My Love (Petula Clark Song)

My Love (Petula Clark Song)

"My Love" is a 1965 single release by Petula Clark which in early 1966 became an international hit, reaching #1 in the US: Clark's regular songwriter and producer Tony Hatch was responsible for "My Love" together with his partner Jackie Trent.

In November 1965 Tony Hatch, on a flight from London to Los Angeles, was putting the finishing touches on his composition "The Life and Soul of the Party" which he planned to record with Clark in Los Angeles to serve as her next single. In casual conversation with the American sitting next to him Hatch was advised that this song's title would be meaningless to the American public. Hatch then proceeded to write music for a song whose title - "My Love" - could not conceivably present any comprehension issue; these lyrics were completed when he arrived at his bungalow at the Beverley Hills Hotel when he called Jackie Trent at home, who through the night wrote the lyric after Hatch humming the tune to her. Tony Hatch then presented "My Love" to Petula Clark the following morning.

"My Love" was recorded at Western Studios and featured the backing of the Wrecking Crew.

Repeating the success of "Downtown", Clark's single "My Love" reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on 5 February 1966, making her the first British female to have two US #1 hits. Also a #1 hit in Canada, "My Love" returned Clark to the UK Top Ten for the first time since "Downtown" two years previous with a March 1966 peak of #4. "My Love" became a certified Gold record for US sales of one million units and in the UK the single earned a Silver disc for sales of 200,000 units.

"My Love" also provided Clark with a hit in Australia (#4), New Zealand (#6), Rhodesia (#1) and South Africa (#6) and reached #13 in both the Netherlands and the Dutch speaking region of Belgium. In Germany "My Love" became a hit first in its original English version (#13) and then again when rendered in German as "Verzeih' die dummen Tränen" (Forgive the foolish tears) (#21). Translated recordings by Clark also made "My Love" a hit in France and Italy, respectively as "Mon amour" (#12) and "L'amore e il vento" (Love is the wind) (#24).