Fleur De Lys Circles / You've Got To Earn It

Acid Jazz group label Countdown Records presents a new 7” single series: ‘Mod Classics’. The first release is from cult group the Fleur De Lys, pairing their 1965 recording of Pete Townshend’s ‘Circles’, with the first-time single release of their cover of The Temptations’ ‘You’ve Got To Earn It’.

‘Circles’ was originally slated as The Who’s follow up to ‘My Generation’, before getting caught up in legal matters. The Fleur De Lys version was released to take advantage of The Who’s misfortunes, but it was rush-released and failed to chart. It remains one of the finest slices of the Pop Art Mod sound, and is as fresh today as it was then.

‘You’ve Got To Earn It’ is from a tantalising, lost session from 1966 (which also included takes of The Impressions ‘Amen’ and Don Covay’s ‘Sookie Sookie’). All that survived from the session was an acetate of this amazing cut, found by group member Gordon Haskell, from which this side derives. It was originally released as the title track of the first Fleur De Lys compilation on Acid Jazz in 2013. It has never before been available on 7” vinyl.