The Early Radio London Fab Forties
Sunday 22nd August 1965

A somewhat implausible leap from #32 to #17 for Sam (Domingo Samudio) the Sham and the Pharaohs' forgettable follow-up to 'Wooly Bully'. The single had been in the US top thirty, but it was a flop this side of the pond.

 

Last
This
Presented by Earl Richmond
Week
Week
7
1
I Got You Babe Sonny & Cher
9
2
All I Really Want To Do Byrds / Cher
6
3
Zorba's Dance Marcello Minerbi
8
4
See My Friend Kinks
1
5
Everyone's Gone To The Moon Jonathan King
10
6
Unchained Melody Righteous Brothers
2
7
Help! Beatles
12
8
Make It Easy On Yourself Walker Brothers
5
9
We've Gotta Get Out Of This Place Animals
11
10
Don't Make My Baby Blue Shadows
4
11
Catch Us If You Can Dave Clark Five
12
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction Rolling Stones
18
13
What's New Pussycat? Tom Jones
3
14
I Want Candy Brian Poole & the Tremeloes
22
15
Yakety Axe Chet Atkins
25
16
Laugh At Me Sonny
32
17
Ju Ju Hand Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs
13
18
Cry To Me Pretty Things
28
19
Il Silenzio Nini Rosso
20
Just A Little Bit Better Herman's Hermits
24
21
You're My Girl Rockin' Berries
23
22
Seventh Son Johnny Rivers
15
23
You've Got Your Troubles Fortunes
19
24
Summer Nights Marianne Faithfull
16
25
In Thoughts Of You Billy Fury
26
Hark Unit 4 + 2
37
27
Universal Soldier (EP) Donovan
28
I Have Cried My Last Tear Cliff Bennett & the Rebel Rousers
38
29
That's The Way I Must Go Headliners
34
30
Hurt Me If You Will Mark Four
30
31
I'll Never Get Over You Everly Brothers
32
Take A Heart Sorrows
33
Hang On Sloopy McCoys
21
34
(Say) You're My Girl Roy Orbison
35
Little Pictures Adam, Mike & Tim
36
It's All Over Now Baby Blue Joan Baez
37
The Time In Between Cliff Richard & the Shadows
17
38
I Can't Help Myself Four Tops
39
39
Whatcha Gonna Do About It? Small Faces
40
One Of These Days Guy Darrell

9
2
All I Really Want To Do Byrds / Cher

It's Sonny and Cher Week on Big L! They hold the #1 spot together, Cher's solo is at joint #2, Sonny's solo at #16, while their new duet is the Radio London Club Disc of the Week!

Kenny and Cash continued to have fun with Dylan lyrics, with Dave Cash convinced that the second line of the final verse of All I Really Want To Do commenced with the words, 'finkle-dinkle'. The version on the 'Lyricsfreak' website tends to disagree with Dave's interpretation! Interesting to note that visitors can submit votes as to the accuracy of the lyrics. Maybe Dave should have written to correct them on the omission of 'finkle-dinkle' ?

The Sorrows was the first group to join the Knees Club on January 7th 1966. (l to r) Phil Packham (bass; KC member #8), Pip Whitcher (lead; #7), Don Maughn (vocals; #9), Bruce Finley (drums; #5) and Wez Price (rhythm; #6). Note Beatlesque jackets!

Mary reciprocated by joining the band's fan club, known as The Sorrows Rave Set, run by Carol Oliver of Hornchurch. At the time, the fan club had slightly more members than the Knees Club. Mary was Rave Set member #12.

The Sorrows' weeping guitarist logo (above, right) is taken from a Pye promotional postcard, sent by Carol. In the photo above, the boys look relatively cheerful, but because of their name, they were frequently required to pose with suitably moody expressions.

Mary Payne

32
Take A Heart Sorrows Piccadilly 97N 35260

Take A Heart, written and produced by Miki Dallon, had been the B side of You Got What I Want by the Boys Blue, which made #38 in the Fab 40 on 4th July 1965. (For Boys Blue story, see FF 20th June 1965.) Dallon also produced records for fellow Coventry band the Sorrows and a new version of the song by them, super-charged with a hypnotic drum and bass beat and powerful vocals by Don Maughn, emerged within weeks and became a hit.

Linguistically reworked, the song also made the charts for the Sorrows in Germany as Nimm Mein Herz, and in Italy as Mi Si Spezza Il Cuore.

The Sorrows never quite recaptured the success of Take A Heart and, after four years together, the original group split in 1967. A new line-up left Britain for Italy, where they had a few more minor hits.

Don Maughn changed his surname to Fardon and launched a solo career. He made #20 in the USA in 1968, and #3 in the UK in 1970, with the John D Loudermilk song, Indian Reservation, another Miki Dallon production featuring a tribal drum track reminiscent of Take A Heart.

Alan Field

The 2-CD, 42-track Take A Heart compilation contains all the Sorrows' A and B-sides plus unreleased cuts and the title track sung in German (Nimm Mein Herz) and Italian (Mi Si Spezza Il Cuore). Click on the cover photo for track listing and review.

Sorrows Wikipedia entry



DJ Climber:    
Everything's Wrong Chubby Checker Duncan Johnson

Disc of the Week:  
Baby Don't Go Sonny & Cher


Tune in next week for another Big L Fab 40!

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