for Sunday 6th November 1966

Tony Blackburn and Kenny Everett reviewed 'Good Vibrations' during their Climber Review programme on October 23rd '66, when Kenny predicted it would top the Fab 40.
Tony: "Do you think it's too complicated to be a hit?"
Kenny: "No, I think it'll be Number One."
Tony: "Possibly"
The Beach Boys perform 'Good Vibrations' live.

Last
This
Presented by Ed Stewart
Week
Week
22
1
 Good Vibrations Beach Boys
7
2
 Semi-Detached Suburban Mr James Manfred Mann
29
3
 Gimme Some Loving Spencer Davis Group
10
4
 A Love Like Yours (Don't Come Knocking Every Day) Ike & Tina Turner
1
5
 Stop Stop Stop Hollies
19
6
 Holy Cow Lee Dorsey
9
7
 Time Drags By Cliff Richard & the Shadows
11
8
 Wrapping Paper Cream
2
9
 Reach Out, I'll Be There Four Tops
14
10
 Help Me Girl Eric Burdon & the Animals
5
11
 A Fool Am I Cilla Black
13
12
 Friday On My Mind Easybeats
20
13
 Ride On Baby Chris Farlowe
3
14
 If I Were A Carpenter Bobby Darin
24
15
 Nineteen Days Dave Clark Five
26
16
 Just One Smile Gene Pitney
8
17
 High Time Paul Jones
31
18
 Ten Storeys High David & Jonathan
16
19
 I Could Feel The Whole World Turn Round Shotgun Express
27
20
 Mr Spaceman Byrds
34
21
 Green Green Grass Of Home Tom Jones
–
22
 Picture Me Gone Dave Berry
25
23
 Emergency 999 Alan Bown Set
32
24
 Dandy Clinton Ford / Rockin' Vickers
12
24
 No Milk Today Herman's Hermits
30
25
 It's Love Ken Dodd
–
26
 Look Through My Window Mamas & Papas
–
27
 Girl On A Swing Gerry & the Pacemakers
32
28
 The Dreams I Dream Shadows
33
28
 Secret Love Billy Stewart
–
29
 Living For You Sonny & Cher
39
29
 What Becomes Of The Brokenhearted Jimmy Ruffin
4
30
 Beauty Is Only Skin Deep Temptations
6
30
 I Love My Dog Cat Stevens
36
31
 Feeling Gidian with Chris Lambe & the Universals
–
31
 Painter Man Creation
–
32
 We'll Meet Again Lloyd Banks
–
33
 Nothing Lasts Forever Mia Lewis
–
34
 Crazy Feeling Carl Douglas & the Big Stampede
–
35
 Trains, Trains Steve Darbishire
–
36
 The Great Airplane Strike Paul Revere & the Raiders
–
36
 Drop Everything And Run/I Need You Thane Russal
–
37
 A Man With Money A Wild Uncertainty
15
38
 I Can't Control Myself Troggs
35
38
 Too Much On My Mind Gates Of Eden
37
39
 Rain On The Roof Lovin' Spoonful
18
40
 Last Train To Clarksville Monkees
–
40
 Farmer's Daughter Summer Set

–
36
 Drop Everything And Run/I Need You Thane Russal CBS 202403

Up until November 2021, we listed Drop Everything And Run as the only side of the Thane Russal single that was played during all three weeks that it spent on the Big L playlist (unassigned climber last week, jt#36 this week, #32 next week). There is now evidence that for this week - and this week only - the Pall Mall-published B side, I Need You, also received airplay on the station. I Need You is listed by Brian Long and Herman Hamerpagt, while Alan Field, Hans Peters and Roy Taylor list Drop Everything And Run. Accordingly we're amending this week's chart to show the record as a double-sided hit. The listing of Drop Everything And Run by itself, for the other two weeks remains unchanged.

Thane Russal, who was a protege of Andrew Loog Oldham's, had previously released I Got My Tears To Remind Me on Decca in 1965, under his real name of Doug Gibbons. The NME reviewer of Drop Everything and Run decided that he had a 'peculiar corncrake voice'. (Go and look up a corncrake call and perhaps you'll see what they mean.) However, in a subsequent release, Security, which proved popular on some Australian local stations, comparisons were made between Thane Russal's voice and Mick Jagger's. He had no further UK success, but found more luck with his singing career on the continent. He died in Paris in 2010. (With thanks to Brian Long for additional information.)

–
35
 Trains, Trains Steve Darbishire Decca F12512

Information about Steve Darbishire is hard to find, but not so his backing group the Yum Yum Band. Named after a single released earlier in 1966, they are not credited on any of the five Darbishire Decca releases.

The band consisted of Pete Dello (Peter Blumson), Ray Cane (Raymond Byart) and Terry Noon. Dello and Cane later founded Honeybus.

The single Yum Yum, which was co-written with Pete Dello, spent two weeks on the Big L playlist as a climber in May 66. Trains Trains, picked as Kenny Everett's climber, was Darbishire's second one-week entry in the bottom ten of the Fab Forty, one year after his first release, That's the Reason Why, also co-written with Dello. Trains Trains is credited to Darbishire alone.

Besides climbers that were played at the time of the broadcast of the Sunday Fab Forty, Alan kept a note of others he heard later in the week and incorporated them into his list.

DJ Climbers:    
Think Sometimes About Me Sandie Shaw Tony Blackburn
Run, Run, Look And See Brian Hyland Dave Dennis
Our Love's Disintegrating Johnny Curtis Pete Drummond
Stop, Look And Listen Chiffons Kenny Everett
Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song) Otis Redding Paul Kaye
Willow Weep For Me Alan Price Set Mike Lennox
Make Me Break This Spell [Shapes In My Mind]* Keith Relf Mark Roman
Jingle Jangle Truth Keith Skues
La-La-La-Lies Who Ed Stewart
A Corner In The Sun Walter Jackson Norman St John
My Mind's Eye Small Faces Tony Windsor

Make Me Break This Spell [Shapes In My Mind]* Keith Relf

*Note from Alan Field:
This solo release by ex-Yardbird Keith Relf was played, announced and listed as Make Me Break This Spell, both here, as Mark Roman's climber and for its first week on the chart on 27/11/66. That title was taken from a line in the song's lyrics and Hans Evers, Brian Long, Roy Taylor and I all have matching lists regarding the original title. It was only some weeks later, on the record's second week in the Fab 40 (4/12/66) that announcements on the station switched to Shapes In My Mind, the title by which the song was actually released. At that point we list the record by its new title, with its former one in square brackets to show that it is indeed the same record, and to tie it in with the 'last week' position.

As a historical work of reference reflecting Radio London primarily, I would always go with the titles and artists as announced on the station (obvious errors excluded), in preference to what appeared on the record label. It's safe to say that in this instance, Big L was probably playing a promo or acetate of the Keith Relf single to begin with, and the record company changed the proposed title. It's interesting to note that Penny Valentine reviewed the record in the 26th November '66 edition of Disc & Music Echo - the week it was released - still under its early title of Make Me Break This Spell.

Webmaster note from Mary Payne:
The Keith Relf single was written by Simon Napier-Bell and released in several countries, including the USA, as Shapes In My Mind. According to a posting on 45cat.com, Relf performed the song on Ready Steady Go and stated in a 1970 interview that although the record's B-side Blue Sands was credited to him, it was recorded with session musicians and he had not performed on it.

Click on the scan for a larger version

Climbers:  
Time Marches On Corby & the Champagne
Icicles (Fell From The Heart Of A Bluebird) Jonathan King
Up And Down Eyes Of Blue
Clock Eddie Rambeau
I Can't Get You Out Of My Head Scott Taylor
Most Exclusive Residence For Sale Los Cincos
I'm Ready For Love Martha & the Vandellas
You Keep Me Hangin' On Supremes
I Wanna Be Your Girl Dale Brooks
Disc of the Week:  
Canadian Sunset Symbols
Album of the Week:  
Come The Day Seekers


The Caroline 'Countdown Sixty' chart (south ship) for this week is here
This week's Radio City 'City Sixty' on the Pirate Radio Hall of Fame is here

Tune in next week for another Field's Fab Forty!

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