Dolly Mixture Demonstration Tapes 2xLP Autographed (twice!) Numbered (#48)

1983 UK release on Dead Good Dolly Platters DMLP1. White label records are in excellent condition, as is the insert (and another small insert, a scrap of paper advertising an upcoming public appearance).

Plain white sleeve is good, but does have a quite a few faint brown spots (see picture) – these are on the back as well

When originally released, all copies of the album were autographed by the three band members and numbered (this one is number 48). However this copy is unique in that it also includes an additional dedication (“To Doug”), another set of autographs from the girls and a little drawing by one of them of the band logo. Debsey’s “extra” autograph is upside down!

Do let me know of you would like any additional pictures, close-ups or have any questions.

Please wait for the invoice before paying - I would VERY strongly recommend the trackable shipping method offered in the invoice with this item, otherwise I cannot accept responsibility were the item to go missing in the mail.

Tracks are:

  1  Dream Come True Dolly Mixture 2:35

  2  Ernie Ball Dolly Mixture 0:59

  3  He's So Frisky Dolly Mixture 1:42

  4  The Didn't Song Dolly Mixture 2:14

  5  Will He Kiss Me Tonight Dolly Mixture 2:43

  6  Miss Candy Twist Dolly Mixture 2:21

  7  Shonay Shonay Dolly Mixture 3:22

  8  How Come You're Such a Hit With the Boys, Jane? Dolly Mixture 2:52

  9  Side Street Walker Dolly Mixture 3:12

  10  Treasure Hung Dolly Mixture 2:48

  11  Never Let It Go Dolly Mixture 3:13

  12  Angel Treads Dolly Mixture 3:06

  13  Welcome to the Perfect Day Dolly Mixture 2:29

  14  Step Close Now Dolly Mixture 1:57

  15  Stareaway Dolly Mixture 2:27

  16  In Your Eyes Dolly Mixture 3:10

  17  Understanding Dolly Mixture 3:11

  18  Never Mind Sundays Dolly Mixture 2:15

  19  Spend Your Wishes Dolly Mixture 3:32

  20  Day by Day Dolly Mixture 3:30

  21  Wave Away Dolly Mixture 3:14

  22  Sorry to Leave You Dolly Mixture 2:58

  23  Winter Seems Fine Dolly Mixture 2:36

  24  Grass Is Greener Dolly Mixture 2:56

  25  Round the Corner Dolly Mixture 2:38

  26  Remember This Dolly Mixture 3:04

  27  Whistling in the Dark Dolly Mixture 2:29

AMG says:

Dolly Mixture was like a female version of the Undertones, creating catchy and concise punk-pop gems (emphasis on "pop") that made them a flavour of the week in England in the late '70s. They released only four commercial singles, but recorded a pile of demos that the band self-released as a double album in 1983 after mismanagement had halted their forward momentum. Demonstration Tapes is a double album with 27 lost girl group classics. So many of these songs are simply amazing that it's hard to pick favourites, but "Will He Kiss Me Tonight" has "hit" written all over it. The sound quality is a little muffled, but all the charm and pure-pop songcraft manages to shine through. Dolly Mixture could have been as big as the Go-Gos, and Demonstration Tapes is the proof.

And here’s a biography from AMG:

This pop threesome of Debsey Wykes (vocals, bass), Hester Smith (drums), and Rachel Bor (guitar) formed a sharp contrast against the ruling post-punk and angst building up in London around 1979 with bands like Gang of Four being heralded in the popular press as the big things.

Originally, Dolly Mixture was a joke, put together by three friends pretending they were in a band together. In February 1978, they were offered a show and decided they had better begin learning to play instruments. Their love of glam, '60s pop melody and the Undertones combined for a breed of infectious pop, self-proclaimed as post-punk, that would go on to influence the entire genre of indie pop. A&R executives at Chrysalis picked up the hype around the band and quickly attempted to turn them into a "girl group" with a cover of Betty Everett's song "Baby, It's You." The track failed and the group began to record with Paul Weller's new label Respond. The resulting single, "Been Teen," was produced by Captain Sensible and Paul Gray of the Damned. The second single, "Everything and More" caught the band at their best -- breezy yet sassy and smart.

Off this momentum, the band played shows across England, recorded several sessions with John Peel, and appeared on Top of the Pops as backup to Captain Sensible on the songs "Happy Talk," "Wot!," and "Glad It's All Over." This exposure was viewed with mixed emotions by the band, who were suddenly recognized more for their backing musicianship than for their own work.

In 1983, they released the "Remember This" single on their own label, Dead Good Dollys Platters, which had an strange B-side with fragmented voices, Wykes on piano and Bor on strings, a combo that threw off their more traditional pop-loving audience. This sound would continue on the 1984 The Fireside EP on Cordelia.

Their full-length album was a collection of demos -- both originals and covers -- and was released on Dead Good Dollys Platters in 1984, shortly before the band broke up. The double LP was packaged in the Beatles' White Album sleeve and was autographed and numbered.

After Dolly Mixture, Wykes and Smith formed Coming Up Roses, a pop-dance group that existed until November of 1986. Smith then retired from music and Wykes began Birdie with collaborator Paul Kelly of Saint Etienne. Bor played with the band Fruit Machine until 1999.