• October 14, 1940
• Sir Cliff Richard was born Harry Rodger Webb at the King George Hospital, Victoria Street, Lucknow in what was then United Provinces of British India. His father was a manager for a catering contractor that serviced the Indian Railways.
• When Cliff Richard started out he was part of the variety circuit. He recalled to Mojo: "The first shows we did there would be fire-eaters and jugglers. It was very weird, but then the promoters could see that the audiences weren't coming to see the fire-eaters. So quickly, within a year, after my first tour, the promoter said, 'I'd like to take you on tour as the headliner.' I'd got one record, at the time, I only had 'Move It.'"
• "Move It" is recognized by many as the first genuine British rock 'n' roll record. John Lennon said "Before Cliff and Move It, there was nothing."
• It was "Move It" writer Ian Samwell who suggested that the former Harry Webb be surnamed Richard as a tribute to Little Richard. 1950s entrepreneur Harry Greatorex came up with the first name "Cliff" as it sounded like cliff face, which suggested "Rock."
• Cliff Richard became an active Christian in 1964 and since then his faith has become an important aspect of his life. He first spoke up about his faith at a Billy Graham campaign two years later.
• He passed his O-level in the Oxford GCE examination for religious instruction on January 17, 1967.
• He has had more than 130 records make the Top 20 of the UK singles chart, more than any other artist.
• Richard is the only singer to have had a #1 single in the UK in five consecutive decades: the 1950s through to the 1990s.
• He has achieved nine US Top 40 singles, including the million-selling "Devil Woman" and "We Don't Talk Anymore."
• Cliff Richard received his knighthood on October 25 1995, the first pop star to be honored.
• Richard led the Wimbledon Centre Court crowd in singing during a rain delay on July 3, 1996 when asked by Wimbledon officials to entertain the crowd. Past tennis stars Virginia Wade, Martina Navratilova, Hana Mandlíková, Pam Shriver, Liz Smylie, Gigi Fernández and Conchita Martínez were in the Royal Box and proceeded to join in as background singers.
  
  "I started with Summer Holiday as a bit of a joke," recalled Sir Cliff to the Daily Telegraph. "And the crowd saw the vulnerability of someone singing without any help. They were magnificent, right from the very first moment."
  
  "The reaction was absolutely stunning. Pam Shriver, who is a friend of mine, was getting a massage downstairs and she saw me singing on the television," he continued. She said to Martina Navratilova: 'This is our world, and he's helping us out. Let's go and help him.' So then a whole gang of women came up, and they were my backing singers."
• When Cliff Richard's Music… The Air That I Breathe bowed at #3 on the UK albums chart dated November 8, 2020, he became the first artist to score a Top 5 album in eight consecutive decades. His first appearance in the chart's top-tier was in April 1959 with Cliff by Cliff Richard and The Drifters, which peaked at #4.
• Cliff Richard has never married and admits that while he thought about it more in his youth, he later became comfortable with his bachelor lifestyle. He feels that marriage would demand total commitment, and his career has always been his primary focus.
• Despite being credited as the first true rock and roll star to emerge from the UK, Cliff Richard didn't initially see himself as a cultural game-changer. It wasn't until a journalist specializing in cultural shifts pointed out that "Move It" - his debut single - sounded more authentically American than anything Britain had produced before that Cliff fully embraced the idea.

Comments

More Songfacts:

I SwearAll-4-One

"I Swear" was a #1 country hit for John Michael Montgomery before All-4-One made it a #1 pop hit.

I Won't Back DownTom Petty

"I Won't Back Down" is a very personal song for Tom Petty. "I thought it wasn't that good because it was so naked," he said.

MargaritavilleJimmy Buffett

"Margaritaville" is a state of mind, but it's most associated with Key West, Florida, where Jimmy Buffett moved when he was 24.

Don't Let The Sun Go Down On MeElton John

Recording "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me," Elton John was frustrated and sang the line "don't discard me" with an exaggerated American accent, which is why is sounds strange.

Cult of PersonalityLiving Colour

"Cult of Personality" by Living Colour incorporates speeches by John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Street HassleLou Reed

Lou Reed's 11-minute "Street Hassle" features a spoken part by Bruce Springsteen.

Editor's Picks

Stephen Christian of AnberlinSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer/lyricist for Anberlin breaks down "Impossible" and covers some tracks from their 2012 album Vital.

Emilio Castillo from Tower of PowerSongwriter Interviews

Emilio talks about what it's like to write and perform with the Tower of Power horns, and why every struggling band should have a friend like Huey Lewis.

Art Alexakis of EverclearSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer of Everclear, Art is also their primary songwriter.

Graham Bonnet (Alcatrazz, Rainbow)Songwriter Interviews

Yngwie Malmsteen and Steve Vai were two of Graham's co-writers for some '80s rock classics.

They Might Be GiantsSongwriter Interviews

Who writes a song about a name they found in a phone book? That's just one of the everyday things these guys find to sing about. Anything in their field of vision or general scope of knowledge is fair game. If you cross paths with them, so are you.

Who's Johnny, And Why Does He Show Up In So Many SongsSong Writing

For songwriters, Johnny represents the American man. He has been angry, cool, magic, a rebel and, of course, marching home.