The Carnival Is Over for me too. my grandma gave me a short home movie (silent) of her, her partner and his dad around Liverpool River Mersey and other places which is what my life was around this time - we lived with them in Kirkdale and I went to school there before moving to Waterloo more in the suburbs. So I converted it to video and added a soundtrack: The Carnival Is Over, the song that seemed most appropriate. So it's a mixture of mournful sadness and loss and also tunefulness and fondness.

 

The Stones is a goodie, I sort of knew it a bit and it's pretty good generally. 1,2,3 was and is a fave, loved that song, second-best of the batch. Sonny & Cher and The Animals I have had heard and like but don't have strong memories of. Baby I'm Yours was Linda Lewis 70's version for me, all other versions came after that one, the original is best though and I dont know P&G' cover. Love Is Strange, ditto, Everything But The Girl is the one I rate and knew first but the original is the best.

 

Dylan's is OK, Matt Monroe's version of Yesterday made no impression on me, The Beatles version was the famous one and living in Liverpool it was all about Mersey beat and the football team. Lance Percival's rings no bells but he was always engaging in films and on TV. Carry On Cruising springs to mind. Ocean liners that is.

It has to be “My Generation” from this group - when you listen closely you realise what a great and intricate record it really is. “A Lover’s Concerto” is a very classy discovery though.

 

9 The Who My Generation A #2 hit and their signature song; it's a great rebellious rock song; particularly enjoy the vocal stuttering and the bass guitar solo

8 The Toys A Lover's Concerto Another Motown style US girl group; this is a gorgeous song performed tenderly and climaxing with some beautiful harmonies

8 Donovan Turquoise Much less successful than his first 2 but just as lovely, and the prominent Scottish accent adds to the atmosphere of the record

7 The Byrds Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season) A lovely and serene cover of a folk song with a peace theme, where remarkably the lyrics are almost entirely lifted from the Bible

7 Roy Head Treat Her Right Only hit for this US singer; a very interesting song with a driving rhythm and an explosive chorus with brass and exuberant vocals

6 Paul And Barry Ryan Don't Bring Me Your Heartaches Debut for this brotheely pair who will go on to have several hits together: a very endearing and sincere ballad with nice harmonies

6 Gene Pitney Princess In Rags What a good chap for loving her even though she's poor - as usual with Gene the performance value and production are excellent

5 Roy Orbison Crawlin' Back Not one of his greatest although it improves as it goes along, and the big emotional climax alone makes the song worth a listen

5 Jim Reeves Is It Really Over? As often happens with Jim he is better than the actual song, although the instrumentation and backing vocals on this are strong

4 Petula Clark You're The One Quite a nice song with lavish production and instrumentation, but there's something quite twee and sugary sweet about it all in all

4 P.F. Sloan The Sins Of A Family Only hit for this US singer, actully a duet with Lucinda Williams; musically quite a nice folky song but lyrically quite depressing

3 Elvis Presley Tell Me Why One of these very downtrodden heartbreak ballads that wallows in its own misery, a bit like "Heartbreak Hotel" but not very good

3 Marianne Faithfull Yesterday Similarly to Matt's it's a fairly decent version in itself but looking back it seems baffling that people would have touched this song

2 Cliff Richard Wind Me Up (Let Me Go) This definitely hasn't been wound up properly as it's utterly dreary, yet made #2 while his previous non Top 10s are much better

 

 

1965 Group 17:

 

#2478 20/11/1965 Ken Dodd The River 3 37-19-11-7-6-{3}-3-4-6-9-9-12-24-44->14

#2479 20/11/1965 The Four Seasons Let's Hang On 4 38-35-20-16-13-10-10-8-7-{4}-5-8-15-21-37-49->16

#2480 20/11/1965 Gerry And The Pacemakers Walk Hand In Hand 29 41-38-{29}-31-39-42-42->7

#2481 20/11/1965 Sandie Shaw How Can You Tell 21 46-39-{21}-23-24-27-27-32-40->9

#2482 27/11/1965 P.J. Proby Maria 8 37-14-12-{8}-12-12-14-21-34->9

#2483 27/11/1965 The Shadows War Lord 18 48-39-32-27-{18}-18-23-23-36->9

#2484 27/11/1965 Otis Redding My Girl 11 49-49-36-28-22-22-20-17-12-{11}-13-12-16-23-37-50->16

#2485 27/11/1965 Wilson Pickett Don't Fight It 29 50-42-{29}-30-35-35-36-41->8

#2486 04/12/1965 Chris Andrews To Whom It Concerns 13 32-21-14-{13}-13-15-18-26-33-47->10

#2487 04/12/1965 Fontella Bass Rescue Me 11 33-18-{11}-11-11-13-14-18-29-34->10

#2488 04/12/1965 The Kinks Till The End Of The Day 8 34-26-23-14-14-10-{8}-10-8-10-20-28->12

#2489 04/12/1965 The Walker Brothers My Ship Is Coming In 3 38-13-10-6-6-6-5-{3}-7-9-17-31->12

#2490 04/12/1965 The Spencer Davis Group Keep On Running 1 48-30-22-15-15-5-2-{1}-2-2-6-8-20-43->14

#2491 11/12/1965 The Beatles Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out 1 2-{1}-1-1-1-1-2-4-7-13-27-46->12

Edited September 21, 20231 yr by JulianT

'Carnival Is Over' is nice and 'My Generation' is a solid track too!

Back to reading this thread again for now, will see how long I last before falling off keeping up with this forum again :teresa:

 

I genuinely thought for a while that 'My Generation' was an original song by The Zimmers as that version was the first time I heard it :lol: so I've never been able to 100% take it seriously but it is a great song. Funny that it shows up here on a week The Zimmers' cover was mentioned in the Music Week sales report.

Great top 2 there, My Generation is a generation gap record, and there musically really was one in the 60's, older people loathed a lot of it. One of The Who's classics. A Lover's Concerto was the track I loved best at the time, I still love it, what a classical melody (Christian Petzold - no me, neither!) and deserves to be better remembered.

 

Turn Turn Turn I first new by Mary Hopkin singing it on Opportunity Knocks before she got the call from Paul McCartney, but Ive always found it a bit dull in any version. Princess In rags and Crawlin back are standard good Pitney/orbison, ditto Petula, Cliff and Elvis don't excite, and Yesterday was the one Marianne did on the fabulous Beatles special TV show - they did their current hits and guest stars did covers, so I guess this had Fabs approval given they never released it as a single until 1976. By which time it was almost the most recorded song of the century, bar Stardust, which it overtook not too long after. I think it needs the Tv performance visual..

This might actually be my favourite double A Side ever. Both tracks are brilliant in themselves but also complement each other so well, with the Lennon style and McCartney style both represented at their absolute best. So much so that I’ve decided to give a second 10 for this year. “Rescue Me” is an outstanding runner up though that would have won most other days.

 

10 The Beatles Day Tripper/We Can Work It Out 207th #1: a corker of a double A with a quirkier John track and more down to Earth Paul track, but both with beautiful storytelling

9 Fontella Bass Rescue Me First hit for this US singer and a fabulous R&B classic that has been covered many times; agonisingly it peaked at #11 for 3 weeks

8 The Spencer Davis Group Keep On Running 208th #1: a reggae song cover that works briliiantly - their 3 prior releases all missed the Top 40 but now they've struck gold

8 The Four Seasons Let's Hang On Yet another great one from them: really catchy and exuberant in close harmony with a falsetto heavy but nicely controlled top line

7 Wilson Pickett Don't Fight It This one has connected with me more than his debut; when the backing vocalists sing "feel it" the track really does come alive

7 The Walker Brothers My Ship Is Coming In This has a similar sound world to "Make It Easy On Yourself" and is also captivating, with a sumptuous and stately chorus feel

6 The Kinks Till The End Of The Day A song about escaping: overall not one of their most memorable but has a great guitar solo and a frenetic climax towards the end

6 Otis Redding My Girl Amazingly The Tempations version missed the Top 40 earlier this year though it will resurface: this is great but doesn't add much

5 The Shadows War Lord A good cinematic sounding instrumental with a relentless marching beat and a strong melody that moves between instruments

5 Chris Andrews To Whom It Concerns The follow up to "Yesterday Man" and like that this is almost irritatingly catchy, but nice overall with good instrumental touches

4 Sandie Shaw How Can You Tell Her 6th hit in just over a year; another jolly catchy one but they're all a bit similar and a bit sure of themselves for me somehow

3 Gerry And The Pacemakers Walk Hand In Hand Last of their 9 Top 40 hits and they've done a 50s cover for some reason; it's fine but their version still sounds quite 50s to me

2 P.J. Proby Maria Another rather pointless seeming "West Side Story" cover from him, which ends with a bizarre over the top falsetto climax

1 Ken Dodd The River The follow up to "Tears" was always going to be a big hit in sympathy, but even more uninspiring and turgid with its Italian bits

 

 

 

 

1965 Group 18:

 

#2492 11/12/1965 The Hollies If I Needed Someone 20 42-40-26-26-22-{20}-23-32-41->9

#2493 11/12/1965 Wayne Fontana It Was Easier To Hurt Her 36 44-44-{36}-36-40-45->6

#2494 11/12/1965 The Fourmost Girls! Girls! Girls! 33 46-42-43-43-37-{33}->6

#2495 11/12/1965 Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass Spanish Flea 3 48-37-30-30-21-12-6-{3}-3-3-4-6-8-5-13-19-20-30-31-39->20

#2496 11/12/1965 The Supremes I Hear A Symphony 39 50-46R(2)-46-{39}-49->5

#2497 18/12/1965 The Barron Knights With Duke D'Mond Merry Gentle Pops 9 36-19-19-{9}-10-16-31->7

#2498 18/12/1965 Roger Miller England Swings 13 45-31R(3)-24-19-{13}-17-23-34->8

#2499 18/12/1965 The Searchers Take Me For What I'm Worth 20 49-31-31-27-22-{20}-27-28->8

#2500 25/12/1965 Herman's Hermits A Must To Avoid 6 33-33-19-9-8-{6}-6-8-11-26-47->11

#2501 25/12/1965 Peter Sellers A Hard Day's Night 14 37-37-16-15-{14}-20-22->7

#2502 25/12/1965 Tony Bennett The Very Thought Of You 21 39-39-26-27-{21}-23-30-41-41->9

#2503 25/12/1965 Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick And Tich You Make It Move 26 45-45-41-30-28-{26}-35-47->8

#2504 25/12/1965 Joan Baez Farewell Angelina 35 47-47-{35}-49R(2)->4

#2505 25/12/1965 Bert Kaempfert And His Orchestra Bye Bye Blues 24 49-49-33-26-25-25-{24}-25-33-34->10

Edited September 26, 20231 yr by JulianT

'The Carnival Is Over' really tugs on my heartstrings as well :wub: the emotional lyrics, rousing production, Judith's ever incredible vocals and the harmonies that the rest of the group provide on top of those. That would definitely be my winner there and same with 'My Generation' in the next batch too. I'm also a fan of 'Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season)', that was actually a #1 hit in the U.S. and it stood out a lot to me when I had a marathon of all the Billboard chart-toppers.

 

Ooft 'Day Tripper' and 'We Can Work It Out' is indeed a tremendous double A-Side :wub: I instantly took to the former with its attention-grabbing riff, while the latter was a bit more of a grower, but those melodies eventually got me. 'Rescue Me' is gorgeous too!

A great double A side - so prolific and talented they could use 2 great songs on one single and bung out 1 or 2 albums a year with other tracks on. My preference was always for We Can Work It Out - love that upbeat Paul, cynical John bit - and the very naughty Day Tripper appeals more to me as a grown-up, great riffs and just insert "prick-teaser" in where they meant it to go. Maybe the lyric hasn't worn quite as well in 2023 but pretty tame compared to a lot of graphic chart lyrics these days.

 

Let's Hang On was and is a Four Seasons fave, and still the best version witness Darts' OK hit cover and Barry Manilow's bland cover. My Girl was a well-known soulful record of the time, seems odd to think it was better known as an Otis hit in the UK, but it was. I know I recorded it off Singapore radio in 1970. The Temptations' is the best version though. P.J. Proby was fave of mum's and Maria was another big tune of the time, I liked it, but I adore the movie soundtrack more. Especially America, mad on that one. Rita Moreno is still a legend! Still working :wub:

 

Others I wasnt that aware of at the time: Rescue Me, great record, a regular oldie in the 70's. Keep On Running, ditto, really. My Ship Is Coming In: love it, second to The Beatles I think for me. The Kinks' decent record, but better on the way.

 

The rest don't ring a bell....

 

 

As is often the case there’s a quality dip at the end of the year, but “Spanish Flea” and a couple of others are well worth a listen.

 

8 Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass Spanish Flea First hit for this US trumpeter and his Mexican inspired group: this is an excellent bouncy instrumental and a well remembered hit

7 The Searchers Take Me For What I'm Worth It's the twilight of their chart life but this is surprisingly lovely and you can really feel the emotion: he's almost shouting by the end

7 Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick And Tich You Make It Move First hit for this cumbersomely named English rock band and quite a small one but shows great promise with its thumping rhythm

6 Joan Baez Farewell Angelina Her last Top 40 appearance for a while: a sweet country style song but as usual it's very much her gorgeous voice that makes it

6 Bert Kaempfert And His Orchestra Bye Bye Blues Only appearance for a German orchestral leader with an easy listening style instrumental that has a subtle beauty to it as it builds

5 Roger Miller England Swings Something a bit different which is nice: London culture from a US perspective: quite cute lyrically and really enjoy the whistling

5 The Hollies If I Needed Someone Another Beatles album track cover: this version is very well done and maintains the spirit of the original with its close harmonies

4 Herman's Hermits A Must To Avoid It's a slightly odd turn of phrase to call someone "a must to avoid": that's the most interesting aspect in quite a run of the mill song

4 Wayne Fontana It Was Easier To Hurt Her Musically nicely crafted and well performed but it's so hard to feel sympathy for the love rat narrator that it leaves you cold

3 The Barron Knights With Duke D'Mond Merry Gentle Pops Another medley of parodies from them, this time Christmas related - I don't find this one as good or funny as their last couple

3 The Supremes I Hear A Symphony This has the usual Supremes elements like Diana's strong lead and the gentle R&B percussion, but I actually find it deeply dull

2 Tony Bennett The Very Thought Of You I guess this is meant to depict the dreamy thoughts of someone in love but it's really terribly sleepy, though like the instruments

2 The Fourmost Girls! Girls! Girls! "Cowunch-awunchati, cowunchati cowunch", depicting him chewing on his sandwich, is the highlight: everything else is dreadful

1 Peter Sellers A Hard Day's Night A comedy take spoken as by a priest at the pulpit: awful but the one saving grace is the medieval instruments in the background

 

Edited September 25, 20231 yr by JulianT

Always had a soft spot for Herb Alpert due to his epic This Guy's In Love later in the decade, and A&M records so many classic acts got their break from Herb, and indeed Spanish Flea was a childhood fave - but for Kathy Kirby. Herb's version is fine though, too.

 

You Make It Move debuts one of my fave 60's bands, and vastly under-rated due to their name. Still say Dave Dee Group would have been wiser. Policeman who attended the crash that killed Eddie Cochran, true story.

 

England Swings was far and away my fave of this bunch at the time, and still is, Roger Miller had such a great laid-back style. If I needed Someone is a decent cover, but...Beatles almost always given a choice of a cover and an original. The only exception to the rule is Dear Prudence (Siouxsie) and With A Little Help (joe Cocker), not counting demos they gave away.

 

I Hear A Symphony is my 2nd fave of the batch, not Grade A Supremes, but still good. The Peter Sellers was also on the Beatles TV special, it was done as a parody of Laurence Olivier as Shakespeare's Richard III, it's amusingly pomp-bursting and is on youtube:

 

I still rate it: :lol:

 

The average score for 1965 was 5.54, the highest yet! I think the music is genuinely getting better and it’s not that I’m getting softer.

 

Gold medal for year: (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction - The Rolling Stones

 

Silver medal: Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out - The Beatles

 

Bronze medal: The Carnival Is Over - The Seekers

 

Also receiving 9s:

Like A Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan

Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood- The Animals

My Generation - The Who

The Times They Are A Changin’ - Bob Dylan

Unchained Melody - The Righteous Brothers

I Can’t Help Myself - The Four Tops

Ticket To Ride - The Beatles

Rescue Me - Fontella Bass

Eve Of Destruction - Barry McGuire

Tired Of Waiting For You - The Kinks

Heart Full Of Soul - The Yardbirds

Help! - The Beatles

Look Through Any Window - The Hollies

 

Worst hit of the year: Soldier Boy - The Cheetahs

 

1966 Group 1:

 

#2506 08/01/1966 The Bachelors Hello, Dolly! 38 42-{38}-39-48->4

#2507 08/01/1966 Crispian St Peters You Were On My Mind 2 45-28-27-10-4-{2}-3-4-9-13-20-25-33-47->14

#2508 08/01/1966 Vince Hill Take Me To Your Heart Again 13 49-29-{13}-22-26-32-23-42-46-40-48->11

#2509 15/01/1966 The Mindbenders A Groovy Kind Of Love 2 34-29-18-14-7-6-3-3-{2}-4-7-15-23-37->14

#2510 15/01/1966 The Overlanders Michelle 1 36-11-{1}-1-1-5-11-19-32-44->10

#2511 15/01/1966 David And Jonathan Michelle 11 39-24-12-{11}-16-20->6

#2512 15/01/1966 St Louis Union Girl 11 43-33-24-19-{11}-12-16-15-25-36->10

#2513 15/01/1966 Pinkerton's Assorted Colours Mirror Mirror 9 44-40-28-21-{9}-10-12-17-23-31-44->11

#2514 15/01/1966 Tom Jones Thunderball 35 46-{35}-43-38->4

#2515 15/01/1966 Len Barry Like A Baby 10 47-30-21-16-{10}-13-19-27-37-50->10

#2516 15/01/1966 Cilla Black Love's Just A Broken Heart 5 48-31-15-{5}-5-7-10-13-24-33-43->11

#2517 22/01/1966 The Merseybeats I Stand Accused 38 {38}-45-49->3

#2518 22/01/1966 Fontella Bass Recovery 32 42-35-{32}-39-46->5

#2519 22/01/1966 Barbra Streisand Second Hand Rose 14 43-34-29-26-{14}-14-21-21-22-23-27-44-49->13

#2520 22/01/1966 Second City Sound Tchaikovsky One 22 45-40-27-{22}-24-29-50->7

 

Edited September 25, 20231 yr by JulianT

Not a stellar start to 1966 - Cilla almost winning says it all! :lol: Though it really is one of her best for me, and we have a gorgeous cover just beating her to the top.

 

8 Crispian St Peters You Were On My Mind 1st of 2 big hits for this singer and it's actually a cover but the only hit version here: a beautiful tender song with simple production

7 Cilla Black Love's Just A Broken Heart I find her vocals don't detract too much on this one, in fact she pulls it off with some subtlety and it's a majestic and graceful song

7 Pinkerton's Assorted Colours Mirror Mirror Only Top 40 for this English group and a great song well produced: love the instrumentals including the little piano flourishes

6 Len Barry Like A Baby The lyrics where everything is compared to a baby are slightly off-putting for me here, but it's a very catchy and soulful song

6 The Merseybeats I Stand Accused Their last hit as The Merseybeats, though the group is still playing; the usual style but has a really nice catchy riff and melody

5 Fontella Bass Recovery Her 2nd and final hit here - it's no "Rescue Me" but a good song in a similar style and a really heartfelt performance from her

5 The Mindbenders A Groovy Kind Of Love A #2 that will go 1 better with Phil Collins, but this version is already a cover and it's quite nice but doesn't really grab you

5 David And Jonathan Michelle 1st of 2 hits for this British duo and the more interesting "Michelle" cover for me - slower tempo and the vocals really have feeling

4 Second City Sound Tchaikovsky One An interesting attempt at a pop / classical crossover piece - I enjoy the part with the vocal humming and all in all a pleasant listen

4 The Overlanders Michelle 209th #1: only hit for them - a wonderful Beatles song and great that a version topped the chart but this cover doesn't do a lot

3 Barbra Streisand Second Hand Rose First hit for her and it's second hand indeed being a cover of a 1920s theatre song - very well song but not really my bag

3 St Louis Union Girl Only hit for this short lived English rock band who I imagine had better material as this is a fairly limp version of the Beatles song

2 Tom Jones Thunderball Theme for the 4th Bond film and it certainly has that archetypal quality to it, but I actually find the song really turgid and grim

2 Vince Hill Take Me To Your Heart Again First Top 40 for this English singer who died recently - an English version of "La Vie En Rose" which really takes all the life out of it

1 The Bachelors Hello, Dolly! I didn't like any of the versions of this song when it turned up 2 years ago and The Bachelors manage to make it even worse

 

 

1966 Group 2:

 

#2521 22/01/1966 The Swinging Blue Jeans Don't Make Me Over 31 47-39-46-45-37-{31}-36-45->8

#2522 29/01/1966 Bob Dylan Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window 17 {17}-23-27-25-35->5

#2523 29/01/1966 The Toys Attack 36 {36}-39-43-48->4

#2524 29/01/1966 Roy Orbison Breakin' Up Is Breakin' My Heart 22 37-33-33-{22}-28-45->6

#2525 29/01/1966 Nancy Sinatra These Boots Are Made For Walkin' 1 38-18-4-{1}-1-1-1-9-12-17-20-21-27-39->14

#2526 29/01/1966 Dusty Springfield Little By Little 17 44-31-21-{17}-17-20-28-37-48->9

#2527 29/01/1966 Sandie Shaw Tomorrow 9 46-42-19-{9}-9-11-11-25-37->9

#2528 29/01/1966 Chris Farlowe Think 37 49-{37}R(2)-42->3

#2529 05/02/1966 Paul And Barry Ryan Have Pity On The Boy 18 37-{18}-19-24-39-47->6

#2530 05/02/1966 Stevie Wonder Uptight (Everything's Alright) 14 40-31-26-18-{14}-18-24-30-47-49->10

#2531 05/02/1966 Lee Dorsey Get Out Of My Life Woman 22 43-34-29-{22}-24-27-34-

#2532 05/02/1966 The Truth Girl 27 44-36-32-{27}-29-38->6

#2533 05/02/1966 The Fortunes This Golden Ring 15 48-48-39-32-31-{15}-16-24-35->9

#2534 12/02/1966 The Rolling Stones 19th Nervous Breakdown 2 14-{2}-2-2-8-12-17-36->8

#2535 12/02/1966 Small Faces Sha La La La Lee 3 30-18-7-5-6-{3}-4-7-12-24-37->11

Edited September 28, 20231 yr by JulianT

Quite a strong group here with no real duffers at all, but it's all about one masterpiece really. I'm still in awe of how brilliant this is each time I hear it.

 

10 Nancy Sinatra These Boots Are Made For Walkin' 210th #1: one of the most brilliantly innovative pop songs ever; musically the way the sense of walking is introduced is perfection

8 The Swinging Blue Jeans Don't Make Me Over Their last hit which stalled at #31 - shame as it's absolutely gorgeous with a sweeping melody and well delivered emotive vocals

7 The Toys Attack Their 2nd and final hit which also underperformed - I think it's really strong again with lovely crisp vocals and great storytelling

7 Lee Dorsey Get Out Of My Life Woman First hit for this US R&B singer - I love the effortlessly soulful feel to this and it gently draws you in with great jazzy instrumentals

7 Bob Dylan Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window I enjoy this style from Bob where he barely even sings but rather commentates over a great folky accompaniment; good fun

6 Roy Orbison Breakin' Up Is Breakin' My Heart His dry spell for big hits continues and this is a really good song with a hypotic rhythm, but not quite vintage Roy level

6 Stevie Wonder Uptight (Everything's Alright) Debut hit for Stevie - it's a good tune well performed and shows all the promise you'd expect, but nothing that really stands out

6 Dusty Springfield Little By Little A catchy one from Dusty with a swung feel to the rhythm and a relentless vocal - again feels like it could be a Motown song

5 The Truth Girl Actually a really lovely Beatles cover here, tenderly sung with excellent instrumentation - but still its existence is not necessary

5 The Rolling Stones 19th Nervous Breakdown I can see why this broke their run of 5 straight chart toppers - it's good has the ingredients to be great but doesn't quite make it

5 Paul And Barry Ryan Have Pity On The Boy 2nd hit for this pair of brothers - it's well delivered and enjoy the production, especially the trumpets; again just doesn't stand out

4 Small Faces Sha La La La Lee A huge hit for them but I preferred their debut that missed the Top 10 - this isn't bad but the title hook is slightly irritating

4 Chris Farlowe Think Debut hit for this English singer whose next one will be huge: this is a very impassioned vocal but verges on shouty for me

4 The Fortunes This Golden Ring The only 1 of their 5 hits that missed the Top 10 and I can see why: it's a nicely told story but lacks a hook and that extra punch

3 Sandie Shaw Tomorrow A song from the cheat's perspective about how awkward it is that they have to break up with their partner - leaves me a bit cold

 

 

1966 Group 3:

 

#2536 12/02/1966 Petula Clark My Love 4 35-15-5-{4}-9-14-16-24-31->9

#2537 12/02/1966 P.J. Proby You've Come Back 25 40-40-{25}-25-30-40-46->7

#2538 12/02/1966 Billy Fury I'll Never Quite Get Over You 35 42-47-50-{35}-41->5

#2539 12/02/1966 Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels Jenny Take A Ride 33 44-36R(2)-{33}-35-43->5

#2540 19/02/1966 The Beach Boys Barbara Ann 3 35-8-6-{3}-5-5-9-14-19-30->10

#2541 19/02/1966 Eddy Arnold Make The World Go Away 8 36-21-10-16-10-10-{8}-10-8-16-17-17-24-35-39-44-44->17

#2542 19/02/1966 The Animals Inside - Looking Out 12 38-13-{12}-12-17-21-30-39->8

#2543 19/02/1966 Gene Pitney Backstage 4 45-15-7-{4}-7-9-16-22-30-43->10

#2544 19/02/1966 Sonny And Cher What Now My Love 13 49-30-22-19-15-{13}-13-17-22-28-43->11

#2545 19/02/1966 The Four Pennies Trouble Is My Middle Name 32 50-38-{32}-34-41->5

#2546 26/02/1966 Elvis Presley Blue River 22 33-23-{22}-26-27-32-45->7

#2547 26/02/1966 Gary Walker You Don't Love Me 26 39-30-{26}-27-31-43->6

#2548 26/02/1966 Lou Christie Lightning Strikes 11 40-16-14-{11}-11-18-25-34->8

#2549 26/02/1966 The Statler Brothers Flowers On The Wall 38 41-{38}-42-45->4

#2550 26/02/1966 The Hollies I Can't Let Go 2 43-18-7-{2}-2-2-3-25-26-42->10

Edited September 28, 20231 yr by JulianT

First 1966 batch is headed by Groovy Kind Of Love for me, loved it, still evocative of the time, though I rated Phil's version it's the Mindbenders for me aka Eric Stewart future member of 10cc and singer on I'm Not In Love.

 

You Were On my Mind is still fab, like Cilla's but not an absolute fave. Mirror Mirror is one I liked then and still do, Like A Baby is decent, ditto Thunderball and Second Hand Rose.

 

My other fave of the time was Michelle, but again I associate it with The Beatles not the hit versions, though the Overlanders was the first one I owned on a 1973 70s number ones compilation....

 

Batch 2

 

Nancy & Lee arrive -OK Lee isn't singing but he did everything else and Nancy was so cool and fashionable. I live them most as a duo, poetic, druggy, essential realms of fantasy and like this one, sometimes whimsy. Boots was iconic then and still is.

 

Uptight was a goodie, but better to come from the teenage boy Wonder. Dusty is also a goodie, and 19th Nervous Breakdown was one i liked but didnt really notice till later years. Sha La La La Lee was always a bit annoying, never a fave, Sandie's is OK.

 

Don't know any of the rest, though songs I know in other versions!

Some great records in this bunch but leading the pack we have the Beach Boys classic, and just pipping that to the post this literally electrifying Lou Christie record.

 

9 Lou Christie Lightning Strikes His debut hit: a US #1 that stalled at #11 here; I love the way it begins quite conventionally before a brilliant explosion of falsetto

9 The Beach Boys Barbara Ann It's taken until their 7th hit for them to reach the Top 5 and they do so with this wonderful cover with beautifully controlled vocals

8 The Hollies I Can't Let Go An epic introduction to this and the rest is great too - the spinning guitars really create this sense of being trapped in a web

8 Gene Pitney Backstage The usual high drama from Gene here but he combines it with an excellent chorus this time and it really is quite thrilling

7 The Animals Inside - Looking Out After 6 straight Top 10s can see why this one missed as it's less commercial, but it's an exciting whirlwind of guitars and yelling

7 The Statler Brothers Flowers On The Wall Only hit for this American country group; a bit different and I really enjoy this - a very catchy little banjo accompanied number

6 Elvis Presley Blue River Seems quite forgotten but one of my favorites from him for a while - a high tempo almost scatting style with great guitar work

6 P.J. Proby You've Come Back One of his better ones certainly: still a little laboured but he does a very convincing performance and the accompaniment's lovely

5 Gary Walker You Don't Love Me Not the original but the first hit version and will be covered again in the 90s - I enjoy this strong, gritty and twangy version

5 Billy Fury I'll Never Quite Get Over You Really nice saxophone backing on this and as usual a beautifully emotional performace, but the song itself lacks a bit of punch

4 Sonny And Cher What Now My Love An interesting choice for a cover as it's more of a croony song done by the likes of Bassey and Sinatra - not bad but inessential

4 Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels Jenny Take A Ride Only hit for this US rock singer and his band - it interpolates "Jenny, Jenny" by Little Richard which is the most interesting part

3 The Four Pennies Trouble Is My Middle Name Last hit for them and a cover which suits their style and is sweetly done, but their version doesn't really bring anything different

3 Petula Clark My Love A big hit for her and #1 Stateside even but unofrutnately I don't really like it - find it sugary sweet and musically all on one level

2 Eddy Arnold Make The World Go Away Only top 40 for this US country singer and I'd be quite happy for it to go away: a sweet tune but it's a bit late for this crooning

 

 

 

1966 Group 4:

 

#2551 26/02/1966 Peter And Gordon Woman 28 44-41-29-{28}-34-42-43->7

#2552 26/02/1966 Andy Williams May Each Day 19 45-40-36-{19}-22-23-37-46->8

#2553 26/02/1966 James Brown And The Famous Flames I Got You (I Feel Good) 29 49-42-39-{29}-32-44->6

#2554 05/03/1966 The Walker Brothers The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore 1 26-10-{1}-1-1-1-2-7-14-23-37->11

#2555 05/03/1966 The Yardbirds Shapes Of Things 3 28-17-6-{3}-3-8-14-19-29->9

#2556 05/03/1966 The Kinks Dedicated Follower Of Fashion 4 34-20-8-6-{4}-4-9-13-20-29-41->11

#2557 05/03/1966 Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick And Tich Hold Tight! 4 44-31-23-14-11-6-{4}-4-5-7-7-13-18-24-23-36-44->17

#2558 12/03/1966 The Who Substitute 5 33-18-15-14-11-{5}-8-11-12-18-36-43-48->13

#2559 12/03/1966 Kenneth McKellar A Man Without Love 30 43-{30}-33-46->4

#2560 12/03/1966 Wilson Pickett 634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.) 36 46-42-{36}-49-48->5

#2561 02/03/1966 Bob Lind Elusive Butterfly 5 48-21-8-{5}-5-7-11-22-38->9

#2562 19/03/1966 Vince Hill Heartaches 28 32-{28}-28-33-43->5

#2563 19/03/1966 Val Doonican Elusive Butterfly 5 35-18-6-7-6-{5}-16-15-21-32-40-42->12

#2564 19/03/1966 The Shadows I Met A Girl 22 38-26-{22}-28-41->5

#2565 19/03/1966 The Bachelors The Sound Of Silence 3 39-20-12-9-{3}-3-7-8-8-18-24-33-46->13

 

Sadly we won’t be getting the Simon & Garfunkel “Sound Of Silence” and have to make do with The Bachelors. Nice that The Walker Brothers get their chance to shine after their other chart topper had too much competition. “Elusive Butterfly” is a gorgeous discovery though.

 

9 The Walker Brothers The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore 211th #1: like their others this has that production that feels epic, and they've combined it with an outstanding song this time

9 Bob Lind Elusive Butterfly This has grown on me with each listen - only Top 40 for this US folk singer and what a beautiful song it is tenderly delivered

8 James Brown And The Famous Flames I Got You (I Feel Good) A major classic with masterful vocal and backing interplay that somehow only reached #29: just don't quite love it like my top 2

8 Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick And Tich Hold Tight! This is a stonking tune and has that infectious stompy feel like "Have I The Right": has something extra over other guitar bands

7 The Kinks Dedicated Follower Of Fashion A fun song here and I love the characterisation, with the protagonist becoming more and more flamboyant as it progresses

7 The Yardbirds Shapes Of Things 4 consecutive Top 3 hits with all of them being great is no mean feat: this has a lovely slightly Eastern feel with a sitar interlude

6 The Who Substitute Their 4th straight Top 10 and quite a different vibe from the angry "My Generation" with the bright guitars and close harmony

5 The Shadows I Met A Girl Another non instrumental Shadows song but the guitar work is still the best part; it's a nice tune but nothing extraordinary

5 The Bachelors The Sound Of Silence Simon And Garfunkel's not a UK single so we're left with this: it's a fairly indestructible song but this is too fast and perfunctory

4 Wilson Pickett 634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.) I've preferred his other so far and can take or leave this one from Wilson - a phone number is not the most interesting subject

4 Val Doonican Elusive Butterfly This song reached #5 twice in short succession: still a lovely song but this is missing much of the charm and feeling of Bob's

3 Peter And Gordon Woman A McCartney song which he gave away to test whether his work could be successful outside The Beatles, but I find it quite dull

3 Kenneth McKellar A Man Without Love The UK's Eurovision entry from a Scottish tenor and his singing is marvellous which makes it listenable, but a forgettable song

2 Andy Williams May Each Day Apparently he used this to close shows and I can see that working with the uplifting message, but it's quite drippy and plodding

2 Vince Hill Heartaches A cover of an old song like most of his, from the 1930s in fact - there's nothing wrong with the way he does it but not my thing

 

 

 

1966 Group 5:

 

#2566 26/03/1966 The Spencer Davis Group Somebody Help Me 1 29-10-2-{1}-1-3-11-16-25-34->10

#2567 26/03/1966 Cliff Richard And The Shadows Blue Turns To Grey 15 35-19-{15}-16-18-18-18-28-44->9

#2568 26/03/1966 The Seekers Someday One Day 11 38-21-19-{11}-14-15-14-20-28-35-41->11

#2569 26/03/1966 Herman's Hermits You Won't Be Leavin' 20 39-25-21-{20}-20-26-39->7

#2570 26/03/1966 Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass Tijuana Taxi 37 40-{37}-40-42->4

#2571 26/03/1966 Simon And Garfunkel Homeward Bound 9 41-29-27-17-15-12-10-{9}-16-17-26-36->12

#2572 26/03/1966 Staff Sergeant Barry Sadler The Ballad Of The Green Berets 24 42-26-29-28-25-{24}-32-38->8

#2573 26/03/1966 The Who A Legal Matter 32 45-40-34-{32}-35-36->6

#2574 26/03/1966 Graham Bonney With Johnny Scott And His Orchestra Super Girl 19 47-31-32-27-24-{19}-24-35->8

#2575 02/04/1966 Cilla Black Alfie 9 34-13-18-12-10-{9}-11-20-29-37-45-48->12

#2576 02/04/1966 Cher Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) 3 39-18-13-6-4-{3}-4-11-16-22-22-44->12

#2577 02/04/1966 The Alan Price Set I Put A Spell On You 9 38-24-12-{9}-9-13-17-29-37-50->10

#2578 02/04/1966 Dusty Springfield You Don't Have To Say You Love Me 1 41-16-10-2-{1}-4-6-7-14-17-19-29-41->13

#2579 02/04/1966 The Cryin' Shames Please Stay 26 45-46-38-31-34-{26}-45->7

#2580 02/04/1966 Crispian St Peters The Pied Piper 5 48-26-15-10-8-6-{5}-8-13-16-21-39-47->13

Edited October 4, 20231 yr by JulianT

I think it somehow passed me by that the Simon & Garfunkel version of 'The Sound(s) Of Silence' wasn't actually a hit (or released) here. And another today I learned moment that 'I Got You (I Feel Good)' only got to #29 :o

I believe S&G's The Sound Of Silence could actually be considered a top 10 hit by a strange technicality. According to Discogs, the Mrs Robinson EP which peaked at #9 in 1969 (and had a distinct chart run separate from Mrs Robinson as a solo track in 1968) contained the title track, April She Will Come, Scarborough Fair and The Sound Of Silence.

 

 

#29 sure feels like an unrepresentative peak for I Feel Good. Uptight (Everything's Alright) is a great debut for Stevie and Dedicated Follower Of Fashion more great stuff from The Kinks.

I believe S&G's The Sound Of Silence could actually be considered a top 10 hit by a strange technicality. According to Discogs, the Mrs Robinson EP which peaked at #9 in 1969 (and had a distinct chart run separate from Mrs Robinson as a solo track in 1968) contained the title track, April She Will Come, Scarborough Fair and The Sound Of Silence.

Ah cool I’ll look forward to that then (though I review EPs as one single so it probably won’t get the 10 score that it would get on its own).

Group 3:

 

Oh I'm def with you on Lightning Strikes, loved that record and still rate it highly, rceord of the week. That chorus is amazing! Like Barbara Ann too, and probably the first time I started to become aware of The Beach Boys, a song I knew at the time, but not one of my top Beach Boys tracks these days. The Hollies' are on the run of singles from their classic period now, I Can't Let Go is a top tune, and Backstage is Gene still on form.

 

Flowers On The wall turned out to be a tune I knew but didn't know I knew when I I became aware of it as a US oldie in the 80's, decent enough, P.J. Proby I will be looking for a hits compilation of for my Aunty, who loves PJ (as did my mum) so I will be hearing this one soon, and is that 90's version of You Don't Love Me the Dawn Penn reggae No No No song? :o (Yes it is! Never knew that!)

 

What Now My Love was far too square for Sonny & Cher, Jenny Take A Ride is OK, Make The World Go Away is dull, duller even than Donny & Marie's hit upbeat 1975 cover. That leaves Petula, and Tony Hatch Petula is always good for me, My Love is a top tune of the time that I liked a lot, then forgot about till I rediscovered it in the 80's as a lost golden oldie.