''Distant Light'' is a 1971 album released by

the Hollies The Hollies are an English rock and pop band formed in Manchester in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Singer Allan Clarke and ...

, their 11th UK album and their last before brief departure of lead vocalist and founding member Allan Clarke (who was absent on the following album and returned for their 1974 self-titled album), and reputedly the first album to come out of

AIR Studios Associated Independent Recording (AIR) is an independent recording company founded in London in 1965 by record producers George Martin, John Burgess (record producer), John Burgess, Ron Richards (producer), Ron Richards, and Peter Sullivan (rec ...

. The album spawned two hit singles: the Allan Clarke penned " Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress", which peaked at number two in the US and number 32 in the UK; and

Tony Hicks Anthony Christopher Hicks (born 16 December 1945) is an English guitarist and singer who has been a member of the British rock/pop band the Hollies since 1963, and as such was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. His main rol ...

penned "Long Dark Road", which reached number 26 in the US. The US version of the album peaked at number 21 in the album charts. The summer scene on the cover is rendered as a winter scene on the next Hollies album '' Romany''.

Overview and recording

The album was the band's biggest experiment to date. The use of saxophones, girl choruses, and more complex compositions in the style of

the Moody Blues The Moody Blues were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in May 1964. The band initially consisted of Graeme Edge (drums), Denny Laine (guitar/vocals), Mike Pinder (keyboards/vocals), Ray Thomas (multi-instrumentalist/vocals) and Clint W ...

("You Know The Score"), was very unusual for the Hollies. The lyrics were more serious, containing, for example, anti-war messages ("You Know The Score" or "Promised Land") or dramatic stories ("What A Life I've Led", "Hold On"). Only a few songs were in the traditional Hollies style and sound ("Long Dark Road", "A Little Thing Like Love", "To Do with Love"). The recording featured guest appearances by pianist

Gary Brooker Gary Brooker (29 May 1945 – 19 February 2022) was an English singer and pianist, and the founder and lead singer of the rock band Procol Harum. Early life Born in Hackney Hospital, East London, on 29 May 1945, Brooker grew up in Hackney ...

(

Procol Harum Procol Harum () were an English rock music, rock band formed in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, in 1967. Their best-known recording is the 1967 hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale", one of the few singles to have sold more than List of best-selling si ...

), guitarist

Mick Abrahams Michael Timothy Abrahams (born 7 April 1943) is an English guitarist, singer, and band leader, best known for being the original guitarist for Jethro Tull from 1967 to 1968 and the leader of Blodwyn Pig. Jethro Tull Abrahams was born in ...

( Jethro Tull) and saxophonist

Jim Jewell James Jewell (February 20, 1906 – August 5, 1975) was an American radio actor, producer and director at radio station WXYZ, Detroit, Michigan. Early life Jewell was born in Detroit, Michigan on February 20. 1906. His parents were William ...

. Vocals were sung by

Madeline Bell Madeline Bell (born July 23, 1942) is an American soul singer, who became famous as a performer in the UK during the 1960s and 1970s with pop group Blue Mink, having arrived from the United States in the gospel show '' Black Nativity'' in 1962 ...

Doris Troy Doris Troy (born Doris Elaine Higginsen; January 6, 1937 – February 16, 2004) was an American R&B singer and songwriter, known to her fans as "Mama Soul". Her biggest hit was " Just One Look", a top 10 hit in 1963. Life and career She was ...

and Liza Strike. The LP was released on 8 October 1971 in a

gatefold A gatefold cover or gatefold LP is a form of packaging for gramophone record, LP records that became popular in the mid-1960s. A gatefold cover, when folded, is the same size as a standard LP cover (i.e., a 12½-inch 2.7-centimetresquare). ...

sleeve with a painted woodland and summer scene by Colin Elgie of

Hipgnosis Hipgnosis were an English art design group, based in London, that specialised in creating album cover artwork for rock musicians and bands. Their commissions included work for Pink Floyd, Def Leppard, T. Rex, the Pretty Things, Black S ...

. The idea was conceived by

Storm Thorgerson Storm Elvin Thorgerson (28 February 1944 – 18 April 2013) was an English art director and music video director. He is best known for closely working with the group Pink Floyd through most of their career, and also created album or other art f ...

, famous for his work with

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...

. There were many hidden messages and a good deal of symbolism and, years later, the artist admitted that there were so many that he couldn't remember some of them. The inside cover art consisted of pictures of the band members taken at a house party at Tony Hicks' apartment.

Release and reception

The band performed the first three songs from the album ("What a Life I've Led" and "Look What We've Got" and "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress") live on the television show "Meet the Hollies" on July 25, 1971. Later, they performed "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress" and "A Little Thing Like Love" again on another TV show, " It's Lulu". The album was highly praised by critics,

Record Mirror ''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper published between 1954 and 1991, aimed at pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after ''New Musical Express'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK Album ...

wrote: ''"You could use the word sensational about The Hollies' new album."'' and it became the biggest success they've had in America (including records with

Graham Nash Graham William Nash (born 2 February 1942) is a British and American musician, singer and songwriter. He is known for his light tenor voice and for his contributions as a member of the Hollies and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Crosby, Stills ...

). However, in their native United Kingdom, the LP was only a modest success for the band. The album's biggest hit was the song "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress", composed by Allan Clarke and Roger Cook (whose co-writer

Roger Greenaway Roger John Reginald Greenaway (born 23 August 1938) is an English singer, songwriter and record producer, best known for his collaborations with Roger Cook and Tony Burrows. His compositions have included " You've Got Your Troubles" and the ...

was also credited by verbal agreement between the two songwriters). The single reached No. 2 in America, No. 1 in Canada and No. 32 in England. It was the Hollies' biggest American hit ever. The song "Long Dark Road" was also released as a single in America and reached No. 26 (and No. 24 in Canada).

Track listing

All tracks composed by

and

Kenny Lynch Kenneth Lynch, OBE (18 March 1938 – 18 December 2019) was an English singer, songwriter, entertainer, and actor. He appeared in many variety shows in the 1960s. At the time, he was among the few black singers in British pop music. He was app ...

; except where indicated Side one #"What a Life I've Led" – 3:58 #"Look What We've Got" – 4:07 #"Hold On" ( Allan Clarke) – 4:07 #"Pull Down the Blind" (

Terry Sylvester Terence “Terry” Sylvester (born 8 January 1947) is an English musician and songwriter. He is a former member of the Escorts, the Swinging Blue Jeans (1966–1969), and the Hollies. In the latter role, he took on the high parts formerly su ...

) – 3:30 #"To Do with Love" – 3:29 #"Promised Land" – 4:20 Side two #" Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress" (Allan Clarke, Roger Cook,

) – 3:19 #"You Know the Score" (Terry Sylvester, Allan Clarke) – 5:37 #"Cable Car" (Terry Sylvester) – 4:25 #"A Little Thing Like Love" (Allan Clarke, Tony Macaulay) – 3:19 #"Long Dark Road" – 4:16

Personnel

;The Hollies * Allan Clarke – lead vocals and backing vocals, lead guitar on "Long Cool Woman" *

– lead guitars and bass *

– rhythm guitars *

Bernie Calvert Bernard Bamford Calvert (born 16 September 1942) is an English former musician who played bass guitar with The Hollies from 1966 until 1981. Career He worked with several rock and roll groups during the early 1960s, most notably Rickie Shaw a ...

– bass *

Bobby Elliott Robert Hartley Elliott (born 8 December 1941) is an English rock drummer, best known for playing with the Hollies. He has been described as "one of the very finest drummers in all of pop/rock". Early life Elliott discovered jazz music when he ...

– drums with: * John Scott – arrangements, conductor *

– organ and piano on "Long Dark Road" *

– pedal-steel guitar on "What A Life I've Led" *

– saxophone *

and Liza Strike – backing vocals on "What A Life I've Led"

Chart positions

Album

References

{{Authority control 1971 albums The Hollies albums Parlophone albums Epic Records albums Albums with cover art by Hipgnosis Albums produced by Ron Richards (producer) Albums produced by Allan Clarke (singer) Albums produced by Tony Hicks Albums produced by Terry Sylvester Albums produced by Bernie Calvert Albums produced by Bobby Elliott Albums conducted by John Scott (composer) Albums arranged by John Scott (composer) Albums recorded at AIR Studios