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"Foot Tapper" is an instrumental by British guitar group
the Shadows The Shadows (originally known as the Drifters between 1958 and 1959) were an English instrumental rock group, who dominated the British popular music charts in the pre-Beatles era from the late 1950s to the early 1960s. They served as the bac ...
, released as a single in February 1963. It went to number one in the UK Singles Chart, and was the Shadows' last UK number-one hit (not including those where they performed as
Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is a British singer and actor. He has total sales of over 21.5 million singles in the United Kingdom and, as of 2012, was the third-top-selling artist in UK Singles Chart histo ...
's backing group).


Background and reception

Filmmaker
Jacques Tati Jacques Tati (; born Jacques Tatischeff, ; 9 October 1907 – 5 November 1982) was a French mime, filmmaker, actor and screenwriter. In an ''Entertainment Weekly'' poll of the Greatest Movie Directors, he was voted 46th (a list of the top 50 was ...
went to see the Shadows at the Olympia in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
in 1961 and asked them to write a song for his next film. So,
Hank Marvin Hank Brian Marvin (born Brian Robson Rankin, 28 October 1941) is an English multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and songwriter. He is known as the lead guitarist for the Shadows. Early life and career Marvin was born as Brian Robson Rankin at ...
and
Bruce Welch Bruce Cripps (born 2 November 1941), known professionally as Bruce Welch, is an English guitarist, songwriter, producer, singer and businessman best known as a founding member of the Shadows. Early life Bruce Welch was born in Bognor Regis in ...
wrote "Foot Tapper". However, Tati had funding difficulties and his next film, ''
Playtime ''Playtime'' (stylized as ''PlayTime'' and also written as ''Play Time'') is a 1967 Satire (film and television), satirical comedy film directed and co-written by Jacques Tati. Tati also stars in the film, reprising the role of Monsieur Hulot ...
'', did not appear until 1967. Instead, in 1963, the Shadows had a small role in the film ''
Summer Holiday Summer holiday may refer to: * Summer vacation The term summer vacation or summer break refers to a school break in the summer between school years and the break in the school academic year. Students are off anywhere between two weeks to thre ...
'' and its producer Peter Yates needed some music for the radio in the bus scene, so they offered up "Foot Tapper". It was released in February as a re-recorded double A-sided single with the pop standard " The Breeze and I" a week earlier than planned. Reviewed in '' New Record Mirror'', it was described as "a beautifully balanced bit of recording with a compelling theme. Hank, Licorice and Bruce are in precise, driving form – but the side showcases Brian's forceful but controlled drumming, notably on
cymbals A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sou ...
. Just try and stop your foot tapping. It'll fair hurtle into the charts – and is probably even better than " Dance On". Reviewing for '' Disc'',
Don Nicholl Donald Nicholl (August 9, 1925 – July 5, 1980) was an English screenwriter and producer who later worked in the United States. Early life Nicholl was born in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, Sunderland, England. He worked as a journalist, columnis ...
described "Foot Tapper" as a "light-hearted modern dancer which will pull in as many customers as the other side – maybe more". It is also known for being the signature tune and closing theme for the
BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...
programme '' Sounds of the 60s'', from when it started in 1983 until Brian Matthew left the show in 2017.


Track listing

7": Columbia / DB 4984 # "Foot Tapper" – 2:34 # " The Breeze and I" – 2:47


Personnel

*
Hank Marvin Hank Brian Marvin (born Brian Robson Rankin, 28 October 1941) is an English multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and songwriter. He is known as the lead guitarist for the Shadows. Early life and career Marvin was born as Brian Robson Rankin at ...
– electric lead guitar *
Bruce Welch Bruce Cripps (born 2 November 1941), known professionally as Bruce Welch, is an English guitarist, songwriter, producer, singer and businessman best known as a founding member of the Shadows. Early life Bruce Welch was born in Bognor Regis in ...
– acoustic rhythm guitar * Brian "Licorice" Locking – electric bass guitar *
Brian Bennett Brian Laurence Bennett (born 9 February 1940) is an English drummer, pianist, composer and producer of popular music. He is best known as the drummer of the UK rock and roll group the Shadows. He is the father of musician and Shadows band memb ...
– drums, sistrum


Charts


References

{{authority control 1963 singles UK singles chart number-one singles Songs from musicals The Shadows songs Songs written by Bruce Welch 1960s instrumentals Songs written by Hank Marvin 1963 songs Columbia Graphophone Company singles Song recordings produced by Norrie Paramor Rock instrumentals