The United Kingdom won the Eurovision Song Contest a few times, but the best known song is probably Brotherhood of Man's 'Save your kisses for me', which provided the country's victory in 1975. The UK pressing of the single can be found in thrift shops all over Europe, but this Japanese single is pretty rare.
In an interview the band explained: 'We wanted something cheerful, it had to be catchy, and thematically, of course, it had to be something everyone could identify with.Lee came up with the melody quite quickly, but what should the lyrics be about?We could sing about animals; everyone loves animals, right?But then we decided to make it about a child, and that decision was probably the right one.’
Songwriter and producer Tony Hiller formed the group Brotherhood of man in 1969. The early lineup consisted of John Goodison, Tony Burrows, Roger Greenaway, Sue Glover and Sunny Leslie. After a few years they were replaced by Martin Lee, Lee Sheriden, Sandra Stevens and Nicky Stevens. This lineup was the one that participated in the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest in an effort to make a big impact in UK as well as in Europe.
'Save your kisses for me' was a number 1 hit in the UK two weeks before the Contest final. During the Contest final it was awarded the maximum twelve points by seven countries, totalling 164 points compared to the second-placed French entry with 147 points. After their Eurovision win, the song became the biggest selling single for a winning entry in the history of the Contest. It reached number 1 in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Ireland and Norway and eventually sold more than five million copies.
My collection: 7" single no. 3569
Found: La la land, Den Haag, January 31, 2009
Cost: 1,5 euro
Tracks: 'Save your kisses for me' / 'Let's love together'
