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CLIFF RICHARD

Cliff Richard was born Harry Rodger Webb on October 14, 1940 in Lucknow, United Provinces, British India and is a British singer, musician, performer, actor, philanthropist and all-round titan of British entertainment. Cliff moved with his parents from India to Tilbury, Essex and then on to Cheshunt, Hertfordshire when Cliff’s dad got a job with Thorn Electrical Industries in 1949. Cliff took a fancy to music when his dad bought him a guitar, and he joined the Dick Teague Skiffle Group in 1957. Cliff became the lead singer in a band called The Drifters in 1958, changing his name from the less showbiz Harry to Cliff, and The Drifters becoming The Shadows when they discovered another band using that name. Cliff Richard’s first hit Move It was originally meant to be the B-side to a song called Schoolboy Crush, and raced to Number two in 1958, and for a while Cliff was modelled as some kind of UK answer to Elvis Presley. By the time of Cliff’s first UK Official Singles Chart Number 1 Living Doll, Cliff Richard and The Shadows were the big teen sensations of the age, and The Shadows were concurrently embarking on their own career, often replacing Cliff’s songs at the top. Cliff Richard has enjoyed 14 UK Number 1 singles such as We Don’t Talk Anymore, Mistletoe & Wine, The Young Ones and Summer Holiday and is the only singer to have had a Number 1 single in the UK in five consecutive decades. He also recorded the first of the Comic Relief fundraising songs, a cover of his own Living Doll with the cast of The Young Ones, becoming the first act to reach Number 1 twice with two versions of the same song. Cliff Richard won the first Best British Male Solo Artist at the first BRIT Awards in 1977, and again in 1982 as well as the Outstanding Contribution to Music award in 1989. Cliff was awarded the OBE in 1980 (around the time he finally officially changed his name by deed poll), and was knighted in 1995, becoming the first pop star Sir.

CLIFF RICHARD Songs stats

UK No1s
14
UK Top 10s
68
UK Top 40s
124
UK Top 75s
135
Weeks at No1
46
Weeks in the Top 10
333
Weeks in the Top 40
970
Weeks in the Top 75
1182

CLIFF RICHARD Albums stats

UK No1s
7
UK Top 10s
48
UK Top 40s
68
UK Top 75s
73
Weeks at No1
30
Weeks in the Top 10
348
Weeks in the Top 40
732
Weeks in the Top 75
923

CLIFF RICHARD news

Cher Rolling Stones Michael Buble
Christmas Number 1
See who's leading the Official Christmas Number 1 album race
Oasis and Taylor Swift
News
Oasis vs. Taylor Swift vs. Jung Kook Albums Chart Update: Who's tracking for the top?
taylor-swift-anti-hero-look-what-you-made-me-do-number-1.jpg
Christmas Number 1
Taylor Swift's Midnights is UK's Official Christmas Number 1 album
taylor-swift-midnights-cliff-richard-christmas-with-cliff-michael-buble-albums-chart-race.jpg
Christmas Number 1
Cliff Richard edges ahead of Taylor Swift in Christmas Number 1 album race
More CLIFF RICHARD news

CLIFF RICHARD Hits

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A

Andrew077

4

Contrary to what some people think, Cliff is the FIRST artist to have had top ten hits across 6 decades on the UK Singles Chart. Not Elton John.

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Solo Lancia

-1

yes.. but Elton Started to record for charts almost 13 years after Cliff, and anyway, Elton is a Worldwide hit chart-artist with almost sames hit than Uk in every country. Cliff not, his record are on charts on some countries just to 80s

G

Gery

0

Laughable to think Elton's only sold 50M worldwide than Cliff though, despite the biopic, massive tours and churning out music with younger (more relevant) acts.

JA

Jon Alexander

7

Cliff managed it in the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and 2000s...are your staff allowed to access your own database? You can't exclude Cliff's efforts with the shadows or other duets if you're going to allow Elton John's duets and features as tallies towards his...

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flashXlight

1

27 songs in the list, from Please Don't Tease (1960) up to and including Marianne (1968) were Cliff Richard and The Shadows. And all of those should also appear on The Cliff Richard and The Shadows page.

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Edwin Green

1

Cliff's original backing-group, The Drifters, would evolve to become The Shadows in 1959. After all, there was already a popular American group established as The Drifters. It should be noted that Cliff's first group didn't include Hank Marvin, Bruce Welch, Jet Harris or Tony Meehan - all recruited after his first hit. Cliff's new found popularity saw TV appearances, bigger concert venues and more records to be made. All of which demanded a more sturdier group of musicians. However, only Cliff's original Drifters - not those famous Shadows - can claim to be on his first hit (Move It, 1958).

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Naftali Morgenstern

1

Yes but a group that changes its line-up remains under the hits for that group. The same for the Rubettes, and New Vaudeville Band... all started as the creation of someone then became the established act after the first hit. Also in that category is Alvin Stardust, originally a pseudonym for Peter Shelley but then became the new performing name of Bernard Jewry who had previously sung as Shane Fenton and had simply been put forward as a "face" to Alvin Stardust for a TOTP performance of "My Coo Ca Choo".