"Don't Let It Die" | ||||
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Single by Hurricane Smith | ||||
Released | 1971 [1] | |||
Genre | Pop Rock [1] | |||
Length | 2:29 [2] | |||
Songwriter(s) | Hurricane Smith [1] | |||
Producer(s) | Hurricane Smith [1] | |||
Hurricane Smith singles chronology | ||||
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Don't Let It Die is a song written, produced, and sung by Hurricane Smith. It was originally recorded by Smith as a demo in the hopes that John Lennon would record the song. Following advice from Mickie Most, Smith decided to release it himself. It made #2 on the UK Singles Chart, [3] with Middle Of The Road's Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep keeping it from the top spot. [4]
Smith received the 1971 Ivor Novello award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically. [5] The lyrics have an ecological theme, stressing the beauty and fragility of nature, and the human responsibility to look after it, not to "let it die".
Norman Smith was an English musician, record producer and engineer. In the 1960s, he notably engineered all of the Beatles' EMI studio recordings up to the end of 1965 and produced three Pink Floyd albums including their first, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967). He later had a successful recording career as Hurricane Smith, achieving a transatlantic hit single with "Oh Babe, What Would You Say" in 1972.
Apollo 100 was a British instrumental group, that had a U.S. Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hit with the Bach–inspired single "Joy" in 1972.
The Sweet Inspirations are an American R&B girl group mostly known for their work as backup singers on studio recordings for other R&B and rock artists. A founding member of the group was Dionne Warwick, who was later replaced by her aunt, Cissy Houston.
Millicent Dolly May Small CD was a Jamaican singer who is best known for her international hit "My Boy Lollipop" (1964). The song reached number two in both the UK and US charts and sold over seven million copies worldwide. It was also the first major hit for Island Records and helped to achieve the label its mainstream success. She was the Caribbean's first international recording star and its most successful female performer.
Middle of the Road are a Scottish pop group who have enjoyed success across Europe and Latin America since the 1970s. Before ABBA established themselves in the mid 70s, Middle of the Road were the sound of early europop with their distinctive harmonies and lead vocals from Sally Carr. Four of their singles sold over one million copies each, and received a gold disc: "Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep". "Sacramento", "Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dum" and "Soley Soley". By early 1972 the group had sold over five million records.
Edwin Reuben Hawkins was an American gospel musician, pianist, vocalist, choir master, composer, and arranger. He was one of the originators of the urban contemporary gospel sound. As the leader of the Edwin Hawkins Singers, he was probably best known for his arrangement of "Oh Happy Day" (1968–69), which was included on the "Songs of the Century" list. In 1970, the Edwin Hawkins Singers made a second foray into the charts, backing folk singer Melanie on "Lay Down ".
Cartoons, also known as Cartoons DK, are a Eurodance band from Denmark, best known for their song "DooDah!" and their cover of the 1958 novelty song "Witch Doctor", both hits released in 1998.
Mac and Katie Kissoon are a pop soul duo, consisting of brother and sister Mac Kissoon and Katie Kissoon.
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" is a song written by Bennie Benjamin, Horace Ott and Sol Marcus for American singer-songwriter and pianist Nina Simone, who recorded the first version in 1964. "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" has been covered by many artists. Two of the covers were transatlantic hits, the first in 1965 by the Animals, which was a blues rock version; and in 1977 by the disco group Santa Esmeralda, which was a four-on-the-floor rearrangement. A 1986 cover by new wave musician Elvis Costello found success in Britain and Ireland.
"Chirpy Chirpy, Cheep Cheep" is a song recorded in 1970 by its composer Lally Stott, and made popular in 1971 by British band Middle of the Road for whom it was a UK #1 chart hit. That version is one of fewer than fifty singles to have sold more than ten million physical copies worldwide.
"Uncle Sam" is a song by the English ska and pop band Madness from their sixth studio album Mad Not Mad (1985). It was predominantly written by saxophonist Lee Thompson, but also jointly credited to guitarist Chris Foreman.
Harold "Lally" Stott Jr. was an English singer-songwriter and musician who wrote the song "Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep" which became a UK number one hit for the Scottish band Middle of the Road in 1971, and charting at number 20 in the U.S. and number 41 in the UK the same year for Mac and Katie Kissoon.
"Never My Love" is a pop standard written by American siblings Don and Dick Addrisi, and best known from a hit 1967 recording by the Association. The Addrisi Brothers had two Top 40 hits as recording artists, but their biggest success as songwriters was "Never My Love". Recorded by dozens of notable artists in the decades since, in 1999 the music publishing rights organization Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) announced it was the second most-played song on radio and television of the 20th century in the U.S.
"Jeg har set en rigtig negermand" is a Danish children's song that became extremely popular in the 1970s. It was first sung by four-year-old Bo Andersen with Familien Andersen in 1970, and quickly gained platinum status in Denmark, selling 165,000 copies.
Hot Hits 6 is an album of anonymous cover-versions that reached number 1 in the UK. From 7 August 1971 to 8 January 1972, budget albums were included in the main album charts, allowing this to chart.
This is a summary of 1971 in music in the United Kingdom, including the official charts from that year.
"Tweedle Dee, Tweedle Dum" is a song by Scottish band Middle of the Road, released as a single in March 1971. It peaked at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart and was a top-ten hit in numerous other countries. It has also sold over two million copies.
"Burning Bridges" is a song written by Walter Scott, and best known for its 1960 recording by Jack Scott, which was a #3 hit in the US. This was the only hit song for composer Walter Scott, who was no relation to Jack Scott.
Soul Control is a German musical duo consisting of Thomas "Tom" Quella and Leonard "Leo" Buck. They are best known for their 2004 single "Chocolate ".