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The only two non-English language number ones of the 1960s \u2013 Far Out Magazine <\/p>\n
Sat 6 June 2026 12:00, UK <\/p>\n
Keith Richards once lamented that The Beatles<\/a> had four great singers in their band, and he didn\u2019t have any.<\/p>\n While this pithy remark was obviously a jab aimed at Mick Jagger\u2019s ample mouth, it does illuminate how revered the Fab Four were as vocalists. Even The Beach Boys\u2019 leader, Brian Wilson, was envious of their stirring harmonies. While they might have been a touch more gruff with their Liverpudlian twang than his polished Californian counterparts, there was even a certain beauty to that.<\/p>\n But beyond California, there was only one group that Tom Petty thought matched them vocally on the rock \u2018n\u2019 roll front. For any band, being mentioned in the same sentence as The Beatles is quite an achievement, and Petty took that a step further when it came to The Hollies<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cThose voices were incredible,\u201d the \u2018American Girl\u2019 singer said, \u201cThey were the best singers, other than the Beatles, as far as singing harmony and knocking you dead.\u201d With their beauteous tones in mind, Petty highlighted the 1965 song \u2018I\u2019m Alive\u2019 as a crowning achievement in rock \u2018n\u2019 roll vocals.<\/p>\n Initially, the songwriter, Clint Ballard Jr, had eyed up either the Hollies or the largely forgotten Toggery Five for the song. For a brief moment, the comically named Manchester group looked like they had one hand on the track, but the Hollies had a change of heart, and after much deliberation, they decided that they would record it after all.<\/p>\n They were glad they did. The song became their first UK number one, spending three weeks at the top of the charts. Not bad considering the competition at the time. However, hearing their potent harmonies even today, it is easy to see why. There\u2019s a lovely mix of beauty and bite about the version that they put together.<\/p>\n But, sensing a touch of rivalry, it seems The Beatles didn\u2019t see it that way. In fact, what followed is a perfect paradigm of the atmosphere that created plenty of creative magic in the 1960s. <\/p>\n Further reading: From The Vault<\/p>\n You see, it seems the Fab Four recognised the threat posed, because during their reign, The Hollies were the only band they really bashed in the press. As George Harrison quipped<\/a>, \u201cThey sound like session men who\u2019ve just got together in a studio without ever seeing each other before. Technically good, yes. But that\u2019s all.\u201d<\/p>\n As it happens, there was a touch of a grain of truth to that. After all, the track wasn\u2019t written by them, and they almost passed it up in the first place. Throw into that the fact that they took more of a Beach Boys-like polished approach, and you certainly had a point of difference that the Fab Four could highlight. <\/p>\n But by the same token, \u2018I\u2019m Alive\u2019 still stands up as a certified gem even today. As Bob Dylan once said, \u201cTruthfully, records that were made in that day and age were all good,\u201d Dylan explained, reminiscing over the simpler approach the \u201860s and \u201870s afforded. <\/p>\n Concluding, \u201cThey all had some magic to them because the technology didn\u2019t go beyond what the artist was doing. It was a lot easier to get excellence back in those days on a record than it is now.\u201c It\u2019s easy to see where he\u2019s coming from with the crisp and classy \u2018I\u2019m Alive\u2019.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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<\/a> The Far Out Beatles Newsletter<\/p>\n