It's Not Unusual
"It's Not Unusual" is a song written by Les Reed and Gordon Mills, first recorded by a then-unknown Tom Jones,[3] after it had first been offered to Sandie Shaw.[2] He intended it as a demo for her, but when she heard it she was so impressed with his delivery that she recommended he sing it instead.
| "It's Not Unusual" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Tom Jones | ||||
| from the album Along Came Jones (It's Not Unusual) | ||||
| B-side | "To Wait for Love" (Bacharach-David) | |||
| Released | 22 January 1965 (UK) March 1965 (US) | |||
| Recorded | 11 November 1964 | |||
| Studio | Decca Studios, London | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:03 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Peter Sullivan[2] | |||
| Tom Jones singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The record was the second Jones single Decca released,[4] reaching No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart in 1965.[5][6] It was his first hit in the United States, peaking at No. 10 in May of that year. It was released in the US by Parrot Records and reached No. 3 on Billboard's easy listening chart. The song was first aired on pirate radio in the UK, as the BBC rejected it because of Jones' sexual image. In the US, Jones performed the song on three occasions on the The Ed Sullivan Show.[7]
"It's Not Unusual" is the theme song of his late 1960s–early 1970s television musical variety series, This Is Tom Jones. The first studio version was released in 1995 on the compilation album, The Legendary Tom Jones – 30th Anniversary Album.
Musical arrangement and recording edit
The musical arranger was Les Reed. Although the guitarist has been cited as Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin,[8] Reed has said the only guitarist was Joe Moretti, who also played on "Shakin' All Over" and "Brand New Cadillac". Page lists the session in his online discography.[9] Drums were played by Scottish percussionist Andy White, who had previously drummed on a Beatles recording session,[10] or possibly by Ronnie Verrell,.[11] Alan Grahame has also said he was involved.[12] According to Jones's regular drummer, Chris Slade, there were four attempts with different drummers, him included, in order to get one with the right 'feel'. Though he was certain that his take was not chosen, he was unable to confirm which one of the others did make the final recording. Jones's group, "Tom Jones and the Squires", were missing their regular keyboard player for the session, so Slade (a future member of Manfred Mann's Earth Band, AC/DC, and The Firm with Jimmy Page and Paul Rodgers) ran across the street to the "La Giaconda" coffee house, and recruited the then-unknown Reginald Dwight (who later adopted the stage name Elton John) for the one-day recording session.[13]
Personnel edit
As was standard practice in the 1960s, session musicians were used instead of Jones's regular backing band. There are conflicting reports about who actually played on the record, but the most likely candidates are:[11]
- Tom Jones – vocals
- Joe Moretti – guitar break
- Jimmy Page – lead guitar
- Vic Flick – guitar
- Andy White, or Ronnie Verrell, or Alan Grahame – drums
- Stan Barrett – percussion
- Kenny Salmon – organ[14]
- Eric Ford – bass
- John Carter and Ken Lewis – backing vocals
- Stan Roderick, Kenny Baker, Bert Ezzard, and Ray Davies or Eddie Blair – trumpets
- Ronnie Ross, Bob Efford – tenor sax
- Harry Klein – baritone sax
Charts edit
Weekly charts edit
| Year-end charts edit
|
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[26] | Gold | 400,000‡ |
| ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
Cover versions edit
- The Impressions recorded a version in 1965.
- The Dells also recorded a version in 1965 and released it as the title track of an LP on Vee-Jay records in Chicago. It was released as the B-side to their original recording of Stay in My Corner.
- Glen Campbell recorded the song on his 1965 album The Big Bad Rock Guitar of Glen Campbell.
- Brenda Lee recorded the song for her 1965 album Too Many Rivers.
- Bobbi Martin released her version on her 1965 album I Love You So.
- Los Bravos recorded a live version which was released as a single in 1966.
- Jackie Trent included her version on her 1966 album Yesterdays.
- In 1966, South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela included the song to his album Hugh Masekela's Next Album.
- The Knickerbockers present the song in the 1966 Movie "Out Of Sight" [27]
- The Supremes recorded a version of this song for their Supremes A' Go-Go album, but was not included.[28] It was recently released on a collection of Supremes' previously unreleased recordings and rarities.
- Florence Ballard (of The Supremes and featured on their version) recorded a version of this song in 1968 for her debut solo album, You Don't Have To, that was shelved by ABC Records and left unreleased until the release of The Supreme Florence Ballard CD.
- Vikki Carr recorded the song for her 1968 album Don't Break My Pretty Balloon.
- Italian rock singer Little Tony performed a local version with the title "Non è normale " ("It's not usual") [sic].
- American alternative band Wild Colonials covered the song, which appeared on their album Reel Life vol 1 (2000) and on the soundtrack of the Ellen DeGeneres film Mr. Wrong.
- Five Iron Frenzy covered this song on their live album Five Iron Frenzy LIVE: Proof That the Youth Are Revolting, and later released a studio recorded version on their album All the Hype That Money Can Buy.
- Cher recorded a version of the song on her 1966 record, The Sonny Side of Cher.[29]
- Writer Les Reed and his orchestra also recorded an instrumental version on their 1971 record, Colour Me.
- Filipino singer/artist Sam Sorono (1950–2008) covered this song on his 1978 Sings Tom Jones' Greatest Hits LP album with EMI Records.[30]
- The Wedding Present recorded a version included on the UK remastered re-release of their 1989 album, Bizarro.
- The alternative rock band Belly covered the song on the 1994 soundtrack of the movie With Honors.
- Clare Teal in a jazz style on her 2012 album The Many Sides of Clare Teal.[31]
- Temuera Morrison covered the song on his 2014 album Tem.
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air edit
The song enjoyed a resurgence in the mid-1990s, as it was used in the hit sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air on several occasions. It typically features Carlton Banks, one of the lead characters, lip-syncing to the lyrics and performing comedic choreography (which came to be known as "the Carlton dance").[32] Jones had guest-starred on the show on a few occasions, also performing and dancing alongside Carlton in the episodes. Jones later made a guest appearance in the third season episode "The Alma Matter" as Carlton's guardian angel, who performed the song with Carlton's actor Alfonso Ribeiro.[33]
References edit
- ^ "Spike Milligan". Gramophone: 34. June 1965. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
- ^ a b c d Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 89. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
- ^ a b "They can always go home to MAM". Life. 18 September 1970. p. 54. ISSN 0024-3019.
- ^ Browne, Ray Broadus; Browne, Pat (2001). The Guide to United States Popular Culture. Popular Press. pp. 448–. ISBN 978-0-87972-821-2.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 175. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ Colin Larkin (27 May 2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. pp. 488–. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
- ^ "Tom Jones - Ed Sullivan Show". Edsullivan.com. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
- ^ "The Independent - Led Zeppelin: Faltering first steps on the stairway to heaven". The Independent. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- ^ "Sessions". JimmyPage.com. Retrieved 29 September 2016.
- ^ "Scots percussionist paid fiver for playing drums on Beatles' debut single Love Me Do". Daily Record. London. 19 October 2012. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
- ^ a b Thompson 2008.
- ^ "BBC - Session musician tells of working with Tom Jones". BBC News. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
- ^ Slade, Chris. "Drummer". AC/DC Drummer Chris Slade - His Career. YouTube. Archived from the original on 14 December 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
- ^ 'Song of the Week #109 - "It's Not Unusual"' Classic Pop Icons. 4 June 2012
- ^ Australian Chart Book (1940-1969) pp95 by David Kent
- ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 24 May 1965.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|url=(help) - ^ a b "The Irish Charts – Search Results – It's Not Unusual". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
- ^ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 1 September 2018.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 308.
- ^ "Cash Box Top 100 6/12/65". Tropicalglen.com. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
- ^ "Top 20 Hit Singles of 1965". Retrieved 12 September 2018.
- ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1965/Top 100 Songs of 1965". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
- ^ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1965". Tropicalglen.com. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
- ^ "British single certifications – Tom Jones – It's Not Unusual". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
- ^ "Out of Sight (1966) - Soundtracks - IMDb". IMDb.
- ^ Mark Ribowsky (2010). The Supremes: A Saga of Motown Dreams, Success, and Betrayal. Da Capo Press. pp. 329–. ISBN 978-0-306-81873-8.
- ^ Mark Bego (15 July 2004). Cher: If You Believe. Taylor Trade Publishing. pp. 292–. ISBN 978-1-4616-2592-6.
- ^ Discogs - Sam Sorono – Sing Tom Jones' Greatest Hits
- ^ Clare Teal - It's Not Unusual on YouTube
- ^ The Carlton Dance, archived from the original on 14 December 2021, retrieved 14 March 2021
- ^ Carlton Banks and Tom Jones Scene (Fresh Prince of Bel Air), archived from the original on 14 December 2021, retrieved 14 March 2021
Bibliography edit
- Thompson, Gordon (2008). Please Please Me: Sixties British Pop, Inside Out. OUP USA. ISBN 978-0195333251.