Peter & Gordon
Encyclopedia
Peter and Gordon were a British Invasion
-era duo and formed by Peter Asher
and Gordon Waller
, who achieved fame in 1964 with "A World Without Love
", and had several subsequent hits in that era.
both were also child actors.They played brother and sister in an episode of "The Adventures of Robin Hood
", which was filmed in 1955. Jane Asher dated the Beatles
' Paul McCartney
, so Peter and Gordon recorded several songs that were solely written by McCartney but credited, as most compositions by either were at the time, to Lennon/McCartney
. Those hits included "A World Without Love
" (U.S. #1), "Nobody I Know
", "I Don't Want To See You Again
", and "Woman
". "Woman" is credited to "Bernard Webb"; McCartney used this pseudonym to see if he could have a hit song without his name attached to it. The song reached number 14 in the US and number 28 on the British charts. Peter and Gordon also recorded the John Lennon-penned Lennon/McCartney song, "If I Fell."
Other hits for the group included "I Go to Pieces
" (U.S. #7), which was written by Del Shannon
and given to the duo after the two acts toured together, and remakes of "True Love Ways
" by Buddy Holly
and "To Know Him Is To Love Him
", by the Teddy Bears
, retitled "To Know You Is To Love You." Peter and Gordon had their last hits in 1967, with "Lady Godiva" (US #6), "Knight In Rusty Armour" and "Sunday for Tea."
Asher became head of A&R
for Apple Records. He continued his career as a recording executive in California, where he managed and produced Linda Ronstadt
and James Taylor
throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Peter has also produced recordings for Cher
, 10,000 Maniacs
, and Diana Ross
. His daughter, Victoria Asher, is a member of the alternative group Cobra Starship
.
In August, 2005, Peter and Gordon reunited onstage for the first time in more than 30 years, as part of two tribute concerts for Mike Smith
of the Dave Clark Five in New York City. This was followed by more complete concerts at The Festival for Beatles Fans (formerly Beatlefest) conventions that began the following year. Paul McCartney heard about the reunion shows and sent a message to congratulate them for reuniting. In the spring of 2007 and 2008, Peter and Gordon were featured performers in the "Flower Power" concert series at Disney's EPCOT in Florida. Also in 2007, they performed as part of "Love-In: A Musical Celebration" (www.loveinthemusical.com), a tribute to the music of the 1960s, which was filmed at the Birch North Park Theatre in San Diego, California
, and released on DVD
in March, 2009.
The pair played numerous times at the "50 Winters Later" celebration, in February, 2009, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Buddy Holly
, Ritchie Valens
and the Big Bopper. This was held in Clear Lake, Iowa
, at the Surf Ballroom
.
They subsequently performed in Chicago, New Jersey and at the Festival for Beatles Fans convention in Las Vegas, July 1 and 2, 2009, where, according to a report by journalist Peter Palmiere for Beatlefan magazine, the pair were the performing highlight of the convention. Peter and Gordon told Palmiere at the Las Vegas Festival for Beatles Fans that they were to perform at the 2006 Adopt-A-Minefield show with Paul McCartney. However, the show was subsequently cancelled by McCartney, due to his impending divorce from Heather Mills. On August 21, 2008, they performed a free concert on the pier in Santa Monica, California
.
Waller died on July 17, 2009, at the age of 64.
.
British Invasion
The British Invasion is a term used to describe the large number of rock and roll, beat, rock, and pop performers from the United Kingdom who became popular in the United States during the time period from 1964 through 1966.- Background :...
-era duo and formed by Peter Asher
Peter Asher
Peter Asher is an English guitarist, singer, manager and record producer. He first came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of the vocal duo Peter and Gordon before going on to a successful career as a record producer.-Early life:He was born at the Central Middlesex Hospital, a child actor and...
and Gordon Waller
Gordon Waller
Gordon Trueman Riviere Waller was a Scottish singer–songwriter–guitarist, best known as "Gordon" of the 1960s duo Peter and Gordon, whose biggest hit was "A World Without Love".-Biography:...
, who achieved fame in 1964 with "A World Without Love
A World Without Love
"A World Without Love" is a song recorded by the English duo Peter and Gordon and released as their first single in February 1964, reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart in April. The song was written by Paul McCartney and attributed to Lennon–McCartney. The B-side was "If I Were You" written...
", and had several subsequent hits in that era.
History
Peter Asher and his sister, actress Jane AsherJane Asher
Jane Asher is an English actress. She has also developed a second career as a cake decorator and cake shop proprietor.-Early life:...
both were also child actors.They played brother and sister in an episode of "The Adventures of Robin Hood
The Adventures of Robin Hood (TV series)
The Adventures of Robin Hood is a popular British television series comprising 143 half-hour, black and white episodes. It starred Richard Greene as the outlaw Robin Hood and Alan Wheatley as his nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham. The show aired weekly between 1955 and 1959 on ITV in London in the...
", which was filmed in 1955. Jane Asher dated the Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
, so Peter and Gordon recorded several songs that were solely written by McCartney but credited, as most compositions by either were at the time, to Lennon/McCartney
Lennon/McCartney
The Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership is one of the best-known and most successful musical collaborations in history...
. Those hits included "A World Without Love
A World Without Love
"A World Without Love" is a song recorded by the English duo Peter and Gordon and released as their first single in February 1964, reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart in April. The song was written by Paul McCartney and attributed to Lennon–McCartney. The B-side was "If I Were You" written...
" (U.S. #1), "Nobody I Know
Nobody I Know
Nobody I Know is a song by Paul McCartney , recorded by Peter and Gordon in 1964....
", "I Don't Want To See You Again
I Don't Want to See You Again
I Don't Want To See You Again is a song by Paul McCartney credited to Lennon–McCartney, that was released by Peter and Gordon in 1964 as single....
", and "Woman
Woman (Paul McCartney song)
"Woman" is a 1966 single by Peter and Gordon, written by Paul McCartney under a pseudonym.-Authorship:Under the Lennon/McCartney moniker, McCartney had written three previous Peter and Gordon singles "Woman" is a 1966 single by Peter and Gordon, written by Paul McCartney under a...
". "Woman" is credited to "Bernard Webb"; McCartney used this pseudonym to see if he could have a hit song without his name attached to it. The song reached number 14 in the US and number 28 on the British charts. Peter and Gordon also recorded the John Lennon-penned Lennon/McCartney song, "If I Fell."
Other hits for the group included "I Go to Pieces
I Go to Pieces
"I Go to Pieces" is the title of a song written by Del Shannon which became a Top Ten hit for Peter and Gordon in 1965.-Background and writing:...
" (U.S. #7), which was written by Del Shannon
Del Shannon
Del Shannon was an American rock and roll singer-songwriter who had a No. 1 hit, "Runaway", in 1961.- Biography :...
and given to the duo after the two acts toured together, and remakes of "True Love Ways
True Love Ways
"True Love Ways" is a song co-written by Buddy Holly and Norman Petty and recorded with the Ray Ellis orchestra in October 1958, four months before the singer's death. It was first released on the posthumous "The Buddy Holly Story, Vol. 2"...
" by Buddy Holly
Buddy Holly
Charles Hardin Holley , known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll...
and "To Know Him Is To Love Him
To Know Him Is to Love Him
"To Know Him Is to Love Him" is a song written by Phil Spector, inspired by words on his father's tombstone. It was first recorded by his first vocal group, the only one of which he was a member, the Teddy Bears. Their recording went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1958...
", by the Teddy Bears
The Teddy Bears (band)
The Teddy Bears was Phil Spector's first vocal group, the only one of which he was a member.-History:Following graduation from Fairfax high school in Los Angeles, California, Phil Spector became obsessed with the song "To Know Him Is to Love Him" he had written for his group, The Teddy Bears...
, retitled "To Know You Is To Love You." Peter and Gordon had their last hits in 1967, with "Lady Godiva" (US #6), "Knight In Rusty Armour" and "Sunday for Tea."
Asher became head of A&R
A&R
Artists and repertoire is the division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists. It also acts as a liaison between artists and the record label.- Finding talent :...
for Apple Records. He continued his career as a recording executive in California, where he managed and produced Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
and James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Peter has also produced recordings for Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
, 10,000 Maniacs
10,000 Maniacs
10,000 Maniacs is a United States-based alternative rock band, which formed in 1981 and continues to be active with various line-ups.-1981–1993:...
, and Diana Ross
Diana Ross
Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
. His daughter, Victoria Asher, is a member of the alternative group Cobra Starship
Cobra Starship
Cobra Starship is an American synthpop band created by former Midtown bassist and lead vocalist Gabe Saporta in 2003 in New York City, New York...
.
In August, 2005, Peter and Gordon reunited onstage for the first time in more than 30 years, as part of two tribute concerts for Mike Smith
Mike Smith (Dave Clark Five)
Michael George Smith ,was an English singer, songwriter, and music producer.In the 1960s, Smith was the lead vocalist and keyboard player for The Dave Clark Five...
of the Dave Clark Five in New York City. This was followed by more complete concerts at The Festival for Beatles Fans (formerly Beatlefest) conventions that began the following year. Paul McCartney heard about the reunion shows and sent a message to congratulate them for reuniting. In the spring of 2007 and 2008, Peter and Gordon were featured performers in the "Flower Power" concert series at Disney's EPCOT in Florida. Also in 2007, they performed as part of "Love-In: A Musical Celebration" (www.loveinthemusical.com), a tribute to the music of the 1960s, which was filmed at the Birch North Park Theatre in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, and released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in March, 2009.
The pair played numerous times at the "50 Winters Later" celebration, in February, 2009, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Buddy Holly
Buddy Holly
Charles Hardin Holley , known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll...
, Ritchie Valens
Ritchie Valens
Ritchie Valens was a Mexican-American singer, songwriter and guitarist....
and the Big Bopper. This was held in Clear Lake, Iowa
Clear Lake, Iowa
Clear Lake is a city in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 8,161 at the 2000 census. The city is named for the large lake on which it is located. It is the home of a number of marinas, state parks and tourism-related businesses. Clear Lake is also a major stop on Interstate...
, at the Surf Ballroom
Surf Ballroom
The Surf Ballroom is a Historic Rock and Roll Landmark at 460 North Shore Drive, Clear Lake, Iowa. The Surf is closely associated with The Day the Music Died - early rock and roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson gave their last performances at the Surf on...
.
They subsequently performed in Chicago, New Jersey and at the Festival for Beatles Fans convention in Las Vegas, July 1 and 2, 2009, where, according to a report by journalist Peter Palmiere for Beatlefan magazine, the pair were the performing highlight of the convention. Peter and Gordon told Palmiere at the Las Vegas Festival for Beatles Fans that they were to perform at the 2006 Adopt-A-Minefield show with Paul McCartney. However, the show was subsequently cancelled by McCartney, due to his impending divorce from Heather Mills. On August 21, 2008, they performed a free concert on the pier in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica is a beachfront city in western Los Angeles County, California, US. Situated on Santa Monica Bay, it is surrounded on three sides by the city of Los Angeles — Pacific Palisades on the northwest, Brentwood on the north, West Los Angeles on the northeast, Mar Vista on the east, and...
.
Waller died on July 17, 2009, at the age of 64.
Million sellers
"World Without Love", "Nobody I Know", "True Love Ways", and "Lady Godiva" each sold over one million copies, and were awarded gold discsMusic recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
.
Singles
| A Side | B Side | United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Release date | Record number | Release date | Record number | ||
| “A World Without Love A World Without Love "A World Without Love" is a song recorded by the English duo Peter and Gordon and released as their first single in February 1964, reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart in April. The song was written by Paul McCartney and attributed to Lennon–McCartney. The B-side was "If I Were You" written... ” |
“If I Were You” | February 28, 1964 | Columbia Columbia Graphophone Company The Columbia Graphophone Company was one of the earliest gramophone companies in the United Kingdom. Under EMI, as Columbia Records, it became a very successful label in the 1950s and 1960s... DB7255 |
April 27, 1964 US | Capitol Capitol Records Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine... 5175 |
| “Nobody I Know Nobody I Know Nobody I Know is a song by Paul McCartney , recorded by Peter and Gordon in 1964.... ” |
“You Don't Have To Tell Me” | May 29, 1964 | Columbia DB7292 | June 15, 1964 | Capitol 5211 |
| “I Don't Want To See You Again I Don't Want to See You Again I Don't Want To See You Again is a song by Paul McCartney credited to Lennon–McCartney, that was released by Peter and Gordon in 1964 as single.... ” |
“I Would Buy You Presents” | September 9, 1964 | Columbia DB 7356 | September 21, 1964 | Capitol 5272 |
| “I Go to Pieces I Go to Pieces "I Go to Pieces" is the title of a song written by Del Shannon which became a Top Ten hit for Peter and Gordon in 1965.-Background and writing:... ” |
“Love Me Baby” | November 20, 1964 | Columbia DB 7407 | December 1964 | Capitol 5335 |
| “True Love Ways True Love Ways "True Love Ways" is a song co-written by Buddy Holly and Norman Petty and recorded with the Ray Ellis orchestra in October 1958, four months before the singer's death. It was first released on the posthumous "The Buddy Holly Story, Vol. 2"... ” |
“IF You Wish” | March 23, 1965 | Columbia DB 7524 | March 1965 | Capitol 5406 |
| “To Know You Is To Love You To Know Him Is to Love Him "To Know Him Is to Love Him" is a song written by Phil Spector, inspired by words on his father's tombstone. It was first recorded by his first vocal group, the only one of which he was a member, the Teddy Bears. Their recording went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1958... ” |
“I Told You So” | June 11, 1965 | Columbia DB 7617 | June 1965 | Capitol 5461 |
| “Baby I'm Yours” | “When The Black Of Your Eyes Turn To Grey” | October 15, 1965 | Columbia DB 7729 | — | — |
| “Don't Pity Me” | “Crying In The Rain” | — | — | October 1965 | Capitol 5532 |
| “Woman Woman (Paul McCartney song) "Woman" is a 1966 single by Peter and Gordon, written by Paul McCartney under a pseudonym.-Authorship:Under the Lennon/McCartney moniker, McCartney had written three previous Peter and Gordon singles "Woman" is a 1966 single by Peter and Gordon, written by Paul McCartney under a... ” |
“Wrong From The Start” | February 11, 1966 | Columbia DB 7834 | January 10, 1966 | Capitol 5579 |
| “To Show I Love You” | “Don't Pity Me” | June 1966 | Columbia DB 7951 | — | — |
| “Lady Godiva” | “Morning's Calling” | September 9, 1966 | Columbia DB 8003 | September 1966 US | Capitol 5740 |
| “The Knight In Rusty Armour” | “The Flower Lady” | November 1966 | Columbia DB 8075 | November 1966 | Capitol 5808 |
| “Sunday For Tea” | “Start Trying Someone Else” | February 1967 | Columbia DB 8159 | — | — |
| “The Jokers” | “Red, Cream And Velvet (Version One)” | May 1967 | Columbia DB 8198 | May 1967 | Capitol 5919 |
| “I Feel Like Going Out” | “The Quest For The Holy Grail” | April 1968 | Columbia DB 8398 | — | — |
| “You've Had Better Times” | “Sipping My Wine” | July 12, 1968 | Columbia DB 8451 | July 1968 | Capitol 2214 |
| “I Can Remember (Not Too Long Ago)” | “Hard Time, Rainy Day” | May 1969 | Columbia DB 8585 | May 1969 | Capitol 2544 |
Albums
- A World Without Love (1964)
- I Don't Want to See You Again (1964)
- I Go to Pieces (1965)
- True Love Ways (1965)
- Sing and Play Hits of Nashville (1966)
- Woman (1966)
- Best of (1966)
- Lady Godiva (1967)
- Knight in Rusty Armor (1967)
- In London for Tea (1967)
- Hot, Cold & Custard (1967)
Albums (Capitol-EMI, Canada)
- A World Without Love (S)T 2115
- I Don't Want To Be Around You Again (S)T 2230
- I Go To Pieces (S)T 2334
- True Love Ways (S)T 2368
- Sing and Play the Hits of Nashville (S)T 2430
- Woman (S)T 2477
- The Best Of Peter And Gordon (S)T 2549
- Lady Godiva (S)T 2664
- Knights In Rusty Armour (S)T 2729
- In London For Tea (S)T-2747 (1967)