Twinkle - Michael Hanna / Take The Trouble (2019) Hi-Res

Never before released lost 7” from 1970s Terry ‘Hitmaker’ Twinkle featuring Ivor Raymonde on Production duties. The new single is taken from the forthcoming Ivor Raymonde compilation Odyssey: The Sound Of Ivor Raymonde Vol. II due December 2019 via Bella Union.

In 1971, President Records brought Ivor Raymonde and Twinkle together in Denmark Street’s Pan Music Studios to make a single. Although they were never issued, the A-side and the B-side were recorded. Here, for the first time, is that single.

Musical arranger, producer and songwriter Ivor Raymonde was behind classics like Billy Fury’s Halfway To Paradise, Dusty Springfield’s I Only Want To Be With You, and The Walker Brothers’ Make It Easy On Yourself. He crafted the sound and made them hits. For I Only Want To Be With You, he was the songwriter too. This British musical great’s story was told with Bella Union’s Paradise: The Sound Of Ivor Raymonde. Volume Two is coming soon and the release of the lost Twinkle single is a taster – issued by the label run by Ivor’s son, Simon Raymonde.

Twinkle – born Lynn Annette Ripley – began burning brightly in late 1964 with the self-penned Terry. Her debut single established her as a pioneering British female singer-songwriter. It also, due to its subject matter, was called “dangerous drivel” and “sick” by Labour-supporting peer and writer Baron Willis. The BBC banned it and the hip TV show Ready Steady Go! wouldn’t showcase it, even though it hit number four. Terry told the story of a leather-clad biker boy – a boyfriend who took the final ride. Following her Top Ten appearance, Twinkle’s a run of singles and an EP on Decca established her as a pop auteur. So much so that The Smiths covered Terry’s follow-up, Golden Lights. But the hits did not keep coming. After a one-off single in 1969 for
former Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham’s Instant label, she took stock.

The Instant single was Micky, titled after her boyfriend Michael Hannah. When she hooked up with President in 1971, a new song she had written called Michael Hanna was chosen as the 45’s top side. The flip was written by in-house President songwriter Barbara Ruskin – Ivor Raymonde’s work with her is heard on Paradise – and veteran composer Len Praverman, who was on the
books of Pan-Musik, the label’s publishing arm. The session took place on 25 June 1971.
“Michael Hannah” was driving and moody, with an insistent melody framed by Ivor Raymonde in a small group arrangement showcasing Twinkle’s affecting lyrics. With its yearning chorus line, “Take The Trouble” was as strong melodically. The non-intrusive piano was probably played by Ivor Raymonde. The reasons for the single’s non-appearance are unknown but the release of this gem is a tribute to Ivor Raymonde and Twinkle, both of whom are no longer with us.