The Legend of Xanadu
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| "The Legend of Xanadu" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Cover of the single released in the Netherlands and Austria | ||||
| Single by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich | ||||
| from the album If No-One Sang | ||||
| B-side | "Please" | |||
| Released | 9 February 1968 | |||
| Recorded | 17 January 1968[1] | |||
| Studio | Philips, London | |||
| Genre | Psychedelic pop | |||
| Length | 3:35 | |||
| Label | Fontana (UK) Imperial (US) | |||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producer | Steve Rowland[2] | |||
| Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"The Legend of Xanadu" is a single by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich that reached number one in the UK Singles Chart in 1968[2] and was the group's biggest hit. It was written by songwriters Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley. As was the case with many of the group's recordings, it features novelty elements — a trumpet section and the distinctive sound of a whip cracking in the chorus. The musical accompaniment was directed by John Gregory. The single was certified gold in November 1968.[3]
The sound of the whip was actually the sound of two pieces of wood slapping together combined with Tich doing a Pick slide.[4]
Reviewing for Disc and Music Echo, Penny Valentine wrote: "Having taken us on a round tour of Israel, Russia and goodness knows where else the gentlemen are now thundering across the prairies with this sort of Marty Robbins/Elmer Bernstein piece, Alpert trumpets, whiplash and all!" She also described the song as "very spirited, a lot better than they've done for a long time".[5]
Charts
| Chart (1968) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Go-Set)[6] | 6 |
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] | 6 |
| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[8] | 6 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[9] | 6 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[10] | 10 |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM)[11] | 10 |
| Canada (CHUM)[12] | 7 |
| Denmark (Danmarks Radio)[13] | 4 |
| Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] | 20 |
| Germany (GfK)[15] | 5 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[16] | 1 |
| Israel (Galei Tzahal)[17] | 1 |
| Japan (Oricon Singles Chart)[18] | 11 |
| Japan International (Oricon)[19] | 1 |
| Malaysia (Radio Malaysia)[20] | 2 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[21] | 5 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[22] | 5 |
| New Zealand (Listener)[23] | 1 |
| Norway (VG-lista)[24] | 3 |
| Rhodesia (Lyons Maid)[25] | 1 |
| Singapore (Radio Singapore)[17] | 1 |
| South Africa (Springbok Radio)[26] | 7 |
| Spain (Promusicae)[27] | 20 |
| Sweden (Kvällstoppen)[28] | 4 |
| Sweden (Tio i Topp)[29] | 1 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[30] | 1 |
| US Bubbling Under the Hot 100 (Billboard)[31] | 123 |