Song Of The Day 5/5/2015: Petula Clark – “Just Say Goodbye”

Brit Girls of the '60s: Aw, man, Petula Clark. What in God’s name can I say about Petula Clark that hasn’t already been whispered in the filtered-glass chapels in the castle of our love? The most successful of the British chanteuses, the one who rampaged across the screens of America more than any other of her homeland. She’s a Commander of the British Emprire, so think twice before you steer your lifeboats into the English Channel or try to pull a prank on the Falkland Islands. She’s sold 68 million records, which is a little more than Deerhoof. She played Nora Desmond in the stage version of Sunset Boulevard, which considering the nature of the character of Nora Desmond is a calculated risk for all high-profile actresses, and maybe a couple of actors as well. She entertained troops in World War II as a child. She had a guest appearance on Here’s Lucy. Nobody’s had a guest appearance on Here’s Lucy. She’s the most interesting woman in the world. Why you all frontin’ like that?

I’m a sucker for Petula Clark records. More specifically, I’m a sucker for Petula Clark records that were written by Tony Hatch, whose former wife Jackie Trent had a great couple of songs on the Pye Records theme week. Hatch wrote “Downtown,” the song for which Clark will likely always be remembered, which she’s good-naturedly accepted. But “Just Say Goodbye” is my favorite Clark/Hatch tune, for reasons I don’t totally understand myself. It’s one of my favorite mainstream pop songs of the ’60s, even though it didn’t really go anywhere. I sampled it in 2011 for one of my stupid little digital projects as well. I hope it brings you as much pleasure and bittersweetness as it brought me, and my loved ones.

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