Summer Holiday (song)

"Summer Holiday"
Single by Cliff Richard, The Shadows and the Norrie Paramor Strings
from the album Summer Holiday
B-side"Dancing Shoes"
ReleasedFebruary 1963
Recorded9 May & 19 November 1962
StudioEMI Studios, London
GenrePop
Length2:03
LabelColumbia DB 4977[1]
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Norrie Paramor[1]
Cliff Richard, The Shadows and the Norrie Paramor Strings singles chronology
""The Next Time" / "Bachelor Boy""
(1962)
"Summer Holiday"
(1963)
"Lucky Lips"
(1963)
Audio sample

"Summer Holiday" is a song recorded by Cliff Richard and the Shadows, written by rhythm guitarist Bruce Welch and drummer Brian Bennett.[1] It is taken from the film of the same name,[1] and was released as the second single from the film in February 1963. It went to number one in the UK Singles Chart for a total of two weeks.[2] After that, the Shadows' instrumental "Foot Tapper"—also from the same film—took over the top spot for one week, before "Summer Holiday" returned to the top spot for one further week.[3] The track is one of Richard's best known titles and it remains a staple of his live shows. It was one of six hits Richard performed at his spontaneous gig at the 1996 Wimbledon Championships when rain stopped the tennis.

The melody of the song is used in the chorus of the 1986 rap tune "Holiday Rap", by the Dutch duo MC Miker G & DJ Sven.[4]

In 2019, the UK Government's Drinkaware campaign parodied Summer Holiday for a string of radio adverts and videos for the "No Alcoholiday" initiative to encourage people to have drink-free days.[5]

This song is used in the 2023 film Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget.

  1. ^ a b c d e Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 70. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
  2. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 147–8. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  3. ^ "Number 1 Singles – 1960s". The Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 8 April 2008. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
  4. ^ "M.C.Miker"G" & Deejay Sven – Holiday Rap". discogs.com. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
  5. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Enjoy more Drink Free Days each week with No Alcoholidays | Drinkaware". YouTube.