Baskin & Copperfield - I Never See The Sun/ Stranger On The Ground

 

Eventual members of The Rubettes with convincing tilt at the charts

Label: Decca
Year of Release: 1970

The Rubettes have perhaps steadily become one of the less referenced seventies glam rock acts, with only their deathless number one "Sugar Baby Love" being given much airplay time. Their other hits "Tonight", "Juke Box Jive", "I Can Do It" and "Baby I Know" barely get a sniff of attention these days, though the group name is still keenly used for endless glam revival tours.

Prior to the group's inception, members John Richardson and Alan Williams had a contract with Decca as a duo. Their first release was a slightly cynical cover of Lennon and McCartney's "Long and Winding Road" which failed to chart, but second single "I Never See The Sun" seemed to make a possible change in their fortunes. Despite the fact that the single wasn't close to poking the Top 40, the BBC saw fit to give them a slot on "Top of the Pops" - not unusual behaviour for the programme at the time - and the record attracted some airplay too.

This would ordinarily have been enough to create a flurry of attention, but sadly the record never sold convincingly. That's a shame, as it's clearly the kind of anthem the 1970 charts generally welcomed with open arms, complete with weary clarion calls, a scarf-waving chorus and delicate, boyish vocals. Four years prior to this, The Walker Brothers would have happily recorded this one.

The B-side is perkier and busier and worth a spin too, with some collectors commenting that it's actually the stronger of the two songs.

While the pair would probably have preferred to have success in their own right, The Rubettes would be a good pay-cheque for them a few laters later, with numerous different versions of the group eventually doing the rounds on the revival circuit. Baskin and Copperfield later on had other stabs at duo success outside that group under the names of Alan and John and Richards 'n' Williams, but despite their faces being familiar features in Jackie by that point, they didn't experience any more success.

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