Carrie (Cliff Richard song)

1979 single by Cliff Richard

"Carrie"

Cover sleeve of the UK release

Single by Cliff Richard
from the album  Rock 'n' Roll Juvenile
B-side|

* "Moving In"
* "Language of Love" (US release)

Released| 1 December 1979 (1979-12-01)[1]
Recorded| 7–12 January & 2 February 1979[2]
Studio|

* Pathé-Marconi, Paris
* Abbey Road, London

Genre|

* Pop rock
* soft rock
* new wave

Length|

* 3:28 (edit)
* 3:42 (album version)

Label| EMI
Songwriter(s)|

* Terry Britten
* BA Robertson

Producer(s)|

* Terry Britten
* Cliff Richard

Cliff Richard singles chronology
| "Hot Shot"
(1979)  | "Carrie"
(1979)  | "Dreamin'"
(1980)

|
|

Cliff Richard (US/Europe/Australia) singles chronology
| "We Don't Talk Anymore"
(1979)  | "Carrie"
(1979)  | "Dreamin'"
(1980)

|
|

Music video
"Carrie" on YouTube
Alternative cover

Cover sleeve of the German release

"Carrie" is a song performed by Cliff Richard and released in December 1979 as the third single lifted from Richard's album Rock 'n' Roll Juvenile. It reached number 4 in the UK Singles Chart and became an international hit.[3]

## Composition

[edit]

"Carrie" was written by the songwriting partnership of Terry Britten and BA Robertson, who had written Richard previous single "Hot Shot" and who also wrote several other songs for Rock 'n' Roll Juvenile. Britten initially came up with the riff and the title, but he "realized that it would take someone who knew what they were doing to make it into a proper song", so he got Robertson to come up with the story.[2] Speaking about the song, Robertson has said:

> "The strength of the song comes from the fact that you're never quite sure what it's about. You don't know whether Carrie is homeless or whether she's squatting or what. You don't know whether Cliff, as the narrator, is the husband, boyfriend, lover, brother or father. Nowhere does the song say what the relationship with Carrie is. It's very mysterious and musically it falls in the same groove as 'I Heard It Through The Grapevine'".[4]

## Recording and release

[edit]

The backing track was recorded between 7 and 12 January 1979 at the EMI Pathé-Marconi Studios in Paris and the vocals were later recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London on 2 February. The recording engineers were Tony Clark and Haydn Bendall.[2]

"Carrie" was released in the majority of territories with the B-side "Moving In", which was written and produced by Richard. It was first released as a single in the Netherlands and Germany at the beginning of December 1979, before being released in Australia on 12 December with the B-side "Walking in the Light", written by Britten.[1][5] "Carrie" was later re-released in Australia in March 1980 with "Moving In" as the B-side.[6] In the UK, the single was released on 18 January 1980.[2]

The single release of "Carrie" is an edit of the album version and also actually runs slightly faster.[7] However, the album version was released on the original Australian single and the US and Canadian single. The latter was also released with a different B-side, "Language of Love", also written by Britten and Robertson, in February 1980.[8]

## Reception

[edit]

Reviewing for Record Mirror, Simon Ludgate gave it 'Single of the Week', writing that "it's astounding, the hits keep rolling off 'Rock 'n' Roll Juvenile', from which this is taken. To be producing high-pop songs like this after 25 years in the Biz is extraordinary", adding that Richard's "delivery is immaculate and his timing superb. You can't ignore a classic popstar: credit must be given".[9]

In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Dave Thompson described the song as "a deliberately sinister and enthrallingly atmospheric number, revolving around the search for a mysteriously missing friend ("Carrie had a date with her own kind of fate")" and that "in other hands, such lines as "you're just another message on a payphone wall" and "the young wear their freedom like cheap perfume" could sound trite. Richard imbibes them with both pertinence and importance, while the emotion in his voice colors even the title.[10]

## Track listing

[edit]

7": EMI / EMI 5006

1. "Carrie" – 3:28
2. "Moving In" – 3:26

7": EMI / EMI-168 (Australia)

1. "Carrie" – 3:42
2. "Walking in the Light" – 3:08

7": EMI / 8035 (US and Canada)

1. "Carrie" – 3:42
2. "Language of Love" – 4:39

## Personnel

[edit]

* Cliff Richard – vocals, backing vocals
* Terry Britten – guitar, backing vocals
* Herbie Flowers – bass
* Graham Jarvis – drums
* Billy Livsey – keyboards
* Tristan Fry – percussion
* Mel Collins – saxophone

## Charts and certifications

[edit]

### Weekly charts

[edit]

| Chart (1980)  | Peak
position

|

Australia (Kent Music Report)[11] | 18
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[12] | 26
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[13] | 89
Germany (GfK)[14] | 26
Ireland (IRMA)[15] | 4
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[16] | 29
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[17] | 29
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[18] | 8
South Africa (Springbok Radio)[19] | 5
UK Singles (OCC)[3] | 4
US Billboard Hot 100[20] | 34
US Cash Box Top 100[21] | 39

### Year-end charts

[edit]

| Chart (1980)  | Rank

|

Australia (Kent Music Report)[22] | 142
UK Singles (OCC)[23] | 72

### Certifications

[edit]

Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

United Kingdom (BPI)[24] | Silver  | 250,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

## Cover versions

[edit]

* In the same week in May 1980 that Richard's version peaked in Canada, a cover by Canadian progressive rock band Cano reached a higher peak at number 78.[13]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Cliff Richard - Carrie". 45cat. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
2. ^ a b c d "Cliff Richard Song Database – Song Details (Carrie)". www.cliffrichardsongs.com.
3. ^ a b "Cliff Richard: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
4. ^ Turner, Steve (2008). Cliff Richard: the Biography: 50th Anniversary Edition. Lion Books. p. 280\. ISBN 978-0-7459-5279-6.
5. ^ "Cliff Richard - Carrie". 45cat. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
6. ^ "Cliff Richard - Carrie". 45cat. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
7. ^ "Cliff Richard Song Database – Song Details (Carrie [Edited Single Version])". www.cliffrichardsongs.com.
8. ^ "Cliff Richard - Carrie". 45cat. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
9. ^ "Singles" (PDF). Record Mirror. 9 February 1980. p. 8. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
10. ^ "Carrie - Cliff Richard | Song Info | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-03-23.
11. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992type=doc. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
12. ^ "Cliff Richard – Carrie" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
13. ^ a b "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0153b." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
14. ^ "Cliff Richard – Carrie" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
15. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Carrie". Irish Singles Chart.
16. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Cliff Richard" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
17. ^ "Cliff Richard – Carrie" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
18. ^ "Cliff Richard – Carrie". Top 40 Singles.
19. ^ "South Africa Charts 1965-1989 - Springbok Radio / Radio Orion". Retrieved 22 December 2016.
20. ^ "Cliff Richard Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
21. ^ "Cash Box Top Singles". Retrieved 23 March 2022.
22. ^ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1980s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
23. ^ "Chart File" (PDF). Record Mirror. 21 March 1981. p. 37. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
24. ^ "British single certifications – Cliff Richard – Carrie". British Phonographic Industry.

* v
* t
* e

Cliff Richard

Albums (UK)|

| 1950s:|

* Cliff (1959, live)
* Cliff Sings (1959)

|

1960s:|

* Me and My Shadows (1960)
* Listen to Cliff! (1961)
* 21 Today (1961)
* 32 Minutes and 17 Seconds (1962)
* The Young Ones (1962, soundtrack)
* Summer Holiday (1963, soundtrack)
* When in Spain (1963)
* Wonderful Life (1964, soundtrack)
* Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp (1964, cast album)
* Cliff Richard (1965)
* When in Rome (1965)
* Love Is Forever (1965)
* Kinda Latin (1966)
* Finders Keepers (1966, soundtrack)
* Cinderella (1967, cast album)
* Don't Stop Me Now! (1967)
* Two a Penny (1968, soundtrack)
* Sincerely (1969)

1970s:|

* Tracks 'n Grooves (1970)
* Take Me High (1974, soundtrack)
* I'm Nearly Famous (1976)
* Every Face Tells a Story (1977)
* Small Corners (1978, gospel)
* Green Light (1978)
* Thank You Very Much (1979, live)
* Rock 'n' Roll Juvenile (1979)

1980s:|

* I'm No Hero (1980)
* Wired for Sound (1981)
* Now You See Me, Now You Don't (1982, gospel)
* Dressed for the Occasion (1983, live)
* Silver (1983)
* The Rock Connection (1984)
* Always Guaranteed (1987)
* Stronger (1989)

1990s:|

* From a Distance: The Event (1990, live)
* Together with Cliff Richard (1991)
* The Album (1993)
* Songs from Heathcliff (1995, stage show album)
* Real as I Wanna Be (1998)

2000s:|

* Wanted (2001)
* Cliff at Christmas (2003)
* Something's Goin' On (2004)
* Two's Company (2006)
* Love... The Album (2007)
* Reunited – Cliff Richard and The Shadows (2009)

2010s:|

* Bold as Brass (2010)
* Soulicious (2011)
* The Fabulous Rock 'n' Roll Songbook (2013)
* Just... Fabulous Rock 'n' Roll (2016)
* Rise Up (2018)

2020s:|

* Music... The Air That I Breathe (2020)
* Christmas with Cliff (2022)
* Cliff with Strings – My Kinda Life (2023)

EPs (UK)|

* Serious Charge (1959)
* Expresso Bongo (1960)
* Cliff's Silver Discs (1960)
* Dream (1961)
* Hits from the Young Ones (1962)

Compilations (UK)|

* Cliff's Hit Album (1963)
* 40 Golden Greats (1977)
* Love Songs (1981)
* Walking in the Light (1984, Gospel)
* Private Collection: 1979–1988 (1988)
* The Hit List (1994)
* At the Movies 1959–1974 (1996)
* The Whole Story: His Greatest Hits (2000)
* The Platinum Collection (2005)
* And They Said It Wouldn't Last: My 50 Years in Music (2008)
* The 50th Anniversary Album (2008)
* 75 at 75 (2015)
* Stronger Thru the Years (2017)

Related articles|

* Albums discography
* Singles discography
* Videography
* The Shadows

* v
* t
* e

Cliff Richard singles

1950s|

* "Move It" (1958)
* "High Class Baby" (1958)
* "Livin' Lovin' Doll" (1959)
* "Mean Streak" (1959)
* "Living Doll" (1959)
* "Travellin' Light" / "Dynamite" (1959)

1960s|

* "A Voice in the Wilderness" (1960)
* "Fall in Love with You" (1960)
* "Please Don't Tease" (1960)
* "Nine Times Out of Ten" (1960)
* "I Love You" (1960)
* "Theme for a Dream" (1961)
* "Gee Whizz It's You" (1961)
* "A Girl Like You" (1961)
* "What'd I Say" (1961)
* "When the Girl in Your Arms Is the Girl in Your Heart" (1961)
* "Forty Days" (1961)
* "Outsider" (1962)
* "The Young Ones" / "We Say Yeah" (1962)
* "Catch Me" (1962)
* "I'm Looking out the Window" / "Do You Want to Dance?" (1962)
* "Lessons in Love" (1962)
* "It'll Be Me" (1962)
* "Wonderful to Be Young" (1962)
* "The Next Time" / "Bachelor Boy" (1962)
* "Summer Holiday" (1963)
* "Lucky Lips" (1963)
* "It's All in the Game" (1963)
* "Don't Talk to Him" (1963)
* "Maria No Mas" (1963)
* "I'm the Lonely One" (1964)
* "I Only Have Eyes for You" (1964)
* "Constantly (L'Edera)" (1964)
* "On the Beach" (1964)
* "The Twelfth of Never" (1964)
* "I Could Easily Fall (In Love with You)" (1964)
* "The Minute You're Gone" (1965)
* "Angel" (1965)
* "On My Word" (1965)
* "The Time in Between" (1965)
* "Wind Me Up (Let Me Go)" (1965)
* "Blue Turns to Grey" (1966)
* "Visions" (1966)
* "Time Drags By" (1966)
* "In the Country" (1966)
* "It's All Over" (1967)
* "I'll Come Runnin'" (1967)
* "The Day I Met Marie" (1967)"
* "All My Love" (1967)
* "Congratulations" (1968)
* "I'll Love You Forever Today" (1968)
* "Wonderful World" (1968)
* "Marianne" (1968)
* "Don't Forget to Catch Me" (1968)
* "Good Times (Better Times)" (1969)
* "Big Ship" (1969)
* "Early in the Morning" (1969)
* "Throw Down a Line" (1969)
* "With the Eyes of a Child" (1969)

1970s|

* "The Joy of Living" (1970)
* "Goodbye Sam, Hello Samantha" (1970)
* "I Ain't Got Time Anymore" (1970)
* "Sunny Honey Girl" (1971)
* "Silvery Rain" (1971)
* "Flying Machine" (1971)
* "Sing a Song of Freedom" (1971)
* "Jesus" (1972)
* "Living in Harmony" (1972)
* "Power to All Our Friends" (1973)
* "Help It Along" (1973)
* "Take Me High" (1973)
* "(You Keep Me) Hangin' On" (1974)
* "Honky Tonk Angel" (1975)
* "Miss You Nights" (1976)
* "Devil Woman" (1976)
* "I Can't Ask for Anymore Than You" (1976)
* "Hey Mr. Dream Maker" (1976)
* "My Kinda Life" (1977)
* "When Two Worlds Drift Apart" (1977)
* "Green Light" (1979)
* "We Don't Talk Anymore" (1979)

1980s|

* "Carrie" (1980)
* "Dreamin'" (1980)
* "Suddenly" (1980)
* "A Little in Love" (1980)
* "Give a Little Bit More" (1981)
* "Wired for Sound" (1981)
* "Daddy's Home" (live) (1981)
* "The Only Way Out" (1982)
* "Little Town" (1982)
* "She Means Nothing to Me" (1983)
* "True Love Ways" (live) (1983)
* "Never Say Die (Give a Little Bit More)" (1983)
* "Please Don't Fall in Love" (1983)
* "Baby You're Dynamite" / "Ocean Deep" (1984)
* "Donna" (1984 US)
* "Two to the Power of Love" (1984)
* "Living Doll" (1986)
* "All I Ask of You" (1986)
* "Slow Rivers" (1986)
* "My Pretty One" (1987)
* "Some People" (1987)
* "Remember Me" (1987)
* "Two Hearts" (1988)
* "Mistletoe and Wine" (1988)
* "The Best of Me" (1989)
* "I Just Don't Have the Heart" (1989)
* "Lean on You" (1989)
* "Whenever God Shines His Light" (1989)

1990s|

* "Stronger Than That" (1990)
* "Silhouettes" (live) (1990)
* "From a Distance" (live) (1990)
* "Saviour's Day" (1990)
* "More to Life" (1991)
* "Scarlet Ribbons" (1991)
* "We Should Be Together" (1991)
* "This New Year" (1991)
* "I Still Believe in You" (1992)
* "Peace in Our Time" (1993)
* "All I Have to Do Is Dream" (live) / "Miss You Nights" (1994)
* "Can't Keep this Feeling In" (1998)
* "The Millennium Prayer" (1999)

2000s|

* "Somewhere Over the Rainbow"/"What a Wonderful World" (medley) (2001)
* "21st Century Christmas" / "Move It" (2006)
* "When I Need You" (2007)
* "Thank You for a Lifetime" (2008)
* "Singing the Blues" (2009)

2010s|

* "Rip It Up" (2013)
* "Since I Lost My Baby" (2014)
* "Roll Over Beethoven" (2016)
* "Blue Suede Shoes" (2017)

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz work

|

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