Stefanie & ORF Big Band – Compared To What b/w Compared To What Alt. Version – Record Shack AT TP DJ 7″

Unearthed KILLER tunes from the vaults of Austrian Public Broadcasting Institution ‘ORF’ available for the very first time on officially released 7″ vinyl single format. Of course pressed in top HI-FI quality directly from the archive master recordings thankfully supplied by ORF. This here is the ‘Handwritten DJ Copy’, very limited edition, check out our pressing variants and ORDER NOW!.

***LIMITED HANDWRITTEN ‘WHITELABEL’ 7″ DEEJAY PRESS, ONLY 50 COPIES MADE!**

This brand new banger on Recordshack label features two smashin’ “Austro Soul” marvels unearthed from the vaults of the Austrian Public Broadcasting Institution (ORF) available for the first time on official 7“ release. Studio versions have been out on rare Austrian LPs for 50+ years.

These only ever got noticed by a few deep diggin’ deejays & collectors in Europe & Japan keeping them more or less ‘secret’ in order to avoid losing exclusivity. Rare Soul and Funk 45 deejays naturally prefer to own their stuff on 7″, so this limited 500 copies affair makes it possible to have these TOP tunes on ‘OVO‘ (Original Vinyl Only) format without the danger of being ‘punished’ for playing reissues. On top of that there’s never before heard or even released alternative takes of both tracks sourced directly from the ORF archive masters.

And WOW! would anyone have expected an Austrian recording to be so very ‘funky’ as the ‘Compared To What‘ alternative take presented here? Why are these recordings so ‘tight’ and of such high quality? The answer is that the ORF Big Band was out on a mission to put Austrian ‘popular’ music on the international map supported by the government. That’s why they got to use the best studios and chose the cream of local musicians. Furthermore some of the international ‘big players’, top American Jazz musicians like Art Farmer got signed in to add some proper ‘grooviness’ to the whole project.

Apart from being highly collectable, internationally sought after, ORF Big Band Library LPs were mostly instrumental. However the tracks here were recorded in the early 1970s featururing the obscure Austrian songstress Stefanie. It’s obvious that she ‘felt the Soul’. In the 1960s she went to the US, returned to Austria right on time to be noticed by Erich Kleinschuster (the band leader & conductor) to lay down these tracks at the ORF studio.
Our ‘Compared To What‘ version actually has ‘harder’ lyrics than the Les McCann/Eddie Harris/Roberta Flack previous ones, which got partly censored (beeped for radio play) due to being critical of the US government.

Another level is reached through the ORF Big Band‘s hard hitting, tight funky rhythm section, those razor sharp horns plus a certain dash of Latin Jazz topped by that convincing, strong vocal delivery, all in four-beats-to-the-bar driving Motown arrangement take this version to another level. The tune oozes pure dancefloor bliss, which makes it perfect for Northern Soul floors and beyond.

‘Feelin’ It’ is more of a laid back Jazz-funky groover, reminiscent of the top library tunes through it’s full, well dosed instrumentation, a bit more like veteran ORF Big Band collectors would expect. Here we serve it for the very first time on 7” format backed with the unheard alternative take. The song was written by Stefanie who did not get mentioned on the band’s rarest demo-only LP, this gets corrected on this release.

These belters were sourced from the original master tapes and pressed on top-notch quality vinyl and it comes in a stunning gatefold sleeve with extensive liner notes suiting the high quality of the tunes. This is a piece of pure Austrian underground Soul history on 45. We call it ‘Austro Soul!

You better be quick to grab your copy! This is a strictly limited release, that’s already causing big waves internationally. It got also featured as the first track on BBC6‘s countdown of the top 45s of 2024.

..a few ‘quotes’ from international & local tastemakers:

‘What a tune! That voice of Stefanie is something else, and who knew that the ORF-Big Band could sound this funky! Definitely up there as one of the best versions of this classic! And an undiscovered gem, having never been played by ORF themselves, so very proud to have given it its first play on national radio at BBC 6Music’  BBC6 Music’ Craig Charles, The Craig Charles Funk And Soul Show, BBC 6Music

‘Right from the beginning I was blown away by her voice, her outlook and especially her timing, phrasing and so on. She most definitely had what it takes to make a name for herself on the international music scene. With the help of EMI, the label I was under contract with at the time, we wanted to support her career. Sadly, she didn’t trust the contract we offered. She was reluctant and eventually didn’t sign it. What a shame. Her voice was a gift from above.’ Marianne Mendt, legendary Austrian actress and singer

‘This record is physically amazing. When I play it the dancefloor comes alive! Seriouly!’ Eddie Piller (Acid Jazz label boss and genre creator)

‘There’s crossover and there is CROSSOVER! This record will be BIG on so many different underground music scenes, the Northern Soul scene for sure being one, and possibly it may ultimately have a much wider commercial appeal as well. Great release. Get It While It’s Hot… Guy Hennigan (British premium league Rare Soul deejay & Northern Soul authority)

…more soon on upcoming Stefanie/ORF Big Band page