December 17, 2021 —– Chart #122
Hello Music Friends,
Welcome to Friday! Hope you are all well and prepared for Christmas next week. Wow that got here fast! Today’s Chart of the day is from the early 70’s. “The Air That I Breathe” is a ballad written by Albert Hammond and Mike Hazlewood, initially recorded by Albert Hammond on his 1972 album It Never Rains in Southern California. It was a major hit for the Hollies in early 1974, reaching number two in the UK Singles Chart. In mid-1974, it reached number six in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number three on the Adult Contemporary chart. In Canada, the song peaked at number five on the RPM magazine charts. The audio engineering for “The Air That I Breathe” was done by Alan Parsons. In an interview, Parsons mentioned that Eric Clapton said the first note of “The Air That I Breathe” had more soul than anything he’d ever heard. This version of the song featured a string orchestra arrangement, which also featured a horn section.
The 1992 Radiohead song “Creep” uses a similar chord progression and shares some melodic content with the 1972 version of “The Air That I Breathe”. As a result, the song’s publisher sued Radiohead for copyright infringement and a settlement was reached in which Hammond and Hazlewood were given co-writing credits and a portion of the royalties.
The Hollies are a British pop rock group formed in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Allan Clarke and Graham Nash founded the band as a Merseybeat-type music group in Manchester, although some of the band members came from towns further north in East Lancashire. Graham Nash left the group in 1968 to form Crosby, Stills & Nash.
They enjoyed considerable popularity in many countries (with at least 60 singles or EPs and 26 albums charting somewhere in the world, spanning over five decades), although they did not achieve major US chart success until “Bus Stop” was released in 1966. The Hollies had over 30 charting singles on the UK Singles Chart and 22 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Hollies are one of the few UK groups of the early 1960s, along with the Rolling Stones, who have never disbanded and continue to record and perform. In recognition of their achievements, the Hollies were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.
Story of writing the song explained by Albert Hammond: https://youtu.be/siN8f-JF8Gw
The Albert Hammond original (acoustic, until the end when a grinding distorted organ sounds like Grand Funk or Deep Purple): https://youtu.be/F5lk85F8W3k
The rip-off version titled “Creep” by Radiohead: https://youtu.be/XFkzRNyygfk
OTHER ARTISTS COVER VERSIONS:
Interesting version and video done by Simply Red: https://youtu.be/hfbAKZTM3-A
K.D. Lang: https://youtu.be/nEjnZvDERN8
Olivia Newton John? : https://youtu.be/Efkqsc2CVjA
Elvis Presley, complete with backing choir: https://youtu.be/C5EhfK1BaTI
The Mavericks (they’re cool): https://youtu.be/zdwQKIaIIJ4
And one more, Phil Everly: https://youtu.be/kajNIgi9M1Q
Have a great weekend my friends and keep rockin’,
Stan