The No1 song in the US on this day, January 23rd 1965, was Downtown by Petula Clark from the album Downtown. This was Clarks first of two No1s in the US and remained at No1 for 2 weeks before being replaced by Youve Lost That Loving Feeling. It peaked at NO2 in the UK. The US was slow to discover her talents. In the UK, she was a star as a singer and as a television performer, where she was a regular on the BBC. In the early 60s, she also caught on in France when she started recording her songs in French. Oddly, she didnt get an American record deal until late in 1964 when a Warner Bros. executive named Joe Smith, who was vacationing in England, heard her sing and signed her to a deal. When Downtown was released in the US, and shot to No1, it made Petula the first female singer from the UK to hit No1 in the US during the Rock era (after 1955). Remarkably, she didnt even promote the song before it hit the top spot, as she was touring French-speaking countries at the time. The Ed Sullivan Show had been calling every day while I was on tour in Canada saying, Youve got to get here, Petula told us. I couldnt get there. Eventually I got there, and the record was No1. The word downtown has a different meaning in America than it does in the UK. In America, downtown is the heart of the city where the action happens. The word isnt used much in Britain, but it generally means the less affluent part of the towns central area. This won a Grammy in 1965 for Best Rock & Roll Recording, making Clark the first British female singer to win that Grammy. In 2003, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Heres Petula Clark singing Downtown in 1965..... Enjoy!
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 18:20:52 +0000
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