Craig Douglas

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Craig Douglas
Birth nameTerence Perkins
Born (1941-08-13) 13 August 1941 (age 81)
Newport, Isle of Wight, England
Genres Rock and roll, pop
Occupation(s)Singer
Years active1958 – present
Labels Top Rank, Columbia (EMI), Decca

Terence Perkins (born 13 August 1941) [1] known professionally as Craig Douglas, is an English pop singer, who was popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s. His sole UK chart-topper, "Only Sixteen" (1959), sold more copies in the UK than Sam Cooke's original version. [2]

Contents

Career

Born a twin, in Newport, Isle of Wight, the former Terence Perkins was employed as a milkman before becoming a professional singer [2] and was known to many as the 'Singing Milkman'. His manager was Bunny Lewis, [3] who gave him the name Craig Douglas. Lewis saw the name outside a house in Scotland. Douglas said there were a number of Terrys around at the time and not many Craigs, and that was one of the reasons his name was changed.[ citation needed ]

Voted 'Best New Singer' in 1959 in the British music magazine, NME , [4] Douglas went on to record eight cover versions of former American hit songs, in his total of nine Top 40 UK singles. Amongst that tally, Douglas had a Number One single in 1959 with "Only Sixteen", which easily outsold Sam Cooke's original version in the UK. It was recorded at EMI's Abbey Road studios, with whistling by Mike Sammes, and released through Top Rank records. Douglas had four consecutive Number 9 placings on the UK Singles Chart. [5]

In 1961 Douglas entered the A Song For Europe contest with his song "The Girl Next Door", but did not do well. Douglas also starred in the 1962 film It's Trad, Dad! [5]

He topped the bill on the Beatles' first major stage show, although their emergence ultimately spelt the end of Douglas's chart career. His final hit record came in February 1963, when "Town Crier" entered the charts; it peaked at Number 36.

He continued to perform, with bookings at night clubs and on cruise ships. [3] Until 2010, Douglas toured venues across the UK, including the Medina Theatre on the Isle of Wight. He appeared at the Amersham Rock 'n' Roll Club on 11 December 2010, at an event in his benefit. John Leyton, Mike Berry and the Flames all took part, while Jet Harris and other celebrities attended. Douglas sang three songs from his wheelchair at the close of the concert. He suffers from a rare condition that affects his legs. Sky News filmed the event.

On 18 April 2011, a rare Douglas recording saw a limited 7" vinyl reissue of "Don't Mind If I Cry", produced by Tony Hatch, on the UK-based Spoke Records label. This had previously been the B-side to Douglas' 1969 release, "Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head", a cover of the B.J. Thomas song. [6] Douglas' 2011 album, The Craig Douglas Project, included his versions of "Auberge" and "Creep". [7]

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

  • Craig Douglas (1960) – UK number 17 [8]
  • Bandwagon Ball (1961)
  • Our Favourite Melodies (1962) – SWE number 10 [9]
  • Looking Back: Greatest Hits (2005) – tracks re-recorded
  • The Golden Anniversary Album (2008) – tracks re-recorded
  • The Craig Douglas Project (2011)

Compilation albums

  • Oh Lonesome Me (1981)
  • Only 16 (1984)
  • The Best of the EMI Years (1993)
  • The Very Best of Craig Douglas (2004)
  • Only Sixteen (2019)

Singles

YearSinglePeak chart positions
UK
[8] 		AUS BE
(WA) [10] 		NL
[11] 		NOR
[12]
1958"Sitting in a Tree House"—————
"Are You Really Mine"—————
1959"Come Softly to Me"—————
"A Teenager in Love"13————
"Only Sixteen"1—5121
"Wish It Were Me"—————
1960"Pretty Blue Eyes"4——20—
"Heart of a Teenage Girl"10————
"Oh! What a Day"43————
"Where's the Girl (I Never Met)"—————
1961"The Girl Next Door"—————
"A Hundred Pounds of Clay" [upper-alpha 1] 9—49—8
"Time"911———
"No Greater Love"—88———
1962"Another You"—————
"When My Little Girl Is Smiling"9————
"Our Favorite Melodies"973———
"Oh, Lonesome Me"15————
1963"Town Crier"36————
"Danke Schoen"—————
"I'm So Glad I Found Her"—————
"From Russia with Love"—————
1964"Silly Boy"—————
"Come Closer" (as Craig Douglas and the Tridents)—————
1965"Across the Street"—————
"Around the Corner"—————
1966"I'm on the Outside Looking In"—————
1969"How Do You Feel About That"—————
"Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head"—————
1971"All Kinds of People" (with the Grafty Green Gang)—————
1976"Who's Sorry Now?" (featuring the Dougettes)—————
1977"Turn Away"—————
1983"Love Is a Carousel"—————
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released.

Notes

  1. ↑ Douglas recorded two versions, JAR 555 and 556, the latter bowdlerised for religious sensibilities

Releases on the Top Rank label

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Birthday party for Isle of Wight pop star Craig Douglas". County Press. 19 August 2021. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  2. 1 2 Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 71. CN 5585.
  3. 1 2 Bruce Eder. "Craig Douglas Biography". AllMusic . Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  4. ↑ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 73. CN 5585.
  5. 1 2 Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 44. ISBN   0-85112-250-7.
  6. ↑ "Spoke Releases: Home Page". Spokerecords.co.uk. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
  7. ↑ Kutner, Jon; Leigh, Spencer (26 May 2010). 1,000 UK Number One Hits. Omnibus Press. ISBN   978-1844492831 . Retrieved 10 October 2018.
  8. 1 2 "CRAIG DOUGLAS | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  9. ↑ "CRAIG DOUGLAS". NostalgiListan (in Swedish). Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  10. ↑ "ultratop.be - ULTRATOP BELGIAN CHARTS". Ultratop.be. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  11. ↑ "Dutch Charts". Dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  12. ↑ "norwegiancharts.com - Norwegian charts portal". Norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  13. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 167. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  14. ↑ "Collectable second hand vinyl records & Cds from Vinylnet on-line music store". Vinylnet.co.uk. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
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