''Puppet on a String'' is

Sandie Shaw Sandra Ann Goodrich (born 26 February 1947), known by her stage name Sandie Shaw, is a retired English pop singer. One of the most successful British female singers of the 1960s, she had three UK number one singles with "(There's) Always Some ...

's third full-priced album, released on the Pye label in May 1967 on the back of her

Eurovision The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster submits an origina ...

success. The album contained two brand-new tracks alongside previously released material. It was issued on CD format for the first time in 2005 by

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

and contained several bonus tracks (see below).

Track listing and song information

Side One Side Two Side one of the ''Puppet on a String'' album begins with the title track, written by Bill Martin and

Phil Coulter Philip Coulter (born 19 February 1942) is an Irish musician, songwriter and record producer from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was awarded the Gold Badge from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors in October 2009. Coulter ha ...

. They admitted to having written the song deliberately in the style of oompah band music in an attempt to curry favour in

Continental Europe Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous mainland of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by som ...

; for some time thereafter, British Eurovision entries would seem to be written in the style of continental European MOR or Schlager rather than other British MOR which was more similar to American MOR. Shaw had originally performed the song as one of five prospective numbers to represent the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in the 1967

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

on The

Rolf Harris Rolf Harris (30 March 1930 – 10 May 2023) was an Australian musician, television personality, painter, and actor. He used a variety of instruments in his performances, notably the didgeridoo and the Stylophone, and is credited with the inventi ...

Show. She had never been taken with the idea of taking part in the contest but her discoverer,

Adam Faith Terence Nelhams Wright (23 June 1940 – 8 March 2003), known as Adam Faith, was an English singer, actor, and financial journalist. As a British rock and roll teen idol, he scored consecutive No. 1 hits on the UK singles chart with " What ...

had talked her into it, saying it would keep her manager Eve Taylor happy. Taylor was wanting to give Shaw a more

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...

appeal and felt that this was the right move - and also felt that it would get Shaw back in the public's good books as she had recently been involved in a divorce scandal. Of the five songs performed, "Puppet on a String" was Shaw's least favourite. In her own words "I hated it from the very first oompah to the final bang on the big bass drum. I was instinctively repelled by its sexist drivel and cuckoo-clock tune." She was disappointed when it was selected as the song she would use to represent the country. Shaw won the contest hands down, though it has always been felt that this was partly down to her existing popularity on the continent (she had recorded most of her hit singles in French, Italian, German and Spanish). As a result, "Puppet on a String" became her third Number One hit in the UK, (a record for a female at the time) and was a big worldwide smash (the biggest selling single of the year in Germany). An EP was later released in the UK entitled "Tell The Boys" containing the other four prospective

songs after fans expressed demands for them (though the title track had been used as the B-side to the "Puppet on a String" single). The second song on the ''Puppet on a String'' album was the ballad " Think Sometimes About Me," written by Chris Andrews who to date had written all of Shaw's singles with the exception of "

(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me" is a song written by American songwriting duo Burt Bacharach and Hal David. Originally recorded as a demo by Dionne Warwick in 1963, "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me" first charted ...

," " I Don't Need Anything" and "Puppet on a String". "Think Sometimes About Me" had been released as a single in late 1966 but had only made Number 32 on the UK Singles Chart, her lowest position since her breakthrough. Song number three on side one was a new

Andrews Andrews may refer to: Places Australia *Andrews, Queensland *Andrews, South Australia United States *Andrews, Florida (disambiguation), various places *Andrews, Indiana *Andrews, Nebraska *Andrews, North Carolina *Andrews, Oregon *Andrews, South ...

composition entitled "I Don't Think You Want Me Anymore," and was followed by two more of his previously released numbers - "Keep In Touch" and "Stop Before You Start," which had been B-sides to the singles "I Don't Need Anything" and the Top 20 "Nothing Comes Easy" respectively. "Keep In Touch" was released as a single in some territories, and reached Number 1 in Singapore in March 1967. Side one finished with "Hide All Emotion" (originally the B-side to "Think Sometimes About Me"), written by

Marty Wilde Marty Wilde, (born Reginald Leonard Smith; 15 April 1939) is an English singer and songwriter. He was among the first generation of British pop stars to emulate American rock and roll, scoring several 1950s and 1960s hit singles including " E ...

. The opening song on side two is entitled "Tell The Boys" and was one of the five songs performed on The

show as a prospective

representative. Shaw has since confessed that this was the song she most wanted to win. Written by

Peter Callander Peter Robin Callander (10 October 1939 – 25 February 2014) was an English songwriter and record producer. Active from the 1960s onwards, Callander wrote or co-wrote songs that have been performed by recording artists such as Cilla Black, Tom ...

and

Mitch Murray Mitch Murray (born Lionel Michael Stitcher; 30 January 1940) is an English songwriter, record producer and author. He has won two Ivor Novello Awards, including the Jimmy Kennedy Award. Murray has written, or co-written, songs that have produ ...

, it was also used as the B-side to "Puppet on a String." The rest of the album consists of Andrews-written songs, firstly "Don't You Count On It," the B-side to the 1965 Top 10 hit " Message Understood," and then a new song entitled "No Moon." Next comes "Long Walk Home" (previously used as the B-side to the 1966 single "Run"), and then a brand new recording of "I'd Be Far Better Off Without You," the original version of which had been an A-side for a short time in 1964 before being switched to B-side in favour of "

Girl Don't Come "Girl Don't Come" is a song, written by Chris Andrews that was a No. 3 UK hit in the UK Singles Chart for Sandie Shaw in 1964–65. Background The track was recorded at Pye Recording Studios in Marble Arch in a session whose personnel included ...

." The ''Puppet on a String'' album finishes with "Had A Dream Last Night," the only Andrews song performed on The

show as a prospective Eurovision number. Though she liked "Tell The Boys" best of the five, Shaw felt that musically this was the best song.

The Hives The Hives are a Swedish garage rock band formed in Fagersta in 1993. After gaining success in Sweden throughout the 1990s, they rose to worldwide prominence in the early 2000s during the garage rock revival. The band's line-upconsisting of H ...

sing a different version on '' The Black and White Album''. In 2006, "Puppet on a String" was used as a sample in the

Lily Allen Lily Rose Beatrice Allen (born 2 May 1985) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. List of awards and nominations received by Lily Allen, Her accolades include a Brit Award, alongside nominations for a Grammy Award and a Laurence Olivi ...

song " Alfie".

2005 bonus tracks

* " I Don't Need Anything" * "Don't You Know" * "I'll Cry Myself to Sleep" * "Ask Any Woman" * "Quel Po' Che Mi Da" * "Nothing Comes Easy" * "So This is Love" * "If Ever You Need Me" As previously mentioned the ''Puppet on a String'' album was re-issued in 2005 by

after Shaw licensed her recording catalogue to them. Several of her other original albums were also issued around this time and all contained bonus tracks, though in some cases this merely consisted of a couple of foreign-language versions of a couple of the songs. ''Puppet on a String'' however contained many original songs as bonus tracks, firstly "I Don't Need Anything," a 1967 single written by

Paul Vance Joseph Paul Florio (November 4, 1929 – May 30, 2022), known professionally as Paul Vance, was an American songwriter and record producer, primarily from the 1950s until the 1970s. His most successful song compositions, all written with Lee Po ...

and

Lee Pockriss Lee Julian Pockriss (January 20, 1924 – November 14, 2011) was an American songwriter who wrote popular songs and scores for films and Broadway shows, mainly during the 1960s and 1970s. Early life and career Born in Brooklyn and graduating ...

(her first not to be written by Andrews since her breakthrough single "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me" in 1964, and coincidentally her biggest flop since then (it only made Number 50 on the UK Singles Chart). Next on the re-issue comes "Don't You Know," an Andrews ballad, originally used back in 1964 as the B-side to the aforementioned breakthrough single. This is followed by the other two prospective Eurovision songs not found on the "main" album - "I'll Cry Myself To Sleep" written by Roger Webb and "Ask Any Woman" by

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morali ...

and Gerry Langley. The fifth bonus track is an Italian version of Andrews' "Don't Make Me Cry" (the B-side to the 1967 Top 20 single "You've Not Changed") entitled "Quel Po' Che Mi Da." Bonus track six is the hit single "Nothing Comes Easy," also written by Andrews which made Number 14 in 1966. Penultimate track is "So This Is Love," another exclusive song by Andrews that was recorded in late 1967 but remained unreleased until the '' Nothing Comes Easy'' box set was released in 2004. The new version of the album ends with another Andrews penned song, "If Ever You Need Me," originally the B-side to "How Can You Tell" in 1965.

References

External links

Sandie Shaw
{{Sandie Shaw Sandie Shaw albums 1967 compilation albums Pye Records compilation albums EMI Records compilation albums