"Terry" is a song by

Kirsty MacColl Kirsty Anna MacColl (, ; 10 October 1959 – 18 December 2000) was a British singer and songwriter. The daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl, she recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop ...

, released as a single in October 1983, and charting at No. 82 in the UK the following month. It was her first release after returning to

Stiff Records Stiff Records is a British independent record label formed in London by Dave Robinson (music executive), Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera. Originally active from 1976 to 1986, the label was reactivated in 2007. Established at the outset of the p ...

, and was the last in a run of poorly selling singles released between "

There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" is a song by British singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl, which was released as the lead single from her debut studio album ''Desperate Character''. The song was written by MacColl and Philip ...

" and "

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". The music video featured an appearance from actor and comedian

Ade Edmondson Adrian Charles Edmondson (born 24 January 1957) is an English actor, comedian, musician, writer and television presenter. Part of the alternative comedy boom in the early 1980s, he and his comedy partner Rik Mayall starred in the television sit ...

, who played MacColl's rejected boyfriend who got her back after fighting off a rival man. The photo on the front sleeve features MacColl and Chris Heester. "Terry" was specifically written for

Tracey Ullman Tracey Ullman (born Trace Ullman; 30 December 1959) is a British-American actress, singer, dancer, screenwriter, producer, and director. Despite being frequently referred to as a comedian, Ullman considers herself a character actress. Critics h ...

to record; however, MacColl ended up doing her own version at the request of her label as part of an intended album of "teen ballads". Ullman's version of the song later charted one place higher in the UK, peaking at No. 81 in January 1985. Ullman's version uses the same backing track as MacColl's, merely erasing MacColl's lead vocal and substituting Ullman's. (MacColl co-produced both versions of "Terry".) Speaking of the song's titular character, MacColl told ''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand ...

'' in 1983: "Terry seems to be a really good name for a lovable rogue. He's similar to the

Marlon Brando Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Widely regarded as one of the greatest cinema actors of the 20th century,''Movies in American History: An Encyclopedia''

character in ''

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''. She thinks he's the greatest thing since Elvis."

Critical reception

Upon its release, Robin Smith of ''

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, "A superbly atmospheric voice on a pretty torrid tale of out of reach love. Kirsty never seems to get the airplay she deserves, but let's hope the partnership with Ms Ullman pricks up a few ears."

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, as guest reviewer for ''

'', commented, "She is the talented songwriter that wrote Tracey Ullman's last hit and so rightly deserves one in her own right." Sandy Robertson of ''

Sounds In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the br ...

'' noted that MacColl "re-emerges with typically off-the-wall-of-sound naive pop/love stuff" and concluded, "Fluff with potential in a

Mari Wilson Mari Macmillan Ramsay Wilson (born 29 September 1954, Neasden, London) is a British pop and jazz singer. She is best known for her 1982 UK top-10 hit single " Just What I Always Wanted". She had a further UK top-40 hit in 1983 with a cover of ...

world." Mark Cooper of '' Number One'' considered the song to be a "predictable rocker with a tongue in its head but no other distinguishing features". Frank Edmonds of the '' Bury Free Press'' gave the song a 5 out of 10 rating and wrote, "Appalling teenage drama which would be funny if the tune didn't stick in your throat so much. Gives you that funny feeling in the pit of your stomach." In a review of Ullman's version, Mike Gardiner of ''

'' commented that "there's something very used about this" and was critical of the reuse of MacColl's original backing track.

Kirsty MacColl version track listing

# "Terry" (K. MacColl / G. Povey) # "Quietly Alone" (K. MacColl) On the 12" release, an extended version of "Terry" is used.

Tracey Ullman version track listing

# "Terry" (K. MacColl / G. Povey) # " I Don't Want Our Loving to Die" (

Ken Howard Kenneth Joseph Howard Jr. (March 28, 1944 – March 23, 2016) was an American actor. He was known for his roles as Thomas Jefferson in ''1776'' (1972) and as high school basketball coach and former Chicago Bulls player Ken Reeves in the televisi ...

Alan Blaikley Alan Tudor Blaikley (23 March 1940 – 4 July 2022) was an English songwriter and composer, best known for writing a series of international hits in the 1960s and 1970s in collaboration with Ken Howard, including the UK number one hits " Have ...

)

Charts

Kirsty MacColl version

Tracey Ullman version

References

{{Authority control 1983 singles Kirsty MacColl songs Songs written by Kirsty MacColl 1983 songs Stiff Records singles