Ricky Valance

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Not to be confused with Ritchie Valens.
Ricky Valance
Birth name David Spencer
Born (1939-04-10) 10 April 1939
Ynysddu, Monmouthshire, South Wales
Genres Pop
Occupations Singer
Years active Late 1950s–present
Labels Columbia, Decca, Crystal

Ricky Valance (born 10 April 1939) is a Welsh singer. He is best known for the number one single "Tell Laura I Love Her", which sold over a million copies in 1960.[1]

Life and career

Born David Spencer in Ynysddu, Monmouthshire, near Wattsville, South Wales, he is the eldest of seven children.[1] After leaving school he held various jobs, before electing to join the RAF at the age of 17.[1]

After being discharged, he decided to try to pursue a career in singing.[1] After performing in local clubs for a couple of years, Valance was discovered by an A&R representative from EMI, placed with the record producer Norrie Paramor and signed to EMI's Columbia label.[2] At the first recording session, Valance was given the chance to cover Ray Peterson's American hit, "Tell Laura I Love Her".[2] He was rewarded with a number 1 hit in September 1960, thanks to airplay on Radio Luxembourg.[2][3] The Guinness Book of Hit Singles stated that his name was changed to Ricky Valance to remind fans of Ritchie Valens, who had died with Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper in the Iowa snow a year and a half earlier.[4] However, this information is incorrect, and the author who wrote the listing for the GBHS did not do research into his submission, nor contact Valance directly about the connection. Valance chose the name himself, after hearing a racehorse trainer's name, and there is no connection to any other artist. At the launch party of the 20th edition of The Guinness Book of Hit Singles, Valance confronted David Roberts about this matter, but it has yet to be changed in future editions.

He bucked the trend prevailing at the time by the BBC to deny airplay to teenage tragedy songs like "Tell Laura I Love Her" almost automatically. Mark Dinning's "Teen Angel" had already sunk without a trace, whilst other American death rock records were simply never released in the United Kingdom.[4]

First Welshman at number one

Ray Peterson's original version of "Tell Laura I Love Her", which was co-written by Jeff Barry, was not released in the United Kingdom, because Decca Records considered it in bad taste.[4] EMI subsequently arranged for Valance to cover the song.[5] Valance thus became the first Welshman to reach the top spot - Shirley Bassey being the first Welsh person.

After topping the UK Singles Chart, Valance appeared in the 1961 A Song For Europe competition, hoping to represent the UK in the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest. His song, "Why Can't We?", placed third out of the nine entries; the winner was "Are You Sure?" performed by The Allisons.

He released several more singles, including "Movin' Away", "Jimmy's Girl" and "Six Boys", but none of them were UK hits.[1] However, over 100,000 copies sold of "Jimmy´s Girl", and "Moving Away" made it to number one in Australia and Scandinavia, with 150,000 copies sold. Valance changed to a career on the cabaret and nostalgia circuit.[1] Following a bout of severe depression and a nervous breakdown, Valance became a born-again Christian.[1]

In being unable to replicate his initial UK chart success, he thus remains a one-hit wonder.

Valance now lives in Cabo Roig on the outskirts of Torrevieja on the Costa Blanca in Spain, where he still performs on a regular basis. He also has a home in Blaenau Gwent in Wales.

UK singles

Columbia

  • DB4493 - "Tell Laura I Love Her" / "Once Upon a Time" (1960)
  • DB4543 - "Movin' Away" / "Lipstick on Your Lips" (1960)
  • DB4586 - "Jimmy's Girl" / "Only the Young" (1961)
  • DB4592 - "Why Can't We" / "Fisherboy" (1961)
  • DB4680 - "Bobby" / "I Want to Fall in Love" (1961)
  • DB4725 - "I Never Had a Chance" / "It's Not True" (1961)
  • DB4787 - "Try to Forget Her" / "At Times Like These" (1962)
  • DB4864 - "Don't Play No.9" / "Till the Final Curtain Falls" (1962)

Decca

  • F12129 - "Six Boys" / "Face in the Crowd" (1965)

Crystal

  • CR7004 - "My Summer Love" / "Abigail" (1969) (as Jason Merryweather)

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 "BBC Wales - Music - Ricky Valance". Bbc.co.uk. 2009-07-08. Retrieved 2014-01-28. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Ricky Valance Biography - Music Artist Band Biographies - Artists Bands Bio - FREE MP3 Downloads". Music.us. Retrieved 2014-01-28. 
  3. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 579. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 53. ISBN 0-85112-250-7. 
  5. ↑ "BBC Wales - Music - Ricky Valance". Bbc.co.uk. 2009-07-08. Retrieved 2014-01-28. 

External links

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