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“There’s a Kind of Hush” is a popular song written by Les Reed and Geoff Stephens. Originally recorded by Stephens’ group the New Vaudeville Band in 1967 as a neo-British music hall number, this version of the track became a hit in Australia and South Africa. However, in the rest of the world, a near-simultaneous cover was a big hit for Herman’s Hermits. The song was a charted hit again in 1976 for The Carpenters.

First recordings

The song was introduced on the 1966 album Winchester Cathedral by Geoff Stephens’ group the New Vaudeville Band; like that group’s hit “Winchester Cathedral“, “There’s a Kind of Hush” was conceived as a neo-British music hall number although it is a less overt example of that style.

The first single version of “There’s a Kind of Hush” was recorded in 1966 by Gary and the Hornets, a teen/pre-teen male band from Franklin, Ohio whose version—entitled “Kind of Hush” produced by Lou Reizner—became a regional success and showed signs of breaking nationally in January 1967; the single would reach No. 4 in Cincinnati and No. 3 in Erie PA.

However an expedient cover by Herman’s Hermits was released in the US in January 1967 to reach the Top 30 of the Billboard Hot 100 in three weeks and proceeded to a peak of #4—affording the group their final US Top Ten hit—with Gold certification for US sales of one million units awarded that April. The record notched two positions higher on the Silver Dollar Survey for 3–10 March 1967 on WLS, for an overall rank of #26 for 1967, and topped the Boss 30 for 8–22 March 1967 on KHJ. In the UK Herman’s Hermits’ “There’s a Kind of Hush” would reach No. 7. The success of the Herman’s Hermits version led to the release of the original New Vaudeville Band track as a single in some territories with both of these versions charting in Australia with peaks of No. 5 (Herman’s Hermits) and No. 12 (New Vaudeville Band) and also in South Africa where the New Vaudeville Band bested the Herman’s Hermits’ No. 9 peak by reaching No. 4.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Carpenters version

The Carpenters remade “There’s a Kind of Hush”—as “There’s a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)”—for their 1976 album release A Kind of Hush for which it served as lead single, reaching No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and affording the Carpenters’ their thirteenth No. 1 on the easy listening chart.

The single’s lack of comparative success indicated a drop in the Carpenters’ popularity, it being the first lead single from a mainstream Carpenters’ album to fall short of the Top 5 since “Ticket to Ride” from the group’s 1969 debut album Offering,

while the No. 33 chart peak of the A Kind of Hush album afforded the Carpenters’ their first Top 20 shortfall since Offering (Horizon would prove to be their last album to reach the top 20 in the United States). “There’s a Kind of Hush” would remain the Carpenters’ final top twenty hit until 1981’s “Touch Me When We’re Dancing“.

Richard Carpenter explained in the liner notes to the Carpenters’ 2004 best-of compilation, Gold, that although he and Karen Carpenter loved the song, he was not particularly pleased with how their remake turned out:

“…one of Karen’s and my favorite songs from the ’60s. In hindsight, however, even though our version was a hit, I wish we’d never recorded it. Here are three reasons why: (1) The original was, and is, perfectly fine. (2) Our foray into the oldies should have ended with the medley featured on side 2 of Now & Then, 1973. (3) The use of a synthesizer in some of our recordings has not worn well with me, on this track, or just about any other track on which I used it.”

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

There’s Is A Kind Of Hush Covers

• Tracy Huang 黃鶯鶯 – There’s A Kind Of Hush

• There’s a Kind of Hush – Herman’s Hermits – instrumental cover by Dave Monk

• Dami Im – There’s a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)

• Perry Como – There’s A Kind Of Hush

• New Zealand duo “rua” singing at Japan TV Show

• Engelbert Humperdinck – There’s A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World)

• Dana Winner – There’s a Kind of Hush

• Richard Clayderman – There’s a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)

• Paul Mauriat – There’s a Kind of Hush

• Matt Monro – There’s A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World)

• Barry Manilow – There’s A Kind Of Hush

• Ray Conniff – There’s A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World)

• Melanie Duggal – Theres a kind of hush

There’s a Kind of Hush All Over the World (Album)

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic

There’s a Kind of Hush All Over the World is the fifth album released by MGM Records in the US and Canada for the band Herman’s Hermits. It was released in March 1967. In the UK, There’s a Kind of Hush All Over the World is the band’s third album, released by EMI/Columbia in May 1967.^[2]

The album did not chart in the UK but in late April 1967 peaked at 13 on Billboard‘s Top LPs chart. The album was not released in true stereo until Bear Family Records issued a 2 CD “50th Anniversary Collection” in 2015.^{[citation needed]}

Track listing

1. “There’s a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)” (Les Reed, Geoff Stephens) – 2:35
2. “Saturday’s Child” (David Gates) – 2:38
3. “If You’re Thinkin’ What I’m Thinkin'” (Tommy Boyce, Bobby Hart) – 2:27
4. “You Won’t Be Leaving” (Tony Hazzard) – 2:22
5. “Dandy” (Ray Davies) – 2:03
6. “Jezebel” (Wayne Shanklin) – 3:23
7. “No Milk Today” (Graham Gouldman) – 2:58
8. “Little Miss Sorrow, Child of Tomorrow” (Bruce Woodley) – 2:34
9. “Gaslight Street” (Keith Hopwood, Derek Leckenby) – 2:30
10. “Rattler” (Woodley) – 3:15
11. “East West” (Graham Gouldman) – 2:00

2001 Repertoire Rerelease

1. “There’s a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)“
2. “East West”
3. “You Won’t Be Leaving“
4. “Saturday’s Child”
5. “If You’re Thinkin’ What I’m Thinkin'”
6. “No Milk Today“
7. “Little Miss Sorrow, Child of Tomorrow”
8. “Gaslight Street”
9. “Rattler”
10. “Dandy“
11. “Jezebel”

Bonus Tracks

1. “This Door Swings Both Ways” (Estelle Levitt, Don Thomas)
2. “What Is Wrong, What Is Right” (Hopwood, Leckenby, Lisberg)
3. “I Can Take or Leave Your Loving” (Rick Jones)
4. “Marcel’s” (Gouldman, Hopwood, Lisberg, Peter Noone)
5. “(I Gotta) Dream On” (Gary Gordon)
6. “Don’t Try to Hurt Me” (Hopwood)
7. “Biding My Time” (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
8. “The George and the Dragon” (Fred Karger, Sid Wayne, Ben Weisman)
9. “Wild Love” (Karger, Wayne, Weisman)
10. “Gotta Get Away” (Karger, Wayne, Weisman)
11. “Make Me Happy” (Karger, Wayne, Weisman)

A Kind of Hush (Album)

A Kind of Hush is the seventh studio album by the American music duo Carpenters. It was released on June 11, 1976.

Background

By the time of the album’s recording, Richard Carpenter’s addiction to sleeping pills had begun to affect him professionally, and he blames this for the album being, in his opinion, sub-par.^[1]

John Bettis called “I Need to Be in Love” the favorite lyrics he ever wrote for Karen Carpenter. “If there was ever anything that came out of my heart straight to Karen’s I would say that was it. I was very proud of it for that.”^[2] Richard Carpenter recalled that the song “became Karen’s favorite Carpenters song”.^[1]

The album was also the first not to have Karen playing drums on any tracks, which were performed by Los Angeles session drummer Jim Gordon (except two, “Goofus” and “Sandy,” by Cubby O’Brien).

Commercial performance

“There’s a Kind of Hush (All Over the World)“, a cover of a 1960s song by Herman’s Hermits, was released as a lead single and topped the adult contemporary chart, however reached only #12 on the main US chart.^[3] It also reached the UK Top 30

“I Need to Be in Love” hit number 25 in the US and number 36 in the UK.

“Goofus” was only a minor success, stalling at number 56 on the Billboard chart, though it did crack the adult contemporary top 10.

Despite being certified Gold, the album was a relative commercial disappointment in the US, where its chart peak was outside the Top 30 and its lead single peaking outside the Top 10, the first time since Close to You in 1970. and

Like its predecessor Horizon, it performed better in the UK, reaching number three in the UK Albums Chart.

Reception

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
The Rolling Stone Album Guide

In their review of the album, Billboard called it an “exceptionally pretty album, with even more emphasis on Karen Carpenter’s versatile, excellent vocals than in past efforts. Soft, easy ballads filled with the lush production of Richard Carpenter dominate the set, though the material alternates from the straight ballad form to easy rock to almost vaudevillian material to supper club, piano bar styled music. Keyboards handled well by Richard, who has always takes somewhat of a backseat when it comes to performing but does as good a job of production as anyone in the business. Most impressive and noticeable change is the different arrangements and styles tackled by Karen.”^[10]

Cashbox praised the album, stating that “the dynamic duo of the MOR/easy listening idiom have come up with another winner. “A Kind Of Hush” is a clean collection of tunes that is truly representative of the kind of music that the Carpenters are famous for — smooth, ingratiating melodies that bear their contemporary trademark. This LP is bound to be an instant success with both the pop and MOR audiences, with the title tune and their cover of the Neil Sedaka hit, “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do” standing out as prime shots for the AM market.”

AllMusic‘s retrospective review was more mixed, calling the album “pleasant, well-sung, and well-played, but basically bland….If you close your eyes, it’s possible to imagine Captain & Tennille, not to mention Debby Boone, taking lessons from this release, although Karen’s voice was still beyond comparison with any of them”.

Track listing

Side one

xxx

xxx

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xxx

Side two

xxx

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xxx

xxx

xxx

Personnel

• Ed Caraeff – Photography
• Karen Carpenter – Drums, Vibraphone, Vocals, Background Vocals
• Richard Carpenter – Arranger, Keyboards, Orchestration, Vibraphone, Vocals, Background Vocals
• Frank DeLuna – Mastering
• Earl Dumler – English Horn, Oboe
• Ray Gerhardt – Engineer
• Jim Gordon – Drums
• Jim Horn – Baritone Saxophone
• Dave Iveland – Assistant Engineer
• Wes Jacobs – Tuba
• Gayle Levant – Harp
• Bob Messenger – Flute, Tenor Saxophone
• Cubby O’Brien – Drums
• Joe Osborn – Bass
• Tony Peluso – Guitar
• J. Scarkino & Co. – Album Concept, Design
• Tom Scott – Clarinet, Flute
• David Shostac – Flute
• Doug Strawn – Whistle
• Roland Young – Art Direction

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

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