Starting As We Mean To Go On - Mason

Formed from the ashes of Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich, the soft rock trio Mason signed to Pye underground imprint Dawn in 1973. Their debut album, Starting As We Mean To Go On, was scheduled for release in October 1973. It was given a catalogue number (DNS 3050), but Dawn cancelled the release at test pressing stage due to the failure of the stand-alone single to make a mark.

Over the last couple of decades, Starting As We Mean To Go On has become a legendary, hotly pursued item amongst collectors of rare vinyl from the golden age, particularly after an Apple custom label acetate pressing turned up a few years ago and sold for big money.

Four decades after it was made, Starting As We Mean To Go On finally gets a long-awaited full release. As can now be heard, it's a magnificent slice of West Coast-inspired soft rock, matching the winsome harmonies of Crosby Stills & Nash with the pure pop melodies of McCartney or the Bee Gees (with whom band member Peter Mason had briefly been associated). Taken from the master tapes, and with a lavish 16 page booklet that features the original album sleeve as well as the band's never-before-told story, Starting As We Mean To Go On is a major discovery for Dawn label collectors and admirers of melodic early Seventies pop rock alike.