The Shadows: Wonderful Land

I have had this tune in mind as a possible Sunday video for some time. The recent death of Jet Harris, the Shadows' original bass player, has prompted me to choose it this week.

Wonderful Land, which was composed by Jerry Lordan, stayed at number one for eight weeks in 1962, longer than any other single in the 1960s. But then, according to Wikipedia, The Shadows are the third most successful act, in terms of British chart singles, after Elvis Presley and Cliff Richard. (Jet Harris's wife, you may be surprised to learn, had an affair with Cliff Richard.)

What strikes you today is the innocent optimism of the tune, even if the wonderful land in question must surely be the USA. You can detect the same quality in other tunes of the early sixties - notably Telstar.