| "The Size of a Cow" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by The Wonder Stuff | ||||
| from the album Never Loved Elvis | ||||
| Released | 2 April 1991 [1] [2] | |||
| Recorded | 1990-91 [3] | |||
| Studio | Townhouse Studios, London [1] | |||
| Length | 3:15 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Producer(s) | Mick Glossop | |||
| The Wonder Stuff singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"The Size of a Cow" is a 1991 single by British alternative rock band the Wonder Stuff from their third album Never Loved Elvis (1991). It peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart.
Miles Hunt wrote "The Size of a Cow" during sessions for the Wonder Stuff's 1989 album Hup . [4] Described by Select's Nick Griffiths as "Madness meets the Bay City Rollers", [5] the song combines a pessimistic lyric with an upbeat backing, a feature Hunt was proud of. [6] PRS for Music has described the song as an "indie disco staple". [6] A version of the song incorporating a cover of Elvis Presley's "Jailhouse Rock" features on some releases. [1]
Released by Polydor on 2 April 1991, "The Size of a Cow" was the band's first single in 18 months and the lead single for Never Loved Elvis. [7] It received rotation on BBC Radio 1's A list [8] and Capital Radio's B list [9] and peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart, ultimately spending seven weeks on the chart. [10] In Ireland, the single made number 21. [1] It peaked at number 22 on European Hot 100 Singles. [11] Polydor delayed releasing "The Size of a Cow" in the United States for commercial reasons, instead opting to issue "Caught in My Shadow" as the lead single from Never Loved Elvis there. [12]
Record Mirror made "The Size of a Cow" its single of the week upon release, with Peter Stanton's review describing the song as "a rampant jingly-jangly-organ affair that trips at a happier than happy pace". [13] Reviewing Never Loved Elvis in Vox , Keith Cameron described the song and "Caught In My Shadow" as "paragons of pop virtue", noting "huge melodic sweeps, artfully clever lyrics and nagging hummability". [14] Music & Media linked the song to contemporaneous singles by the Milltown Brothers, R.E.M. and Susanna Hoffs in what they heralded "the return of the classic pop tune". [1] Writing in 2017, Jon Bryan of Backseat Mafia described "The Size of a Cow" as "the equal, if not better, than almost any other guitar-pop song of the 90s". [15]
The song remains a staple of the Wonder Stuff's live set, and Hunt's "biggest earner" as a songwriter. [16] Reflecting in 2015, Hunt said "I actually like 'Size of a Cow' which surprises some people because we always have to play it - half of our fans don't like it, half do depending on when they got into us." [6]
The Wonder Stuff are a British alternative rock band. Originally based in Stourbridge in the West Midlands, England, the band's first lineup released four albums and nearly 20 singles and EPs, enjoying considerable chart and live success in the UK. The band have continued to tour and record since 2000.
Never Loved Elvis is the third album by The Wonder Stuff released in 1991. Guest musicians on the album include Kirsty MacColl and Linda McRae.
"Can't Help Falling in Love" is a song recorded by American singer Elvis Presley for the album Blue Hawaii (1961). It was written by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss and published by Gladys Music, Inc. The melody is based on "Plaisir d'amour", a popular French love song composed in 1784 by Jean-Paul-Égide Martini. The song was initially written from the perspective of a woman as "Can't Help Falling in Love with Him", which explains the first and third line ending on "in" and "sin" rather than words rhyming with "you".
Caron Melina Wheeler is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and musician. Born and raised in London, she performed in various singing competitions as a teenager and began her recording career as one of the founding members of Brown Sugar. She was also one of the founding members of the female backing vocalist group Afrodiziak. She officially rose to fame in the late 1980s as lead singer of R&B group Soul II Soul. Managed by her bandmate, Jazzie B, the group became one of the London's best-selling groups in the 1990s. Their debut album, Club Classics Vol. One (1989), which established them as a global success worldwide, earned two Grammy Awards and featured the UK and Billboard number-one singles "Keep on Movin'" and "Back to Life ".
"Black Velvet" is a song written by Canadian songwriters Christopher Ward and David Tyson, and recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Alannah Myles. It was released in January 1990 as one of four singles from Myles' 1989 eponymous album from Atlantic Records. It became a number-one hit for two weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1990 and reached number one on the Album Rock Tracks chart, as well as number ten in her native Canada and number two on the UK Singles Chart. The power ballad also reached number one in Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland and was a major success in several other countries. It contains blues verses with a rock chorus.
"Dizzy" is a song originally recorded by Tommy Roe; it became an international hit single in 1969. Instrumental backing was provided by the Los Angeles session musicians known as the Wrecking Crew.
"If Tomorrow Never Comes" is a song by American country music artist Garth Brooks. Written by Brooks and Kent Blazy, it was released in August 1989 as the second single from his album Garth Brooks and also appears on The Hits, The Limited Series and Double Live. This was his first number-one single on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. It is also sometimes referred to as his signature song. "If Tomorrow Never Comes" was named Favorite Country Single in the American Music Awards of 1991.
"Sunshine on a Rainy Day" is a 1990 song by British pop singer and songwriter Zoë, released as the first single from her debut album, Scarlet Red and Blue (1991). The song received positive reviews from music critics, reaching number four on the UK Singles Chart in September 1991. It also charted within the top 40 in Ireland, Luxembourg, Sweden and Zimbabwe, where it reached number-one. Two different music videos were produced to promote the single. One of them was filmed in India. In 2008, Zoë re-recorded the song with her folk band Mama. This version is available on their debut CD, Crow Coyote Buffalo.
"You Needed Me" is a song written by Randy Goodrum, who describes it as being about "unconditional undeserved love". It was a number one hit single in the United States in 1978 for Canadian singer Anne Murray, for which she won a Grammy Award. In 1999, Irish pop band Boyzone recorded a hit cover of the song that hit number one on the UK Singles Chart.
"Welcome to the Cheap Seats" is a song by British alternative rock band the Wonder Stuff from their third album, Never Loved Elvis (1991). The song features backing vocals by Kirsty MacColl and was released as part of the Welcome to the Cheap Seats EP in 1992, peaking at number eight on the UK Singles Chart. The EP's cover of the country standard "Will the Circle Be Unbroken", recorded during a jam session with Canadian rock group Spirit of the West, was also a popular radio single in Canada.
Vanessa Williams is an American actress and singer. In 1988, Williams released her debut album, The Right Stuff. The first single, "The Right Stuff", found success on the R&B chart, while the second single, "He's Got the Look", found similar success on the same chart. The third single, "Dreamin'", was a pop hit, becoming Williams's first top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 8, and her first number one single on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The album reached gold status in the US and earned her an NAACP Image Award and three Grammy Award nominations, including one for Best New Artist.
"Change" is a song by British singer-songwriter and actress Lisa Stansfield from her second album, Real Love (1991). The song was written by Stansfield, Ian Devaney and Andy Morris, and produced by Devaney and Morris. It was released as the lead single on 7 October 1991. "Change" was remixed by Frankie Knuckles and Driza Bone.
"It's Now or Never" is a song recorded by Elvis Presley and released as a single in 1960. The song is one of the best-selling singles by Presley, and one of the best-selling physical singles of all time. It was recorded by Bill Porter at RCA Studio B in Nashville. It is written in E major and has a tempo of 80 BPM.
"Isn't It a Wonder" is a song by Irish boy band Boyzone from their second studio album, A Different Beat (1996). The song was written by Ronan Keating, Ray Hedges, and Martin Brannigan, and it was produced by Hedges and remixed by Mark "Spike" Stent for its single release. It was released as the album's third single on 10 March 1997 by Polydor Records. The single reached number two on the UK Singles Chart and number three on the Irish Singles Chart.
The singles discography of Elvis Presley began in 1954 with the release of his first commercial single, "That's All Right". Following his regional success with Sun Records, Presley was signed to RCA Victor on November 20, 1955. Presley's first single with RCA, "Heartbreak Hotel", was a worldwide hit, reaching the No. 1 position in four countries and the top 10 in many other countries. Other hit singles from the 1950s include "Hound Dog", "Don't Be Cruel", "Love Me Tender", Too Much", "All Shook Up", "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear", "Jailhouse Rock", "Don't", "Hard Headed Woman" and "A Big Hunk o' Love". On March 24, 1958, Presley entered the United States Army at Memphis, Tennessee, and was stationed in Germany. He left active duty on March 5, 1960.
Broods is a New Zealand musical duo from Nelson, composed of Georgia Josiena Nott on lead vocals, with older brother and multi-instrumentalist Caleb Allan Joseph Nott on production and backing vocals. They released the single "Bridges", which went to No. 8 on the New Zealand singles chart, and signed with Capitol and Polydor Records. They released their self-titled debut EP, Broods, on 30 January 2014, which was followed by a full-length album, Evergreen, on 22 August 2014. The band has toured with Ellie Goulding, Haim, Sam Smith, Tove Lo and Taylor Swift. They have won ten New Zealand Music Awards. On 24 June 2016, Broods released their second album, Conscious. They released their third album Don't Feed the Pop Monster on 1 February 2019.
30 Goes Around the Sun is the eighth studio album to be recorded by English rock band the Wonder Stuff. It was released on 18 March 2016 through the label IRL. Following a line-up change in 2014, frontman Miles Hunt began writing for the band's next album in early 2015. After a two-month writing hiatus, they began jamming new songs with their sound engineer Simon Efemey at a rehearsal space in Stourbridge, West Midlands. Recording sessions were held at Mockingbird Studio in Stourbridge with Efemey as producer. 30 Goes Around the Sun is an alternative rock album; some of its songs recall the material on the band's earlier releases. Hunt had initially struggled to writer lyrics following writing a book based on his diaries.
"All in Love Is Fair" is a song by American singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder recorded for his sixteenth studio album, Innervisions (1973). Written and produced by Wonder, it was released as a 7" single in Brazil in 1974. The song is a pop ballad with lyrics that describe the end of a relationship through the use of clichés. Critical reaction to the song has been varied: Matthew Greenwald of AllMusic wrote that it was among Wonder's "finest ballad statements", but Robert Christgau felt that the singer's performance was "immature". Wonder has included it on several of his greatest hits albums, including the most recent, 2005's The Complete Stevie Wonder.
Escape from Rubbish Island is the fifth studio album by English rock band the Wonder Stuff, released on 27 September 2004, through the IRL record label. The band had broken up in 1994; they reformed in 2000 and had been playing shows sporadically over the next few years. Frontman Miles Hunt began making drum loops in his home studio, and his flatmate, former Radical Dance Faction member Mark McCarthy, added bass over them. An argument between Hunt and bandmate Martin Gilks resulted in the latter leaving, followed by violinist Martin Bell soon after. Hunt continued working on the tracks, recording at Vada Studios in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2004 with Matt Terry producing. The album saw a return to the band's rock sound of their early albums.
American singer Whitney Houston released 57 singles as a lead artist, 4 as a featured artist and 18 promotional singles. Nicknamed ''The Voice", she has sold more physical singles in the United States than any other female solo artist in history, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. In the United States, Houston amassed 11 Billboard Hot 100 number one singles, all of which have been certified gold, platinum, multi-platinum or diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)