Dave Berry | This Strange Effect | Decca | 1965

DAVE BERRY – ’This Strange Effect’/’Now’ (Decca 23.641) July 1965

Dave Berry | This Strange Effect | Decca | 1965 | Another haunting rockaballad from Decca’s Dave Berry, “This Strange Effect,” with a throbbing, pulsating rhythm, tambourine and clipped brass – plus single-finger guitar. An absorbing tune, and an extremely well-produced disc. The lyric’s a bit repetitive, but this makes it register more quickly. Dave’s in good form and it should do well.

Simply titled “Now,” the flip is a good ‘un too. Forceful mid-tempo rhythm with twangy guitar and handclaps, but a contrasting wistful lyric. (NME, 02/07/65)

When I wrote “This Strange Effect” it certainly wasn’t for the Kinks. We had met Dave Berry at a TV station and I had his voice in mind and I thought it would be nice for him. He had a similar voice, in a way, to the way I sang and he got into the whole mood of the song.

His version had a real atmosphere to it and there are colours in his recording. There was no tangible reason why it was such a success in Holland but it blew on of the Kinks‘ own songs out of the chart. The downside was that my band’s record wasn’t a number one, but the consolation was that I had written the song for Dave which got there instead. It was an odd situation to be in. (Ray Davies)