On a Carousel

"On a Carousel" is a song written by Allan Clarke, Graham Nash and Tony Hicks. It was released by the Hollies as a single in February 1967, having been recorded the previous month, on the Parlophone label in the UK and Imperial in the US. Nash would opine: "We knew it was a hit from the get-go." "^[3]

"On a Carousel"
US Picture Sleeve
Single by the Hollies
B-side	"All the World Is Love"
Released	10 February 1967
Recorded	11 and 13 January 1967
Studio	EMI, London[1]
Genre	Psychedelic pop[2]
Length	3:07
Label	Parlophone (UK) Imperial (US)
Songwriter(s)	Graham Nash, Allan Clarke, Tony Hicks
Producer(s)	Ron Richards
The Hollies singles chronology
"Stop Stop Stop" (1966) "On a Carousel" (1967) "Carrie Anne" (1967)

Original recording

Nash would recall that prior to "On a Carousel", "our biggest hits were Graham Gouldman songs ... Tony, Allan and I wanted desperately to write a monster A-side ... We thought we were good enough writers, we knew the combination, how to come up with a universal theme, the right kind of hook. So we went through a shitload of ideas until inspiration struck. I'm not sure which of the three of us came up with funfairs ... We [realized] a love affair was pretty much like going round and round and round on a carousel. And before we knew it the song just took shape. It was all there, the words, the tune, there was no stopping it. And Tony and Bobby [Elliott] wrapped it up in an exceptional arrangement."^[3]

"On a Carousel" was the Hollies first A-side on which Nash sang lead vocals; he sang the first verse alone, and shared lead vocals with Clarke for the remainder of the song. It was the Hollies' second-last single to be released in the US by Imperial before the band switched to the Epic label. The song was a hit in the UK, peaking at #4 on the single charts, and in Canada it made #7 in the RPM Magazine charts. It was also a hit in the United States, peaking at #11 on the Billboard chart.

Charts

Chart (1967)	Peak position
Australia (Go-Set)[4]	14
Finland (Soumen Virallinen)[5]	25
West Germany (GfK)[6]	8
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[7]	16
Norway (VG-lista)[8]	10
UK Singles (OCC)[9]	4
US Billboard Hot 100[10]	11

Other versions

• Mike Vickers, formerly a member of Manfred Mann, recorded the song for his 1968 debut album, I Wish I Were a Group Again.
• Progressive rock band Glass Moon covered the song in 1982 on their second studio album Growing in the Dark.^[11]
• American rock duo Shaw Blades recorded a version in 2007 for their covers album Influence.

References

1. The 30th Anniversary Collection (CD). The Hollies. EMI Records. 1993. D 202205.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
2. Stanley, Bob (13 September 2013). "Before and After the Gold Rush: Laurel Canyon". Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop. Faber & Faber. p. 406. ISBN 978-0-571-28198-5.
3. Nash, Graham (2013). Wild Tales: a rock & roll life. NYC: Crown Archetype. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-385-34754-9.
4. "Go-Set Australian Charts –26 April 1967". Pop Archives. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
5. Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. p. 132. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
6. "Offiziellecharts.de – Hollies, The – On a Carousel" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. To see peak chart position, click "TITEL VON Hollies, The"
7. "The Hollies – On a Carousel" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
8. "The Hollies – On a Carousel". VG-lista.
9. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
10. "The Hollies Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
11. "www.allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved February 7, 2023.