Little Town (song)

"Little Town" is a new arrangement of the traditional Christmas carol "O Little Town of Bethlehem" by English singer-songwriter Chris Eaton. Eaton adapted the lyrics (with some rearrangement of parts of verses) to a new melody he composed in a contemporary Christmas music style. It was first recorded by English singer Cliff Richard and released as a single in the UK for the 1982 Christmas season, reaching number 11 on the UK Singles Chart.[3]

"Little Town"
Single by Cliff Richard
from the album Now You See Me, Now You Don't
B-side
  • "Love and a Helping Hand"
  • "You, Me and Jesus"
Released15 November 1982 (1982-11-15)[1]
Recorded
  • September 1981
  • January 1982
  • 25–26 March 82 (Orchestra)[2]
Studio
GenreChristmas carol
Length4:08
LabelEMI
Composer(s)Chris Eaton
Lyricist(s)Phillips Brooks
Producer(s)Cliff Richard, Craig Pruess
Cliff Richard singles chronology
"Where Do We Go from Here"
(1982)		 "Little Town"
(1982)		 "She Means Nothing to Me"
(1983)

In the US, the better known version is the rendition by renowned CCM artist, Amy Grant, who included it on her 1983 album A Christmas Album.[4]

Cliff Richard original

"Little Town" was released in November 1982 as the third single from Richard's 1982 studio album Now You See Me, Now You Don't. It peaked at number 11 for two weeks on the UK Singles Chart over the Christmas week and the following week.[3] The recording featured singer and vocal arranger Tony Rivers and countertenor Nigel Perrin.

Personnel

As per the album liner notes:[2]

  • Cliff Richard – lead vocal, backing vocals
  • Tony Rivers – backing vocals, vocal arrangement
  • Nigel Perrin – backing vocals, countertenor solo vocal
  • Martyn Ford – orchestra conductor
  • Craig Pruess – orchestral arrangement, piano, synthesizers, sequencers, electronic percussion, sleigh bells
  • Graham Jarvis – drums
  • Orchestra:
    • Dave Arnold – Timpani, chimes
    • John Wilbraham – trumpet
    • Crispian Steele-Perkins – trumpet
    • Paul Cosh – trumpet
    • Ted Hobart – trumpet
    • Michael Laird – trumpet
    • Gerry Ruddock – trumpet
    • Mark Emney – trumpet
    • Simon Ferguson – trumpet
    • Jeff Bryant – French horn
    • John Pigneevy – French horn
    • Chris Larkin – French horn
    • John Rooke – French horn
    • Robin Davies – French horn
    • Phillip Eastop – French horn
    • Geoff Perkins – bass trombone
    • Steve Saunders – bass trombone
    • John Iveson – tenor trombone
    • Dave Purser – tenor trombone
    • Michael Hext – tenor trombone
    • David Whitson – tenor trombone
    • Paul Beer – tenor trombone
    • Roger Brenner – tenor trombone
    • Ian Anderson – double bass
    • Michael Brittain – double bass
    • Chris Laurence – double bass

Chart performance
Chart (1982) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[5] 40
Ireland (IRMA)[6] 11
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[3] 11

Release

The song was first released on 30 August 1982 on Richard's studio album Now You See Me, Now You Don't. The single was released in the UK on the 15 November 1982 in the standard 7-inch vinyl format with picture cover, and also as a 7-inch picture disc variant.[7] On the B-side were "Love and a Helping Hand" and "You, Me and Jesus", except in the US/Canada, where "Be in My Heart" (from the album) was used instead.[8]

In 1988, the song was included on Richard's compilation album Private Collection: 1979–1988 and as an extra B-side on the 12-inch and CD single of his UK Christmas hit "Mistletoe and Wine".[7]

A remixed version of the song with additional instrumentation was included on Richard's 1991 and 2003 Christmas albums Together with Cliff Richard and Cliff at Christmas. The song has also been included on some compilation box sets, The Singles Collection (2002) and ...And They Said it Wouldn't Last (2008).[7]

Amy Grant version

In 1983, CCM artist Amy Grant recorded a slightly more upbeat version of the song on her Christmas album, A Christmas Album.[4]

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References
  1. "The Cliff Richard Song Database website: Discography - Singles". cliffrichardsongs.com. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  2. Now You See Me, Now You Don't (LP). Cliff Richard. EMI. 1982.CS1 maint: others (link)
  3. "Cliff Richard: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  4. Mayaab, Philips. "From Mainstream to CCM: Cliff Richard's Story". ccmclassic.com. New Hope Management. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  5. "Ultratop.be – Cliff Richard – Little Town" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  6. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Little Town". Irish Singles Chart.
  7. "Cliff Richard - Little Town (Release Details)". www.cliffrichardsongs.com. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
  8. "Little Town - Cliff Richard (EMI America)". www.45cat.com. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
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