Check the On Disc page for a discography of Lyn's solo releases as well as earlier recordings with the Nocturnes and the New Seekers which feature her singing the lead vocal.
Written by: Mike Redway Produced by: Mike Redway Arranged by: Brian Bennett
For the second time Lyn released a single with one of her mum's songs on the B-side. The A-side is another of those upbeat bright and shiny numbers that Polydor was keen for Lyn to record
B-side: How Long Will I Love You
Written by: Doreen Belcher Produced by: Mike Redway Arranged by: Brian Bennett
Written by: Buckley / Davis / Leigh Produced by: Steve Buckley / Henry Hadaway
An up-tempo single recorded by Lyn with her brother Paul and released in 1983 on the Crash label under the name Future Primitive. With the sound of the synthesizer dominating the charts, Lyn gave '80s electro a whirl. The result is certainly a change from the ballads and sing-alongs of the '70s. The Human League meets Dollar?
B-side: Perfection
Written by: Keff McCulloch Arranged by: Keff McCulloch
Written by: Jimmie Crane / Al Jacobs Produced by: Rod Edwards / Nick Magnus Arranged by: Rod Edwards / Nick Magnus
Featured on the album:Late Night MP3 available from: iTunes
Hurt has been a hit in the USA for five different artists: first for Roy Hamilton, who took the song to number 8 in the R&B chart in 1955; then for Timi Yuro, who made it to number 4 in the mainstream chart in 1961. The R&B vocal group Little Anthony and the Imperials charted with Hurt in 1966 (US number 51), while Elvis Presley and the Manhattans both had hits with the song a decade later. The Manhattans' version barely made it into the chart at all in the USA, peaking at number 97. Elvis, by contrast, made it to number 28. In the UK the tables were turned: Elvis stalled at number 37, while the Manhattans took the song to number 4.
Lyn Paul's favourite version of Hurt is the one by Timi Yuro. Speaking to showbiz writer Phil Penfold, she said: "I read ... that Ms. Yuro had gone into a record company, demanded to see a producer, and then sang this for him – and he immediately rushed her into a studio, and it became a huge hit" (Doncaster Free Press, 17th April 2007).
Hurt was written by Jimmie Crane and Al Jacobs, whose other songs include: Ev'ry Day Of My Life (a US hit for the McGuire Sisters in 1956 and for Bobby Vinton in 1972), I Need You Now (a US hit for Eddie Fisher, Joni James and Ronnie Dove) and If I Gave My Heart To You (a hit in the UK and the USA for Doris Day in 1954 and a US-only hit for Kitty Kallen in 1959).
Released: 18th September 2006
I Don't Believe You Ever Loved Me
Written by: Leray Produced by: Terry Brown Arranged by: Kenny Woodman
A plaintive ballad with a haunting melody, this is one of Lyn's best singles.
Lyn's name was misspelled with an extra "n" on this single.
B-side: Let Me Be The One
Written by: D. Belcher Produced by: Terry Brown Arranged by: Kenny Woodman
A popular song title *, this Let Me Be The One was written by Lyn's mum. It was the fourth time that one of her songs had been used as a B-side for one of Lyn's singles.
* The Shadows represented the UK in the 1975 Eurovision Song Contest with a song of the same title. Ten years later Five Star had a hit with yet another song called Let Me Be The One.
Written by: Al Dubin / Harry Warren Produced by: Rod Edwards / Nick Magnus Arranged by: Rod Edwards / Nick Magnus
Featured on the album:Late Night MP3 available from: iTunes
I Only Have Eyes For You, from the film musical Dames starring Joan Blondell, was originally a hit for Ben Selvin in 1934. The song was revived by the Flamingos in 1959 (their version reached number 11 in the US singles chart). Versions by the Lettermen and Jerry Butler were also minor US hits in 1966 and 1972 respectively.
The song has become a standard, recorded by artists from many generations, among them: Louis Armstrong, Tony Bennett, George Benson, Teresa Brewer, Rosemary Clooney, Doris Day. Sacha Distel, Percy Faith, Ella Fitzgerald, Erroll Garner, Stan Getz, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Etta James, Al Jolson, Peggy Lee, Dean Martin, Johnny Mathis, Elaine Paige, Billy Paul, Cliff Richard, Kenny Rogers, Dinah Shore, Carly Simon, Frank Sinatra, Kay Starr, Rod Stewart and Mary Wells. It was only in 1975, however, when Art Garfunkel took his version to the top of the chart, that I Only Have Eyes For You become a hit single in the UK.
Songwriter Harry Warren (1893-1981) wrote many other classic songs. Among them are some of Hollywood's greatest hits: Lullaby Of Broadway (from Gold Diggers Of 1935), Chattanooga Choo Choo (from Sun Valley Serenade) and You'll Never Know (from Hello, Frisco, Hello).
Written by: Jaan Kenbrovin (a collective pseudonym for the writers James Kendis, James Brockman and Nat Vincent) and John Kellette. Produced by: Rod Edwards / Nick Magnus
Lyn Paul included the chorus of I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles as a bonus track on her album Late Night. The song was originally a hit for Ben Selvin's Novelty Orchestra in 1919 and became a music hall favourite in the 1920s. In the late 1920s it was adopted as the club anthem by supporters of West Ham United, though the line "They fly so high, Nearly reach the sky", as sung by the fans, became "They fly so high, They reach the sky".
When Lyn Paul was interviewed by David Jensen on Capital Gold's From The Bottom To The Top, Lyn explained that she'd added the track for her husband, Alan: "I sing 'Bubbles' for him, because he's a West Ham fan - no backing, just 'Bubbles'!"
'Bubbles' has been recorded by many other artists, among them Max Bygraves, Doris Day, Vera Lynn, Dean Martin, Mrs. Mills and Cyril Stapleton. The West Ham United Cup Squad recorded the song in 1975, reaching number 31 in the UK singles chart. Five years later the Cockney Rejects also had a minor hit with a punk version of the song (UK number 35).
Released: 18th September 2006
The front cover of Lyn Paul's 1977
Song For Europe, If Everybody
Loved The Same
As You
If Everybody Loved The Same As You was Lyn Paul's first single for the Pye record label. Despite the move from Polydor, Lyn continued to work with Ron Roker and Gerry Shury, who had produced and arranged her previous single Mama Don't Wait For Me.
If Everybody Loved The Same As You was one of the entries in the 1977Song For Europe contest. Coincidentally, Ron Roker and Gerry Shury had written one of the other entries - High Society'sJust For You. Bizarrely, both songs scored exactly the same number of points, ending up in a tie for sixth place. Lynsey de Paul and Mike Moran won the contest with the song Rock Bottom. They went on to represent the UK in that year's Eurovision Song Contest, in which they came second.
For Ron Roker perseverance paid off in 1983 when he won the Song For Europe with the aptly-titled I'm Never Giving Up. Co-written with Jan Pulsford and Phil Wigger, the song was performed at the Eurovision Song Contest in Munich by Sweet Dreams, who finished in sixth place.
Song For Europe 1977
Artist / Song / Songwriters
Points
Pos.
Lynsey de Paul and Mike Moran
Rock Bottom
(Lynsey de Paul / Mike Moran)
143
1st
Mary Mason
What Do You Say To Love
(Nick Ryan / Robin Slater)
132
2nd
The Foundations
Where Were You When I Needed Your Love
(John McLeod / Dave Myers)
126
3rd
Rags
Promises, Promises
(Richard Gillinson / David Hays)
120
4th
Wesley, Park and Smith
After All This Time
(Gary Benson / Dave Mindel)
Val Stokes
Swings and Roundabouts
(Nicholas Portlock / Richard Crewe)
57
12th
25 years after its first release If Everybody Loved The Same As You was included on a compilation CD, Puppets On A String. Titled after Sandie Shaw's Eurovision winner from 1967, the CD is a collector's item - the first (and so far the only) officially released CD to include one of Lyn's singles. The sleeve notes, written by Maria Callous, describe If Everybody Loved The Same As You as "a seemingly re-written version of You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me ... a strong song, typical of the New Seekers but it obviously sounded out of date to the juries who were busy choosing another blonde."
The song-writing partnership behind If Everybody Loved The Same As You had separately provided Lyn Paul with songs on previous occasions. Geoff Stephens co-wrote Lyn's number 1 hit with the New Seekers, You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me (released in 1973) and the follow-up I Get A Little Sentimental Over You (which reached number 5 in 1974). Don Black co-wrote Lyn's first solo single, Sail The Summer Winds (also in 1974).
Don Black and Geoff Stephens went on to write the musical Dear Anyone, which spawned Hot Chocolate's 1978 hit I'll Put You Together Again and which featured ex-New Seeker Peter Oliver singing a ballad entitled Sleeping Like A Baby Now.
Other notable songs by Geoff Stephens include the New Vaudeville Band's number 4 hit Winchester Cathedral and There's A Kind Of Hush - a hit for Herman's Hermits in 1967 and for the Carpenters in '76.
B-side: By My Side
The B-side of If Everybody Loved The Same As You was written by Lyn's mum.
Written by: D. Belcher Produced by: Ron Roker / Gerry Shury Arranged by: Ron Roker / Gerry Shury
Written by:John Lennon / Paul McCartney Produced by: Rod Edwards / Nick Magnus Arranged by: Rod Edwards / Nick Magnus
Featured on the album:Late Night MP3 available from: iTunes
In My Life was first recorded by the Beatles for the 1965 album Rubber Soul.
Since then the song has been recorded by Cilla Black, Glen Campbell, Johnny Cash, Judy Collins, José Feliciano, Lena Horne, Bette Midler, Nana Mouskouri, Ozzy Osbourne, Rod Stewart. Bonnie Tyler and Don Williams.
Nick Magnus, who co-produced Lyn's version of In My Life, had previously contributed a number of arrangements of Lennon and McCartney songs to the West End musical All You Need Is Love.
In 1971It Must Be Love was a Top 20 UK hit for the much under-rated songwriter Labi Siffre (Pye International 7N 25572). It was subsequently a Top 5 hit for Madness (Stiff BUY 134) in 1981. Lyn's version features an orchestral arrangement which marks it apart from these other versions.
Released as a single in the Summer of '75, It Oughta Sell A Million was written by the same team of song-writers who wrote the New Seekers' hit I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing (In Perfect Harmony). Both songs were featured in television commercials for Coca-Cola. There's even a sly reference to the ad on the single. Note the phrase "It's the real thing" etched into the vinyl on the A-side!
Sadly it didn't sell a million but it did enter the UK singles chart in the week ending on 28th June 1975. The single spent six weeks in the hit parade, peaking at number 37 in the week ending on 12th July. That week Lyn was interviewed by Ray Fox-Cumming. She explained how the record had come about:
"Five years ago we [the New Seekers] recorded about half a dozen jingles for Coca-Cola. The tune of 'I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing' was one of them and the tune of 'It Oughta Sell A Million' was another.
Only a couple of months ago I was watching TV and was flabbergasted to hear the 'Oughta Sell A Million' tune dug out after all this time. So then we approached Roger Greenaway to write special lyrics to the tune and I went and recorded it with help from Peter Doyle, who was one of the original New Seekers." (Record Mirror, July 1975)
Later in 1975 Roger Cook had a Christmas hit when Dana's recording of It's Gonna Be A Cold Cold Christmas reached number 4 in the UK charts. Prior to this he had written hits for a variety of recording artists - Cilla Black(Conversations, Something Tells Me);Blue Mink(Banner Man, Good Morning Freedom, Melting Pot, Randy, Stay With Me);Congregation(Softly Whispering I Love You); the Drifters(Like Sister and Brother); the Fortunes(This Golden Ring, You've Got Your Troubles); the Hollies(Gasoline Alley Bred, Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress);Gene Pitney(Something's Gotten Hold Of My Heart) and White Plains(My Baby Loves Lovin').
B-side: The Waiting Game
The B-side of It Oughta Sell A Million was written by Lyn's mum. The phrase "mum's the word" is etched into the vinyl.
Written by: Doreen Belcher Produced by: No credit given Arranged by: No credit given
Catalogue Number: Polydor 2058 602 Released: 6th June 1975
