"74–75" is a song by American band

the Connells ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

from their fifth studio album, ''

Ring Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

'' (1993). The acoustic ballad was released as the album's third single in 1993, but it did not chart in the United States. It would later become a European hit for the band in 1995, reaching the top 10 in a total of 11 European countries and peaking at 1 in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. It also charted in the top 20 of the United Kingdom. Since the Connells never had another hit, they are widely seen as a

one-hit wonder A one-hit wonder or viral hit is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music p ...

. In the song, singer Mike Connell nostalgically reflects on the passing of time and how people he used to know have changed now. The music video, directed by

Mark Pellington Mark Pellington (born March 17, 1962) is an American film director, writer, and producer. Life and career Pellington was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Bill Pellington, an All-Pro linebacker who played football with the Baltimore Colts ...

, features students from

Needham B. Broughton High School Needham B. Broughton High School, commonly known as Broughton High School, is one of thirty-two high schools in the Wake County Public School System. It is located at 723 St. Mary's Street, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Broughton w ...

's Class of 1975 and compares the photographs from their

yearbook A yearbook, also known as an annual, is a type of a book published annually. One use is to record, highlight, and commemorate the past year of a school. The term also refers to a book of statistics or facts published annually. A yearbook often ...

, with how they look and have aged since then.

Critical reception

James Masterton James Masterton (born 2 September 1973) is a music writer and columnist, his work focusing on the UK Singles Chart having been an online fixture on various sites since the 1990s. Masterton is also a producer for talkSPORT, and has worked on air ...

described "74–'75" as a "gently strummed song" in his weekly UK chart commentary in ''

Dotmusic ''Dotmusic'' was a music webzine that existed as a standalone website from 1 June 1995 to December 2003. Initially intended as the web complement to the UK music industry trade magazine ''Music Week'', the site was relaunched in December 1998 as a ...

''. A reviewer from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' rated it three out of five, adding, "Commercially

alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

with a capital C, this laid-back, rootsy, countrified single drifts through the ears pretty agreeably. Expect a positive response from nostalgic radio programmers." Rob Ross of Popdose called it "emotionally-charged and poignant." Michael Hamm of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' said the song was a "masterful piece of mass market soft-pop songwriting." American magazine ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

'' described it as "so sweet tborders on cloying".

Chart performance

"74–'75" became a hit in Europe in 1995, particularly in Sweden and Norway, where it topped the singles charts. In Belgium, Denmark, France, Iceland, and Switzerland, it reached the top five. In Germany, the song peaked at No. 7 and remained on the chart for 28 weeks. The single also reached the top 10 in Austria, Ireland, and the Netherlands. "74–'75" was the band's only top-20 hit in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at No. 14 in August 1995. In March 1996, the single re-appeared on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

at No. 21. The song ended 1995 as Europe's 23rd-best-performing song, climbing to No. 8 on the

Eurochart Hot 100 The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by '' Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately ...

. Following the songs's success, the Connells embarked on a European tour with

Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1976 in Sheffield. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drums, backing vocals), Phil Collen (guitar, backing vocals), a ...

Music video

The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for the song was directed by

. It was shot at

in the band's hometown

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the List of North Carolina county seats, seat of Wake County, North Carolina, Wake County in the United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most ...

in 1993, and features members of the Class of 1975, juxtaposing yearbook pictures with footage of the same people as they appeared in 1993. On November 14, 2015, to mark the 40th anniversary of the 1974–1975 class, a remixed video of the song was released, showing the class members as they looked 22 years after the original video was released.

Formats and track listings

7-inch single :A. "74–'75" – 4:36 :B. "New Boy" (live at the Purple Dragon Studio in Atlanta, GA) – 4:44 French CD single #"74–'75" (album version) – 4:36 #"Logan Street" – 3:39 European maxi-CD single #"74–'75" (album version) – 4:36 #"Logan Street" – 3:39 #"Fun & Games" (live at the Purple Dragon Studio in Atlanta, GA) – 3:07 #"New Boy" (live at the Purple Dragon Studio in Atlanta, GA) – 4:44 UK cassette single #"74–'75" – 4:36 #"New Boy" (live at the Purple Dragon Studio in Atlanta, GA) – 4:44

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the European maxi-CD single and the ''

'' album booklet. Studios *Recorded in March 1993 at Dreamland Studios (

Bearsville, New York Bearsville is a hamlet in Ulster County, New York, United States, in the town of Woodstock. It is located along New York State Route 212, within Catskill State Park The Catskill Park is in the Catskill Mountains in New York in the United Sta ...

) *Mixed in April 1993 at Carriage House Studios (

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2020 ...

) *Mastered at Sterling Sound (New York City) The Connells * Mike Connell – music, words, vocals, guitar *David Connell – bass * George Huntley – vocals, guitar,

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

*Doug MacMillan – vocals, guitar *Peele Wimberley – drums, percussion *Steve Potak – piano, organ, keyboards *The Connells – production Recording and production *

Lou Giordano Lou Giordano (born c. 1957) is a record producer and recording engineer who co-founded Radiobeat Studios. He worked at Fort Apache Studios when it was located in Boston, and was a partner in the production company Prodco, which had close ties with ...

– production, mixing *David Cook – engineering

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Influence

Fran Healy of Scottish band Travis has said that he wrote "

Writing to Reach You "Writing to Reach You" is the first single (music), single taken from Scottish rock band Travis (band), Travis's second studio album, ''The Man Who'' (1999). Background The song was written by Fran Healy (musician), Fran Healy, who admitted th ...

" while listening to "74–75" on the radio.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:74 - 75 Songs about nostalgia Songs about teenagers Songs about old age 1990s ballads 1993 singles 1993 songs 1995 singles The Connells songs Music videos directed by Mark Pellington Number-one singles in Norway Number-one singles in Sweden