Rockasteria: Fairy Tale - Once Upon A Time (1969 holland, remarkable psych rock with prog tendencies, 2014 remaster)

Saturday, January 25, 2025

Fairy Tale - Once Upon A Time (1969 holland, remarkable psych rock with prog tendencies, 2014 remaster)

In 1970, four musicians from The Hague settled in the Frisian countryside. A farmhouse on the Skieding near Drachtstercompagnie became their home. The band members of Fairy Tale, formed from a combination of former members of The Nicols and Tee Set, failed to find a suitable living and rehearsal space in The Hague and were willing to move.

The idea arose to buy a farmhouse in the north of the country with enough space for living, a permanent rehearsal space and their own recording studio. That became a reality. Drummer Harry Koetsier was enthusiastic about the new home. “The big advantage of our new house is that we are as free as a bird in the sky, since the nearest neighbor lives more than a kilometer away. The big barn is set up as a rehearsal room for the time being until our ideas and plans of having our own studio are finalized.”

Band member Peter Seilberger put it as follows at the time: We come from The Hague and want to live and make music together. We've been living here for a month and a half now and it's just lovely. Everywhere around you is green and you come into direct contact with nature. It's great to be able to live with each other in nature, to grow towards each other, and to realize that you love each other. Besides, it also makes the music better.

With his brother Eddy (bassist and vocals), Harry Koetsier had made the switch from The Nicols to Fairy Tale. With the other musicians Ellen Zonruiter (vocals) and Peter Seilberger (organ and piano), the brothers formed a national professional band as well as a residential community, popularly called a “commune. Ellen Zonruiter had not previously sung or played in a group. Road manager Dero Clarisse also moved with her from The Hague.

Far from cradle The Hague, Fairy Tale (after a first album in 1969, Once Upon a Time) delivered two singles from Frisian soil. In 1970 the first single, A Reason to Stay/Oh Boy, was released and a single was announced, A Better Way of Living/Autumn, which tells the story of life in the Frisian countryside.

Another single, Story With No End/Streetnoise, was released in 1971. Although the singles scored well, a real breakthrough with Fairy Tale failed to materialize. The fairy tale life and experiment in the Frisian countryside did not last. Distance and the lack of a bustling Randstad announced an early departure of several band members and meant the end of Fairy Tale. Both Koetsier brothers remained behind on the farm in Friesland.

Wald-Beat, 21 August 2023