About this item

Two classic northern soul sides from the west coast. Featuring the essential Judy Street original plus, for first time on 7" vinyl, Tina Mason’s version of “What”.

The new Outta Sight season kicks off with a hot little number from California in the shape of “What”, a true northern soul anthem, originally performed by Judy Street. Written and produced by HB Barnum, “What” first took the scene by storm when played at the Leeds all-dayers in 1973 (perhaps heard by a young Marc Almond...) and went on to become a floor-filler at Wigan Casino. Here, for the first time, Indiana blue-eyed soul sister Judy is paired with LA girl Tina Mason and her 1967, album only, rendition of the song. “What” shot to No.3 in the UK pop charts in 1982 when covered by Soft Cell. In a recent interview Marc Almond recalled that they had actually recorded a cover of Franki Valli’s “The Night” for the A-side, but the record company chose “What” instead.