Living Doll
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Living Doll (song)
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| "Living Doll" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Cliff Richard and the Drifters | ||||
| B-side | "Apron Strings" (Weiss/Schroeder) |
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| Released | July 1959 | |||
| Format | 7" single, 78 rpm disc | |||
| Recorded | April 28, 1959 Abbey Road, London |
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| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 2:35 | |||
| Label | Columbia DB4306 | |||
| Writer(s) | Lionel Bart | |||
| Producer | Norrie Paramor | |||
| Cliff Richard and the Drifters singles chronology | ||||
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| "Living Doll" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| Single by Cliff Richard and The Young Ones feat Hank Marvin | ||||
| B-side | "(All the Little Flowers are) Happy" | |||
| Released | 8 March 1986 | |||
| Format | 7" single, 12" vinyl | |||
| Recorded | 29 January 1986 Master Rock Studios |
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| Genre | Pop / Novelty song | |||
| Length | 4:18 | |||
| Label | WEA YZ 67 | |||
| Cliff Richard singles chronology | ||||
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"Living Doll" is a song written by Lionel Bart made popular by Cliff Richard and the Shadows (then still The Drifters) in 1959. It has topped the UK charts twice; in its original version and a new version recorded in 1986 in aid of Comic Relief.
- 1959 Worldwide Sales: 2,000,000
- 1986 Worldwide Sales: 1,600,000
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Contents
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Composition
Living Doll was originally written for the film Serious Charge which featured Cliff Richard. The idea came from a newspaper advert for a child's doll. It was released as a B-side called Living Loving Doll.[1]. The original version of the song was a rock song (rather than a ballad) and was meant for the singer Duffy Power[2].
1959 version
The song was originally recorded in 1959 by Cliff Richard and the Drifters and produced by Norrie Paramor. It peaked at #1 on the UK singles chart for six weeks from July 1959, selling over a million copies in the process[3]. The song won Bart an Ivor Novello Award for best song. It was Richard's first US hit single reaching #30 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The song is performed by Cliff Richard (vocals), Hank Marvin (guitar), Bruce Welch (guitar), Jet Harris (bass) and Tony Meehan (drums).
1986 version
In 1986, 27 years after the first release, alternative comedy group The Young Ones approached Richard to record a comic version of "Living Doll" for the Comic Relief charity. Despite the apparent contrast between the anarchic comedians and the clean cut Richard, he agreed and their version again topped the UK singles chart, for three weeks from March 1986. Shadows guitarist Hank Marvin was reunited with Richard on this recording for the first time since 1975.
There are many references to Cliff Richard in The Young Ones, preluding their collaboration, including:
- Rick - is a devoted Cliff Richard fan.
- Richie's fanaticism led to many jokes about Richard being made during the show's run
- The name of the show and the opening theme are taken from the Richard song The Young Ones (song).
Chart performance
| Country | Peak position 1959 version |
Peak position 1986 version |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | 1 | |
| Netherlands | 1[4] | |
| United Kingdom | 1 | 1 |
| United States | 30 |
References
- ^ International Songwriters Association. "International Songwriters Association (ISA) Songs And Songwriting • Lionel Bart". Songwriter.co.uk. http://www.songwriter.co.uk/page62.html. Retrieved 2012-01-19.
- ^ "Living Doll by Cliff Richard Songfacts". Songfacts.com. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=5892. Retrieved 2012-01-19.
- ^ Smith, Alan. "UK First Charts & Silver Discs". Dave McAleer's website. http://www.davemcaleer.com/page17.htm. Retrieved 2012–02-25.
- ^ "De Nederlandse Top 40, week 16, 1986". http://www.radio538.nl/web/show/id=44685/chartid=5898. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
| Preceded by "Dream Lover" by Bobby Darin |
UK number one single (Cliff Richard and the Drifters version) July 31, 1959 (for 6 weeks) |
Succeeded by "Only Sixteen" by Craig Douglas |
| Preceded by "Chain Reaction" by Diana Ross |
UK number one single (Cliff Richard and the Young Ones version) March 23, 1986 (for 3 weeks) |
Succeeded by "A Different Corner" by George Michael |
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