"Castaway" ~ Polish Postcard Single

[mikebise]

In Late 1988, I bought some music magazine that had some Stevie content (I forget which). In the ads section, there was a guy from England selling Polish Postcard Singles by many different artists, but the one that caught my eye was:

"Castaway" by Stevie Nicks

This was shortly after I had first gotten Uncirculated Rumours, so I knew of the two versions of "Castaway" on that 3-record set. I didn't really believe there was an official European release for a fully-produced "Castaway". However, being a Kate Bush fan, I knew that many artists throw out one-off oddball singles here and there. Weird singles that never even make it on albums. I'd only been a Stevie Fan for 7 years, so, who knew?

I called the guy in England who was selling the single. He said it was an actual 45 produced in Poland and the song on the A-side was "Castaway" (he didn't know what the b-side was). He had sold out immediately and was looking for more copies. He put me on his mailing list, but he never had any more for sale and did not advertise "Castaway" for sale any longer.

This really happened ~ I was shocked to get my phone bill with my call from Houston to London on it!!!

I always figured this was some bootlegger selling fake Stevie singles with unauthorized recordings. But I still wanted to have one, and always wondered what version of "Castaway" was used.

Has anyone else ever heard of this?

[skuncles]

I've heard of it and it very well may have really been produced in Poland, but it was still a bootleg. Just like the wooden boxed sets put out of "Bella Donna", "The Wild Heart" and "Rock A Little", really cool with the t-shirts, key chains and other trinkets, but still bootlegs.

[paleshadow]

I'm pretty sure I remember seeing it in this book:

Rock and Roll Magazines, Posters and Memorabilia (Official Identification and Price Guide to Rock and Roll Magazines, Posters, and Memorabilia)

By David Henkel.

There was a whole section devoted to Fleetwood Mac and Stevie all the way up to Street Angel. It also included the estimated $ values of the items. Unfortunately I don't have the book anymore, and I believe it's out of print, but it might be available in libraries or used book stores.

[skuncles]

Yeah I just looked in my copy of that book, this is listed in there (and worth between $20-$25) there is also a Polish postcard that plays "Rhiannon" as well. So that raises a good question. Perhaps in Poland only the song got some sort of release???
I've never seen the "Castaway" thing. I wonder if it is made of cardboard or vinyl? In the 60's thru the 80's it wasn't uncommon to get a "record" on a cereal box. It wouldn't sound too good, but it would play. So maybe that's what these "postcards" are???

[mikebise]

I'm sorry I forgot to elabourate about the single itself!

The English guy told me it was a vinyl 45 and it came with a postcard of the artist (in this case, Stevie) as well as a picture sleeve. He did not remember the b-side to "Castaway", and seemed rather surprised how well this obscure item had sold for him.

This just seems like something I would dream up ~ I dream about "lost" Stevie releases all the time! But it's real, and probably one of the rarest Stevie collectibles out there.

I just wonder what this "Castaway" sounds like. A fully-produced outtake from Bella Donna? One of the many demos?

I'm haunted!

[madeline]

Originally Posted by skuncles

Yeah I just looked in my copy of that book, this is listed in there (and worth between $20-$25) there is also a Polish postcard that plays "Rhiannon" as well. So that raises a good question. Perhaps in Poland only the song got some sort of release???
I've never seen the "Castaway" thing. I wonder if it is made of cardboard or vinyl? In the 60's thru the 80's it wasn't uncommon to get a "record" on a cereal box. It wouldn't sound too good, but it would play. So maybe that's what these "postcards" are???

Well I have 6 different Polish postcards. The one postcard is the monkey and is labeled as a 45. The other 5 are bigger and listed as 33's. They play Storms, Sara, Sisters of the moon, Beautiful Child and Never Forget. I always thought these were pretty cool, although I haven't had a record player since the 80's. I would like to be able to play one just to see what it sounds like.

[jeffd8382]

Originally Posted by mikebise

This just seems like something I would dream up ~ I dream about "lost" Stevie releases all the time! But it's real, and probably one of the rarest Stevie collectibles out there.
[/I]

LOL!!! I'm so glad to know I'm not the only one who has had a dream about that kind of stuff... I can't remember many details anymore, but I've had a couple dreams where I discovered some incredibly rare Stevie/Fleetwood Mac material.

One dream in particular I can remember was about finding something new by Stevie that was just released, and I found the CD of it by surprise while in a store. I was shocked to see it, bought it, even though it was more expensive than I felt comfortable spending, and took it out of the store. But my CD player didn't work in my car for some reason so I couldn't hear it... The dream then took a detour elsewhere, but I finally remembered I had this new CD by her, but couldn't locate it anywhere. I finally found it, started playing it, and instead of hearing anything, I woke up!

But back on topic, I sure hope someone can shed some light on this single... sounds very intriguing!

[Phil]

Hi Mike,
I was actually unlucky enough to secure one of the "Castaway" postcard singles back in 1989 and I can tell you now that it wouldn't actually play (at least not on my record player). I believed at the time it was a con and just asummed I'd been ripped off by the seller. It was just a plain, cream coloured postcard with light grooves in the centre but not as large as a 7" vinyl single. It didn't have any details of the recording so I didn't know whether it was supposed to be a legitimate issue or not (I'm quite certain it wasn't though).
I must have it somewhere still so I'll try to dig it up and maybe attempt playing it again (on my current player). However, I don't have high hopes for it.

[mikebise]

Thanks for the actual details!

My English dealer must have not even paid attention or was lying to me, like being an actual postcard and not having a picture sleeve. I asked him LOTS of questions on that phone call from Houston to London. He probably just wanted to hurry me up since he no longer had any for sale.

Weird that "Castaway" was chosen as the song. Still, it would be interesting if someone could get theirs to play and see what version it is.

[mikebise]

Bumping for Sorcerer who asked about this yesterday!