When the Girl in Your Arms Is the Girl in Your Heart
Encyclopedia
"When the Girl in Your Arms Is the Girl in Your Heart" is a 1961 hit by Cliff Richard
written by the songwriting team of Sid Tepper
and Roy Bennett who would contribute fifteen songs to the Cliff Richard canon including his career record "The Young Ones
". Produced by Richard's regular producer Norrie Paramor
, "When the Girl in Your Arms..." featured backing by the Norrie Paramor Orchestra with vocal support from the Mike Sammes
Singers. Richard's own group the Shadows
backed him on the B-side "Got a Funny Feeling".
http://www.schingenga.eu/CLIFF/DISCOG/SESSIONS/S610130.html
Recorded in January 1961, "When the Girl in Your Arms..." was not released until that October as the first advance single for the Cliff Richard movie vehicle The Young Ones
. The track reached a chart peak of #3 in the UK and gave Richard a #1 hit in the Netherlands, Norway (for eight weeks) and South Africa. A #2 hit in Australia and Ireland, Richard's "When the Girl in Your Arms..." was also a hit in Belgium/Flemish Region (#4), Belgium/Wallonia (#10) and New Zealand (#7).
Although Cliff Richard had a deal for US distribution with ABC-Paramount
- who in 1959 had released his only US hit (as of 1961) "Living Doll
" (#30) - "When the Girl in Your Arms..." was not given a US release concurrent with its UK charting, as ABC-Parmamount felt it prudent to await the American opening of the track's parent movie The Young Ones. Connie Francis
heard Richard's hit while visiting the UK and in an unusual move Francis - whose singles were typically remakes of taditional pop standards
or original material - covered
Richard's UK hit in a 2 November 1961 session in New York City produced by Arnold Maxin with Don Costa
as arranger/conductor. Entitled "When the Boy in Your Arms (Is the Boy in Your Heart)", Francis' version reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100
in January 1962 when it reached #8 in Cash Box. The single's B-side "Baby's First Christmas" also became a chart hit over the 1961 holiday season reaching #26.
In light of the Cliff Richard original's success in the UK, Francis version of "When the Boy in Your Arms (is the Boy in Your Heart)" did not have a parallel release in the UK where instead "Baby's First Christmas" - backed by "I'm Falling in Love With You Tonight" - was released as an A-side reaching #30. The lack of a late 1961 mainstream release by Francis had a strong negative impact on her UK career where previously her singles had equaled or exceeded their US impact. Francis' next single release "Don't Break the Heart That Loves You
" despite hitting #1 in the US only reached #39 in the UK and Francis would have only four subsequent UK chartings with "Vacation
" at #10 her only Top Twenty entrant.
Despite the success of Cliff Richard's "When the Girl in Your Arms..." in Australia and New Zealand, Francis' "When the Boy in Your Arms..." was released in these territories to reach #40 in Australia and become a Top Ten in New Zealand, the latter in March 1962 despite the success of the Cliff Richard original in New Zealand the previous month. "When the Boy in Your Arms..." also gave Francis a #1 hit in Hong Kong.
Cliff Richard was "very unhappy" at losing a potential US Top Ten breakthrough hit to the Connie Francis cover; his displeasure led his home label EMI
to reassign the US rights for Richard's releases to Bigtop Records as of February 1962. Richard would remain absent from the US charts until August 1963: over the following twelve month period he'd make four appearances on the Billboard Hot 100
with only one of these releases - Epic
was now Richard's US label - becoming a Top 40 hit: "It's All in the Game". Except for a #99 appearance in 1968 with "Congratulations
", Richard was subsequently absent from the Hot 100 until 1976 when he had his first (of three) US Top Ten hits with "Devil Woman
" (#6).
A version of "When the Girl in Your Arms Is the Girl in Your Heart" became the first chart record for Ricky Shayne reaching #33 on the charts in Germany
in 1967.
The song was also recorded as "When the Girl in Your Arms" - by Michael English on his 2008 album All My Life.
In December 1961 Lale Andersen
cut a German
cover version
of the song entitled "Roter Rubin". A Dutch
rendering: "Op die dag in de zon" (on that day in the sun), has been recorded by Willeke Alberti and John Spencer; the Alberti version was on a 1962 single release coupled with Alberti's rendition of the Sue Thompson
hit "Norman".
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
written by the songwriting team of Sid Tepper
Sid Tepper
Sid Tepper is an American songwriter, best known for his collaborations with Roy C. Bennett, which spawned several hits for Elvis Presley. Between 1945 and 1970, Tepper and Bennett published over 300 songs.-Biography:...
and Roy Bennett who would contribute fifteen songs to the Cliff Richard canon including his career record "The Young Ones
The Young Ones (song)
"The Young Ones" is a single by Cliff Richard and The Shadows. The song, written by Sid Tepper and Roy C. Bennett, is the title song to the 1961 film The Young Ones and its soundtrack album...
". Produced by Richard's regular producer Norrie Paramor
Norrie Paramor
Norrie Paramor was a British record producer, composer, arranger, and orchestral conductor.Although the term "producer" was not in circulation at the time Paramor started producing records , he effectively began this role in 1952 when he became Recording Director for EMI's Columbia...
, "When the Girl in Your Arms..." featured backing by the Norrie Paramor Orchestra with vocal support from the Mike Sammes
Mike Sammes
Michael William "Mike" Sammes was an English musician and vocal session arranger, performing backing vocals on pop music recorded in the UK from 1955 to the 1970s.-Career:...
Singers. Richard's own group the Shadows
The Shadows
The Shadows are a British pop group with a total of 69 UK hit-charted singles: 35 as 'The Shadows' and 34 as 'Cliff Richard and the Shadows', from the 1950s to the 2000s. Cliff Richard in casual conversation with the British rock press frequently refers to the Shadows by their nickname: 'The Shads'...
backed him on the B-side "Got a Funny Feeling".
http://www.schingenga.eu/CLIFF/DISCOG/SESSIONS/S610130.html
Recorded in January 1961, "When the Girl in Your Arms..." was not released until that October as the first advance single for the Cliff Richard movie vehicle The Young Ones
The Young Ones (film)
The Young Ones is a British musical released in 1961, featuring singer Cliff Richard. The musical was directed by Sidney J. Furie and was produced by Kenneth Harper and Andrew Mitchell for the Associated British Studios at Elstree. The original screenplay was written by Peter Myers and Ronald...
. The track reached a chart peak of #3 in the UK and gave Richard a #1 hit in the Netherlands, Norway (for eight weeks) and South Africa. A #2 hit in Australia and Ireland, Richard's "When the Girl in Your Arms..." was also a hit in Belgium/Flemish Region (#4), Belgium/Wallonia (#10) and New Zealand (#7).
Although Cliff Richard had a deal for US distribution with ABC-Paramount
ABC Records
ABC Records was an American record label, founded in New York City in 1955 as ABC-Paramount Records. It originated as the main popular music label operated the Am-Par Record Corporation, the music subsidiary of the American Broadcasting Company . ABC-Paramount Records' first president was Samuel H....
- who in 1959 had released his only US hit (as of 1961) "Living Doll
Living Doll (song)
"Living Doll" is a song written by Lionel Bart made popular by Cliff Richard and the Shadows in 1959. It has topped the UK charts twice; in its original version and a new version recorded in 1986 in aid of Comic Relief....
" (#30) - "When the Girl in Your Arms..." was not given a US release concurrent with its UK charting, as ABC-Parmamount felt it prudent to await the American opening of the track's parent movie The Young Ones. Connie Francis
Connie Francis
Connie Francis is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw...
heard Richard's hit while visiting the UK and in an unusual move Francis - whose singles were typically remakes of taditional pop standards
Traditional pop music
Traditional pop or classic pop or standards music denotes, in general, Western popular music that either wholly predates the advent of rock and roll in the mid-1950s, or to any popular music which exists concurrently to rock and roll but originated in a time before the appearance of rock and roll,...
or original material - covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
Richard's UK hit in a 2 November 1961 session in New York City produced by Arnold Maxin with Don Costa
Don Costa
Don Costa was an American pop music arranger and record producer, best known for his work with Frank Sinatra.-Career:...
as arranger/conductor. Entitled "When the Boy in Your Arms (Is the Boy in Your Heart)", Francis' version reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
in January 1962 when it reached #8 in Cash Box. The single's B-side "Baby's First Christmas" also became a chart hit over the 1961 holiday season reaching #26.
In light of the Cliff Richard original's success in the UK, Francis version of "When the Boy in Your Arms (is the Boy in Your Heart)" did not have a parallel release in the UK where instead "Baby's First Christmas" - backed by "I'm Falling in Love With You Tonight" - was released as an A-side reaching #30. The lack of a late 1961 mainstream release by Francis had a strong negative impact on her UK career where previously her singles had equaled or exceeded their US impact. Francis' next single release "Don't Break the Heart That Loves You
Don't Break the Heart That Loves You
"Don't Break the Heart That Loves You" is an American song written by Benny Davis and Ted Murry. The song would become a success for two artists in two different genres: Connie Francis in the pop field in 1962, and Margo Smith as a country version in 1978....
" despite hitting #1 in the US only reached #39 in the UK and Francis would have only four subsequent UK chartings with "Vacation
Vacation (Connie Francis song)
-Also:"Vacation" was one of three Connie Francis hits remade by Maywood for their 1991 Walking Back to Happiness album, the others being "Stupid Cupid" and "Lipstick on Your Collar"....
" at #10 her only Top Twenty entrant.
Despite the success of Cliff Richard's "When the Girl in Your Arms..." in Australia and New Zealand, Francis' "When the Boy in Your Arms..." was released in these territories to reach #40 in Australia and become a Top Ten in New Zealand, the latter in March 1962 despite the success of the Cliff Richard original in New Zealand the previous month. "When the Boy in Your Arms..." also gave Francis a #1 hit in Hong Kong.
Cliff Richard was "very unhappy" at losing a potential US Top Ten breakthrough hit to the Connie Francis cover; his displeasure led his home label EMI
Columbia Graphophone Company
The Columbia Graphophone Company was one of the earliest gramophone companies in the United Kingdom. Under EMI, as Columbia Records, it became a very successful label in the 1950s and 1960s...
to reassign the US rights for Richard's releases to Bigtop Records as of February 1962. Richard would remain absent from the US charts until August 1963: over the following twelve month period he'd make four appearances on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
with only one of these releases - Epic
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
was now Richard's US label - becoming a Top 40 hit: "It's All in the Game". Except for a #99 appearance in 1968 with "Congratulations
Congratulations (song)
"Congratulations" is a song written by Bill Martin and Phil Coulter as the UK entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1968 on 6 April with Cliff Richard performing....
", Richard was subsequently absent from the Hot 100 until 1976 when he had his first (of three) US Top Ten hits with "Devil Woman
Devil Woman
"Devil Woman" is a 1976 hit single for Cliff Richard culled from his album I'm Nearly Famous.-Background:"Devil Woman" was written by Terry Britten and Christine Holmes and first recorded by Holmes under the name Kristine....
" (#6).
A version of "When the Girl in Your Arms Is the Girl in Your Heart" became the first chart record for Ricky Shayne reaching #33 on the charts in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1967.
The song was also recorded as "When the Girl in Your Arms" - by Michael English on his 2008 album All My Life.
In December 1961 Lale Andersen
Lale Andersen
Lale Andersen was a German chanson singer-songwriter born in Bremerhaven, Germany. She is best known for her interpretation of the song "Lili Marleen" in 1939, which became tremendously popular on both sides during the Second World War.- Early life :She was born in Lehe and baptized Liese-Lotte...
cut a German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of the song entitled "Roter Rubin". A Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
rendering: "Op die dag in de zon" (on that day in the sun), has been recorded by Willeke Alberti and John Spencer; the Alberti version was on a 1962 single release coupled with Alberti's rendition of the Sue Thompson
Sue Thompson
Sue Thompson is an American pop and country music singer. She is best known for the million selling hits "Sad Movies " and "Norman", both pop hits for her in the 1960s.-Early life:...
hit "Norman".