Petula Clark
The most commercially successful female singer in British chart history, Petula Clark was born November 15, 1932 in Epsom, England. Trained to sing by her soprano mother, Clark embarked on a stage career at the age of seven; soon she was a fixture on British radio programs, and began hosting her own regular show, Pet's Parlour -- a series spotlighting patriotic songs designed to boost the morale of wartime audiences -- at the tender age of 11. After entertaining British troops alongside fellow child stars Julie Andrews and Anthony Newley, Clark made her film debut with A Medal for the General in 1944. By the dawn of the '50s she was a superstar throughout the U.K., with a résumé of close to two-dozen films; 1954's "The Little Shoemaker" was her first Top 20 single, while 1960's "Sailor" was her first chart-topper. Still, Clark struggled with her inability to shed her adolescent image. After selling over a million copies of 1961's "Romeo," she married and relocated to France, establishing a strong fan base there on the strength of hits including "Ya-Ya Twist," "Chariot," and "Monsieur," which spotlighted a new, more sophisticated pop sound anchored by her crystalline vocals. Riding the wave of the British Invasion, Clark was finally able to penetrate the U.S. market in 1964 with the Grammy-winning "Downtown," the first single by a British woman ever to reach number one on the American pop charts. It was also the first in a series of American Top Ten hits (most written and arranged by Tony Hatch) that also included 1965's "I Know a Place" and 1966's "I Couldn't Live Without Your Love," and the number one smash "My Love." At the same time, she remained a huge star throughout Europe, topping the British charts in 1967 with "This Is My Song," taken from the film A Countess from Hong Kong. In addition to hosting her own BBC series, she also starred in the 1968 NBC television special Petula, which triggered controversy when sponsors requested that a segment with guest Harry Belafonte be cut in deference to Southern affiliates; ultimately, the show aired in its intended form. As the '60s drew to a close, Clark's commercial stature slipped, although singles like "Don't Sleep on the Subway," "The Other Man's Grass Is Always Greener," and "Kiss Me Goodbye" still charted on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1968, she revived her film career by starring in Finian's Rainbow, followed a year later by Goodbye, Mr. Chips. In later years, Clark focused primarily on international touring, headlining the 1981 London revival of Rodgers & Hammerstein's The Sound of Music; after starring in the 1990 musical Someone Like You, which she also co-wrote, she made her Broadway debut in Blood Brothers in 1993. Additionally, in 1988, an acid house remix of "Downtown" reached the U.K. Top Ten, another honor for the female singer awarded the most gold records in British pop history. Throughout the 2000s, Clark toured fairly steadily across the globe. Her 2002 shows in France at the Olympia were recorded and released on CD and DVD, but no new studio recordings were forthcoming until she teamed with Irish band the Saw Doctors for a new version of "Downtown" in 2011. Soon after, she began working with producer John Williams on an album. Made up of newly written songs and covers, as well as a new take on "Downtown," Lost in You was issued in early 2013. Just three years later, Clark returned with another studio album, From Now On, which featured several newly penned compositions as well as covers of classic numbers by the Beatles, Steve Winwood, and Peggy Lee. In October 2016, Clark set out on a U.K. tour in support of the album. That same year also saw the release of Natural Love: The Scotti Brothers Recordings, a collection of country- and pop-oriented material Clark cut in the '80s. A French-language album, Vu D'ici, arrived in 2018 and found Clark interpreting songs by Quebecois composers like Nelson Minville, France D’Amour, Luc De Larochellière, and others.© Jason Ankeny /TiVo Read more
The most commercially successful female singer in British chart history, Petula Clark was born November 15, 1932 in Epsom, England. Trained to sing by her soprano mother, Clark embarked on a stage career at the age of seven; soon she was a fixture on British radio programs, and began hosting her own regular show, Pet's Parlour -- a series spotlighting patriotic songs designed to boost the morale of wartime audiences -- at the tender age of 11.
After entertaining British troops alongside fellow child stars Julie Andrews and Anthony Newley, Clark made her film debut with A Medal for the General in 1944. By the dawn of the '50s she was a superstar throughout the U.K., with a résumé of close to two-dozen films; 1954's "The Little Shoemaker" was her first Top 20 single, while 1960's "Sailor" was her first chart-topper. Still, Clark struggled with her inability to shed her adolescent image. After selling over a million copies of 1961's "Romeo," she married and relocated to France, establishing a strong fan base there on the strength of hits including "Ya-Ya Twist," "Chariot," and "Monsieur," which spotlighted a new, more sophisticated pop sound anchored by her crystalline vocals.
Riding the wave of the British Invasion, Clark was finally able to penetrate the U.S. market in 1964 with the Grammy-winning "Downtown," the first single by a British woman ever to reach number one on the American pop charts. It was also the first in a series of American Top Ten hits (most written and arranged by Tony Hatch) that also included 1965's "I Know a Place" and 1966's "I Couldn't Live Without Your Love," and the number one smash "My Love." At the same time, she remained a huge star throughout Europe, topping the British charts in 1967 with "This Is My Song," taken from the film A Countess from Hong Kong. In addition to hosting her own BBC series, she also starred in the 1968 NBC television special Petula, which triggered controversy when sponsors requested that a segment with guest Harry Belafonte be cut in deference to Southern affiliates; ultimately, the show aired in its intended form.
As the '60s drew to a close, Clark's commercial stature slipped, although singles like "Don't Sleep on the Subway," "The Other Man's Grass Is Always Greener," and "Kiss Me Goodbye" still charted on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1968, she revived her film career by starring in Finian's Rainbow, followed a year later by Goodbye, Mr. Chips. In later years, Clark focused primarily on international touring, headlining the 1981 London revival of Rodgers & Hammerstein's The Sound of Music; after starring in the 1990 musical Someone Like You, which she also co-wrote, she made her Broadway debut in Blood Brothers in 1993. Additionally, in 1988, an acid house remix of "Downtown" reached the U.K. Top Ten, another honor for the female singer awarded the most gold records in British pop history.
Throughout the 2000s, Clark toured fairly steadily across the globe. Her 2002 shows in France at the Olympia were recorded and released on CD and DVD, but no new studio recordings were forthcoming until she teamed with Irish band the Saw Doctors for a new version of "Downtown" in 2011. Soon after, she began working with producer John Williams on an album. Made up of newly written songs and covers, as well as a new take on "Downtown," Lost in You was issued in early 2013. Just three years later, Clark returned with another studio album, From Now On, which featured several newly penned compositions as well as covers of classic numbers by the Beatles, Steve Winwood, and Peggy Lee. In October 2016, Clark set out on a U.K. tour in support of the album. That same year also saw the release of Natural Love: The Scotti Brothers Recordings, a collection of country- and pop-oriented material Clark cut in the '80s. A French-language album, Vu D'ici, arrived in 2018 and found Clark interpreting songs by Quebecois composers like Nelson Minville, France D’Amour, Luc De Larochellière, and others.
© Jason Ankeny /TiVo
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The Ultimate Petula Clark
Petula Clark
Pop/Rock - Released by BMG Heritage on Apr 11, 2003
Ultimate Petula Clark is a 21-track collection of British songbird Clark's biggest hits and best songs from the early '60s through the early '70s. Her ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
I Couldn't Live Without Your Love: Hits, Classics & More
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited on Dec 1, 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Don't Sleep in the Subway - Her Greatest Hits
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by BCD - 3RDP on Jun 30, 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Starting All Over Again
Petula Clark
French Music - Released by Anthology's on Apr 17, 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Downtown: The Greatest Hits of Petula Clark
Petula Clark
Pop/Rock - Released by Buddha Records on Jul 22, 1997
Although it's a little skimpy at 12 tracks -- especially compared with GNP's import The Greatest Hits of Petula Clark, which features 16 cuts -- Buddh ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Lost In You
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by The End Records on Feb 25, 2013
Petula Clark hadn't made a studio album featuring original compositions since the mid-70s when Lost in You was released in early 2013. Amazingly, it c ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vu d’ici
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by Les productions Martin Leclerc on Apr 20, 2018
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Color My World (Performed Live On The Ed Sullivan Show/1967)
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by SOFA - AV Catalog PS on Jan 1, 1967
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Downtown (Performed live on The Ed Sullivan Show/1965)
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by SOFA - AV Catalog PS on Jan 1, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
I Know A Place (Performed live on The Ed Sullivan Show/1965)
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by SOFA - AV Catalog PS on Jan 1, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
My Love (Performed live on The Ed Sullivan Show/1965)
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by SOFA - AV Catalog PS on Jan 1, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A Sign Of The Times (Performed Live On The Ed Sullivan Show /1966)
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by SOFA - AV Catalog PS on Jan 1, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Don't Sleep In The Subway (Performed Live On The Ed Sullivan Show /1967)
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by SOFA - AV Catalog PS on Jan 1, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Cat In The Window (The Bird In The Sky) (Performed Live On The Ed Sullivan Show/1967)
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by SOFA - AV Catalog PS on Jan 1, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elusive Butterfly (Performed Live On The Ed Sullivan Show /1967)
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by SOFA - AV Catalog PS on Jan 1, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
C'est Ma Chanson
Petula Clark
French Music - Released by Vogue on Nov 18, 1966
It's doubtful that any future singer will ever record as many songs as Petula Clark has in her career -- the number of just her English language recor ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Platinum & Gold Collection
Petula Clark
Pop/Rock - Released by BMG Heritage on Oct 12, 2004
Petula Clark and Tony Hatch had a golden touch between 1964 and 1968. The brassy singer and velvety producer/songwriter hit the Top 20 of the U.S. sin ...
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Pye Anthology
Petula Clark
Pop - Released by Sanctuary Records on Sep 29, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Downtown / Les Fleur
Petula Clark
Funk - Released by Janus Records on Feb 10, 1976
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Greatest Hits
Petula Clark
Rock - Released by CLASSIC WORLD ENTERTAINMENT on Mar 22, 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo