''Herman's Hermits'' (sometimes called ''Introducing Herman's Hermits'') is the debut album of the band

Herman's Hermits Herman's Hermits are an English beat, rock and pop group formed in 1964 in Manchester, originally called Herman and His Hermits and featuring lead singer Peter Noone. Produced by Mickie Most, the Hermits charted with number ones in the UK a ...

, first issued in 1965. As was typical of the time, the album's contents were different on the UK and US releases. UK albums tended not to include singles. The US edition of the album is sometimes called ''Introducing Herman's Hermits'' – a title used on the back cover and the record label but not on the front cover.

Background

The success of Herman's Hermits' first single "

I'm into Something Good "I'm into Something Good" is a song composed by Gerry Goffin (lyrics) and Carole King (music) and made famous by Herman's Hermits. The song was originally recorded (as "I'm into Somethin' Good") by Cookies member Earl-Jean on Colpix Records ...

" – a number one in the UK and no. 13 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

– led to the US release of their first album in February 1965. In April 1965, with both "

Can't You Hear My Heartbeat "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat" is a song written by John Carter and Ken Lewis, produced by Mickie Most, and performed by Herman's Hermits. It reached #2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1965. "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat" was kept from the #1 ...

" and the Hermits' cover of "

Silhouettes A silhouette ( , ) is the image of a person, animal, object or scene represented as a solid shape of a single colour, usually black, with its edges matching the outline of the subject. The interior of a silhouette is featureless, and the silhou ...

" simultaneously in the singles charts – both would appear on the band's second US album ''

Herman's Hermits on Tour ''Herman's Hermits on Tour'' (also called ''Their Second Album! Herman's Hermits on Tour'') is the second album released in the US and Canada by MGM Records for the band Herman's Hermits. It was released in 1965. The cover drawing was by Jim S ...

'' – MGM released "Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter". The single's no. 12 debut on the Hot 100 was the decade's third highest (behind

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

’ "

Hey Jude "Hey Jude" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in August 1968. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The single was the Beatles' first release o ...

" and "

Get Back "Get Back" is a song recorded by the British rock band the Beatles and Billy Preston, and written by Paul McCartney though credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. It was originally released as a single on 11 April 1969 and credited to ...

"), and it took just three weeks to reach number one. The album climbed to no. 2 on the ''Billboard'' album chart in the week in which the Hermits had three singles in the national Top 20. The LP then spent four consecutive weeks at no. 2, three of them overlapping with the three-week run of "Mrs. Brown" at number one on the singles chart. The album, which failed to get to number one because of the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

to the 1964 film ''

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film sta ...

'', remained on the chart for 40 weeks. The album was not released in the UK until September 1965. The UK version – which featured both "

Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter "Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter" is a popular song written by British actor, screenwriter and songwriter Trevor Peacock. It was originally sung by actor Tom Courtenay in ''The Lads'', a British TV play of 1963, and released as a singl ...

" and " I'm Henery VIII, I Am" (with spelling variation) – peaked at no. 16 and spent just two weeks on the chart.

Reception

In his retrospective review of the album's release,

Richie Unterberger Richie Unterberger (born January 19, 1962) is an American author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing. Life and writing Unterberger attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he wrote for the university newspaper '' ...

for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

gave the album a modest response by saying, "Since those are the first songs on the album, it's a letdown thereafter, since the oldies aren't very creative or (in comparison to the better British Invasion groups) forcefully performed, and the pop numbers sound like filler Merseybeat."

Album covers

There are three different covers for the US album. Original covers indicate "Including Their Hit Single 'I'm into Something Good'". When "Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter" was issued as a single, a yellow sticker was added to the cover, incorrectly reading "Featuring 'Mrs. Brown You Have a Lovely Daughter'". Once the latter became a no. 1 hit, the sticker was eliminated and the cover was changed to read, with correct title, "Including 'Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter".

Track listing

UK version

US version

Personnel

Herman's Hermits

Peter Noone Peter Blair Denis Bernard Noone (born 5 November 1947) is an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, pianist and actor. He was the lead singer "Herman" in the 1960s pop group Herman's Hermits. Early life Noone was born in Davyhulme, Lancashire, ...

–

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

* Derek Leckenby –

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

Keith Hopwood Keith Hopwood (born 26 October 1946) is an English pop and rock musician, singer-songwriter, composer, businessman and record producer, who served as the rhythm guitarist and backing vocals for the 1960s pop band, Herman's Hermits. Hopwood als ...

–

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

Karl Green Karl Anthony Green (born 31 July 1947) is an English songwriter, musician and bassist who was the bass guitarist and backing singer for the 1960s British band, Herman's Hermits. Biography Herman's Hermits consisted of Peter Noone (lead vocal ...

–

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

Barry Whitwam Herman's Hermits are an English beat, rock and pop group formed in 1964 in Manchester, originally called Herman and His Hermits and featuring lead singer Peter Noone. Produced by Mickie Most, the Hermits charted with number ones in the UK an ...

–

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a she ...

Technical

Mickie Most Michael Peter Hayes (20 June 1938 – 30 May 2003), known as Mickie Most, was an English record producer behind scores of hit singles for acts such as the Animals, Herman's Hermits, the Nashville Teens, Donovan, Lulu, Suzi Quatro, Hot Chocolate ...

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producer Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

Val Valentin Luis Pastor "Val" Valentin (January 6, 1920 – March 24, 1999) was an American recording engineer with six decades of work in the music industry. Much of his work was done for MGM Records and Verve Records. His large discography includes Jazz al ...

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engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

References

{{Authority control 1965 debut albums Herman's Hermits albums Albums produced by Mickie Most MGM Records albums EMI Columbia Records albums