"You're a Lady" | ||||
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Single by Peter Skellern | ||||
from the album You're a Lady | ||||
B-side | "Manifesto" | |||
Released | 11 August 1972 [1] | |||
Recorded | 1972 | |||
Length | 4:39 | |||
Label | Decca | |||
Songwriter(s) | Peter Skellern | |||
Producer(s) | Peter Sames | |||
Peter Skellern singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"You're a Lady" at TopPop on YouTube |
"You're a Lady" is the debut single by British singer-songwriter Peter Skellern. The song became Skellern's first and biggest hit, reaching #3 on the UK Singles Chart, #7 on the Irish Singles Chart and #50 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. [2]
Skellern performed the song live on many occasions prior to his retirement in 2001. [3] It became a constant feature of his double act with Richard Stilgoe, and renditions of the song feature on their albums Who Plays Wins (1985) [4] and A Quiet Night Out (2000). [5]
Skellern wrote "You're a Lady" in the summerhouse at his home in Shaftesbury, Dorset. He kept his piano there so as not to bother anyone with his practice. [6] The song has been described as "a breathless love song". [6] Skellern's vocals and piano accompaniment are supplemented by the Congregation, a choral pop ensemble who had already had their own top ten UK hit with "Softly Whispering I Love You", [7] and by the Hanwell Band, heard unaccompanied in the introductory bars.
Skellern once played with the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain as a child, and he sought to recapture his "speechless amazement" at their sound by using the brass band on the record. [6] The euphonium, played by John Luckett, is prominently featured. [8] Skellern wanted the song to evoke the North of England, saying: "I wanted people to see the wet cobblestones and the Lowry paintings when they heard 'You're a Lady'". [9]
The single was placed on Radio Luxembourg on a pay-for-play basis, but was then picked up by Terry Wogan on his BBC Radio 2 programme. The single went on to sell over 800,000 copies [10] and the song was also the first track on Skellern's 1972 album of the same name. [11] The song's great success and the demands that came with it led Skellern to a six-month period, a couple of years later, where he "got drunk every day". [9]
Chart (1972/73) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australia (Kent Music Report) [12] | 2 |
Irish Singles Chart [13] | 7 |
United Kingdom (Official Charts Company) | 3 |
US Billboard Hot 100 | 50 |
Chart (1972) | Position |
---|---|
UK [14] | 54 |
A French version of the song was released by folk singer Hugues Aufray with the title "Vous ma lady", and the following year the same version was released as a duet by Brigitte Bardot and Laurent Vergez. [15]
Other performers who have covered the song include:
Bardot was an Australian pop girl group which formed in 1999, consisting of Belinda Chapple, Sophie Monk, Sally Polihronas, Katie Underwood and Tiffani Wood. The group formed on the Australian reality television series Popstars, which attracted high ratings and significant media exposure. This resulted in the instant success of Bardot's debut single "Poison" and debut album Bardot (2000), both which entered the Australian and New Zealand charts at number 1.
Sir Richard Henry Simpson Stilgoe is a British songwriter, lyricist and musician, and broadcaster who is best known for his humorous songs and frequent television appearances. His output includes collaborations with Andrew Lloyd Webber and Peter Skellern. He is also a keen puzzler who has hosted several quiz shows and written several books on the subject.
"Je t'aime... moi non plus" is a 1967 song written by Serge Gainsbourg for Brigitte Bardot. In 1969, Gainsbourg recorded the best known version as a duet with English actress Jane Birkin. Although this version reached number one in the UK—the first foreign-language song to do so—and number two in Ireland, it was banned in several countries due to its overtly sexual content.
Peter Skellern was an English singer-songwriter and pianist who rose to fame in the 1970s. He had two top twenty hits on the UK Singles Chart – "You're a Lady" (1972), which typifies his signature use of brass bands and choral arrangements for a nostalgic and romantic feel, and "Hold On to Love" (1975). In the 1980s, Skellern formed the band Oasis with Julian Lloyd Webber and Mary Hopkin and established a musical comedy partnership with Richard Stilgoe in cabaret.
Mocedades is a Spanish singing group from the Basque Country, who represented Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1973 with the hit song "Eres tú". Since June 2014, Mocedades has been the name of two bands: one with Izaskun Uranga as its leader and the other with Javier Garay. A third group, El Consorcio, is composed of former Mocedades members who left the group but have continued a career together outside the Mocedades brand.
"ASAP" is a song by Australian pop group Bardot and the first single from their second studio album, Play It Like That (2001). It was written by Murlyn Music producers Fredrik Ödesjö, Henrik Jonback, and John McLaughlin, and produced by Ödesjö.
"Whispering Grass " is a popular song written by Fred Fisher and his daughter Doris Fisher. The song was first recorded by Erskine Hawkins & His Orchestra in 1940. The Ink Spots featuring Bill Kenny also recorded it the same year. A live instrumental version was played and recorded by Johnny Hodges with Duke Ellington and his orchestra in the Cristal Ballroom, Fargo, North Dakota, also in 1940.
"You're the Voice" is a song recorded by the Australian singer John Farnham released in 1986, which became an immediate hit in Australia as well as several European countries, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. It was released as a single in September 1986 ahead of his album Whispering Jack, and was written by Andy Qunta, Keith Reid, Maggie Ryder, and Chris Thompson.
"The More I See You" is a popular song composed by Harry Warren, with lyrics by Mack Gordon. The song was first published in 1945.
"Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" is a 1972 song by American pop rock band Looking Glass from their debut album, Looking Glass. It was written by Looking Glass lead guitarist and co-vocalist Elliot Lurie.
"Eres tú" is a song recorded by Spanish band Mocedades, written by Juan Carlos Calderón. It represented Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest 1973 held in Luxembourg placing second which was followed by a global success.
Sheldon David "Scott" English was an American songwriter, arranger and record producer. He is best known as the co-writer of "Brandy" which he wrote with Richard Kerr. The song became a No. 1 hit for Barry Manilow in 1974, with the title changed to "Mandy". English had also released a single of "Brandy" which reached No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart in November 1971, and entered the US charts in March 1972.
"Raining in My Heart" is a song recorded by Buddy Holly on October 21, 1958 at the Pythian Temple on West 70th Street in New York City, with the orchestral backing by Dick Jacobs. The music and lyrics are written by the songwriting team of Felice Bryant and Boudleaux Bryant. It was released as a single on Coral Records in 1959, peaking at number 88 on the Billboard chart as the B-side of "It Doesn't Matter Anymore". This recording was included on Buddy Holly's first "greatest hits" compilation album, The Buddy Holly Story, that was released in March 1959.
Me and Mrs. Jones is an album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was released in January 1973 by Columbia Records. While it does cover several big chart hits of the day like his last album, Song Sung Blue, did, it also includes songs that didn't make the US Top 40 or had never charted.
Major Hoople's Boarding House is a Canadian pop band from Galt, Ontario. They have released two albums and several singles, three of which appeared on national charts.
"Love Is the Sweetest Thing" is a popular song written in 1932 by British band leader and singer Ray Noble. Using guest vocalist Al Bowlly, Noble's recording was a big hit on both sides of the Atlantic, bringing Noble his first American success. It was published by Francis, Day & Hunter Ltd. Like most compositions published in the period, its main refrain is preceded with what were then called "sectional verses" or "introductory verses" which are usually omitted from early recordings and modern performances.
"Hold On to Love" is a 1975 single by British singer-songwriter Peter Skellern. It reached number 14 in the UK Singles Chart on 29 March 1975, becoming Skellern's second and final top 20 hit, following his debut single "You're a Lady", which made number 3 in 1972. Skellern described the song as a personal love song like his previous hit, but the song possesses more of a rock backing. The song has been praised by the British musician and journalist Bob Stanley, who highlighted its "spacious, squelchy production" and described it as "maybe my favourite single of 1975". The single's B-side was "Too Much, I'm In Love", which received considerable radio play in the years to follow.
"Our Jackie's Getting Married" is a 1972 song by British singer-songwriter Peter Skellern. It was released by Decca Records as Skellern's second single in late 1972, following the chart success of his first, "You're a Lady", but failed to chart.
You're a Lady is the debut album by English singer-songwriter Peter Skellern, released in 1972 by Decca Records. The album was named after Skellern's first single, issued in August 1972 and a number 3 hit on the UK Singles Chart. The album was recorded in five sessions at Decca Studios in London and established Skellern's unique musical style, encompassing influences from church music and northern brass band music, reflecting his Lancashire origin. A classically trained pianist, Skellern wrote the album while working as a porter at a hotel.
Not Without a Friend is the second album by English singer-songwriter Peter Skellern, released on 25 January 1974 by Decca Records. Arriving just over a year after Skellern's first album You're a Lady and the single success of its title track, the album was produced by Derek Taylor, former press officer for the Beatles then working for WEA (Warner-Elektra-Atlantic). Despite positive reviews, Not Without a Friend and its single "Still Magic" failed to chart. It was reissued in 2019 by Mint Audio as part of Peter Skellern: The Complete Decca Recordings, a release crowdfunded by fans through a Kickstarter campaign.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)Peter Skellern plays from Roundhead Studios in Auckland on Afternoons with Jim Mora.