The Great Pretender
Jon Savage, MOJO, February 1995
CLIFF IS THE ARCHETYPAL BRITISH POP STAR. Born in 1940, his extraordinary career began with the release of his first record, 'Move It', in autumn 1958. As rock faded, he shrewdly widened his appeal with the pivotal 'Living Doll'. Backed by The Shadows, Cliff bossed British pop from 1959 through 1963, with 19 Top 5 records, seven Number 1s, and three smash movies Expresso Bongo, The Young Ones and Summer Holiday.
Total word count of piece: 2832
Best Databases: RBP is Runner-up in Best Niche category
Video: Johnny Marr talks about Rock's Backpages
RBP on Spotify: The Very Best of 40-year-old Virgin
RBP Album Club, June 13th: Miki Berenyi and Lucy O'Brien celebrate a Blondie classic
Essential Listening: Green Day grilled by Roy Trakin
RBP Album Club, July 11th: Nick Hornby and Nick Coleman celebrate Southside Johnny's debut
Essential Reading: Bud Scoppa's 1971 Byrds classic