What was the first British band to sell one million copies of an album?
When collating a list of some of the biggest-selling acts of all time, it’s easy to think of the British heavy hitters. Of course, The Beatles are up near the top. Oasis too. Led Zeppelin knows the grounds as well. When considering the first British band to launch themselves into a million copies, though, the Fab Four are actually sitting at number two.
Just a few months before the Beatles burst onto the scene with ‘She Loves You’, the first British band to sell a million copies actually came from Cliff Richard and the Shadows, who reached their first million copies with the song ‘The Young Ones’.
Although this was quite the feat for an up-and-coming British band, the sound of the song owes a lot more to Western music than what is traditionally expected out of Britain. Whereas most guitarists were channelling Chuck Berry whenever they picked up a guitar, Hank Marvin laid back with his Telecaster, making a vintage sound that wouldn’t be out of place on a Johnny Cash record.
As much as the instrumentation screams country music, the lyrics are a lot more rock and roll. While the Beatles may have been talking about how much they loved their female fanbase, Richard is talking to his flame about what exists beyond their little town. Filled with drama in his voice, Richard is thinking of ditching their nowhere town and finding someplace beyond the city limits.
Although the sound might be dated by traditional rock standards, the message behind the song rings true today. If anything, the subject of two young lovers ploughing ahead even though the world hates them is ripped straight out of heartland rock. If the lyrics were laid out in front of you, it would seem closer to a song by Bruce Springsteen or Tom Petty than one of the earliest rockers in the world.
The British Invasion wasn’t going to kick into high gear until a few years later, but Richard’s swagger led to a lot of hype surrounding the band, which even rubbed off on the Fab Four. When the early reviews came in for this exciting new group out of Liverpool, the first critique was that the lovable moptops were, “the best thing that the English music scene has seen since the Shadows”.
While the rest of the band didn’t stick around past the glory years of rock and roll, Richard carried on as a staple of rock and roll, rocketing to the top of the charts again with the immortal ‘Devil Woman’. Even if the Beatles didn’t nab the top spot, the rest of the British world was paying attention, including a young Noel Gallagher, who pinched the chord progression from ‘Woman’ for the Oasis song ‘The Turning’ off of Dig Out Your Soul.
Of course, the rest of the band has gotten their just due as well, with Marvin being lauded as one of the most accomplished guitarists of his generation. Being called a favourite by Mark Knopfler, who eventually collaborated with fellow British rock giants like Brian May and Roger Daltrey. The Beatles might get more recognition as the ultimate British band, but if we had gone by raw data, the British Invasion could have come a few months earlier.
