''Good Things Happening'' is the first album released by the new lineup of pop group

Brotherhood of Man Brotherhood of Man are a British pop group who achieved success in the 1970s. They won the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest with " Save Your Kisses for Me". Created in 1969 by songwriter and record producer Tony Hiller, Brotherhood of Man was initi ...

. This lineup consisted of

Martin Lee Martin Lee Chu-ming, SC, JP (; born 8 June 1938) is a Hong Kong politician and barrister. He is the founding chairman of the United Democrats of Hong Kong and its successor, the Democratic Party, Hong Kong's flagship pro-democracy party. He ...

Lee Sheriden Lee Sheriden (born Roger Pritchard; 11 April 1944 in Horfield, Bristol) is an English singer/songwriter and musical director, best known as a member of pop group Brotherhood of Man. Early career As a child, Roger Pritchard learned the piano and ...

Nicky Stevens Nicky Stevens (born Helen Maria Thomas in Carmarthen, Wales, 3 December 1949) is a singer, famous as a member of pop group Brotherhood of Man. She is the only Welsh person to have won the Eurovision Song Contest. Early career Nicky Stevens be ...

and

Sandra Stevens Sandra Stevens (born 23 November 1944, Leeds, Yorkshire) is an English singer and member of pop group Brotherhood of Man. Early career Sandra Stevens first entered into a singing career in the 1960s when she joined the club band, The Track (w ...

and was to be the main lineup of the group's history and would hold for the next ten albums. It contains their first europeen hit "Lady" which was a hit in Belgium and the Netherlands.

Background

This album was released in September 1974 on the

Dawn Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's hori ...

label. It featured the singles "When Love Catches Up on You", "Lady", "Lady Lady Lady Lay" and "Spring of 1912". None of these found success in the UK, although the single "Lady" was a hit in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. During recording sessions for the album in August 1974, member Lee Sheriden came up with a song called "

Save Your Kisses for Me "Save Your Kisses for Me" was the winning song of the Eurovision Song Contest 1976, performed for the by Brotherhood of Man in The Hague, Netherlands. The lyrics and music were written by Tony Hiller, Lee Sheriden, and Martin Lee, the latter two ...

". The others disliked the title and reworked it into "Oceans of Love". Dissatisfied with the changes, Sheriden shelved the song and it was ultimately left off the album. The song was later reused the following year. The album was produced by the group's manager,

Tony Hiller Anthony Toby Hiller (30 July 1927 – 26 August 2018) was an English songwriter and record producer. He was best known for writing and/or producing hits for Brotherhood of Man, including " United We Stand" (1970) and "Save Your Kisses for Me" (19 ...

. The songs on the album were of a more diverse nature to the pure pop the group would later become famous for, with themes including a song about prostitution ("Lady"), open air sex ("Movin' With Susan") and a real-life tragedy ("Spring of 1912"). Many tracks featured a soul-based sound, although pure pop was present on songs such as "Do-Be-Do" and "Have You Been a Good Boy". Other notable tracks included a cover of

The Hollies The Hollies are a British pop rock band, formed in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Allan Clarke and Graham Nash founded the band ...

' "

He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" is a ballad written by Bobby Scott and Bob Russell. Originally recorded by Kelly Gordon in 1969, the song became a worldwide hit for the Hollies later that year and also a hit for Neil Diamond in 1970. It h ...

", which showcased the group's harmonies and was a song they'd performed in their live shows. Member

has said that this is her favourite recording with the group. They also performed this song before the Queen at a televised charity show in 1976. A reissue of ''Good Things Happening'' was released on Compact disc for the first time in May 2009.

Track listing

Side One # "Join the Party" (Hiller / Sheriden / Lee) (2.52) # "Welcome Sunday Morning" (Hiller / Sheriden) (3.22) # "Lady Lady Lady Lay" (Hiller / Groscolas / Jourdan) (2.54) # "When Love Catches Up on You" (Hiller / Sheriden) (2.55) # "Spring of 1912" (Hiller / Sheriden / Lee) (2.55) # "Lady" (Hiller / Sheriden / Lee) (3.25) Side Two # "Movin' with Susan" (Hiller / Sheriden / Lee) (2.30) # "Every Day of My Life" (Hiller / Sheriden / Lee) (3.15) # "Do-Be-Do" (Hiller / Sheriden / Lee) (2.43) # "Good Things Happening" (Hiller / Sheriden / Lee / Poole) (3.35) # "Have You Been a Good Boy" (Hiller / Sheriden / Lee) (3.01) # "

" (Russell Scott) (4.22) CD bonus tracks #"How Can You Love" (3.09) #"Love's Bound to Get Ya" (3.18)

Personnel

– lead vocals on "Lady Lady Lady Lay", "Lady", "Do-Be-Do". Joint lead vocals on "Good Things Happening" *

– lead vocals on "Join the Party", "Welcome Sunday Morning", "Movin' with Susan" *

– lead vocals on "When Love Catches Up on You". Joint lead vocals on "Good Things Happening", "Have You Been a Good Boy" *

– lead vocals on "Every Day of My Life". Joint lead vocals on "Have You Been a Good Boy". *

– producer * Colin Frechter – arranger

References

{{Authority control 1974 debut albums Brotherhood of Man albums Albums produced by Tony Hiller Dawn Records albums