Fairy Tale
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 (1969-70) - Herman Ansink -- lead guitar - Cees Hoogerheide -- vocals - Eddy Koetsier -- bass, vocals - Harry Koetsier -- drums, percussion - Peter Seilberger -- organ
line up 2 (1970-71) - Eddy Koetsier -- bass, vocals - Harry Koetsier -- drums, percussion - John Miles -- lead guitar (replaced Herman Ansink) - Peter Seilberger -- organ - Ellen Zonruiter -- vocals (replaced Cees Hoogerheide)
line up 2 (1971) - Eddy Koetsier -- bass, vocals - Harry Koetsier -- drums, percussion - John Miles -- lead guitar (replaced Herman Ansink) - Peter Seilberger -- organ - Martin van Wijk -- lead guitar (replaced John Miles) - Ellen Zonruiter -- vocals (replaced Cees Hoogerheide)
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- Big Wheel (Cees Hoogerheide and Peter Seilberger) - Blow Ball (Herman Ansink) - The Blue Fighters (Eddy Koetsier) - The Blue Tape Band (Eddy Koetsier) - Dr. Love (Cees Hoogerheide) - Flight 505 (Rob Grell) - Fun of It (Peter Seilberger) - Jupiter (Martin van Wijk and Peter Seilberger) - Terry Lee and the Big Rock Revival (Harry Koetsier) - Lemming (Martin van Wijk) - The Nicols - Eddy O'Kay (Eddy Koetsier) - The Shocking Blue (Martin van Wijk) - Tee-Set (Peter Seilberger)
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Genre: rock Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Once Upon a Time Company: Blossom Catalog: 17001 Country/State: The Hague, Holland Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: appears to be a reissue Available: 1 Catalog ID: -- Price: $60.00
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Fairy Tale trace their roots to The Hague-based band The Nichols. Formed in 1967, the band featured the talents of guitarist Herman Ansink, singer/guitarist Rob Grell, singer Cees Hoogerheide, bassist Eddy Koetsier, and drummer Harry Koetsier.
Signed by the small Conrelis Nicolaas Rood (CNR) label, they debuted with a 1967 45, going on to release another three singles for Philips. Dropping singer/guitarist Rob Grell from the line-up and adding former The Tee Set keyboard player Peter Seilberger, in 1969 the band morphed into Fairy Tale. Signed by Hugo Gordijn's Blosoom label, they made their recording debut with the release of "Once Upon a Time ....." This is an album I've held on to for a couple of years. I really wanted to like it, but each time I've given it a spin I've been less than overwhelmed. I keep thinking one more spin will display its charms, but it hasn't happened yet. Technically these guys were quite capable, but the combination of Hoogerheide's shrill, bland voice and uninspired songs just never caught fire for me. Sure, there were sparks here and there - a cover of The Troggs' 'From Home' was nice. The soul-jazz mash-up 'Birds of Passage' had its moments, while the band's Gary Brooker and Procol Harum infatuation was momentarily interesting - check out the opener 'Yesterday's Tears.' Keyboardist Seilberger's organ washes and guitarist Anskin's fluid and melodic leads provided the bulk of album highlights. The standout performance was probably Eddy Koetsier's extended progressive-tinged rocker 'Doddering Wailings.' The song featured a tasty Anskin's solo. Still, there was just something missing from the mix. Maybe I'll give it one more shot?
"Once Upon
a Time" track listing: 1.) Yesterday's Tears (Peter Seilberger) - rating: *** stars Imagine Gary Brooker and Procol Harum deciding to dip their collective toes into a Young-Holt Trio styled jazzy repertoire and you'll get a feel for the opener 'Yesterday's Tear.' Powered by Peter Seilberger organ and keyboards, the song wasn't particular melodic and recalling Gary Brooker's raspy voice, Cess Hoogerheide's shrill vocals and mid-song scatting didn't really help the atmosphere. On the positive side, Herman Ansink's guitar solo was impressive. 2.) Will I Be Saved (Rob Grell - Cess Hoogerheide) - rating: *** stars 'Will I Be Saved' opened up with an assortment of sound effects including circus noises, crashing objects, and lapping waves. After the sound effects faced away the song morphed into a rather bland rocker, characterized by an odd time signature and an abrupt shift to Seilberger keyboards. Speculation on my part, but given the Rob Grell writing credit, this might have been a carry over from the band's The Nichols catalog. 3.) Can I Take You By the Hand (Peter Seilberger) - rating: ** stars Opening with some Procol Harum-styled organ, 'Can I Take You By the Hand' was a jazzy ballad. The slower tempo also served to showcase Hoogerheide's heavily accented English vocals. other than another nice Ansink solo, there was nothing particularly captivating on this one. 4.) Birds of Passage (Eddy Koetsier - Cee Hoogerheide) - rating: *** stars Showcasing a funky Ansink guitar riff and Seilberger' Hammond washes, 'Birds of Passage' sounded like a slice of Young-Holt soul-jazz. Quite nice, but for those sections that featured Hoogerheide's vocals the song lost direction. 5.) Everybody's Goin' Down to the Scene (Peter Seilberger - Cee Hoogerheide) - rating: ** stars I'll give it a star for the classic '60s title ... 'Everybody's Goin' Down to the Scene' started out as a flabby and forgettable big ballad, but built some steam and enthusiasm as it went along, culminating in another nice Ansink's guitar solo. To my ears it sounded like they were singing "everybody's going down to the sea ..."
(side
2) Perhaps because it was written by keyboardist Seilberger, 'Lookin' In a Mirror' again reflected a clear Procol Harum flavor. A pretty, somewhat ornate ballad, it was one of the more commercial tracks on the album. 2.) Doddering Wailings (Eddy Koetsier) - rating: *** stars The combination of Hoogerheide's echo drenched vocals and Ansink's guitar initially had a Gregorian chant feel, but when the rest of the band kicked in 'Doddering Wailings' stood as the album's longest and most progressive oriented offering. 3.) From Home (Reg Presley - arranged by Fairy Tale) - rating: *** stars Written by The Troggs' front man Reg Presley, 'From Home' was easily the album's most tuneful and commercial offering. The cover wasn't anything special, but powered by Harry Koetsier's martial drums and a jittery Anskin solo, it had an ominous appeal. Unfortunately the middle of the song featured a needless and extended Koetsier drum solo. I docked it a star for the solo. 4.) Tadadatatadoweh (instrumental) (Fairy Tale) - rating: ** stars 'Tadadatatadoweh' sounded like a bunch of drunken soccer fans about to collapse from collective alcohol poisoning.
Undergoing a string of personnel changes including the addition of female lead singer Ellen Zonruiter, the band continued on through 1971 during which time they released a pair of non-LP singles:
- 1970's 'A Reason To Stay' b/w 'Oh Boy' (Philips catalog number 6075 001) - 1971's 'Story with No End' b/w 'Streetnoise' (Philips catalog number 6075 123)
After the breakup the band members scattered to various follow-on projects.
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