It was mid-1965. The Hollies were one of the hottest new bands in the UK, having already had many chart successes including Just One Look, Here I Go Again, and I’m Alive (their first UK number 1).
Around that time, guitarist and vocalist Graham Nash got a call from his old friend and manager Michael Cohen, who owned the clothes store where Nash had worked before becoming a full-time musician. He was asking for help with a peculiar predicament. “This neighbour of mine says her son writes songs, and she’s driving me f@@king crazy,” he said. “Every time I meet her, she asks if I can make you come over and listen to his stuff. Look, I know he’s probably awful and it’s an imposition, but I like this woman. We’ve been neighbours a long time. So would you do me a favour? Just go down there and see what this kid’s about.” Cohen had always been nice to Nash and was a good guy, so Nash agreed to meet with her – to “get her off his back” so to speak.
Nash brought along vocalist Allan Clarke and guitarist Tony Hicks. Together, they went over to the address they were given – a semidetached house in one of the better neighbourhoods in Manchester. The woman was delighted to see them. They were ushered into what Nash later remembered as “a posh, middle-class living room, slipcovers on the sofa, nice art on the wall,” to meet this so-called songwriter – a fifteen-year old kid called Graham Gouldman.
Their mindset was that this would be a short visit. They were there to do someone else a favour, but at the same time, they were prepared to hear the kid out. They expected very little to come out of this encounter. Also, they were the Hollies, and they knew they were the Hollies. They were not going to make it easy on this kid.
They said hi to Gouldman and sat down. Nash threw ‘Mr. Songwriter’ one of his best stony stares and said, “Okay kid – give it your best shot.”
Gouldman picked up an acoustic guitar and started playing:
Bus stop, wet day, she’s there, I say
Please share my umbrella
Bus stop, bus goes, she stays, love grows
Under my umbrella
All that summer we enjoyed it
Wind and rain and shine
That umbrella, we employed it
By August, she was mine
The guys could not believe what they were hearing. This was amazing. The pop stars listened to the kid with their mouths hanging open, then they started cutting glances at each other as Gouldman kept playing the song to them.
They knew this song would be a hit. In their minds, they were already thinking of what they could do with the song when giving it the full Hollies treatment with harmonies and musical flourishes.
Having heard the song a few times, the guys were excited at what they had heard. They were itching to rush out of there and start digging into the song on their own. They inched towards their coats, and almost as a way to politely excuse themselves on the way out, they said «Uh, before we go… got anything else?»
Almost before they were done asking, Gouldman started singing his next song.
Look through any window yeah,
What do you see?
Smilin’ faces all around
Rushin’ through the busy town
Movin’ on their way
Walkin’ down the highways and the by-ways
Movin’ on their way
People with their shy ways and their sly ways
They just stopped and stared, before shrugging out of their coats to sit down again. Obviously, they weren’t leaving the house so fast. Look Through Any Window was another amazing song. This kid had talent.
“Okay kid,” Nash said (with a lot more patience and appreciation) when Gouldman had finished. “That’s two. We’re definitely taking those two. No question about it.” They went through the songs a couple more times, utterly amazed, and full of plans to record these songs at the earliest opportunity.
Later, they asked “One more time, kid – is there anything else in your songbag for us?” This time, the question was genuine. The kid had proven himself. Anything he had, they would listen to with sincere interest for as long as it took. They were keen to hear more.
Gouldman said, “Well, I do have another, but I’m afraid I promised that to Peter Noone.” And he launched into it:
No milk today, my love has gone away
The bottle stands forlorn, a symbol of the dawn
No milk today, it seems a common sight
But people passing by don’t know the reason why
The song No Milk Today would of course go on to be a huge hit for Noone and his band Herman’s Hermits.
When the Hollies left that day, they were utterly blown away. This fifteen-year-old kid had written these amazing songs, and even said these were the first three songs he had finished!
Graham Nash would later say, “It was just incredible to sit there and hear all these things he had written. And he eventually wrote For Your Love and Heart Full of Soul for The Yardbirds, Listen, People for Herman’s Hermits, and eventually started the band 10cc. Nice little career, wouldn’t you say?”
The Hollies seemed to have the most faith in Look Through Any Window, recording it shortly after on 30 June 1965 for a 27 August release. It did well, reaching #4 in the UK while also becoming their first American Billboard Top 40 hit at #32.
That other Gouldman song – Bus Stop – did even better. The band sat on it for a long time, eventually recording it on 18 May 1966 for a 17 June release. It hit #5 in the UK, but would go on to become their biggest 1960s hit in America, eventually reaching #5 in September 1966.
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