What the World Needs Now Is Love
"What the World Needs Now Is Love" | ||||
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Single by Jackie DeShannon | ||||
from the album This Is Jackie DeShannon | ||||
B-side | "I Remember the Boy" | |||
Released | April 15, 1965 | |||
Recorded | March 23, 1965 | |||
Studio | Bell Sound (New York City) | |||
Genre | Easy listening | |||
Length | 3:10 | |||
Label | Imperial Records | |||
Songwriter(s) | Burt Bacharach, Hal David | |||
Producer(s) | Burt Bacharach | |||
Jackie DeShannon singles chronology | ||||
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"What the World Needs Now Is Love" is a 1965 popular song with lyrics by Hal David and music composed by Burt Bacharach. First recorded and made popular by Jackie DeShannon, it was released on April 15, 1965, on the Imperial label after a release on sister label Liberty records the previous month was canceled. It peaked at number seven on the US Hot 100 in July of that year.[1] In Canada, the song reached number one.
Songwriting
Co-songwriter Burt Bacharach revealed in his 2014 autobiography that this song had among the most difficult lyrics Hal David ever wrote, despite being deceptively simple as a pop hit. He explained that they had the main melody and chorus written back in 1962, centering on a waltz tempo, but it took another two years for David to finally come up with the lyric, "Lord, we don't need another mountain." Once David worked out the verses, Bacharach said the song essentially "wrote itself" and they finished it in a day or two.[2]
The song's success caught the two songwriters completely by surprise, since they were very aware of the controversy and disagreements among Americans about the Vietnam War, which was the subtext for David's lyrics. Bacharach continuously used the song as the intro and finale for most of his live concert appearances well into the 2000s.
Recording history
The song was originally offered to singer Dionne Warwick, who turned it down at the time, saying she felt it was "too country" for her tastes and "too preachy"[3] though she later recorded it for her album Here Where There Is Love. (Warwick also recorded a second version in 1996, which scraped the lower reaches of the US Hot 100.) Bacharach initially did not believe in the song, and was reluctant to play it for DeShannon.[4] The song was also rejected by Gene Pitney, reportedly over a financial dispute. DeShannon's version was recorded on March 23, 1965, at New York's Bell Sound Studios.[5] Bacharach arranged, conducted and produced the session. In 1966 The Chambers Brothers recorded a soul version of "What the World Needs Now Is Love" using gospel harmonies, on their album "The Time Has Come".[6]
Glenn Yarbrough recorded a version on his 1965 album It's Gonna Be Fine.[citation needed]
An instrumental version of the song was featured regularly on the
Burt Bacharach performs a version of the song in the 1997 American film Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, with the film's director describing Bacharach's performance as "the heart of our film".[7]
DeShannon's version of the song was selected by the U.S. Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry in 2023.[8]
In 2016,
Tom Clay version
"What the World Needs Now Is Love/Abraham, Martin and John" | ||||
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Single by Tom Clay | ||||
from the album What the World Needs Now Is Love | ||||
B-side | "The Victors" | |||
Released | June 22, 1971[10] | |||
Recorded | Early 1971 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 6:10 | |||
Motown (MoWest MW5002F) | ||||
Songwriter(s) | Hal David, Burt Bacharach, Dick Holler | |||
Producer(s) | Tom Clay | |||
Tom Clay singles chronology | ||||
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In addition to the DeShannon hit recording and the numerous
The song begins with a man asking a young girl to define such words as
"What the World Needs Now is Love/Abraham, Martin and John" rose to No. 8 on the
Chart history
Weekly chartsJackie DeShannon
Sweet Inspirations
Tom Clay (medley)
Dionne Warwick
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Year-end charts
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See also
References
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits: Eighth Edition. Record Research. p. 174.
- ISBN 0062206079
- ^ "Dionne Warwick: Q&A; Session, November, 2006 - DIONNE WARWICK". Archived from the original on November 30, 2010. Retrieved April 29, 2009.
- ^ Burt Bacharach interviewed on the Pop Chronicles (1969)
- ^ Are You Ready For This reissue liner notes
- ^ "The Time Has Come". Spotify. 1966.
- ^ "'Austin Powers' director on Bacharach cameos: 'His song became the heart of our film'". Los Angeles Times. February 9, 2023. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "2023 National Recording Registry selections". Library of Congress. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
- ^ Cox, Gordon (June 15, 2016). "Broadway Bands Together for Song to Benefit Orlando LGBT Center". Variety. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
- ^ https://www.45cat.com/record/mw5002f
- ^ a b Hamilton, Andrew. "What the World Needs Now Is Love Review by Andrew Hamilton". AllMusic. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
- ISBN 9780857122599. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
- ^ Hamilton, Andrew. "Tom Clay | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
- ^ "Tom Clay". Answers.com. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel, Top Pop Singles: 1955–2006, 2007.
- ^ Enos, Morgan (January 21, 2019). "10 Songs That Sampled Martin Luther King, Jr". Billboard. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
- ^ Wang, Oliver. "The Strange Sound Of Motown's Early Hollywood Years". NPR. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
- ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca.
{{cite web}}
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(help) - ^ ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, , 1965
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Bubbling Under the Billboard Hot 100 1959-2004
- ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. September 11, 1971. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
- ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, August 28, 1971
- ^ Musicoutfitters.com
- ^ Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1965
Bibliography
- Platts, Robin (2003) Burt Bacharach & Hal David: What the World Needs Now, Collector's Guide Publishing, ISBN 1-896522-77-7
External links
- Hal David Recollections. Accessed June 2007.
- Songfacts Accessed July 2008
- Jackie de Shannon Discography, Accessed July 2008
- Jackie DeShannon - What the World Needs Now Is Love on YouTube
- Tom Clay - What the World Needs Now Is Love/Abraham, Martin and John (medley) on YouTube
- Dionne Warwick - What the World Needs Now (Is Love) on YouTube