Skylark - Wildflower - 45 RPM Mono Mix SHORT Version
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- Опубліковано 20 жов 2012
- Original Capitol Records #PRO 6626 (commercial copies were #3511) Radio Station Promotional Copy.
Debut 2/17/1973
Peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart.
This was Skylark's only charted record, which makes them a one hit wonder!
This is the SHORT version played on AM radio when this was a hit.
The flip side of this promotional copy is the stereo mix version in the full 4:07 length commonly heard today.
Sorry about all the clicks and pops at the beginning of this record, as I normally try to post pristine copies. But I wanted everyone to hear this long lost SHORT version that was heard originally on AM Top 40 radio when this was a hit in it's full mono mix version.
Note to WCPR folks - this was a dupe record being thrown out - NOT stolen!
This is the original version as heard when this was a huge hit on AM Top 40 radio on stations like WABC New York.
For more great music like this, tune into either:
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From the golden Summer of '73...
My parents had the commercial 45 way back when I was a laddie of 3-4 yrs. old (fun fact: B-side was "The Writing's On The Wall", written by Domenic Trojano of the Canadian band named Bush that proceeded Gavin Rossdale's outfit [DT also followed Joe Walsh in The James Gang AND was Burton Cummings' final lead guitarist in The Guess Who]. Oddly enough, this composition ALSO was the B-side to the Three Dog Night top 20 hit "Pieces Of April".) BTW, I read about David Foster's time in Skylark and how that eventually led to his big songwriting/production career in his book "Hit Man". Good read!
Spring of 1973 memories
Thanks for sharing all these wonderful oldies, I still miss running down to Woolworths and buying the No1 single with my pocket money.
Dave Richardson was a Canadian police officer at the time he wrote the lyrics for this song. The words were originally a poem written for his girl friend, which he passed on to his close friend David Foster. Richardson explained his lyrical inspiration in an interview: "In 1970 I was dating a nurse, whom I would eventually marry in 1971 (it only lasted four years, though - we were both not ready for such a commitment). One night I went to pick her up at her apartment, as we had planned on going out. When she opened the door I saw that she was upset to the point of tears. She still had a housecoat on and had her hair wrapped in a towel after a shower. She told me that two elderly ladies she had been caring for in the hospital had died that day at work, and she felt terribly sad about it, as she had come to know them fairly well over a period of time. Anyway, she more or less vented her feelings and I just listened. After she was finished, she thanked me for listening, and said she would get ready for our date. She went into the bedroom and closed the door, and I sat and watched TV waiting for her to come out. When she didn't return, I knocked on the door but she didn't answer, so I went in to find her fast asleep on the bed, still in her housecoat and with the towel still wrapped around her head. I guess she was just exhausted after her emotional day. So, I put a blanket over her, being careful not to wake her, and went home and wrote the song in about fifteen minutes or so. It was absolutely inspired. I have always felt that all I did was hold the pen in my hand, and that God did the writing. www.songfacts.com/facts/skylark/wildflower
Wow!!! I never knew the history behind this song, thanks for sharing. Been a lot of versions of this song. I like the O'Jays version the best!!
Loved the background story.
Sounds like that evening - so many decades ago - was pure kismet.
All the best to you.
Great comment!
Wow,,,love ❤️ this song,,wilflower,, amazing
God this is a awesome song! Haven't heard this in decades!
I hadn't heard this one in such a long time...loved it back in the day and still do!
I remember this song... a big AM radio hit
This classic song was also played in Phoenix, AZ on KOY AM 55 a legendary MOR station many years ago. I think some of these great tunes song better in mono. Maybe it's just my "old ears" Thanks for posting it.
yes yes yes one of those...
OMG, I'd completely forgotten about this wonderful song...then, when the electric guitar 1st kicked in, it was like I was still 13 going on 14. And...PLEASE don't apologize for the "clicks & pops" at the beginning of the record, because it's (pardon the pun) music to my ears. I love the sounds of static (wasn't that a song? 🤪) on a record. Kids born in the 90's, late 80's, not to mention the even younger ones, can instantly download songs, but I always loved going to music stores & music sections in department stores, where I would spend ages just looking at the artistry of each album - as well as the song lists. Thank you so much for sharing it with us.
I heard it a lot on 800 CKLW back in the day.
I first heard this one there as well , huge Big 8 fan forever
WOW, great! Love this 1-Hit wonder! It's amazing how low the bass gets in this song, especially for a 45 RPM.
Top ten Hit Single in the Spring of 1973.Very Good Timing!
A sentimental era song .. Thank you for sharing this ...
I sure remember this pretty song. I always heard this song on WIFI 92 FM.
great record!
brings back so many memories,i was going thrugh a hard time,and this song soothd me. thanks fr posting this.
RIP Donnie Gerard. He was the lead singer of Skylark.
CKLW originally played this to fulfill "Canadian content" laws; all Canadian broadcasters have to play a certain percentage of material that can be directly attributed to the country's culture and/or population. It was an album cut originally, and CKLW was the only station playing it for a good 3 months before Capitol decided to release it as a single.
David Foster, besides his success as a musician and producer, is now in charge of Verve Records.
That Canadian radio law was enforced in 1970, and by 1971, CKLW was playing many artists who were Canadian by nationality, whereas before that, CKLW initially tried to resist playing Canadian-only acts, except for established acts like The Guess Who, who were Canada's top selling act at the time. They preferred American rock, British pop & rock, & R&B /soul ( to keep the black listeners in Detroit on their quota, not the mention that Motown Records dominated the station at the time with their acts.) The 1970 law changed all that, and soon Americans were introduced to Skylark, Edward Bear, Wednesday, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Ocean, Lighthouse, The Poppy Family, Gordon Lightfoot, and many others as a result of that law. The law was written into effect by then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.
....man... been too many years since I last heard this....feeling pretty old now...lol...
I got this 45 yesterday at the Kingston Artist Collective along with the rest of the 45’s, and it’s a stock copy with the full version. The promo 45 was short, the flip is the full version that you see on a stock 45 which is stereo, but this side is mono.
The short version as you can hear was also included on the K-tel compilation LP called “Bright Side of Music” in 1973. This is just the same version that it has been edited for the K-tel release.
👍👍👍
David Foster was a member of Skylark. He later became a big time producer.
No! I was so disappointed when I learnt the song was about the writer's wife being in the hospital. I thought there would be so much more to it!
I like this version so much better than New Birth version
1973 is correct - thanks for pointing it out!
1972.
Maravilha ! 👏👏👏👏🇧🇷🇧🇷
1973
As a trivia statement, seems a few Canadian's were also on Capitol Records, Anne Murray, Edward Bear to name a couple. Odd ?
Speaking of which, The Band was also on Capitol (80% Canadian plus the late, great Levon Helm of Marvell, Arkansas).
Great song! Too bad it's the short version but it is still a great record.
I wanted to point out that you made a mistake in when this song first charted. It charted in 1973, not 1972. The month and day is correct though.
What turntable/cartridge do you use?
The singer's black. Doesn't sound it to me. Not a racist slur. I believe he's the only member of the band from the US. It even has the first drum beat at the start that was not present on a lot of CD compilations.