“Summer Holiday” Single by Cliff Richard, The Shadows and the Norrie Paramor Strings from the album Summer Holiday
B-side “Dancing Shoes”
Released February 1963
Recorded 9 May & 19 November 1962
Studio EMI Studios, London
Label Columbia
Songwriters Bruce Welch and Brian Bennett
Producer Norrie Paramo
Charted No.1 in UK, No.1 Spain, No.1 in Australia, No.1 in Canada, No.1 in Denmark, No.1 in Norway, No.2 in Ireland.
In 1961 Cliff Richard starred in his first major musical film, The Young Ones. The soundtrack, co-written by members of Richard’s backing group The Shadows, spawned several hits, including the title track.
The Shadows rhythm guitarist Bruce Welch and drummer Brian Bennett wrote this sing-along song for Cliff Richard’s next movie, Summer Holiday.
Cliff Richard sings the song in the movie while driving a London Transport double-decker bus that has been converted into a holiday caravan.
“Summer Holiday” arrived in the shops on February 8, 1963, bringing a blast of beachy vibes right into the teeth of the coldest British winter since 1740.
“Summer Holiday” is a song recorded by Cliff Richard and the Shadows, written by rhythm guitarist Bruce Welch and drummer Brian Bennett. It is taken from the film of the same name, and was released as the second single from the film in February 1963. It went to number one in the UK Singles Chart for a total of two weeks. After that, the Shadows’ instrumental “Foot Tapper”—also from the same film—took over the top spot for one week, before “Summer Holiday” returned to the top spot for one further week. The track is one of Richard’s best known titles and it remains a staple of his live shows. It was one of six hits Richard performed at his spontaneous gig at the 1996 Wimbledon Championships when rain stopped the tennis.
