Cliff Richard - Back from the Wilderness Singles and Albums 1975 - 1995

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Jarleboy, Sep 28, 2016.

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  1. mark ab

    mark ab Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    It's going to be an eclectic ITunes week for me - the last album I bought was by Tom Waits and the next one will be Sir Cliff!
     
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  2. Rigsby

    Rigsby Forum Resident

    Location:
    London, UK
    I have the six disc at of all his a sides and this is such a golden era. I'd not heard It's Only Me You've Left Behind until I bought that set but it should have been a big hit, he puts in great vocal performance and it's incredibly catchy. I love the key change at the end of the chorus.
     
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  3. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    You´re in luck! In addition to the newspaper giveaway, there was a DVD released last year that sported the same cover as your poster. (It had to be amended a bit, since the DVD is portrait, and the poster is, as usual with British cinema posters, landscape.)

    I love it when they use the cinema posters for covers of DVDs and Blu-rays!:laugh:
     
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  4. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    Thank you for all the constructive posts about where to find the songs and albums.

    I love the comment made by Mark AB about buying Tom Waits and Cliff. That´s what I love about music - there´s so much to like. I never limit myself to one genre or one Level. Good music is good music. Some songs are revelations of art, others are just fun. I need both kinds.
     
  5. W.B.

    W.B. The Collector's Collector

    Location:
    New York, NY, USA
    And who'd've thunk that that number would chart higher in the U.S. (#6 in Billboard, #5 in both Cash Box and Record World) than in the U.K. (where it'd stalled at number nine . . . number nine . . . number nine . . . )
     
  6. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    Single No. 64: 1975 September 5 — UK — EMI EMI 2344
    A-side: "HONKY TONK ANGEL" (Written by Troy Seals & Denny Rice)
    B-side: "(WOULDN´T YOU KNOW IT) GOT MYSELF A GIRL" (Written by Alan Tarney & Trevor Spencer.)
    A-side arranged by John Farrar, produced by Marvin, Welch & Farrar, B-side arranged by Alan Tarney and produced by Marvin, Welch & Farrar)
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    "Honky Tonk Angel" is a strange moment in Cliff´s long career. It was released in September, and Cliff was very enthusiastic about it, as always. He pulled out all the stops, and the single was reported "bubbling under", and would probably have entered the charts if nothing untoward happened. Sadly, it did. Someone whispered in Cliff´s ear that a honky tonk angel could be perceived as a prostitute. Cliff, as ever on his high moral horse, was horrified, and what happened next has to be a first. Some reports say that Cliff himself banned the single, and that it was withdrawn. I find that hard to believe. What did happen, and which has been documented by Cliff himself, is that he immediately stopped doing appearances for the song, and all promotion was dropped. Whatever really happened, the single became his third widely released single not to makethe charts at all, following "A Brand New Song" in 1972 and "It´s Only Me You´ve Left Behind". Sadly, it wouldn´t be the last. But more of that later in 1978.

    Here´s a Clip of Cliff performing the song.
     
    Last edited: Sep 29, 2016
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  7. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    As the years flew by, the disowned single was forgiven, and he has performed it several times in concert. Here´s a clip from the "Time Machine" tour in 2008.


    For me, this single was not a great one. I like country music, but I prefer the songs to have a little more bite than this. Cliff´s vocal is impeccable, I think, but I have never been that fond of the song. It was originally recorded by American country star Conway Twitty, and Dobie Gray of "Drift Away" fame also recorded it. (Indeed, it has been covered by many artists.) I never understood why the previous Cliff single never charted. I don´t have the same problems understanding this failure. As usual, it´s not a bad song - just not particularly memorable, I think.
     
    Last edited: Sep 29, 2016
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  8. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    The B-side of the single was another story. It´s another Tarney-Spencer composition, and this one is great fun! It sounds like an Elvis Presley pastiche, and the lyrics and melody go together hand in glove. Just like "What Car?" thirty years later, this is Cliff playing the teenager who´s been up to amorous things that teenagers always do, and it´s presented in a lively, fun way. I simply love this track! It may be slight, but it´s fun.

    Some websites list other writers of this song. The couple mentioned wrote another song with a similar title, but it has now been confirmed that Alan Tarney and Trevor Spencer really were the composers.

    Here´s a clip of the song.

     
    Last edited: Sep 29, 2016
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  9. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    Yes, that was a surprise. Considering its reputation and Cliff´s fondness for it, it´s surprising that it went no further than No. 9, but very welcome that it was a huge hit over a long time period in the US. Well deserved, I think. When we come to this particular song, I´ll include the original version of the song, and the interpretations of the lyrics.
     
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  10. Bobby Morrow

    Bobby Morrow Senior Member

    I do remember the Honky Tonk Angel fiasco. It was a big story here. The press found it hilarious that Cliff had banned his own record. It's not very rock and roll is it?:D Country music was never a big thing in the UK, but around this time artists like Tammy Wynette, Charlie Rich, Billie Jo Spears and Don Williams did have hits, so it's easy to see why Cliff, like Olivia, jumped on this bandwagon.

    Like @Jarleboy, I don't think Honky Tonk Angel is an exceptional song, but it suits Cliff. I wish he would have done an album in this vein at some point in his career. Of course I mean a country album, not one about ladies of the night.:D The style suits the warmth in his voice. Would it have been a hit? Maybe, I guess. Probably a top 20 one at best. When I bought the I'm Nearly Famous remaster in 2001, I did remember the song. So it must have received some airplay before it got pulled.

    Ultimately, the back story about HTA is more interesting than the song itself. Though, like with the previous single, it did show Cliff was on the right track to having hits again. And at least Honky Tonk Angel doesn't sound like another Eurovision knock-off..
     
  11. Bobby Morrow

    Bobby Morrow Senior Member

    Another song I discovered on the I'm Nearly Famous remaster. I'd recommend this album to anyone with an interest in the singles we're currently discussing. At 18 tracks, it's good value and is cheap and still in print.
    Wouldn't You Know It is perhaps a little too bright and jaunty for my tastes. Probably more suited to Donny, or perhaps Jimmy Osmond.:D As a B-side it's absolutely fine. And hearing it 40 years later it's sweet and enjoyable. However, at the time, this was the sort of Eurovision-y perky fluff he needed to get away from.
     
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  12. Bobby Morrow

    Bobby Morrow Senior Member

    It's odd that this and Miss You Nights were seen as the songs that turned Cliff's career around in the UK, yet their charts peaks weren't that great! Proof that chart placings don't always tell the whole story.
     
  13. mark ab

    mark ab Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    I will download that album tonight.
     
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  14. mark ab

    mark ab Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
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  15. Bobby Morrow

    Bobby Morrow Senior Member

    The CD is £6.96 on Amazon if you want a physical copy.
     
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  16. bob60

    bob60 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London UK
    Maybe they came about during a particularly strong singles period...
    Anyway they were both fantastic pop songs and suddenly Cliff was back back back!
     
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  17. Bobby Morrow

    Bobby Morrow Senior Member

    Kind of. The next two albums didn't provide any big hits though. It wasn't until We Don't Talk Anymore in 1979 that his revamp really kicked off.
     
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  18. bob60

    bob60 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London UK
    Ok, my timing is all mixed up.
    If it wasn't for those two mid 70's hits the 70's would have been a really bad decade for Cliff...
     
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  19. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    I agree that it would not have made a good single. It´s a great track, but it would have to be a B-side or an album track. Which it was. Then again, I would rather listen to that song than the A-side. I agree that Cliff sings it well, and his warmth is indeed well suited to country songs. I would love for him to record a country/country-rock album. The closest he got was with "Something Going On", which was a very good album, but had a few ballads too many for my taste.

    When Cliff does country, it´s mostly in the vein of "Honky Tonk Angel" and "(You Keep Me) Hangin´ On", which are pleasant songs, but too polished for my taste. A rawer approach could give him big country hits, even now. I don´t think his heart´s in it.
     
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  20. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    How true. There were some disappointing chart performances, and some lacklustre songs. Much as I love the "Green Light" album, the second single, "Can´t Take the Hurt Anymore", was overproduced and repetitive, and failed to chart. So thank someone for Alan Tarney, and the doube whammy of "Green Light" (the single) and "We Don´t Talk Anymore". The former was a very minor hit, but signalled an interesting change, and the latter was everyone´s favourite. And it was the single that led to me becoming a fan. Not a momentous event in itself, but pretty important to me. :love:
     
  21. Jarleboy

    Jarleboy Music was my first love Thread Starter

    Location:
    Norway
    Expected news, and I shall buy the album. But I would have preferred a "real" album of original. I have accepted the fact that there probably won´t be any more "normal" albums from Cliff. That´s O.K. - he´ll be 76 in a few weeks.
     
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  22. Bobby Morrow

    Bobby Morrow Senior Member

    Yes, Something's Going On was less of a country album than it was one that was recorded in Nashville.:D Still, it remains his last decent LP. As you say, too many ballads and some of them go on a bit too.
     
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  23. Bobby Morrow

    Bobby Morrow Senior Member

    I don't fancy this either. The last Cliff album I bought was Something's Going On.
     
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  24. Rigsby

    Rigsby Forum Resident

    Location:
    London, UK
    My kinda life got a decent amount of airplay but overall you're right, he hit the hot streak post Green Light (which is a cracking single as and when we get to it!)
     
  25. Bobby Morrow

    Bobby Morrow Senior Member

    I think My Kinda Life made the top 20, but the other 2 singles from Every Face Tells A Story and the ones from Green Light all flopped.
     
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