"Darlin'" is a song written in 1970 by English sax player Oscar Stewart Blandamer. It was first released under the title "Darling" by the British

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

band

Poacher Poaching is the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights. Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set against the hunti ...

in 1978. It was later a chart hit for

Frankie Miller Francis John Miller (born 2 November 1949) is a Scottish rock singer-songwriter and actor. Miller wrote for and performed with many recording artists and is best known for his 1977 album ''Full House'', the singles "Be Good To Yourself", " D ...

and David Rogers. The track was subsequently recorded by numerous artists including

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer *Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...

Barbara Mandrell Barbara Ann Mandrell (born December 25, 1948) is an American retired country music singer and musician. She is also credited as an actress and author. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, she was considered among country's most successful mus ...

, Smokie and

Johnny Reid John Kirkland Reid (born August 21, 1973) is a Scottish-Canadian country music artist. Reid moved to Canada in July 1989 when he was 16 from Scotland United Kingdom. His father, a diesel mechanic, wanted to give Reid and his brother opportunitie ...

Background

British

band

formed in

Warrington Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...

, England, in 1977. They competed in the sixth series of ''

New Faces ''New Faces'' is a British television talent show that aired in the 1970s and 1980s. It has been hosted by Leslie Crowther, Derek Hobson and Marti Caine. It was produced for the ITV network by ATV, and later by Central. Original series: ...

'', a

British television Television broadcasts in the United Kingdom began in 1932, however, regular broadcasts would only begin four years later. Television began as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the first demonstration of a transm ...

talent show A talent show or talent contest is an event in which participants perform the arts of singing, dancing, lip-syncing, acting, martial arts, playing an instrument, poetry, comedy or other activities to showcase skills. Many talent shows are p ...

. "Darling" was released as their debut single in 1978, produced by Barry Kingston and released through his label RK Records in the United Kingdom. Songwriter Oscar Stewart Blandamer wrote the track in 1970. Producer David Mackay picked up the song for Scottish singer-songwriter

, who recorded it for his album ''Falling in Love'' (1979).

Frankie Miller version

Miller recorded the song in 1978 and had an international hit with it. It reached number 1 on the

Norwegian Singles Chart VG-lista is the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from Norwegian and international artists. It is presented weekly in the newspaper '' VG''. The data is collected by Nielsen Soundscan International and based on the sale ...

, and 6 in the UK Singles Chart. It also reached the Top Ten (#8) in Australia in 1979.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

David Rogers version

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

version was recorded by the American singer David Rogers. Released on the Republic label, it was never included on an album. Rogers' recording was a relatively minor hit reaching #18 on the ''

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 advertis ...

'' country singles charts.

Charts

Other cover versions

Tom Jones

Johnny Reid

Other artists

released a cover version in 1979, which served as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

to her number one single "

Years A year is a unit of time based on how long it takes the Earth to orbit the Sun. In scientific use, the tropical year (approximately 365 solar days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 45 seconds) and the sidereal year (about 20 minutes longer) are more exa ...

." In 1979, Dutch singer Willem Duyn (formerly of

Mouth & MacNeal Mouth and MacNeal were a Dutch pop duo that enjoyed commercial success in the 1970s. Their recording of " How Do You Do" in 1972 topped the Dutch chart and became a US top ten hit and number 2 in Canada. They represented the Netherlands at the ...

) issued a Dutch version of the song, titled "Willem", about a fictional person with his name. In 1980 the song was one of two by

Bonnie Raitt Bonnie Lynn Raitt (; born November 8, 1949) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. In 1971, Raitt released her Bonnie Raitt (album), self-titled debut album. Following this, she released a series of critically acclaimed Americana (mu ...

included on the soundtrack of the film,

Urban Cowboy ''Urban Cowboy'' is a 1980 American romantic Western film directed by James Bridges. The plot concerns the love-hate relationship between Buford "Bud" Davis (John Travolta) and Sissy ( Debra Winger). The film's success was credited for spurri ...

. It was not released as a single, although her other contribution, Don't It Make Ya Wanna Dance ''was'' issued to Country radio. It failed to crack the Top 40 on the chart, peaking at #42.

Ronnie Spector Veronica Yvette Greenfield (, formerly Spector; August 10, 1943 – January 12, 2022) was an American singer who co-founded and fronted the girl group the Ronettes. She is sometimes referred to as the original "bad girl of rock and roll". ...

recorded the song on her 1980 album Siren, produced by

Genya Ravan Genya Ravan (born Genyusha Zelkowitz; April 19, 1940), also known as Goldie, is an American rock music, rock singer and music producer. She was lead singer of the Escorts, Goldie and the Gingerbreads, and Ten Wheel Drive. Early life Genyusha Zel ...

. In 1981 Welsh pop singer

released the song as a single from his

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...

album ''Darlin'''. Jones' rendition also reached the country music Top 20, peaking at #19 there in addition to reaching number 3 on the

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

.Whitburn, p. 216 The British band Smokie recorded a cover version in their 2000 covers album ''Uncovered''. In 2004 singer

Bonnie Tyler Gaynor Sullivan (née Hopkins; born 8 June 1951), known professionally as Bonnie Tyler, is a Welsh singer. Known for her distinctive husky voice, Tyler came to prominence with the release of her 1977 album '' The World Starts Tonight'' and its ...

released a version of the song on her album '' Simply Believe''. In 2007 Canadian singer

also released a version of the song on the album '' Kicking Stones''. His version peaked at number 57 on the

Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. It was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007 as the standard record chart in Canada; a new chart ...

References

{{authority control 1978 singles 1979 singles 1981 singles 2007 singles Tom Jones (singer) songs Johnny Reid songs David Rogers (singer) songs Open Road Recordings singles 1970 songs