The Same Old Thing (alternate version mispress) ~ The Olympics

Описание: Hang on to your hats, this is complicated.
Formed by Walter Ward in 1957, The Olympics were already veteran hit-makers by the time they landed at Mirwood in the mid sixties for a run of 45's loved later on the Northern Soul dancefloors. Their third or fourth release there was Mirwood 5525 and has The Bounce labelled as the A side and The Duck as the 'B' side. The Bounce is an updated version of their earlier track on Tri Disc and The Duck (also on their album, Something Old, Something New) is a version of what was probably Mirwood's biggest hit, The Duck by Jackie Lee. However, somewhere along the line there was a cock up. What the 45 actually plays is The Bounce on the B side - which is labelled as The Duck - and The Same Old Thing on the A side which is labelled as The Bounce. So, no Duck there. But there's more.

The Same Old Thing was also released as the B side of their next 45, Mirwood 5529. The version of The Same Old Thing on Mirwood 5529 is a different one. The Mirwood 5525 version of The Same Old Thing is sometimes referred to as being by Walter Ward, and although it's undoubtedly him, there is at least one other male voice in the mix there too alongside what sounds (at least) like the Holloway sisters possibly with Sherlie Matthews, who wrote it. However, there are no Olympics other than Walter evident on the better known Mirwood 5529 version, so that means it's actually Mirwood 5529 which is Walter Ward solo with the girls. The Olympics had lost Charles Fizer and Melvin King as members in 1965 so Walter and Eddie Lewis recruited Mack Starr to join them.
This means the mislabelled Mirwood 5525 version is, under Northern Soul rules the original and the Mirwood 5529 version is an alternate take because until you know for sure the order they were recorded in, the rules say the first released version is 'the original' as it was released first, intentionally or not. As if all that wasn't enough, although Mirwood 5525 is numerically right, there have been suggestions that the hand of Simon Soussan might be involved as he had control of the Mirwood catalogue in the 70's and issued/re issued some 45's. Who Knows.

But what, I hear you ask, of The Olympics version of The Duck which isn't on this 45? When Mirwood folded, the closely related Crestview Records decided the world still needed The Olympics version of The Duck on a single (it had been on a Frech EP) so in 1969 they issued a 45 with The Bounce/The Duck on it ... and although this time the labels were on the correct sides, instead of The Duck it played another Olympics track, Secret Agents,. So The Olympics version of The Duck didn't make it onto 45 yet again and had, it seems, to wait a few more years when it appeared on as flipside of a seventies Goldies 45 reissue of Baby, Do The Philly Dog.
Quack, quack.
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