Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter
1965 single by Herman's Hermits
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"Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter" is a popular song written by British actor, screenwriter and songwriter Trevor Peacock.[1] It was originally sung by actor Tom Courtenay in The Lads, a 1963 television play which aired on the ITV Television Playhouse series.[2] Courtenay's version was released as a single on Decca.[3]
Herman's Hermits' version
| "Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Herman's Hermits | ||||
| from the album Herman's Hermits | ||||
| B-side | "I Gotta Dream On" | |||
| Released | April 1965 | |||
| Recorded | De Lane Lea Studios, London, 1 December 1964 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:45 | |||
| Label | MGM | |||
| Songwriter | Trevor Peacock | |||
| Producer | Mickie Most | |||
| Herman's Hermits singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The best-known version of the song is by Herman's Hermits, who took it to number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 in May 1965, and number one in Canada the month before. The group and their producer Mickie Most were initially hesitant to release the song as a single.[5] The group never released the track—or their other US 1965 number one, "I'm Henry VIII, I Am"—as a single in their native Britain.
The song appeared in the 1968 MGM film of the same name starring Herman's Hermits, and its corresponding soundtrack album.[6]
Background
Herman's Hermits' version of "Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter" was recorded as an afterthought in two takes and featured unique muted lead and rhythm guitar by Derek Leckenby and Keith Hopwood and heavily accented lead vocals by Peter Noone, with backing vocals from Karl Green and Keith Hopwood. Peter Noone discovered the song while attempting to record audio directly from the television with a tape recorder. Herman's Hermits quickly adopted the song for their live act. In a 1972 interview, Noone recounted, "'Mrs. Brown' worked especially well for non-rock 'n' roll gigs, like weddings and bar mitzvahs. Older people would hear it and uncover their ears and think, 'Oh, great, there's a song we can deal with.' We would change the name to the host's, like 'Mrs. Silverman, You've Got a Lovely Daughter.'"[7] The group recorded the track for their first US album, which was released by MGM Records in February 1965.[8] Noone stated, "We had eleven songs and we needed a twelfth. Mickie was one hundred percent against recording 'Mrs. Brown.' It was the only other song we could do."[9] Mickie Most later said the song was "probably the worst record ever made, or at least the worst one I've been associated with".[10]
Release and critical reception
When the song attracted attention from disc jockeys, the group's US label, MGM Records, approached Mickie Most with the intent of releasing it as a single, and offered to pay him for advance sales of 600,000 copies. Most agreed to the release if MGM could guarantee advance sales of one million copies.[5] The single debuted on the Hot 100 at number twelve—the third highest debut of the decade (after the Beatles' "Hey Jude" and "Get Back", which both debuted at number ten).[11] As "Mrs. Brown" was released in the US only a few weeks after their previous single, "Silhouettes", both songs ended up occupying the top 10 simultaneously, with "Silhouettes" peaking at number five.[12]
"Mrs. Brown" was certified Gold by the RIAA on 16 June 1965,[13] and eventually sold three million copies worldwide.[5]
In the UK, the song first appeared on the EP of the same title in June,[14] and was also issued on the group's first album for Columbia.[15]
William Ruhlmann of AllMusic described the song as "an interesting twist on the usual romantic themes of pop songs."[1] In a retrospective review, Tom Breihan of Stereogum rated the song 3/10 and described it as "an amiable and ambling little nothing", adding "In some small way, it's amazing that a song this flat and unassuming could've hit the way it did."[16]
Chart performance
| Chart (1965) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[17] | 1 |
| Canada R.P.M. Play Sheet[18] | 1 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[19] | 1 |
| US Cashbox Top 100[20] | 1 |
Other versions
Alvin and the Chipmunks covered the song for their 1965 album Chipmunks à Go-Go.[21] Nellie McKay recorded the song for her 2015 album My Weekly Reader.[22]
Several answer songs to "Mrs. Brown" were released in the wake of the single's success, including Lynn & the Mersey Maids' "Mrs. Jones, Your Son Gives Up Too Easy" on RIC,[23] "Mrs. Schwartz, You've Got An Ugly Daughter" by Marty and the Monks on Associated Artists, and "A Frightful Situation" by Mrs. Brown's Lovely Daughter Carol on Challenge Records.[24]