taking your reserve on every record, either let me know, or ask to be removed. It's a nightmare, otherwise.
Thereafter, we'll have 2 7" EPs out by Earthling Society and our old mates Chemistry Set. Nice.
Anyone spot Member Trevor's letter of the month in the current Record Collector magazine? It's about FdM. Thank you Trevor lad.
And did you spot the FdM feature and lengthy interview with me in the latest Timemazine magazine? It's reasonably entertaining, I hope, as I compare record collecting with keeping pigeons.
I'll be doing a radio interview thing at the end of March. It's with Radio Base Camp on WPKN in Connecticut, which isn't easy to spell. It’s hosted by "me good man Steve". Should be fun as I get to choose some tracks and waffle on about stuff I don't really understand.
What else? An Eddie Cochran Instrumental EP (Vol 15) sold on ebay for $51 plus postage, a ridiculous situation, as Rough Trade and Norman still have copies at a fiver, or thereabouts. Madness, I tell you.
We've decided the new label will be called Regal Crabomophone in homage to our logo; thank you to all who offered advice on what form this should take, very much appreciated. This all means I can replicate the Regal Zonophone label, and cock about with old crabby by sticking a crown on his head and cladding him in purple velvet, and suchlike. What, with the royal wedding imminent, it seemed like the right thing to do.
Jonesy and I have come up with a new way of losing money - FdM football scarves - genius! I mean, if you're going to lose money, lose it on something as smart as that. They've got 'Fruits de Mer Records' and logos on one side, and 'VINYL - it's not life and death - it's more important than that' on the other, as I go a bit Bill Shankly on you They'll be $16 each (which includes postage worldwide) and we should have them just in time for the weather warming up. Oops. Didn't think of that. But hey - we live in the moment.
In my last email, I wrote "the wife picks the winners, and she has a memory like a bloody sieve". Hmmm. She read that, and asked me what I meant by it? It didn't matter, though, as half an hour later she'd forgotten about it.
Which brings me nicely to the latest COMPETITION. Oh yes - hold on tight there!
We've got a number of white label Test Pressings to give away - that's right, for free (vols 13 through 16). As well as some DVDs of old Sci-fi films Jonesy uses to make videos for the tracks. Fancy some of that action? Good, then here we go...
To win cool stuff, email a question "me good man Steve" at WPKN can ask me on the air. Send them to me by reply, and I'll feed them on. If "me good man Steve" uses it, you win lovely booty.
Right, get 'em in, and let's see what's what. Need them by mid-March.
Just a quick and sincere, 'thank you' to all the Members who sent me stuff over the Christmas thingy; lovely stuff, and very touching. From cards to gifts; Ron, loving the vinyl coasters; George, not seen the honey yet, but soon I hope.
Ah, I don't deserve you. Oh alright, yes I do.
Cheers all, till next time.
Andy (& Jonesy)