The New World's Fair (50th Anniversary Edition) by Michael Moorcock & The Deep Fix
Release date: January 30, 2026Label: Think Like a Key Music
What happens you hear bands and artists that carry its sci-fi lyrical textures from the minds of Hawkwind, Blue Öyster Cult, Robert Calvert, Spirits Burning, and Smoulder. Well, they all owe a debt to perhaps one of the most well-received literary novelists in science fiction and fantasy to Michael Moorcock. Known for his work with Elric of Melnibone and the Eternal Champion, Jerry Cornelius, The Sword of the Dawn, and The Black Corridor, Moorcock has been keeping a steady diet between writing and performing to keep his sanity level strong.
That and the reissue of his own music project with The Deep Fix, showcases the only album that they released on the United Artists label in 1975 entitled The New World’s Fair. The name, The Deep Fix, was a book of obscure short stories written by Moorcock’s alias James Colvin. Alongside Moorcock who plays Guitar and Mandolin, but consists of guitarists and vocalists Graham Charnock and the late Steve Gilmore. Followed by bassist Kuma Harada and cellist Peter Pavli.
And to be allowed to have Snowy White who would later go on the road as a touring guitarist with Pink Floyd for the Animals and The Wall tour from 1977 to 1980 and 1981, Hawkwind members Nik Turner, Dave Brock, Simon House, Simon King, and Alan Powell on this album, they know they had all lend Mike a hand to bring this album to life. Mind you, this isn’t the first time The New World’s Fair has been reissued.
It had been reissued on Griffin, Dojo, Voiceprint would later release an alternate version of the album as Roller Coaster Holiday in 2004, and then the Cherry Red sub-label Esoteric Recordings in 2008. And last year with Think Like a Key Music who are reissuing this album honour of its 50th anniversary with Prof. Stoned handling the remastering of the album, its time to reflect the wonders and mysterious beauty in what is The New World’s Fair, a concept album taken place at a dystopian fairground.
It’s a mixture of folk, progressive, proto-punk, ‘70s glam, hard rock, and skiffle. It’s a weird bag of all sorts, but it shows that Moorcock is not a bad singer. Is he perfect? No. But it is often a cult album that can cut you like a knife with this Acid Folk routine that speaks of Comus’ obscure gem album of First Utterance with ‘Come to the Fair’ and the high-speed climax on ‘In the Name of Rock and Roll’.
Then, mellotrons galore throughout the psychedelic ‘Ferris Wheel’ in its Beatle-sque reverb that speaks volume by descending into the whirlpool of remembrance, angelic vocals in the background, and a haunting cello arrangement near the end of the piece. ‘Fair Dealer’ is probably Michael tipping his hat to the folklore worlds of the British beauties of Strawbs and Lindisfarne, and bits of the ’60s psych-folk wonders of The Byrds into the mix.
There is the eeriness that flows into the song of someone going through a mental breakdown on not being trust. But what’s this? Moorcock putting on his platform boots to be a part of the glam rock scene with its Alice Cooper approach that speaks volume on the shuffling groove ‘Sixteen-Year-Old Doom’. We also have the spirit of Hawkwind flows into light-speeding results with proto-punk attitude for the ‘Dodgem Dude’ to arrive.
I can imagine Moorcock writing this song for Marc Bolan during the Zinc Alloy or Bolan’s Zip Gun sessions for T. Rex. But it’s the 1981 Deep Fix recordings which not only consists Mike on vocals, but Pete Pavli on guitars, bass, and synths, and Crazy World of Arthur Brown alumni Drachen Theaker on Drums, enlists the post-punk, new wave territory.
The songs on here are quite an interesting view of what could had been if they appeared on the original New World’s Fair album. You have the nod to Arthur Brown’s Kingdom Come thanks to Pavli channelling Phil Curtis on ‘Brothel in Rosenstrasse’, the darker minor chord progression for ‘Good Girl, Bad Girl’, and the synth power to prepare ourselves entering into the ‘Time Centre’. You might want to dig out Arthur Brown’s Kingdom Come album Journey for admiration after this!
With Joe Banks’ incredible liner notes detailing the making of the album and its legacy, photos of the group, along with promos, pin badges, original poster art by Mary Hyde-Brown, and Moorcock performing with Hawkind at the Windsor Free Festival, you can’t deny the obscurity, the wonders, and the under-radar momentum that The New World’s Fair has given. It is a collection of songs that put you right in the middle of Moorcock’s visionary wonders he has given you.
