A DIY label, serving as an outlet for songs and music from John McGrath and Elizabeth Maclennan's 7.84 Theatre Companies - after 1973 there were two, one Scottish, one English. 'The Maclean March' b/w 'Every Man's A Maker', seems to have been 7.84's earliest 7" release. There is no date on the single's label, but its catalogue number, MSRS-1385, was taken from a series that was used by MSR / Midland Sound Recordings (q.v.) of Balsall Common; comparison with other MSR records suggests a release date of c.1974. The two songs are reported to have been taken from McGrath's 1974 play 'The Game's A Bogey', which makes that dating sound reasonable. Pressing was by Decca. An EP, The Legendary Living Room Suite', was numbered 784-4S, and was likewise undated; the play from which the tracks were taken, 'His Master's Voice', was first produced in 1978, giving an earliest possible date for the record. That EP was recorded in Scotland; included among the performers on it were David McNiven and Angela Rew, formerly with Folk band Bread, Love & Dreams. A second EP, 'Joe Of England' (784-005 S) is definitely from 1978. The 7.84 Company took its title from the fact that 7% of the population owned 84% of the wealth at that time. Thanks to Stephen Small for help with the discography.
Copyright 2014 Robert Lyons.