ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

‘The Swiss Maid’: Del Shannon Hits With A Miss

In 1962, the singer-writer from Coopersville, Michigan could do very little wrong in the U.K., and proved it again with ‘The Swiss Maid.’

Published on

Del Shannon ‘The Swiss Maid' artwork - Courtesy: UMG
Del Shannon ‘The Swiss Maid' artwork - Courtesy: UMG

Del Shannon must have been having mixed emotions in the autumn of 1962. After his huge initial success with “Runaway” and “Hats Off To Larry,” he’d gone distinctly off the boil in the US, with four consecutive singles that failed to make the Top 20. One of them, “Cry Myself To Sleep,” barely made the Hot 100 at all. The major consolation was that in the U.K., the singer-writer from Coopersville, Michigan could do very little wrong.

Following that opening double-header, Del had made the British Top 10 again with both “So Long Baby” and “Hey! Little Girl.” Admittedly, his fans across the Atlantic weren’t too keen on “Cry Myself To Sleep” either, and it peaked at No.29 there. But his U.K. label, London, acted swiftly and released “The Swiss Maid” as his next single there within a matter of weeks.

The song was penned by the hugely gifted writer-performer Roger Miller, who had recorded it the year before under the title “Fair Swiss Maiden.” Shannon’s version swiftly ran its course in the U.S., with a mere No.64 peak.

Listen to uDiscover Music’s official Del Shannon Best Of playlist.

But Del had the major promotional benefit in the U.K. of starting his first tour there in September 1962, on an attractive double bill with Dion, and a supporting cast including Joe Brown, the Allisons, and others. In mid-October, “The Swiss Maid” started its climb up the British charts, albeit with a cautious No.42 entry.

It moved fast, climbing to No.19 and then spending an impressive nine weeks in the Top 10. In early December, it peaked at No.2 – blocked from the No.1 spot by Frank Ifield’s “Lovesick Blues” – and was the fifth of what would be seven Top 10 U.K. hits for Del inside two years. In another bonus for his international credentials, the single spent three weeks at No.1 in Australia.

Buy or stream “The Swiss Maid” on Runaway: The Very Best of Del Shannon.

1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Jeffrey

    October 14, 2017 at 6:20 pm

    Weirdly the same week Swiss Maid was released I heard it on a friend’s Transistor radio, which was about the size of a Swan Vesta matchbox , and it was in a street after many house moves now 3 mins from where I live now.
    It had a good production sound and we had a white winter that year I think Sherry was in the charts too, not in my glass.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Billy Idol - Rebel Yell LP
Rebel Yell (40th Expanded Edition) (Marbled Limited Edition) 2LP
ORDER NOW
Def Leppard - Pyromania 2LP
Def Leppard
Pyromania 2LP
ORDER NOW
The Who - Live At Shea Stadium 1982 3LP
The Who
Live At Shea Stadium 1982 3LP
ORDER NOW
Keane - Hopes And Fears 20th Limited Edition 2LP
Keane
Hopes And Fears 20th Limited Edition 2LP
ORDER NOW
Abba - Waterloo 50th Anniversary
Abba - Waterloo 50th Anniversary (Limited Edition 3 x 7" Box Set)
ORDER NOW
Bob Marley - Songs Of Freedom Limited Edition 6LP Box Set
Bob Marley - Songs Of Freedom Limited Edition 6LP Box Set
ORDER NOW
uDiscover Music - Back To Top
uDiscover Music - Back To Top