Yellow Pages - Dougal/ Mister Snowman

Label: Sovereign

Year of Release: 1972

Yes, you're right, it's a fair cop, I did buy this one because I thought it might be psychedelically tinged in some way. And no, it's not at all. Oh go on, laugh away, but it's not your wallet, is it? But never fear. I didn't bet the farm on this record, and it's an interesting little piece of novelty history in itself. 

There tend to be two types of people on this planet - those who feel tears pricking their eyes as soon as they hear children singing, and those who feel that unless they're on a Lou Reed album or a Pink Floyd number one, they should never be heard on vinyl. I am in the latter camp, and "Dougal" is, sadly, a track involving lots of kiddiwinks singing merrily.

Before you surf away, though, this appears to be something of an oddity. The children are actually singing "I want to ride with Dougal on the Magic Roundabout" in an homage to the hugely popular television show. It's an odd request to make, since Dougal very seldom rode all that much on the Magic Roundabout, and spent most of the series neurotically whinging and wittering away like a Skye Terrier possessed by the spirit of Tony Hancock. Nobody ever got killed for asking, though, and "I want to spend time with Dougal while he whinges and witters away like a Skye Terrier possessed by the spirit of Tony Hancock" doesn't scan very well.

The track chimes and clops along merrily, but is far too melodically slight to have ever been a hit. In fact, this seems to be horribly obscure, with copies turning up incredibly infrequently. I have to wonder if it was ever properly released at all, since I've never seen a copy without "Demo record - not for sale" stamped on it, but it's hard to prove, and collectors tend not to have much knowledge about novelty records aimed at children.

The B-side "Mister Snowman" is much more Christmassy and fits in neatly with the present season. If you're Judy Finnegan, you'll doubtless shed a tear. 

I obviously have no clue who the people behind this record were, but Ben Nesbit also wrote the theme from "White Horses", which was sung by the legendary Jackie Lee. 

Second Hand Record Dip Part 45 - Three Songs From Dougal and the Blue Cat

Who: Eric Thompson and his Friends

What: Three Songs From Dougal and the Blue Cat ("Florence it's a Lovely Morning!"/ "Florence's Sad Song"/ "Success! King Buster")

Where: Music and Video Exchange, Camden High Street, London

When: 1972

Label: Surprise Surprise/ Music for Pleasure

Cost: One pound

Like most second hand children's records, this was found in a slightly scuffed up condition - the rear of the sleeve is also only partly coloured in by some particularly idle child who couldn't be bothered to finish what he or she started. Whoever they were, I'll bet they are neither an artist nor a Captain of Industry now, and that's for sure.

"Dougal and the Blue Cat" was a particularly eerie "Magic Roundabout" spin-off film from 1972, following the adventures of everyone's favourite animated Skye Terrier as the arrival of a sinister Blue Cat creates havoc in the garden. This EP sees Eric Thompson sing his way through three of the tunes from the motion picture, and whilst it didn't chart, it was certainly popular enough in my school to be owned by a number of children in my class.

The highlight of the EP is the rather despairing "Florence's Sad Song" which underlines the slightly absurd and almost chilling nature of much of the film, as a fascistic feline attempts to punish the previously happy characters if they happen not to be blue. Since the nineties when "The Magic Roundabout" suddenly got adopted by a bunch of candy ravers, there's been a revisionist tendency to refer to the series as having "cheeky drug connotations". As much as we can all giggle at Dylan the Rabbit 'watching the mushrooms grow', it is ridiculously unlikely this was ever the intent, and we may as well ask why those devious folkies Rod, Jane and Freddy were parachuted into "Rainbow" with their long hair and beards, or (to use a modern analogy) whether "Bob the Builder" is using cocaine or amphetamines to keep himself going through the long shifts. Well, it would explain the Britpoppish leanings of his single, wouldn't it, eh? Nudge nudge nudge? The reality is rather more boring, and whilst "The Magic Roundabout" definitely used some adult references and contemporary stylings to keep the grown-ups watching as well, drugs did not feature in the gameplan - although the conspiracy theorists may like to point and chuckle at the fact that Lupus Music published this EP, who were of course also Syd Barrett's publishers.

All that said, "Dougal and The Blue Cat" is a flight of fantasy which ranks up there with some of the best animated work ever made, and is worth a sniff on YouTube for the curious, whatever your age is. This EP is a nice little companion piece, if a slightly scratched one. Eric Thompson may not have the most wonderful singing voice in the world, but his charm carries the work along well.