Cliff Richard - Imagine Love (1979)

Over a career spanning 60 years, Cliff Richard has had more than 130 of his singles, albums and EPs reach the UK Top 20, which is more than any other artist. His 67 UK top ten singles is the second highest total for an artist behind Elvis, and he holds the record (with Elvis) as the only act to make the UK singles charts in all of its first six decades (1950's–2000's). While I appreciated his work in the 60's, I wouldn't say that I was a massive fan, but some of his 70's singles did appeal to my tastes at the time, when I was just starting to get heavily into music. In 1973 he sang the British Eurovision entry 'Power to All Our Friends', which finished third, close behind Luxembourg's 'Tu Te Reconnaîtras' and Spain's 'Eres Tú', and this was one of the first singles of his that I really liked. In 1975, he released the single 'Honky Tonk Angel', produced by Hank Marvin and John Farrar, oblivious to its connotations or hidden meanings, and as soon as he was notified that a "honky-tonk angel" was southern US slang for a prostitute, the horrified Richard ordered EMI to withdraw it. EMI agreed to his demand despite the fact the single was expected to sell well, and only about 1,000 vinyl copies are known to exist. In 1976, the decision was made to repackage Richard as a "rock" artist, and with Bruce Welch in the producer's chair, he released the landmark album 'I'm Nearly Famous', which included the successful but controversial guitar-driven track 'Devil Woman', and the ballad 'Miss You Nights'. In 1979, he teamed up once again with producer Bruce Welch for the hit single 'We Don't Talk Anymore', written and composed by Alan Tarney, which hit No. 1 in the UK and No. 7 in the US. It was his first time at the top of the UK singles chart in over ten years, and the song would become his biggest-selling single worldwide, selling almost five million copies throughout the world. With the success of 'We Don't Talk Anymore' in 1979, he finally began to receive some recognition in the United States, and in 1980 'Carrie' broke into the US top 40, followed by 'Dreamin'', which reached No. 10. The 70's were a productive period for Richard, and many of his singles included non-album songs on the flip, and I've gathered the best of them here, including that controversial 'Honky Tonk Angel' single, which not surprisingly never appeared on an album.   

Track listing

01 The Days Of Love (b-side of 'Ashes To Ashes' 1973)
02 Celestial Houses (b-side of 'Take Me High' 1973)
03 You're The One (b-side of 'Its Only Me You've Left Behind') 
04 Love Enough (b-side of 'Miss You Nights' 1975)
05 Honky Tonk Angel (single 1975)
06 Love On (Shine On) (b-side of 'Devil Woman' 1976) 
07 Nothing Left For Me To Say (b-side of 'My Kinda Life' 1977)
08 No One Waits (b-side of 'Hey Mr. Dream Maker' 1976)
09 Love Is Here (b-side of '(You Keep Me) Hangin' On' 1974)
10 That's Why I Love You (b-side of 'When Two Worlds Drift Apart' 1977)
11 Needing A Friend (b-side of 'Can't Take The Hurt Anymore' 1978)
12 Imagine Love (b-side of 'Green Light' 1978)
13 Walking In The Light (b-side of 'Hot Shot' 1979)
14 Moving In (b-side of 'Carrie' 1979)