There was a version I had in the late 70's as a 45 single that had voice overs of speeches and news reports, specifically parts of a Robert Kennedy speech, a news report after he was shot, and a portion of Ted Kennedy's eulogy at his funeral. Tom Clay version
"What the World Needs Now Is Love"
Single by Tom Clay
from the album What the World Needs Now Is Love
A-side "What the World Needs Now Is Love"
B-side "Abraham, Martin and John"
Released 1971
Format Vinyl record
Recorded Early 1971
Genre Pop
Spoken word
Label Motown Records
Mo-west MW5002F
Writer Hal David
Burt Bacharach
Producer Tom Clay
Tom Clay singles chronology
- "What the World Needs Is Love"
(1971) "Whatever Happened to Love"
(1971)
In addition to the DeShannon hit recording and the cover versions, "What the World Needs Now is Love" served as the basis for a 1971 song.
Disc jockey Tom Clay was working at radio station KGBS in Los Angeles, California when he created the single "What the World Needs Now is Love/Abraham, Martin and John," a social commentary that became a surprise hit record that summer.[1]
The song begins with a man asking a young boy to define such words as bigotry, segregation and hatred (to which the boy says he doesn't know); he says that prejudice is "when someone's sick." Following that is a soundbite of a drill sergeant leading a platoon into training, along with gunfire sound effects, after which are snippets of the two songs 鈥?both as recorded by The Blackberries, a session recording group[2]. Interspersed are excerpts of speeches by John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr., and soundbites of news coverage of each one's assassination. The ending of the song is a reprisal of the introduction.
"What the World Needs Now is Love/Abraham, Martin and John" rose to No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1971, and was Clay's only Top 40 hit.[3] |
