| "Hello World" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Cover of the single released in Germany | ||||
| Single by the Tremeloes | ||||
| B-side | "Up, Down, All Around" | |||
| Released | 7 March 1969 [1] | |||
| Genre | Pop rock | |||
| Length | 3:26 | |||
| Label | CBS | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Tony Hazzard | |||
| Producer(s) | Mike Smith | |||
| The Tremeloes singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Hello World" is a song written by Tony Hazzard. It was recorded and released as a single by the Tremeloes in March 1969 and peaked at number 14 on the UK Singles Chart. [2]
Hazzard wrote the song at the suggestion of his publisher for the Eurovision Song Contest 1969. He conceived "Hello World" as an "obvious title" [3] and intended it for Cliff Richard, who recorded Britain's entry "Congratulations" for the 1968 contest. However, the song was rejected in the first round by the Music Publishers Association. [4] It was one of three songs rejected for that year's contest that ultimately became hit singles, the others being Roger Cook, Roger Greenaway and Jerry Lordan's "Good Times (Better Times)" (a number 12 hit for Cliff Richard) and Geoff Stephens and John Carter's "My Sentimental Friend" (a number 2 hit for Herman's Hermits). [5] [6] [7]
The Tremeloes recorded the song as they were fans of Hazzard's previous hit songs. [8] It was released as a single in March 1969 with the B-side "Up, Down, All Around", written by band members Len "Chip" Hawkes and Alan Blakley. [9] The band promoted the single with appearances on Top of the Pops , [10] [11] The Golden Shot and The Basil Brush Show . [12] [13] It peaked at number 14 on 22 April 1969, returning the band to the UK top twenty after the relative failure of the previous single, a recording of Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released" that peaked at number 29 in December 1968. [14] In an April 1969 edition of Record Mirror , Blakley revealed he didn't want it to be released, saying "I didn't expect "Hello World" to be even a top twenty hit, I didn't really like it. "I Shall Be Released", on the other hand, was not a commercial proposition, but it was a worthwhile record and was better than the things we usually do". [15]
The band received some criticism for a perceived retreat to more commercial territory following the disappointing performance of "I Shall Be Released". [16] Philip Crawley of the Newcastle Journal suggested they had reverted "to the lowest common denominator of pop" [17] while Tony Barrow, writing under his pseudonym Disker in the Liverpool Echo , said the band were "back in the usual happy-go-lucky rut". [18] Reviewing the single in the Daily Mirror , Don Short characterised it as "pleasant, but not as startling as the Tremeloes can be". [19] Geoffrey Elliot of the Coventry Evening Telegraph criticised the song as having "none of the verve of their earlier hits" and considered its changes in tempo "more annoying than arresting". [20]
Derek Johnson for New Musical Express described it as "typical Trems material – almost predictable. But it doesn't have such an instantly catchy chorus as some of their big hits and this could prevent it from becoming a whopper. Nevertheless, the cheerful, carefree sound, the relatively attractive tune and the bouncy beat makes it hitworthy". [21] Peter Jones for Record Mirror praised the song, writing that "they are back to the optimistic, fast-paced sort of determination that registered before ["I Shall Be Released"] – and "Hello World" is the right mixture of breeziness and brashness that should restore them high in the charts". [22]
| Chart (1969) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| New Zealand ( Listener ) [23] | 20 |
| South Africa (Springbok Radio) [24] | 5 |
| UK Singles (OCC) [14] | 14 |
Christie are an English soft rock band that formed at the end of the 1960s. They are best remembered for their UK chart-topping hit single "Yellow River", released in 1970, which hit number one in 26 countries that year.
The Tremeloes are an English beat group founded in 1958 in Dagenham, England. They initially found success in the British Invasion era with lead singer Brian Poole, scoring a UK chart-topper in 1963 with "Do You Love Me". After Poole's departure in 1966, the band achieved further success as a four-piece with 13 top 40 hits on the UK Singles Chart between 1967 and 1971 including "Here Comes My Baby", "Even the Bad Times Are Good", "(Call Me) Number One", "Me and My Life" and their most successful single, "Silence Is Golden" (1967).
Chesney Lee Hawkes is an English pop singer and occasional actor. He started his career at the age of 19 when he appeared in the film Buddy's Song, which featured his best-known single "The One and Only", which topped the UK Singles Chart for five weeks and reached the top 10 in the United States. Follow-up single "I'm a Man Not a Boy" peaked at 27 in the UK, with subsequent singles including "What's Wrong with This Picture?", "Stay Away Baby Jane" and "Another Fine Mess" also charting in the top 100.
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"Do You Love Me" is a rhythm and blues song recorded by the Contours in 1962. Written and produced by Motown Records owner Berry Gordy Jr., it appeared twice on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, reaching numbers three in 1962 and eleven in 1988.
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Peter Robin Callander was an English songwriter and record producer. Active from the 1960s onwards, Callander wrote or co-wrote songs that have been performed by recording artists such as Cilla Black, Tom Jones, Cliff Richard, Shirley Bassey, and The Tremeloes, amongst many others. On some songs he was credited as Robin Conrad. Callander was also a founder member of the Society of Distinguished Songwriters (SODS), a director of PRS for Music, and formed a publishing company, Callander Family Music Ltd.
Anthony "Tony" Hazzard is an English singer and songwriter. He has written songs for The Hollies, Manfred Mann, "Me, The Peaceful Heart" for Lulu, The Yardbirds, Herman's Hermits, Peter Noone, The Tremeloes, Gene Pitney, Richard Barnes, and Andy Williams amongst others.
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Alan David Blakley, a British musician and record producer, was rhythm guitarist and keyboards player with the Tremeloes and co-writer of most of their hits until January 1975, when he started writing for other bands. His credits include co-writing various hits for the Tremeloes, co-producing the UK No. 42 hit "She's Gonna Win", with Bilbo, and co-producing singles and albums by Mungo Jerry with the group's leader, Ray Dorset. He subsequently rejoined The Tremeloes until forced to retire for health reasons.
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"Non illuderti mai" is a song by Italian singer Orietta Berti, released as a single in April 1968 for the summer festival Un disco per l'estate. The song came in second place at the festival behind "Luglio" by Riccardo Del Turco. It has notably been covered in English as "My Little Lady" by the Tremeloes and in French as "Ma bonne étoile" by Joe Dassin.
"Uno tranquillo" is a song by Italian singer Riccardo Del Turco, released as a single in 1967. It was not as successful as his previous single, "Figlio unico", which was a top-ten hit in Italy, and "Uno tranquillo" only peaked at number 21. However, the song is notable for being covered in English as "Suddenly You Love Me" by the Tremeloes and in French as "Siffler sur la colline" by Joe Dassin.
"Even the Bad Times Are Good" is a song written by British group the Tremeloes, released as a single in July 1967. It became their third consecutive top-ten hit in the UK and continued their international success.
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