Petula Clark teases London show 60 years after ‘Downtown’ : NPR

Sixty years ago, on January 23, 1965, “Downtown” reached the top of the US charts and made Petula Clark a star.

The song talks about escaping the drone of everyday life by spending time in the heart of the city to “forget all your worries, forget all your worries.” Clark received a Grammy Award for Best Rock and Roll Record for the song. He has been featured in hit TV shows, including lost And SeinfeldAs well as Hollywood movies Girl, interrupt.

The British singer, now 92, has a decades-long career that began as a child singing for troops during World War II. Before the success of “Downtown” in America, she was already a star in Europe, performing on British radio and TV specials. He recorded songs in several languages ​​including French, German and Italian.

Clark sat down to talk with her. Morning edition A Martínez talks about the life-changing moment when “Downtown” became a hit, and reveals plans for a London concert that are in the works.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Martinez: So I want to start with when you first heard about the song that English composer Tony Hatch wrote for you, “Downtown.” What did you think of his idea for the song?

Petula Clark: I married a Frenchman and was living in Paris at the time and had many hit records in French and Italian and German. And Tony was a young producer at Pie Records in London. He came to Paris to talk about my next French session, which we were going to record in London. And after talking about it, he said, “You know, you should really do a recording in English, too.” I said, “Oh, well, I’m fine as I am, and we’ve got to find the right song.” He said well I have started writing this song. I said, “Listen, let’s have tea, I’ll go to the kitchen, make tea, you play the piano.” And I came back to the room with the tea and I said, “That’s a great tune. Can you write a song to that standard?” He said, “I will make a very good effort.” I said, “Well, then I will.” And two weeks later, we recorded it in London. And the rest is history, really.

Martinez: That song is loved by so many people and for so long now. What do you remember about that time, in the mid-’60s, when “Downtown” became such a big hit? I mean, it was number one in America, number one in Canada, number one in Australia. It was just a global sensation for you.

Clark: Well, it was very interesting, of course. But we didn’t realize we had recorded a monster. Suddenly it became a worldwide hit. It was a big hit in the States. The Ed Sullivan Show Kept calling, kept saying, you have to get here. The Beatles opened the door for four British acts. He was the spearhead of this British invasion, as he called it. And we were just kind of sucked into it and it was great. The first time I sang “Downtown” in front of an American audience was in New York, and I was completely jet-lagged from Paris. There was no rehearsal. Everything was performed live in front of an audience and live orchestra. And I walked on stage and the orchestra started playing it really fast. When I came on stage, people stood up and cheered. It was the beginning of a love affair with American audiences.

Martinez: How important was this one moment to your career?

Clark: Well, it was a huge moment, but it was also very difficult because, you know, I had this big career where I was singing all over Europe and I had contracts for all these different things and I just went from there. Couldn’t go. We had two young children from him and suddenly America was saying, you have to get here, and not just New York, but then I did Vegas and then I was recording in L.A. It made my life quite complicated. But the wonderful way was given. And the children, they were very young at the time, but they have wonderful memories. I think travel is a wonderful form of education. And what they were learning was learning all kinds of things that a lot of kids don’t get to do.

Martinez: I wonder, Petula, if over the decades people have come to you with different stories about what they like about the song “Downtown.”

Clark: Oh yes, there are wonderful stories over the years. Some people who were fighting in Vietnam, they would say to me, your song helped us, gave us the courage to go forward. The thing is, when you record a song and it’s great and it’s a hit and everything, you don’t know how it’s going to touch people, and they’re going to be touched in different ways. will

Martinez: You mentioned that you have sung not only in English but also in many languages. Why has this been important to you?

Clark: Well, I’m English, but I fell in love with a Frenchman. There you go. It is as simple and as complicated. And we had to decide where we wanted to live. So I went to live in France really quickly. I became a star in France, which meant I had to sing in French. And then, of course, the Italians wanted me. He wanted to hear French songs sung in Italian. So I found myself singing in Italian and German, and slowly it just kind of spread. And I love to sing in Italian. Let’s face it, this is the language of opera.

Martinez: You toured America in 2017 when you were in your 80s, traveling and sleeping on a tour bus. What keeps you? I can’t imagine working into my 80s. I keep thinking maybe in the 70’s I’ll give it up.

Clark: I just love doing it. That’s really the reason. It is hard for me to imagine my life without him. We are planning to do a concert in London as we speak. And it’s really interesting, because there will be a big orchestra and all that. I love singing with live musicians and I love singing in front of a live audience. There is no such connection between what is happening on stage and what is happening in the audience. There is a kind of communion, and it is almost a spiritual experience.