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Post by Shireblogger on Sept 25, 2016 9:42:37 GMT 1
The biggest selling hit of 1967 was top of the UK charts for 6 weeks, holding off the Beatles' "Penny Lane / Strawberry Fields Forever".
"Release Me" had been written in the late 1940s, and was a multiple hit on the US country charts during the 1950s and 1960s. Engelbert had been struggling to get his career going, but fortune smiled on him when the illness of another performer gave him an unexpected slot on Saturday Night At The London Palladium, at the time Britain's top television show. (Imagine Britain's Got Talent for people who actually possess talent). He sang "Release Me", and the single surged from #39 to #1 within a month.
So, is it a heartbreakingly beautiful song, sung by one of Britain's greatest ever crooners ? Or is glutinous melodrama which only appeals to those with no musical taste ?
Please give us your opinion of "Release Me", along with a score between 0 (very bad) and 10 (very good). You must write a minimum of 5 words and a maximum of 5 paragraphs for your score to count, and scores outside the range of 0-10 will not be included.
2.8 AVERAGE from 8 judges
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vastar iner
Member
I am the poster on your wall
Posts: 17,402
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Post by vastar iner on Sept 25, 2016 14:24:59 GMT 1
There was a story in the Backpass magazine about how some lower division team went out on the razz one night and ended up in a nightclub where one Gerry Dorsey was entertaining. He recognized a couple of them as footballers and they basically had a lock-in. By the end Dorsey was the only one standing.
The archetypal overnight success that was years in the making (q.v. The Beatles, Shakin Stevens). Did a long apprenticeship till Dickie Valentine fell ill before a live TV show, Hump was recruited to fill the gap, and suddenly every old dear was after "Release Me" from their local Boots.
Very talented singer, obviously, and having shlepped around for years deserved his success. But this record takes one right back to 1949 and that was not a good time for music. And this is not a good record. Indeed, it is dismal melodramatic shlock that deserves to burn in damnation for nothing other than it kept "Strawberry Fields Forever" off the top of the charts.
Swinging sixties...
0/10
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Post by Earl Purple on Sept 25, 2016 16:05:42 GMT 1
I prefer The Last Waltz, albeit it did not deserve to get to #1 with so many far superior songs in the chart at the same time as it. And also "A Man Without Love".
The problem with Release Me is it is just the same tune again and again. It tries to get "interesting" with a key change but doesn't. Lyrically, it just comes over as rather mean. Telling the woman "I don't love you anymore" and in particular because he is seeing another woman. (The song has also been recorded by female singers like Esther Phillips so in her case presumably another man). He then dares to say "her lips are warm while yours are cold" like it is his partner's fault.
Westlife made better singles than this.
1/10
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Post by smokeyb on Sept 25, 2016 22:50:35 GMT 1
I cannot say anything in its favour,but the fact it stopped the Beatles classic getting to No. 1 makes me hate it all the more.
0/10
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rewardman
Member
*rock n roll juvenile*
Posts: 30,767
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Post by rewardman on Sept 26, 2016 1:26:14 GMT 1
I'll leave the fate of the Beatles out of my assessment. It isn't Engelbert's fault that the British public preferred his record after all.
6/10
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Post by Earl Purple on Sept 26, 2016 8:18:33 GMT 1
I'll leave the fate of the Beatles out of my assessment. It isn't Engelbert's fault that the British public preferred his record after all. 6/10 The Beatles had plenty of big hits but the British public seemed to have a liking for these ballads in the 60s. Ken Dodd with "Tears", Des O'Connor later with "I Pretend" and even Tom Jones "Green Green Grass Of Home". And of course Engelbert... I am one year away from this period and have no idea if "Penny Lane" or "Strawberry Fields Forever" (which I will probably chart separately if either of them had a run in the US chart) will actually make it to #1 in my chart, but I know for certain there will be no chart placing whatsoever for this song by Engelbert (partly because I have a rule about multiple versions of a song and Esther Phillips got this one in ahead of him, but it's poor anyway)
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Post by Shireblogger on Oct 22, 2016 10:43:15 GMT 1
I love this track. Engelbert sings it superbly, wracked with soaring melodrama. The whole performance, especially the lush backing vocals, influenced Elvis' 70s Las Vegas shows, which are a guilty pleasure of mine. And the fact that it is an un-love song really adds to the power.
9/10 from me.
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Post by o on Oct 22, 2016 15:25:53 GMT 1
Cant stand it, truly awful.0/10
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Post by Razzle Dazzle on Nov 9, 2016 1:26:01 GMT 1
Just OK for me, the lyrics are so cringe it ruins what could be a decent song
3/10
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Post by Earl Purple on Nov 9, 2016 10:49:41 GMT 1
I think The Last Waltz would have been a more interesting choice for here. It's clearly a better song than this one, and whilst Release Me kept the Beatles out, The Last Waltz kept out Keith West who never had a #1, and I think it kept out The Move too, who did have one later but not as good as the one this kept out.
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Post by raliverpool on Nov 10, 2016 20:04:49 GMT 1
I think I attempted to post in this before but then the site had crashed so I lost the post, and could not be bothered to rewrite: Dull Easy listening track. I preferred The Last Waltz, & After The Lovin'. Forget it stopping the Beatles seminal double a side being UK #1 (The fact alone should have told David Cameron what a terrible idea a referendum was). Forget the fact he behaved like a grade A A-Hole over allegations that he fathered an illegitimate child, so filed a libel lawsuit which subsequently resulted in paternity test, with the Hump losing, then refusing to pay child support payments until a Californian court threatened him with jail. Forget he is a Republican/Tory supporter. Forget him siding with his former manager Gordon Mills in a bitter 5 year case by Gilbert O'Sullivan against his former manager (and supported by another former Gordon Mills client Tom Jones). Eventually, in May 1982, the court found in O'Sullivan's favour, describing him as a "patently honest and decent man", who had not received a just proportion of the vast income his songs had generated. They awarded him £7 million in damages (worth £20 million at 2011 prices). Whilst the judge heavily criticised the evidence "The Hump" gave in defence of Mills implying he was heavily dishonest. Forget his sense of Daily Mail-esque entitlement over his instantly forgettable ESC entry which deservedly finished last. No, condemn this track for the fact he shamelessly plundered this vastly superior USA hit version by R&B singer Esther Phillips: And then three singles later did the same to Esther's definitive version of "Am I That Easy to Forget" www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Elt95eGiO0. 3/10
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