"The Combine Harvester" | |
---|---|
Single by Brendan Grace | |
Released | 1975 |
Genre | |
Composer(s) | Melanie Safka |
Lyricist(s) | Brendan O'Shaughnessy (new lyrics) |
"The Combine Harvester" | |
---|---|
Single by The Wurzels | |
B-side | "The Blackbird" |
Released | May 1976 [1] |
Genre | |
Length | 3:03 |
Label | Solo, EMI [1] |
Producer(s) | Tommy Ellis, Bob Barratt [1] |
Official Audio | |
"The Combine Harvester (Brand New Key)" on YouTube |
"The Combine Harvester" is a novelty song which was a number one hit for Brendan Grace in Ireland in 1975 and then also for The Wurzels in the UK in 1976. Written by Brendan O'Shaughnessy, the song is a parody of Melanie Safka's 1971 hit, "Brand New Key", with rustic lyrics replacing the original theme of roller-skating. [2]
In the UK the song was released by The Wurzels, a band from Somerset with a rustic West Country style which they called "Scrumpy and Western". It reached number one on 12 June 1976 and stayed there for two weeks. [1]
Chart (1975) | Peak position |
---|---|
Irish Singles Chart | 1 |
Chart (1976) | Peak position |
UK Singles Chart | 1 |
Chart (1976) | Peak position |
Australia (Kent Music Report) [3] | 97 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [4] | Silver | 250,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
The Wurzels are an English Scrumpy and Western band from Somerset, England, best known for their number one hit "The Combine Harvester" and number three hit "I Am a Cider Drinker" in 1976.
Brendan Grace was an Irish comedian and singer. He portrayed the comedy schoolboy character 'Bottler', appeared in the 1995 film Moondance, and played Father Fintan Stack in the Irish TV sitcom Father Ted. His 1975 song "The Combine Harvester" was a number one hit in Ireland, and covered "The Dutchman" in 1982.
"Dancing Queen" is a song by the Swedish group ABBA, released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, Arrival (1976). It was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson. Andersson and Ulvaeus also produced the song. "Dancing Queen" was released as a single in Sweden in August 1976, followed by a UK release and the rest of Europe. It was a worldwide hit. It became ABBA's only number one hit in the United States, and topped the charts in Australia, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Portugal, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom, West Germany and the Soviet Union. "Dancing Queen" also reached the top five in many other countries.
Scrumpy and Western refers humorously to music from England's West Country that fuses comical folk-style songs, often full of double entendre, with affectionate parodies of more mainstream musical genres, all delivered in the local accent/dialect. The name, taken from the title of the 1967 Scrumpy & Western EP by Adge Cutler and the Wurzels, refers to scrumpy, strongly alcoholic cider produced in the West Country; it is a play on the American genre of country and western music.
Rock 'n' Roll Music is a compilation album by the English rock band the Beatles containing previously released tracks. It was issued on 7 June 1976 in the United States, on Capitol Records, and on 11 June on Parlophone in the United Kingdom. A double album, the 28-track compilation includes 15 Lennon–McCartney songs, one George Harrison composition ("Taxman"), and a dozen cover versions of songs written by significant rock and roll composers of the 1950s, including Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Carl Perkins and Larry Williams. Not counting the 1971 Spanish compilation album, Por Siempre Beatles, Rock 'n' Roll Music was the first Beatles album to include "I'm Down", which had previously only been available as the B-side of the "Help!" single.
Greatest Hits is the eleventh official album release for English musician Elton John, and the first compilation. Released on 8 November 1974, it spans the years 1970 to 1974, compiling ten of John's singles, with one track variation for releases in North America and for Europe and Australia. It topped the album chart in both the United States and the United Kingdom, staying at number one for ten consecutive weeks on the Billboard 200 and eleven weeks on the UK Albums Chart. In Canada, it was number one for 13 weeks between 14 December 1974, and 22 March 1975, missing only 28 December 1974, at number two to Jim Croce's Photographs & Memories.
"Love Hangover" is a song by the American singer Diana Ross, recorded in 1975 and released as a single on March 16, 1976. It rose to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot-Selling Soul Singles. It also hit number one on the Record World disco charts.
"Remember Me"/"I Am a Cider Drinker" was a split single released by British Sea Power and The Wurzels. The 7" single features The Wurzels covering BSP's "Remember Me" and BSP covering The Wurzels' 1976 hit "I Am a Cider Drinker". The release was limited to 1,966 and only available on BSP's November 2005 tour or through their official website.
"Money, Money, Money" is a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA, written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus with Anni-Frid Lyngstad singing lead vocals. It was released on 1 November 1976, as the second single from their fourth album, Arrival (1976). The B-side, "Crazy World", was recorded in 1976 during the sessions for the ABBA album. The song is sung from the viewpoint of a woman who, despite hard work, can barely keep her finances in surplus, and therefore desires a well-off man.
"It's Only Make Believe" is a song written by drummer Jack Nance and Mississippi-born singer Conway Twitty, while they were touring across Ontario, Canada in 1958. Twitty was a relatively unknown rock n' roll singer at the time, and this song was his first hit, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard chart in November 1958 for two weeks.
"Love Hurts" is a song written and composed by the American songwriter Boudleaux Bryant. First recorded by the Everly Brothers in July 1960, the song is most well known in two hit versions by UK artists; by Scottish hard rock band Nazareth in 1974 and by English singer-songwriter Jim Capaldi in 1975.
"The Pushbike Song" is a song originally recorded by Australian band The Mixtures and released in 1970. The single was a chart success, reaching numbers one and two in the Australian and UK charts respectively. It has subsequently been covered by various artists.
"Brand New Key" is a pop song written and sung by American folk music singer Melanie. Initially a track of Melanie's album Gather Me, produced by Melanie's husband Peter Schekeryk, it was known also as "The Rollerskate Song" due to its chorus. It was her greatest success, scoring No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart during December 1971 and January 1972. Billboard ranked it as the No. 9 song of 1972. It also scored No. 1 in Canada and Australia and No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart.
"I Only Want to Be with You" is a song written by Mike Hawker and Ivor Raymonde. Released as a debut solo single by British singer Dusty Springfield under her long-time producer Johnny Franz, "I Only Want to Be with You" peaked at number 4 on the UK Singles chart in January 1964.
"Paloma Blanca", often called "Una Paloma Blanca", is a song written by Dutch musician George Baker and first recorded and released by his band, George Baker Selection. The single—the title track of the group's fifth album—was released in 1975 with "Dreamboat" as its B-side. The song was a hit throughout Europe, reaching No. 1 in Austria, Finland, Flanders, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland, and it also topped the charts of New Zealand and South Africa.
"The Wild Side of Life" is a song made famous by country music singer Hank Thompson. Originally released in 1952, the song became one of the most popular recordings in the genre's history, spending 15 weeks at number one on the Billboard country chart, solidified Thompson's status as a country music superstar and inspired the answer song, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" by Kitty Wells. In 1999, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Peter Budd is an English singer who has fronted the Scrumpy and Western band The Wurzels since 1974. He was the vocalist on the number-one hit "The Combine Harvester" and number three hit "I Am a Cider Drinker" in 1976.
Denis Mervyn "Bob" Barratt was an English record producer for EMI and founder of record-label Grasmere Records.
The Wurzels are a British scrumpy and Western band from Nailsea, Somerset. Since their formation in 1966, the group have released nine studio albums, eight live albums, nine compilation albums, two extended plays (EPs), forty-one singles, one video album and seven music videos. Founded by vocalist Adge Cutler and originally known as "Adge Cutler and The Wurzels", the band debuted in December 1966 with the single "Drink Up thy Cider", which reached number 45 on the UK Singles Chart. The group's first EP and self-titled debut album followed shortly thereafter, the latter of which debuted at number 38 on the UK Albums Chart. After Adge Cutler and The Wurzels, the band released Adge Cutler's Family Album later in 1967, Cutler of the West in 1968 and Carry On Cutler! in 1969 – like their debut, all were recorded live and released on Columbia Records, although none were able to chart. Cutler died in a road traffic accident on 5 May 1974, after which the remaining Wurzels continued the band.