"Halfway to Paradise" is a popular song written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin. In the United States, the song was originally recorded in 1961 by

Tony Orlando Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

where it peaked at No. 39 on the Hot 100. In Canada, the song reached No. 3 in the

CHUM Chart The CHUM Chart was a ranking of top 30 (and, until August 1968, the top 50) songs on Toronto, Ontario radio station CHUM AM, from 1957 to 1986, and was the longest-running Top 40 chart in the world produced by an individual radio station. On Janua ...

Billy Fury version

"Halfway to Paradise" was much more successful in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

when it was recorded by

Billy Fury Ronald Wycherley (17 April 1940 – 28 January 1983), better known as Billy Fury, was an English singer, musician, songwriter, and actor. An early star of rock and roll, he equalled the Beatles' record of 24 hits in the 1960s and spent 332 we ...

. Fury's version reached No.3 on the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

Charts in 1961 and stayed on the charts for 23 weeks, becoming the tenth best-selling single of 1961 in the UK in the process. "Halfway to Paradise" became known as Fury's theme tune and was one of his most popular singles. Fury's single was a big production for both Fury and

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

and involved a whole

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

, directed by

Ivor Raymonde Ivor Raymonde (born Ivor Pomerance; 22 October 1926 – 4 June 1990) was a British musician, songwriter, arranger and actor, best known for his distinctive rock-orchestral arrangements for Dusty Springfield and others in the 1960s. Life and care ...

. Its success made Fury known for his big

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

numbers, although he began in

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...

and was always thought of more as a rock musician. The song also marked the beginning of Fury's burst at the top of the charts that would only begin to slow down on the arrival of fellow

Liverpudlian Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

act,

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

Later versions

*In 1968,

Bobby Vinton Stanley Robert "Bobby" Vinton (born April 16, 1935) is a American former singer and occasional actor, who also hosted his own self-titled TV show in the late 1970s. As a teen idol, he became known as "The Polish Prince", as his music paid trib ...

revived "Halfway to Paradise" in a mellow, more romantic version. This recording went to #23 on the Hot 100, #8 on the

Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...

chart, and #17 in Canada. The song was included on the million-selling album "

I Love How You Love Me "I Love How You Love Me" is a song written by Barry Mann and Larry Kolber. It was a 1961 Top Five hit for the pop girl group The Paris Sisters, which inaugurated a string of elaborately produced classic hits by Phil Spector. Bobby Vinton had a Top ...

" in early 1969. It was released once again on the 1972 best-selling album Bobby Vinton's All-Time Greatest Hits". * Tina Charles recorded the song for her album ''Dance Little Lady'' (1976). *

Nick Lowe Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer. A noted figure in power pop and New wave music, new wave,Jesus of Cool ''Jesus of Cool'' is the solo debut album by British singer-songwriter Nick Lowe. Produced by Lowe, it was released in March 1978 by Radar Records in the UK. In the United States, the album was reconfigured by Columbia Records and retitled ''P ...

''. * Australian singer Jason Donovan recorded his version of the song for his album '' Let It Be Me'' (2008). *A reggae rendition of the song was also recorded in 1989 by

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

n reggae group the Unique Vision Band. *In 1988, Scottish dance club diva

Kelly Marie Kelly Marie (born Jacqueline McKinnon; 16 October 1957) is a Scottish singer, best known for the song " Feels Like I'm in Love", a No. 1 hit in the UK in 1980. Early career Born to Alex and Jeanette McKinnon, Kelly Marie began training for a p ...

recorded a floor packing club version of the song.

References

1961 songs 1961 singles 1977 singles Songs written by Carole King Songs with lyrics by Gerry Goffin Tony Orlando songs Bobby Vinton songs Tina Charles (singer) songs Nick Lowe songs Jason Donovan songs Decca Records singles Billy Fury songs Schlager songs Stiff Records singles Song recordings produced by Mike Smith (British record producer) {{1960s-pop-song-stub