"Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" is the second single from

Melanie Safka Melanie Anne Safka-Schekeryk (born February 3, 1947), professionally known as Melanie or Melanie Safka, is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for the 1971–72 global hit "Brand New Key", her cover of " Ruby Tuesday", her compositi ...

's 1970 album ''

Candles in the Rain ''Candles in the Rain'' is singer Melanie's third album. Released in 1970, the album produced Melanie's first Top Ten single in North America, "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)", which was inspired by the crowd's reaction to her performance at Woo ...

''. It was her breakthrough hit in the United States, climbing to number six on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number three on the Cash Box Top 100. The record was ranked number 23 on the ''Billboard'' Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1970. It was released in March 1970.

Background

The recording was a collaboration between Melanie and the

Edwin Hawkins Singers Edwin Reuben Hawkins (August 19, 1943 – January 15, 2018) was an American gospel musician, pianist, choir master, composer, and arranger. He was one of the originators of the urban contemporary gospel sound. He (as leader of the Edwin Hawkins S ...

, who had reached the national Top Ten the previous year with "

Oh Happy Day "Oh Happy Day" is a 1967 gospel music arrangement of the 1755 hymn by clergyman Philip Doddridge. Recorded by the Edwin Hawkins Singers, it became an international hit in 1969, reaching No. 4 on the US Singles Chart, No. 1 in France, Germany, an ...

". Melanie wrote the song after performing at

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...

in August 1969; the song's lyrics describe what she felt as she looked out at the sea of people in the audience.

Charts

Covers

Australian singer

Max Sharam Leanna Maree "Max" Sharam (born 1969) is an Australian interdisciplinary musician and singer-songwriter. In the mid-1990s, Sharam had three top 40 hit singles in Australia, "Coma", "Be Firm" and "Lay Down", from her top 10 album ''A ...

released the song as a single from her 1995 album, ''

A Million Year Girl ''A Million Year Girl'' is the debut studio album by Australian singer Max Sharam. The album was released on 15 May 1995 and peaked at number 9 on the ARIA chart and was certified gold. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1995 the album was nominated for ...

''. It reached No. 36 on the

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

in November 1995. Icelandic singer

Emilíana Torrini Emilíana Torrini (born 16 May 1977) is an Icelandic singer and songwriter. She is best known for her 2009 single "Jungle Drum", her 1999 album '' Love in the Time of Science'', and her performance of " Gollum's Song" for the 2002 film '' The Lo ...

recorded a version that reached No. 1 on the Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 in mid-1996.

References

{{Authority control 1970 singles 1970 songs Buddah Records singles Dutch Top 40 number-one singles Melanie (singer) songs Number-one singles in Iceland RPM Top Singles number-one singles Woodstock Festival

Background

Charts

Covers

See also

References