The Twelfth of Never
Encyclopedia
"The Twelfth of Never" is a popular song recorded by Johnny Mathis
and later by artists including Cliff Richard
and Donny Osmond
. The song's title comes from the popular expression "the 12th of Never," which is used as the date of a future occurrence that will never come to pass. In the case of the song, the 12th of Never is given as the date on which the singer will stop loving his beloved, thus indicating that he will always love her/him. The song draws a similar link between the cessation of love and a number of other events expected never to happen.
The song was written by Jerry Livingston
and Paul Francis Webster
, the tune (except for the bridge
) being adapted from "The Riddle Song
" (also known as "I Gave My Love a Cherry"), an old English
folk song. Johnny Mathis's original version reached number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100
in the USA
in 1957. A version by Cliff Richard
was released in 1964, making #8 in the UK
. Donny Osmond
's version, produced by Mike Curb
and Don Costa
, was his second number one single in the UK, spending a single week at the top in March 1973. In the U.S. it peaked at #8.
Other recordings include a version by Dame Gracie Fields
recorded as a single in 1960, Cher
for her 1966 album Cher
, Roger Miller
on the 1968 album A Tender Look at Love, Tammy Wynette
on the 1970 album The Ways to Love a Man
and Jeff Buckley
on Live at Sin-é (Legacy Edition)
. Olivia Newton-John
also covered the song on her 1989 album Warm and Tender
. Newton-John's version of the song and her album was produced by John Farrar
. In 2005, Dolly Parton
recorded the song as a duet with Keith Urban
on her album, Those Were the Days
. A rehearsal recording of the song by Elvis Presley also exists. It was officially released on Walk A Mile In My Shoes - The Essential 70's Masters. The English singer songwriter Sandy Denny
also recorded a version of the song for a TV theme, but the recording remains un-available commercially. The Fureys
did a cover version of the song in 1985 on their album At the End of the Day. Hank Marvin
did an instrumental of the song in 1995 on the album Hank Plays Cliff. Barry Manilow
covered the song for his 2010 release, The Greatest Love Songs of All Time.
.
The Twelfth of Never is also the title of a book by Louis Nowra
.
In his song "Europa and the Pirate Twins", Thomas Dolby
tells the tale of two childhood friends separated by war and circumstance. Before the war, while their fathers were away, the children experience the "Twelfth of Never" on the sand, walking down the beaches holding hands.
The Earth Wind & Fire song "Fantasy
" is often mistakenly referred to as "The Twelfth of Never", due to that phrase's prominence in the chorus.
The Twelfth of Never is a 1998 volume of poetry by Irish poet Ciaran Carson.
Twelfth of Never is a Massachusetts-based dark ethereal rock band which formed in 1997 and released two albums, titled Blowing Bubbles Through Broken Windows, and Things that Were.
Johnny Mathis
John Royce "Johnny" Mathis is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standards, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum status, and 73 making the Billboard charts...
and later by artists including Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
and Donny Osmond
Donny Osmond
Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond is an American singer, musician, actor, dancer, radio personality, and former teen idol. Osmond has also been a talk and game show host, record producer and author. In the mid 1960s, he and four of his elder brothers gained fame as the Osmond Brothers on the long...
. The song's title comes from the popular expression "the 12th of Never," which is used as the date of a future occurrence that will never come to pass. In the case of the song, the 12th of Never is given as the date on which the singer will stop loving his beloved, thus indicating that he will always love her/him. The song draws a similar link between the cessation of love and a number of other events expected never to happen.
The song was written by Jerry Livingston
Jerry Livingston
Jerry Livingston was an American songwriter, and dance orchestra pianist.-Biography:...
and Paul Francis Webster
Paul Francis Webster
Paul Francis Webster was an American lyricist who won three Academy Awards for Best Song and was nominated sixteen times for the award.-Biography:...
, the tune (except for the bridge
Bridge (music)
In music, especially western popular music, a bridge is a contrasting section which also prepares for the return of the original material section...
) being adapted from "The Riddle Song
The Riddle Song
"The Riddle Song," also known as "I Gave My Love a Cherry" is an English folk song, apparently a lullaby, which was carried by settlers to the American Appalachians. It descends from a 15th-century English song in which a maiden says she is advised to unite with her lover. It is related to Child...
" (also known as "I Gave My Love a Cherry"), an old English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
folk song. Johnny Mathis's original version reached number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
in the USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1957. A version by Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
was released in 1964, making #8 in the UK
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...
. Donny Osmond
Donny Osmond
Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond is an American singer, musician, actor, dancer, radio personality, and former teen idol. Osmond has also been a talk and game show host, record producer and author. In the mid 1960s, he and four of his elder brothers gained fame as the Osmond Brothers on the long...
's version, produced by Mike Curb
Mike Curb
Michael Curb is an American musician, record company executive, NASCAR and IRL race car owner. A Republican, he served as the 42nd Lieutenant Governor of California from 1979-1983 under Democratic Governor Edmund G. "Jerry" Brown, Jr...
and Don Costa
Don Costa
Don Costa was an American pop music arranger and record producer, best known for his work with Frank Sinatra.-Career:...
, was his second number one single in the UK, spending a single week at the top in March 1973. In the U.S. it peaked at #8.
Other recordings include a version by Dame Gracie Fields
Gracie Fields
Dame Gracie Fields, DBE , was an English-born, later Italian-based actress, singer and comedienne and star of both cinema and music hall.-Early life:...
recorded as a single in 1960, 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...
for her 1966 album Cher
Cher (1966 album)
Chér is the third studio album by American singer-actress Cher, released on October 1966 by Imperial. Cher collaborates again with Sonny Bono, with Harold Battiste and with Stan Ross. The album is by-and-large a covers album and contains only one song written by Bono...
, Roger Miller
Roger Miller
Roger Dean Miller was an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor, best known for his honky tonk-influenced novelty songs...
on the 1968 album A Tender Look at Love, Tammy Wynette
Tammy Wynette
Virginia Wynette Pugh, known professionally as Tammy Wynette , was an American country music singer-songwriter and one of the genre's best-known artists and biggest-selling female vocalists....
on the 1970 album The Ways to Love a Man
The Ways to Love a Man
"The Ways to Love a Man" is a 1969 single by Tammy Wynette, who co-wrote the song with Billy Sherrill and Glenn Sutton. "The Ways to Love a Man" was Wynette's sixth number one on the U.S. country singles chart. The single would spend two weeks at the top and a total of fifteen weeks on the...
and Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
on Live at Sin-é (Legacy Edition)
Live at Sin-é (Legacy Edition)
Live at Sin-é is a 2003 live double album by Jeff Buckley. It is the extended version of Buckley's 1993 EP Live at Sin-é, released by Columbia Records. Recorded over two afternoons at Sin-é, the Legacy Edition is a two-disc set , plus a ten-minute bonus DVD containing brief excerpts of Jeff...
. Olivia Newton-John
Olivia Newton-John
Olivia Newton-John AO, OBE is a singer and actress. She is a four-time Grammy award winner who has amassed five No. 1 and ten other Top Ten Billboard Hot 100 singles and two No. 1 Billboard 200 solo albums. Eleven of her singles and 14 of her albums have been certified gold by the RIAA...
also covered the song on her 1989 album Warm and Tender
Warm and Tender (Olivia Newton-John album)
Warm and Tender is an album of children's lullabies released by Olivia Newton-John in 1989.- Track listing :# "Jenny Rebecca" – 3:46# "Rocking" – 3:05# "Way You Look Tonight" – 2:59# "Lullaby My Lovely" – 1:16# "You'll Never Walk Alone" – 2:49...
. Newton-John's version of the song and her album was produced by John Farrar
John Farrar
John Farrar is a music producer, songwriter, music arranger, singer and guitarist who is best known for his work with Olivia Newton-John with whom he wrote and produced many hit songs....
. In 2005, Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
recorded the song as a duet with Keith Urban
Keith Urban
Keith Lionel Urban is a New Zealand-born Australian, country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban was born in New Zealand and began his career in Australia at an early age...
on her album, Those Were the Days
Those Were the Days (Dolly Parton album)
-Charts:The album sold 57,000 copies in its first week of release.-External links:* at dollyon-line.com...
. A rehearsal recording of the song by Elvis Presley also exists. It was officially released on Walk A Mile In My Shoes - The Essential 70's Masters. The English singer songwriter Sandy Denny
Sandy Denny
Sandy Denny , born Alexandra Elene Maclean Denny, was an English singer and songwriter, perhaps best known as the lead singer for the folk rock band Fairport Convention...
also recorded a version of the song for a TV theme, but the recording remains un-available commercially. The Fureys
The Fureys
The Fureys are an Irish male folk band of four brothers - Eddie, Finbar, Paul and George, from Ballyfermot, Dublin. They have also been credited as The Fureys and Davey Arthur.The group formed in 1978 and consisted initially of four brothers....
did a cover version of the song in 1985 on their album At the End of the Day. Hank Marvin
Hank Marvin
Hank Brian Marvin is an English guitarist, best known as the lead guitarist for The Shadows. The group, which primarily performed instrumentals, was formed as a backing band for vocalist Cliff Richard...
did an instrumental of the song in 1995 on the album Hank Plays Cliff. Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow
Barry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."...
covered the song for his 2010 release, The Greatest Love Songs of All Time.
Other uses
The song was also the title of a book about convicted murderer Betty BroderickBetty Broderick
Elisabeth Anne "Betty" Broderick is a former American socialite convicted of the November 5, 1989 murder of her former husband Dan Broderick and his second wife, Linda Kolkena...
.
The Twelfth of Never is also the title of a book by Louis Nowra
Louis Nowra
Louis Nowra is an Australian writer, playwright, screenwriter and librettist.He is best known as one of Australia's leading playwrights...
.
In his song "Europa and the Pirate Twins", Thomas Dolby
Thomas Dolby
Thomas Dolby is an English musician and producer. Best known for his 1982 hit "She Blinded Me with Science", and 1984 single "Hyperactive!", he has also worked extensively in production and as a session musician.-Early life:Dolby was born in London, England, contrary to information in early 1980s...
tells the tale of two childhood friends separated by war and circumstance. Before the war, while their fathers were away, the children experience the "Twelfth of Never" on the sand, walking down the beaches holding hands.
The Earth Wind & Fire song "Fantasy
Fantasy (Earth, Wind & Fire song)
"Fantasy" is a single by Earth, Wind & Fire from their album All 'N All, released as a single in 1978. The selection was written and composed by Maurice White, Verdine White, and Eddie del Barrio, and it reached #32 on the pop chart and #12 on the R&B singles chart in the United States, and #14 on...
" is often mistakenly referred to as "The Twelfth of Never", due to that phrase's prominence in the chorus.
The Twelfth of Never is a 1998 volume of poetry by Irish poet Ciaran Carson.
Twelfth of Never is a Massachusetts-based dark ethereal rock band which formed in 1997 and released two albums, titled Blowing Bubbles Through Broken Windows, and Things that Were.