Paper Lace
Paper Lace was a classic one-hit wonder band. In America, anyway. In the U.K. they were a classic two-hit wonder.
Formed in 1969 in Nottingham, England, and made up of Michael Vaughn, Chris Morris, Carlo Santanna, Cliff Fish, and Phillip Wright, Paper Lace was one of hundreds of pop bands in England looking for the big time while slogging their way through small club gigs and brief television appearances. Their big break came in 1974 when their version of the tear-jerking bubblegum tune "Billy, Don't Be a Hero" won top honors on Opportunity Knocks, a nationwide talent-show on ITV. They rode that song all the way to the top of the U.K. charts but were aced out of any sales in the U.S. by Bo Donaldson & the Haywoods' transcendent version. Their next single,"The Night Chicago Died," did manage to hit the number one slot on the U.S. charts (number three in the U.K.) and then that was it. The group released two albums, Paper Lace and Other Bits of Material in 1974 and First Editon in 1975, and did a quick fade from the public eye. In 1978 they surfaced briefly with a singalong version of "We've Got the Whole World in Our Hands" with their local football team, Nottingham Forest FC, and the disappeared forever.
© Tim Sendra /TiVo
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Discography
8 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Get up! Get out of Your Lazy Beds (It's Christmas Time Again)
Rock - Released by Platinum74 Records on 1/12/2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Night Chicago Died
Pop - Released by Dance Plant Records Inc on 9/05/2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
…And Other Bits Of Material (Extended Version)
Rock - Released by UMC (Universal Music Catalogue) on 1/01/1974
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Billy Don't Be a Hero - Greatest Hits
Rock - Released by Goldenlane Records on 3/08/2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
First Edition
Rock - Released by UMC (Universal Music Catalogue) on 1/03/1972
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Billy Don't Be A Hero (Re-Recorded - Sped Up)
Pop - Released by Cleopatra Records on 1/05/2023
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo