Mark Wirtz: Dream Dream Dream - The Anthology, 5CD Deluxe Clamshell Box

"Dream Dream Dream: The Anthology" spans Wirtz's entire career, providing both a perfect introduction to new listeners and a treasure trove for long-time fans. The collection features a staggering 131 recordings, meticulously compiled and curated by Stephen C Wilson on behalf of the Estate of Mark Wirtz to showcase Wirtz’s multi-faceted talents as a composer, producer, and performer. This anthology includes not only his most iconic works but also rare and previously unreleased material that will excite collectors and music enthusiasts alike. Alongside this any orders of the box set made directly from Cherry Red Records will include access to a free download of the digital edition of the boxset (featuring an additional 35 tracks).

The 5CD collection spans from 1963 through the 1970s. It highlights his collaborative work with a diverse range of artists, including Caroline Munro, Sheila And Jenny, The Soul Brothers, Miki Antony, The Matchmakers, Tomorrow, and many others as well as a plethora of Mark's solo works as a singer/songwriter in his own right. This set serves as both a retrospective and a detailed look into Wirtz's prolific output during these formative years and beyond.

Included is a 40 page booklet featuring recollections and tributes from several artists, friends and family that knew, worked with and/or loved Mark over the decades including Caroline Munro, Keith West, John Carter, Sheelagh Regan, Mark's daughter Nicole and his widow Amanda. Also included in the booklet are many photographs, several never previously published, plus a short Biog of Mark and detailed track notes by Stephen C Wilson.

As an added bonus, the box set includes exclusive content, such as a free collectible badge designed by Stewart Harris who also designed the Box set's distinctive artwork, and a collectible double-sided facsimile of the handwritten lyrics for Wirtz’s iconic 1967 hit ‘Grocer Jack’. This extra material provides fans with a tangible connection to Wirtz's creative process.

The anthology also features a wealth of unreleased material, offering listeners out-takes, rare tracks, work tapes, home demos and works in progress. Additionally, several tracks are presented in stereo for the first time ever, providing a fresh auditory experience even for long-time fans.

Many of the recordings in this set are being reissued for the first time in over five decades. Among these are two complete LPs: 'Come Back And Shake Me' from 1968 and 'Fantastic Teenage Fair' from 1970. These albums have long been sought after by collectors and are now available to a new generation of listeners and include Mark's own takes on three classic Beatles tracks – 'Hey Jude', 'Fool On The Hill, and 'Ob La Di Ob La Da'.

For the first time in many years, tracks like 'Grocer Jack', 'Sam', and four classic Tomorrow tracks are included in their original highly sought after Mono mixes. These versions offer a nostalgic listening experience, preserving the sound as it was originally intended.

The box set also introduces several tracks that have been newly remixed by Stephen C Wilson for the Estate and this collection. These remixes provide fresh perspectives on classic hits, enhancing the listening experience with modern audio techniques while maintaining the integrity of the original recordings.

To add a personal touch, the fifth disc commences and concludes with intimate piano renditions of ‘Grocer Jack’ and ‘He's Our Dear Old Weatherman,’ performed by Mark in 2017 for an audience that included only his wife, Amanda. These recordings offer a deeply personal and emotional close to this extensive collection.

Mark Wirtz’s influence on the music industry is immeasurable, and this box set is a fitting tribute to his enduring legacy. Mark’s daughter Nicole says of her father’s legacy: “Dad didn’t do art; he WAS art. He conceived just about everything he engaged in as an expression of creativity. Though he was talented in all areas of the arts, he even made such mundane tasks as making dinner an artistic event. There was a drive within him: a fizzy cocktail of wild genius, exultant sensuality as well as profound trauma. He had a thirst that was perhaps never quenched, for the limits of this world fell short of what his inner universe yearned to express. Although he often embodied the tortured artist archetype, he never lost his smile or wit. Needless to say, being raised by him was quite an experience!”

"Dream Dream Dream: The Anthology" not only celebrates his past works but also reintroduces them to a new generation of listeners, ensuring that his musical genius continues to inspire and captivate. 

TRACK LISTING

DISC ONE

1. Mark Rogers And The Marksmen – Bubble Pop

2. Mark Rogers And The Marksmen – Hold It!

3. Sheila And Jenny – When The Boy's Happy

4. Sheila And Jenny – But Please Don't Break Her Heart

5. Jan Panter – Scratch My Back 6. Peanut – I'm Waiting For The Day

7. Peanut – Someone's Gonna Be Sorry

8. Peanut – I Didn't Love Him Anyway

9. Peanut – Come Tomorrow

10. The Soul Brothers – Gotta Get A Good Thing Goin'

11. The Mood Mosaic – A Touch Of Velvet - A Sting Of Brass (stereo mix)

12. Caroline Munro – Tar And Cement (Il Ragazzo Della Via Gluck) 13. Caroline Munro – This Sporting Life

14. Mark Wirtz Orchestra And Chorus – Adventure

15. Mark Wirtz Orchestra And Chorus – Yesterday's Laughter, Today's Tears

16. The Mood Mosaic – The Yellow Spotted Capricorn

17. Mark Wirtz Orchestra And Chorus – Riviera Carnival

18. Mark Wirtz Orchestra And Chorus – Comin' Home, Baby

19. Steve Flynn – Come Tomorrow 20. Steve Flynn – Let's Live For Tomorrow

21. Steve Flynn – Your Life And My Life

22. Steve Flynn – Mr. Rainbow

23. Keith West – On A Saturday

24. Tomorrow – The Incredible

25. Journey Of Timothy Chase (mono mix)

25. Tomorrow – Strawberry Fields Forever (mono mix)

26. Tomorrow – My White Bicycle (mono mix)

27. Tomorrow – Revolution (mono mix)

28. Keith West And Mark Wirtz – Shy Boy

29. Keith West And Mark Wirtz – Engel Fallen Nicht Vom Himmel 30. Interview – Mark talks about Tomorrow

DISC TWO

1. Mark Wirtz – (He's Our Dear Old) Weatherman

2. Keith West – Excerpt From "A Teenage Opera" (alias Grocer Jack)

3. Keith West – Sam (from "A Teenage Opera")

4. The Aquarian Age – 10,000 Words In A Cardboard Box

5. The Sweetshop – Barefoot And Tiptoe

6. The Sweetshop – Lead The Way

7. Kippington Lodge – And She Cried

8. Kippington Lodge – Rumours

9. Kippington Lodge – Shy Boy

10. Mark Wirtz – What's Good For The Goose

11. Mark Wirtz – Mrs. Raven

12. Miki (Antony) – Dear Auntie Mary

13. Samantha Jones – Go Ahead And Love Me

14. Samantha Jones – Go Ahead

15. Zion De Gallier – Winter Will BeCold

16. Zion De Gallier – Dream Dream Dream

17. Zion De Gallier – Me

18. Zion De Gallier – Geraldine

19. Mark Wirtz – Goody, Goody, Goody

20. Astronaut Alan And The Planets (alias Fickle Finger) – Cellophane Mary-Jane

21. Cellophane Mop – What Goes Up Must Come Down

22. Cellophane Mop – Slowly, Slowly, Quick, Quick, Slowly

23. (Bonus track) Pat And Penny – Jelly Bean (stereo mix)

24. (Bonus track) Pat And Penny – Here We Come (stereo mix)

25. (Bonus track) Zion De Gallier – Me (from session tape RM5)

26. (Bonus track) Zion De Gallier – Me (from session tape RM7)

DISC THREE

1. The Matchmakers – Baby Make Me Happy

2. The Matchmakers – Goody Goody Goody

3. The Matchmakers – This Time It Must Be Love

4. The Matchmakers – Thank You Baby (For Coming)

5. The Matchmakers – Wooly Wooly Watsgong (Ging Gang Go)

6. The Matchmakers – Droopy Loopy

7. Philwit And Pegasus – The Elephant Song

8. Philwit And Pegasus – Pseudo Phoney Mixed Up Croney

9. Philwit And Pegasus – Happiness

10. Philwit And Pegasus – Pauper’s Son

11. Philwit And Pegasus – Spinning Carousel

12. Mark Wirtz – Long Long Way From Home

13. Mark Wirtz – Am I Me

14. Mark Wirtz – The Song I Sing 15. Mark Wirtz – Trambouline

16. Mark Wirtz – Everybody Needs Someone, Somebody

17. Mark Wirtz – Mellow Man

18. Mark Wirtz – Hasn't It Been A Heavy Day

19. Mark Wirtz – Swan (Ballerina)

20. Mark Wirtz – Farewell Lullaby

21. (Bonus track) Mark Wirtz – Avalon (demo)

22. (Bonus track) Mark Wirtz – Mr Sun King (demo)

DISC FOUR

Mark Wirtz Orchestra 

1) Fantastic Fair

2) Ob La Di Ob La Da

3) Never My Love

4) Come Down Little Bird

5) Mrs Robinson

6) Sha La La La Lee

7) Black Is Black

8) Fool On The Hill

9) The Real Mr Smith

10) Girl Friday

11) Music To Watch Girls By

12) Hey Jude

Mark Wirtz Orchestra And Chorus

13) Dizzy

14) Aquarius

15) Come Back And Shake Me

16) Love And Occasional Rain

17) Ragamuffin Man

18) Theme From A Teenage Opera

19) Festival Of Kings

20) Snake In The Grass

21) A Touch Of Velvet, A Sting Of Brass

22) I Can Hear Music

23) Farewell To A Broken Doll

24) Good Times

25) My Way

26) Poem

DISC FIVE 

Outtakes, Demos, Curios and Remixes

1.    Mark Wirtz – Intro - Grocer Jack (solo piano recital)

2.    Mark Rogers And The Marksmen – Spanish Scramble

3.    Interview – “Grocer Jack”

4.    Mark Wirtz – Grocer Jack (work in progress from acetate)

5.    Mark Wirtz – Sam (work in progress)

6.    Interview – !Number one in seventeen Countries”

7.    Mark Wirtz – (He's Our Dear Old) Weatherman (work in progress)

8.    Interview – “Don't ever be the first”

9.    Zion De Gallier – Me (from session tape RM8)

10.     Zion De Gallier – Me (2024 remix)

11.    Mark Wirtz Orchestra And Chorus – Dizzy (2024 instrumental remix)

12.     The Sweetshop – Barefoot And Tiptoe (2024 Stereo remix)

13.    Aquarian Age – 10,000 Words In A Cardboard Box (2024 remix)

14.     Philwit And Pegasus – Pseudo Phoney Mixed Up Croney (2024 stereo remix)

15.     The Matchmakers - Droopy Loopy (2024 remix)

16.     Zion De Gallier – Dream Dream Dream (2024 Stereo remix)

17.     Philwit And Pegasus – The Elephant Song (2024 stereo remix)

18.     The Soul Brothers – Gotta Get A Good Thing Goin' (2024 stereo remix)

19.     Mark Wirtz – Knickerbocker Glory (2024 stereo remix)

20.     Mark Wirtz – Feelin' Better (home demo)

21.     Mark Wirtz – When The Left Hand Don't Know What The Right Hand Is Doing (demo)

22.     Mark Wirtz – Let (home demo)

23.     Mark Wirtz – I Need To Fall In Love (home demo)

24.     Mark Wirtz – Eye To Eye (home demo)

25.     Mark Wirtz – Forgimme (home demo 2024 mix and restoration)

26.     Mark Wirtz – Miss Demeanour (home demo 2024 mix and restoration)

27.     Mark Wirtz – Outro - Weatherman (solo piano recital)