All Things Music Plus August 26 at 9:20pm · ON THIS DATE (46 YEARS AGO) August 26, 1968 - Mary Hopkin: Those Were The Days b/w Turn, Turn, Turn (Apple 1801) 45 single is released in the US. Those Were the Days is a song credited to Gene Raskin, who put English lyrics to the Russian song Dorogoi dlinnoyu (Дорогой длинною, lit. By the long road), written by Boris Fomin (1900–1948) with words by the poet Konstantin Podrevskii. It deals with reminiscence upon youth and romantic idealism. Georgian singer Tamara Tsereteli (1900–1968) and Russian singer Alexander Vertinsky made what were probably the earliest recordings of the song, in 1925 and in 1926 respectively. The song is best remembered, however, in English-speaking countries, for Mary Hopkins 1968 recording, which was a top-ten hit in both the U.S. and the U.K. On most recorded versions of the song, Raskin is credited as the writer, even though he wrote only the later English lyrics and not the melody. Hopkins recording was produced by Paul McCartney and became a #1 hit in the UK singles chart. In the US, Hopkins recording reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Billboard Easy Listening charts for six weeks. In the Netherlands it topped the charts for 2 consecutive weeks. The Russian origin of the melody was accentuated by an instrumentation which was unusual for a top ten pop record, including clarinet, hammer dulcimer and childrens chorus, giving a klezmer feel to the song.
Posted on: Thu, 28 Aug 2014 11:14:34 +0000
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