THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
716) Dave Clark Five — “19 Days”
I love the Dave Clark Five (see #208, 320, 411, 412, 565) for their glorious hits and underappreciated ballads. Richie Unterberger says that “Nineteen Days” “was the only hit [’66] single [from their ’67 U.S. album 5X5] and not [a] big one, falling a little short of the Top 40), and saw them trying on a slightly more aggressive guitar sound and histrionic vocal delivery.” (https://www.allmusic.com/album/5-x-5-us–mw0001738894). Man, how the DC5 crammed so much cool rock ‘n’ roll into 1:51 is beyond me. I guess Einstein would say . . .
The song was released as an A-side in the UK, but didn’t chart, except for pirate radio: Roger Foster says that it “spent five weeks on Radio London’s Fab 40, peaking at Number 5 on 20th November 1966.” (https://www.45cat.com/record/db8028). That brings me to the point that it appears that at least at one time, the band had a more devoted following in the U.S. than in the UK. Gary Howman wrote in 2008 that:
The recent induction of the Dave Clark Five into the US Rock’n’Roll Hall Of Fame demonstrated how the group is more valued abroad than in their homeland. Although they enjoyed commercial success throughout the 60s in Britain, their chart career was uneven, their concert appearances few and their legacy overlooked. . . . Overseas it was always a different story . . . . In America, their reputation is especially high and their songs still feature on the radio, TV adverts and in occasional movies (Garfield 2, anyone?). T om Hanks enthusiastically introduced them at the Hall Of Fame induction ceremony and Bruce Springsteen has often referred to their impact on him. I n the USA they enjoyed 17 Top 40 hits in just over two years, made six coast to coast tours and appeared a record 18 times on the top-rated Ed Sullivan TV show. In 1964, they were the main rivals to The Beatles . . . . It was estimated that through 1964 and 1965 The Dave Clark Five were selling a million records a month in America.
https://recordcollectormag.com/articles/catch-us-if-you-can-463
Was that really the case? If so, is it still the case? In either case, a shame.
Here it is from a Royal performance:
Here with better video:
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