UK Music Chart: April 8, 1972 Ft. The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards

The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards at #3

Harry Nilsson was celebrating his fifth week at the top of the UK Charts with Without You this week in 1972, but a surprise hit from an unlikely source was about to knock him off his perch.

An instrumental version of the hymn Amazing Grace was just about to take the worldwide charts by storm - most likely because the recording featured the bagpipes, on this occasion played by members of The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.

Elsewhere, the Top 20 was relatively uneventful. Last week's new entries continued to progress further, while new entries this week were thin on the ground.

Apart from Amazing Grace motoring up 28 places, only the latest 45s from Labi Siffre and Elvis Presley were able to make their débuts.


Nilsson at Number 1

The Chart: 

• 01 (01) Nilsson - Without You 
• 02 (02) The New Seekers - Beg, Steal or Borrow 
• 03 (31) The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards - Amazing Grace 
• 04 (03) Gilbert O'Sullivan - Alone Again (Naturally) 
• 05 (05) Argent - Hold Your Head Up 
• 06 (06) Lindisfarne - Meet Me on the Corner 
• 07 (04) Don McLean - American Pie 
• 08 (15) The Chiffons - Sweet Talkin' Guy 
• 09 (07) Les Crane - Desiderata 
• 10 (09) The Supremes - Floy Joy 
• 11 (17) Neil Young - Heart of Gold 
• 12 (11) The Partridge Family - It's One of Those Nights 
• 13 (19) Tom Jones - The Young New Mexican Puppeteer 
• 14 (08) Paul Simon - Mother and Child Reunion 
• 15 (18) Ringo Starr - Back Off Boogaloo 
• 16 (20) Olivia Newton-John - What Is Life? 
• 17 (14) Engelbert Humperdinck - Too Beautiful to Last 
• 18 (26) Elvis Presley - Until It's Time For You to Go 
• 19 (12) The Chelsea Football Team - Blue is the Colour 
• 20 (23) Labi Siffre - Crying, Laughing, Loving, Lying 

*Previous week in brackets; Climbers denoted in red; New entries in bold

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03: The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards: Amazing Grace

Judy Collins' vocal version of Amazing Grace had already spent the best part of a year on the UK Singles Chart when a bagpipe rendition suddenly took the Top 20 by storm and became one of the most unexpected hit records of recent times.

The Pipes and Drums and Military Band of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards - to give them their full name - not only managed to invade the British charts, but also saw success worldwide with the recording.

It topped the charts in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and South Africa and would begin a run of five weeks at the peak of the British charts in mid-April.

By the end of the year the recording had become the biggest selling disc of 1972 in the UK and would go on to sell around seven million copies around the world by 1977.

18: Elvis Presley: Until It's Time For You to Go

Elvis Presley's latest UK Top 10 hit was the much-recorded Buffy Sainte-Marie composition, Until It's Time For You to Go.

Originally included on her 1965 album Many A Mile, the song has been covered by many artists over the years.

Neil Diamond took it into the American charts in 1970 while the British group The Four Pennies enjoyed some UK chart action with the song in 1965.

Presley's recording was included on his 1972 album Elvis Now, rose to a peak of Number 5 in the UK but only managed to climb to Number 40 in his homeland.

20: Labi Siffre: Crying, Laughing, Loving, Lying

Possibly one of the most underrated artists of his era, British poet and songwriter Labi Siffre was back in the Top 20 this week with his latest release Crying, Laughing, Loving, Lying.

Also the name of his latest album, the single progressed to a Number 11 peak, making it the biggest of his three hits during the 1970s.

It failed to chart in the USA, however.

The UK Number 1 album this week:

• Lindisfarne: Fog on the Tyne

The American Top 10 (Click to play tracks)

The Number 10 song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight by Robert John, is unavailable.  This has been substituted by the Tight Fit version from the 1980s.

UK Music Chart: April 1, 1972 Ft. The Chiffons

The Chiffons at Number 15

Nilsson's Without You entered its fourth week as the UK's best selling song on this date in 1972, but below him several new songs were about to make their own impression on the Top 20.

Surprisingly, The Chiffons led the pack of five new entries with a re-release of their 1966 American hit, Sweet Talkin' Guy. 1972 was fast becoming a year for recycling old singles and this was to become one of the most successful.

Elsewhere, there was no messing around from both Ringo Starr and Tom Jones as their latest releases landed directly in the Top 20.

By comparison, Olivia Newton-John's latest was moving at a snail's pace, while UK chart newcomer Neil Young was having a tough time emulating his extraordinary Stateside success with Heart of Gold.


Nilsson at Number 1

The Chart: 

• 01 (01) Nilsson - Without You 
• 02 (02) The New Seekers - Beg, Steal or Borrow 
• 03 (04) Gilbert O'Sullivan - Alone Again (Naturally) 
• 04 (03) Don McLean - American Pie 
• 05 (07) Argent - Hold Your Head Up 
• 06 (05) Lindisfarne - Meet Me on the Corner 
• 07 (09) Les Crane - Desiderata 
• 08 (06) Paul Simon - Mother and Child Reunion 
• 09 (10) The Supremes - Floy Joy 
• 10 (08) Michael Jackson - Got to Be There 
• 11 (14) The Partridge Family - It's One of Those Nights 
• 12 (11) The Chelsea Football Team - Blue is the Colour 
• 13 (13) Donnie Elbert - I Can't Help Myself 
• 14 (19) Engelbert Humperdinck - Too Beautiful to Last 
• 15 (24) The Chiffons - Sweet Talkin' Guy 
• 16 (12) Chicory Tip - Son of My Father 
• 17 (25) Neil Young - Heart of Gold 
• 18 (**) Ringo Starr - Back Off Boogaloo 
• 19 (**) Tom Jones - The Young New Mexican Puppeteer 
• 20 (21) Olivia Newton-John - What is Life?

*Previous week in brackets; Climbers denoted in red; New entries in bold

No digital download available for What Is Life? by Olivia Newton-John.

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15: The Chiffons: Sweet Talkin' Guy

The Chiffons were one of several girl groups of the 1960s to hit the big time with their own interpretation of the pop/soul of the era.

Having hit the US Top 10 twice in 1963 (firstly with the #1 song He's So Fine), the girls had to wait three years before they would return there with Sweet Talkin' Guy.

However, their impact was not so great in the UK - at least not until this 1966 re-release started climbing the charts.

Mainly due to the music phenomenon that became known as Northern Soul, this Chiffons recording found a renewed (and even greater) popularity in 1972 when it was picked up in the clubs, soon peaking at Number 4 in late April.

17: Neil Young: Heart of Gold

Heading towards a UK Top 10 berth was this recent former US #1 song by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young: Heart of Gold.

Taken from his best selling album Harvest, the track featured backing vocals from both Linda Ronstadt and James Taylor, who happened to be in the right place at the right time for the recording.

While those two names seemed happy with their own spotlight, the success of Heart of Gold pushed Young into the mainstream - a place where he was less than comfortable.

As a consequence, he was not a regular visitor to the UK and US Singles Charts -  this song remaining his sole conquest of the British Top 20.

18: Ringo Starr: Back Off Boogaloo

Ringo Starr's follow-up to the highly successful It Don't Come Easy was this glam rock-influenced, high-energy offering called Back Off Boogaloo.

During this period of 1972, Starr had committed to directing a documentary movie about Marc Bolan's band T. Rex, called Born to Boogie. As a result, he had formed a close friendship with Bolan who used the word 'boogaloo' frequently.

Thus, this track was born - although many commentators still maintain that the lyrics were a direct criticism by Starr of the recent output of his ex-Beatle bandmate Paul McCartney. Starr contends this is not the case.

Whatever the facts, Back Off Boogaloo became Ringo's biggest single in the UK by peaking at Number 2, as well as entering the Top 10 in the USA.

19: Tom Jones: The Young New Mexican Puppeteer

Tom Jones was seemingly on a roll of UK Top 20 hits, - having just peaked at Number 2 with his version of Till - but the undeservedly-ignored story song The Young New Mexican Puppeteer would prove to be his last one for quite some time.

A track which advocated political and social change, it peaked at Number 6 in the UK, but only managed to scrape into the lower end of America's Billboard Hot 100.





20: Olivia Newton-John: What Is Life?

In many territories, George Harrison released his own version of What Is Life? as a follow-up single to his highly successful track My Sweet Lord.

In the UK, however, it ended up on the flip side of 'Lord' thereby missing out on a full single release there.

Instead, the hit version was recorded by Olivia Newton-John who had decided to include it on her second eponymous album.

It did well, peaking at Number 16 and even figured in the Top 40 of Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart.

The UK Number 1 album this week:

• Lindisfarne: Fog on the Tyne

The American Top 10 (Click to play tracks)

The Number 5 song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight by Robert John, is unavailable.  This has been substituted by the Tight Fit version from the 1980s.

UK Music Chart: March 25, 1972 Ft. Argent

Argent: New at Number 7

Without You by Harry Nilsson started its third week at Number 1 in the UK on this date in 1972 with Eurovision runners-up, The New Seekers, valiantly trying to knock him off the top spot with Beg, Steal or Borrow.

That effort would prove fruitless, as did the progressive rock vibe of Argent's Hold Your Head Up, the week's biggest mover and highest new entry into the listing.

That particular track leapt straight into the Top 10, while two of last week's new songs - from Les Crane and The Supremes - joined it.

Further down the chart, British crooner Engelbert Humperdinck made a return to the Top 20 at Number 19 with his latest offering, Too Beautiful to Last - the only other single to penetrate the chart.


Nilsson at Number 1

The Chart: 

• 01 (01) Nilsson - Without You 
• 02 (03) The New Seekers - Beg, Steal or Borrow 
• 03 (02) Don McLean - American Pie 
• 04 (06) Gilbert O'Sullivan - Alone Again (Naturally) 
• 05 (09) Lindisfarne - Meet Me on the Corner 
• 06 (05) Paul Simon - Mother and Child Reunion 
• 07 (21) Argent - Hold Your Head Up 
• 08 (07) Michael Jackson - Got to Be There 
• 09 (20) Les Crane - Desiderata 
• 10 (18) The Supremes - Floy Joy 
• 11 (08) The Chelsea Football Team - Blue is the Colour 
• 12 (04) Chicory Tip - Son of My Father 
• 13 (11) Donnie Elbert - I Can't Help Myself 
• 14 (19) The Partridge Family - It's One of Those Nights 
• 15 (10) Neil Reid - Mother of Mine 
• 16 (17) Wings - Give Ireland Back to the Irish 
• 17 (12) The Sweet - Poppa Joe 
• 18 (13) Slade - Look Wot You Dun 
• 19 (26) Engelbert Humperdinck - Too Beautiful to Last 
• 20 (22) The New Seekers - I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (RE)

*Previous week in brackets; Climbers denoted in red; New entries in bold
*Intro Image: Argent - The Argent Anthology

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07: Argent: Hold Your Head Up

Fresh from The Zombies, keyboard player Rod Argent formed his eponymous band, along with members Russ Ballard, Bob Henrit and Jim Rodford.

Hold Your Head Up was the group's first chart entry in both the UK and the US following four previous flops which included Liar, later recorded successfully by Three Dog Night.

This song reached a peak of Number 5 in both countries, but Argent would become a one hit wonder in the States where follow-up singles failed to chart.

They did a little better at home where the group managed to crack the Top 40 twice more.

19: Engelbert Humperdinck: Too Beautiful to Last

With Engelbert back on the television in a short series with the Young Generation dance troupe, it was no real surprise to see his name back in the UK charts.

It also helped that Too Beautiful to Last was the theme to the Oscar-winning biopic Nicholas and Alexandra, one of the year's most successful movies.

Nevertheless, the song would prove to be the singer's final entry in this part of the UK chart after a five-year run of major hits.

Several minor chart entries have since followed, including his disappointing 2012 Eurovision song. But it was his  American fans who continued to buy his singles - most notably After the Lovin', a US Top 10 hit in 1976 which failed to dent the charts in the UK.

The UK Number 1 album this week:

• Lindisfarne: Fog on the Tyne

The American Top 10 (Click to play tracks)

The Number 3 song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight by Robert John, is unavailable.  This has been substituted by the Tight Fit version from the 1980s.

UK Music Chart: March 18, 1972 Ft. The Supremes

The Supremes at Number 18

Nilsson began his second week at Number 1 in the UK on this date in 1972 with Without You, meanwhile yielding the top spot in America to Neil Young.

Compared to other weeks, this UK Top 20 was relatively quiet. Last week's new entries were making slow, if not steady, progress up the listing - but three tracks had managed to secure a new place amongst the twenty.

The Partridge Family was back with their latest release, having had to wait over a year for a follow-up UK hit to I Think I Love You.

More of a surprise was the appearance of American talk-show host, Les Crane, with his rendition of a 1920's poem. It anchored the chart this week, but was soon to climb even higher.

Meanwhile, The Supremes were eating up large chunks of the chart as they climbed to Number 18 this week, eventually claiming their fourth consecutive UK Top 10 hit in the weeks to come.

Nilsson at Number 1

The Chart: 

• 01 (01) Nilsson - Without You 
• 02 (02) Don McLean - American Pie 
• 03 (04) The New Seekers - Beg, Steal or Borrow 
• 04 (03) Chicory Tip - Son of My Father 
• 05 (07) Paul Simon - Mother and Child Reunion 
• 06 (09) Gilbert O'Sullivan - Alone Again (Naturally) 
• 07 (06) Michael Jackson - Got to Be There 
• 08 (05) The Chelsea Football Team - Blue is the Colour 
• 09 (10) Lindisfarne - Meet Me on the Corner 
• 10 (15) Neil Reid - Mother of Mine 
• 11 (16) Donnie Elbert - I Can't Help Myself 
• 12 (12) The Sweet - Poppa Joe 
• 13 (08) Slade - Look Wot You Dun 
• 14 (11) The Fortunes - Storm in a Teacup 
• 15 (17) Colin Blunstone - Say You Don't Mind 
• 16 (13) Badfinger - Day After Day 
• 17 (19) Wings - Give Ireland Back to the Irish 
• 18 (27) The Supremes - Floy Joy 
• 19 (25) The Partridge Family - It's One of Those Nights (Yes Love)
• 20 (23) Les Crane - Desiderata

*Previous week in brackets; Climbers denoted in red; New entries in bold
*Intro Image: The Supremes - Floy Joy

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18: The Supremes: Floy Joy

Yet another British Top 10 hit was on the cards for The Supremes, their fourth following the departure of Diana Ross from the group in 1970.

Written by Smokey Robinson, Floy Joy featured the now familiar lead vocals of Jean Terrell along with co-founder, Mary Wilson. With Robinson also in charge of the production of the song's eponymous parent album, the sound harked back to the group's successful hits of the 1960s.

The song eventually peaked at Number 9 in the UK and was also a Top 20 success in the US where it became a Number 16 hit.

19: The Partridge Family: It's One of Those Nights (Yes Love)

With a television series to back them up, The Partridge Family had fast become one of the hottest acts in America, having already secured four Billboard Top 20 hits - among them a Number 1 with I Think I Love You.

The UK was a little slower to respond to the charms of David Cassidy and co, making It's One of Those Nights (Yes Love) only the group's second appearance in the British Top 20.

Strangely, just as their star was rising on this side of the Atlantic, their chart fortunes began to wane in the US. This was the last of their American Top 20 hits (#20), but it began a series of UK hits stretching into 1973.

20: Les Crane: Desiderata

The late Les Crane was an American radio and television presenter, probably best known to the US public as a talk-show host during the 1960s and 1970s.

Internationally, he is probably best remembered for this: his spoken word interpretation of a previously anonymous 1927 poem called Desiderata, written by an American lawyer by the name of Max Ehrmann.

Described as a "message of hope" and "bathed in sentiment at the very crossroads where hippie culture turned into the New Age movement...", it resonated with 1970s audiences around the world.

In the US, it peaked at Number 8 and won the Grammy for the best spoken recording of the year. Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, the track spent fourteen weeks on the UK chart rising to Number 7.

The UK Number 1 album this week:

• Paul Simon: Paul Simon

The American Top 10 (Click to play tracks)

The Number 3 song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight by Robert John, is unavailable.  This has been substituted by the Tight Fit version from the 1980s.

UK Music Chart: March 11, 1972 Ft. Gilbert O'Sullivan

Gilbert O'Sullivan at Number 9

It was all change at the summit of the UK music chart this week in March 1972, as Harry Nilsson's debut British Top 20 hit, Without You, climbed two places to Number 1, ending Chicory Tip's three week reign at the top.

It had been approximately three years since Nilsson had appeared on the British listing - his version of Everybody's Talkin' peaking at a lowly Number 23 - but Without You would prove to be the zenith of his chart career in the UK. 

Further down the listing, singles by bands debuting in the Top 20 were making good progress, with folk-rockers Lindisfarne climbing into the Top 10 and Paul McCartney's Wings causing a stir at Number 19.

The big, new song of the week, though, came courtesy of Gilbert O'Sullivan. His Alone Again (Naturally) jumped fourteen places to Number 9, but would prove even more fruitful when released in the States in the coming months.

Nilsson at Number 1

The Chart: 

• 01 (03) Nilsson - Without You 
• 02 (02) Don McLean - American Pie 
• 03 (01) Chicory Tip - Son of My Father 
• 04 (12) The New Seekers - Beg, Steal or Borrow 
• 05 (09) The Chelsea Football Team - Blue is the Colour 
• 06 (05) Michael Jackson - Got to Be There 
• 07 (07) Paul Simon - Mother and Child Reunion 
• 08 (04) Slade - Look Wot You Dun 
• 09 (23) Gilbert O'Sullivan - Alone Again (Naturally) 
• 10 (22) Lindisfarne - Meet Me on the Corner 
• 11 (08) The Fortunes - Storm in a Teacup 
• 12 (11) The Sweet - Poppa Joe 
• 13 (10) Badfinger - Day After Day 
• 14 (06) The Chi-Lites - Have You Seen Her? 
• 15 (13) Neil Reid - Mother of Mine 
• 16 (19) Donnie Elbert - I Can't Help Myself 
• 17 (17) Colin Blunstone - Say You Don't Mind 
• 18 (14) T. Rex - Telegram Sam 
• 19 (21) Wings - Give Ireland Back to the Irish 
• 20 (16) The Bee Gees - My World

*Previous week in brackets; Climbers denoted in red; New entries in bold
*Intro Image: The Very Best of Gilbert O'Sullivan: The Singer & His Songs

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09: Gilbert O'Sullivan: Alone Again (Naturally)

Gilbert O'Sullivan made a triumphant return to the UK Top 20 this week in 1972 with one of his most successful recordings, Alone Again (Naturally). This was his fifth British chart hit and, to this point, the one which would place highest in the Top 10, peaking at Number 3.

If O'Sullivan was pleased with this, he was no doubt bowled over by the song's reception in the United States. The Americans took the single to their hearts and sent it to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks over the late Summer.

In fact, it became one of the biggest selling songs of the decade in the States, only beaten by Roberta Flack's The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face for the top spot in 1972 and settling at Number 5 in the listing for the 1970s.

10: Lindisfarne: Meet Me on the Corner

Geordie folk-rock group Lindisfarne announced their overdue arrival in the UK charts with a bang this week, as their debut hit, Meet Me on the Corner, climbed twelve places into the Top 10.

Written by the band's bassist, Rod Clements, the song is a bright and breezy uptempo track with a memorable and hum-able chorus. No doubt, this helped it climb to a peak of Number 5 which, in turn, produced further interest in the band's output.

Consequently, the single's parent album, Fog on the Tyne, soon found itself at Number 1, while the band's previously under-performing debut long player, Nicely Out of Tune, began to pick up sales - sufficient to send it belatedly into the Top 10.

19: Wings: Give Ireland Back to the Irish

The Troubles in Northern Ireland were at their peak at this time and Paul McCartney felt the need to contribute his two cents worth to the political discussion.

Give Ireland Back to the Irish was Wings controversial debut single, its inflammatory content the cause of a blanket ban in the UK. On this occasion, it was not only the BBC which refused to give it airtime, but also commercial radio stations including Radio Luxembourg.

Despite this, the track still managed to climb the UK Top 20 to a peak of No. 16. Naturally, Ireland lapped it up and sent it to No. 1 there, while Americans bought enough copies to send it to Number 21 on the Billboard chart.

The UK Number 1 album this week:

• Neil Young: Harvest

The American Top 10 (Click to play tracks)

The Numbers 2 and 3 songs, Heart of Gold by Neil Young and The Lion Sleeps Tonight by Robert John, are unavailable.  Songs numbered 2-8 in the above list were charting at Numbers 4-10 respectively.

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UK Music Chart: February 19, 1972 Ft. Nilsson

Harry Nilsson at Number 16 

All change at the top of the UK Top 20 this week in 1972 as English pop group Chicory Tip secured the Number 1 spot with their version of Giorgio Moroder's song, Son of My Father.

In doing so, the group created a little piece of pop history by becoming the first band to record a UK Number 1 song which notably featured a synthesizer. 

Elsewhere, although there were several records climbing the chart, only two managed to crack the Top 20. 

One of them would soon become a pop classic, while the other would become one small element of an ever-growing classic discography.


Chicory Tip at Number 1

The Chart: 

• 01 (02) Chicory Tip - Son of My Father 
• 02 (01) T. Rex - Telegram Sam 
• 03 (05) The Chi-Lites - Have You Seen Her? 
• 04 (09) Slade - Look Wot You Dun 
• 05 (03) Neil Reid - Mother of Mine 
• 06 (15) Don McLean - American Pie 
• 07 (04) The New Seekers - I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing (In Perfect Harmony) 
• 08 (10) Sonny and Cher - All I Ever Need is You 
• 09 (16) The Fortunes - Storm in a Teacup 
• 10 (07) Al Green - Let's Stay Together 
• 11 (06) America - Horse With No Name 
• 12 (14) Greyhound - Moon River 
• 13 (17) Badfinger - Day After Day 
• 14 (08) Melanie - Brand New Key 
• 15 (18) Bread - Baby I'm-A Want You 
• 16 (27) Nilsson - Without You 
• 17 (20) Bee Gees - My World 
• 18 (19) Sly and the Family Stone - Family Affair 
• 19 (12) Donnie Elbert - Where Did Our Love Go? 
• 20 (22) Stevie Wonder - If You Really Love Me

*Previous week in brackets; Climbers denoted in red; New entries in bold
*Intro Image: Harry Nilsson: The Essential Nilsson


16: Nilsson: Without You

Harry Nilsson's return to the UK Top 40 was nothing short of spectacular considering his legendary theme from the movie Midnight Cowboy, Everybody's Talkin', had only managed to climb to a peak of Number 23 in 1969.

Without You, his classic cover of the Badfinger song, was just about to spend four weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 in the US and was now rapidly scaling the British chart.

In an eventual twenty-week run, the record would spend five of them at Number 1 and accumulate enough sales by the end of the year to become the fourth biggest selling single of 1972. So popular was the song, in fact, that it returned to the UK Top 50 in both 1976 and 1994.

It also gave Nilsson a Grammy win the following year when he won the Best Male Pop Vocal. Sadly, however, his voice would never grace the UK Top 20 again.

20: Stevie Wonder: If You Really Love Me

Stevie Wonder was in a period of transition at this point in his career. Just 20-years-old, his social attitudes were maturing and these were reflected in the progression of his musical ideas.

He had also just married Syreeta Wright, so it was no surprise that his latest album, Where I'm Coming From, would feature a combination of socially charged tracks, along with the standard themes of love and romance.

If You Really Love Me was an example of the latter, partly showcasing Wonder's ever increasing interest in futuristic production techniques, as well as the voice of the now sadly departed Syreeta.

The track garnered Wonder another Top 10 hit in America, but stalled in the UK at Number 20 for two consecutive weeks.

The UK Number 1 album this week:

• Neil Reid: Neil Reid

The American Top 10 (Click to play tracks)

The Number 9 song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight by Robert John, is unavailable. Everything I Own by Bread ranks at Number 10 in this US chart.

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