Having a Wild Weekend (Dave Clark Five album)

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Having a Wild Weekend
Studio album by
Released28 June 1965[1]
GenrePop rock, beat, rock and roll
Length29:34
LabelEpic
LN 24162 / BN 26162
ProducerDave Clark
The Dave Clark Five US chronology
Weekend in London
(1965)
Having a Wild Weekend
(1965)
I Like It Like That
(1965)
Singles from Try Too Hard
  1. "Catch Us If You Can" / "On the Move"
    Released: 5 August 1965[1]

Having a Wild Weekend is the sixth American album by the British band the Dave Clark Five. It was presented as the soundtrack to the film of the same name, released in the UK as Catch Us If You Can. The album reached the Top 20 on the Billboard and contains the worldwide hit single "Catch Us If You Can".[2]

Overview[edit]

The film Having a Wild Weekend was the directorial debut of John Boorman and combined social drama with light-hearted fun in the vein of the Beatles' A Hard Day's Night. Although the album (as well as the UK version) was presented as the soundtrack to the film, only the four songs that actually appeared in the film are included here ("Having a Wild Weekend", "Catch Us If You Can", "Sweet Memories" and "On The Move"). The other songs from the film were already released on the band's previous albums.[3]

Release[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]

The album was produced by Dave Clark and all songs were written by the band members.[5] It was released on 28 June 1965 on the Epic Records label in both mono (LN 24162) and electronic stereo versions (BN 26162).[1] With different artwork but the same title, it was also released in Canada. The sleeve note was written by Myles Eiten of Ingenue magazine. The album cover art featured the band in a scene from the film with actress Barbara Ferris. On the back of the cover was the band captured in costumes of famous people (again from the movie scene). Dave Clark as Groucho Marx, Mike Smith as Jean Harlow, Rick Huxley as Stan Laurel, Denis Payton as Sabu (only Lenny Davidson is dressed as an anonymous "bathing belle").

The album was a huge success upon release, returning the group to the Billboard Top 20 (No. 15) and Cashbox (No. 11). The album's pilot single was the song "Catch Us If You Can", which became a worldwide hit.

Reception[edit]

Billboard magazine wrote in the official review, "The rocker New Kind of Love and the swinging Catch Us If You Can have the earmarks of singles hits. Sweet Memories is a beautiful ballad performed instrumentally. A fast chart climber."[6]

Track listing[edit]

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Having a Wild Weekend"Dave Clark, Mike Smith1:52
2."New Kind Of Love"Dave Clark, Mike Smith2:26
3."Dum-Dee-Dee-Dum"Dave Clark, Denis Payton1:50
4."I Said I Was Sorry"Dave Clark, Lenny Davidson3:01
5."No Stopping"Dave Clark, Lenny Davidson2:04
6."Don't Be Taken In"Dave Clark, Lenny Davidson2:24
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Catch Us If You Can"Dave Clark, Lenny Davidson1:56
2."When I'm Alone"Dave Clark, Mike Smith2:30
3."If You Come Back"Dave Clark, Lenny Davidson2:51
4."Sweet Memories"Dave Clark, Lenny Davidson2:42
5."Don't You Realize"Dave Clark, Mike Smith3:36
6."On The Move"Dave Clark, Denis Payton2:22

Songs in the film[edit]

The British soundtrack was called "Catch Us If You Can", but contained mostly different songs than the American album. Here is the actual list of songs used in the film and the albums on which the songs were released.[7]

Song in the film Original US album Original UK album
Catch Us if You Can Having a Wild Weekend Catch Us If You Can
Sweet Memories Having a Wild Weekend Catch Us If You Can
Time Glad All Over A Session with The Dave Clark Five
When Coast to Coast 5 By 5 (1964–69)
I Can't Stand It Coast to Coast Catch Us If You Can
On the Move Having a Wild Weekend Catch Us If You Can
Move On American Tour Non LP track, B-side single Catch Us If You Can
Ol' Sol American Tour unreleased
Having a Wild Weekend Having a Wild Weekend unreleased

Personnel[edit]

The Dave Clark Five

Additional musician

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c The History of The Dave Clark Five (liner notes pg. 30). Barnes, Ken. The Dave Clark Five. Hollywood Records. 1993. HR-61482-2.
  2. ^ "The Dave Clark Five". Billboard Database.
  3. ^ "Catch Us If You Can – Soundtracks". IMDb.
  4. ^ Unterberger, Richie. The Dave Clark Five – Having a Wild Weekend Review at AllMusic
  5. ^ "The Dave Clark Five – Having A Wild Weekend". Discogs.
  6. ^ "Album Reviews". Billboard. 1965-07-31. p. 56.
  7. ^ "The Dave Clark Five – Discography". Discogs.
  8. ^ Unterberger, Richie. "The Dave Clark Five PBS Special…And Beyond". www.richieunterberger.com. Retrieved 2023-03-12.