"If I Only Had Time" is a song recorded by the New Zealand singer

John Rowles Sir John Edward Rowles (born 26 March 1947) is a New Zealand singer. He was most popular in the late 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s, and he is best known in New Zealand for his song from 1970, "Cheryl Moana Marie", which he wrote about his younge ...

in 1968 that became a worldwide hit single. It is based on a French song "Je n'aurai pas le temps" by

Michel Fugain Michel Fugain (; born 12 May 1942) is a French singer and composer. He was born in Grenoble, Isère. He started composing after quitting medical school, and became a solo artist releasing his first album, ''Je n'aurai pas le temps'', in 1967. T ...

. Rowles' song was his first release in the UK where it reached number 3 in the chart.

Background

"If I Only Had Time" is an English version of "Je n'aurai pas le temps", a French ballad written by

and Pierre Delanoë, and recorded by Fugain. Fugain's recording was released as a single and charted in 1967. Manager Peter Gormley signed the New Zealander John Rowles to MCA in London, and for his first record release in the UK,

Mike Leander Michael George Farr (30 June 1941 – 18 April 1996), known professionally as Mike Leander, was a British arranger, songwriter and record producer. He worked variously with The Beatles, David McWilliams ("Days of Pearly Spencer"), Gary Gli ...

was chosen to produce and arrange the song. New lyrics in English were written by Jack Fishman. It was released in the UK on 17 February 1968. Rowles' song peaked number 3 in the UK, number 2 in New Zealand, Belgium and the Netherlands, number 15 in Germany, and number 17 in Austria. It also performed well in the Australian cities, registering at number 5 in Sydney, number 14 in Melbourne, number 3 in Brisbane, number 6 in Adelaide and number 7 in Perth. The song was re-released in 1988 on the Old Gold label. It was backed with "

Hush Not A Word To Mary "Hush ... Not a Word to Mary" was the second UK hit for New Zealand singer John Rowles. It was the follow-up release to his major hit "If I Only Had Time". Background The song was written by Mitch Murray and Peter Callander. Mike Leander was the ...

Charts

Other versions

Jean-Claude Pascal Jean-Claude Villeminot (24 October 1927 – 5 May 1992), better known as Jean-Claude Pascal (), was a French comedian, actor, singer and writer. Early life He was born in Paris into a family of wealthy textile manufacturers. His mother, ...

recorded "Je n'aurai pas le temps" for his album ''Chansons d'hier et de toujours'' in 1967. * Nick DeCaro released an instrumental version of "If I Only Had Time" as a single in 1968, and it reached No. 95 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and 12 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 in 1969. It is included in his 1969 album ''Happy Heart''.

References

{{authority control John Rowles songs 1968 singles 1968 songs MCA Records singles Songs written by Pierre Delanoë Song recordings produced by Mike Leander