Cilla Black is a very interesting story. From starting out as a singer/coat-check girl at the Cavern in Liverpool to changing her name from Cilla White to Cilla Black on John Lennon's recommendation.
She did quite well in the UK. I really, for years, paid her little mind. Basically thought of her as a demure Brit girl who rode the Lennon/McCartney/Liverpool/Beatles coattails to limited fame. And I thought her voice a bit too 'harsh' for my tastes.
One day when doing a bit of Youtube surfing - looking at Bacharach/David songs, I stumbled across
Which sent me on a mission to re-evaluate my thinking.
Found out she went from the demure/shy little Brit girl from the North of England to one of Britain's favorite personalities, hosting multiple game shows for decades. And bawdy as hell! I even got and read her biography.
But the song I am posting today is this version, the
original version of 'Alfie'.
From Wikipedia:
"
Black was invited to record "Alfie" in a letter from Bacharach - who Black recalls wrote that the song had been written specially for her. Brian Epstein, her manager, was sent a demo[2] of the song, originally performed by 22 year old Kenny Karen, Burt on piano and a string ensemble[3]. Black would recall her negative reaction to hearing the demo "of some fella singing 'Alfie'...I actually said to Brian 'I can't do this.' For a start - Alfie?? You call your dog Alfie!...[Couldn't] it be Tarquin or something like that?"[4]
Black states that rather than overtly decline the song she would set conditions. "I said I'd only do it if Burt Bacharach himself did the arrangement, never thinking for one moment that he would. [When] the reply came back from America that he'd be happy to...I said I would only do it if Burt came over to London for the recording session. 'Yes,' came the reply. Next I said that as well as the arrangements and coming over, he had to play [piano] on the session. To my astonishment it was agreed that Burt would do all three. So by this time, coward that I was, I really couldn't back out."
I love the entire thing. Bacharach directing and playing piano. The enormity of Abbey Road Number 1 studio. But her singing literally gives me chills. Damn, I love the 60's music era, LOL!
