| "Echo Beach" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Martha and the Muffins | ||||
| from the album Metro Music | ||||
| B-side | "Teddy the Dink" | |||
| Released | February 1980 | |||
| Recorded | 1979 | |||
| Genre | New wave[1] | |||
| Length | 3:38 | |||
| Label | Dindisc | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Mark Gane | |||
| Producer(s) | Mike Howlett | |||
| Martha and the Muffins singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Echo Beach" on YouTube | ||||
"Echo Beach" is a song by Canadian musical group Martha and the Muffins. Written by band member Mark Gane,[2] it was released as a single from their album Metro Music in 1980 and went on to reach number five in Canada, number six in Australia, and number 10 in the UK.[3] It was certified gold in Canada on October 1, 1980, a month after Metro Music achieved gold status,[4] and also won the Juno Award for Single of the Year. "Echo Beach" was the band's only significant international hit, although they had other popular singles in Canada.
YouTube Encyclopedic
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Martha And The Muffins "Echo Beach"
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Martha and the Muffins - Echo Beach
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Echo Beach Live / Martha and the Muffins
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Martha & The Muffins - Echo Beach
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Echo Beach ( cover Martha and the Muffins ) Mid Life Crisis
Transcription
Background
Echo Beach, as mentioned in the song, does not refer to a real beach,[citation needed] but rather a symbolic notion of somewhere the narrator would rather be, somewhere "far away in time". The song was created while Gane was working checking wallpaper for printing faults. He found the work rather dull and his mind drifted to times he would like to live over again. One such time was an evening spent at Sunnyside Beach on the shoreline of Lake Ontario in Toronto in summer. 'Echo Beach' was a reference made to a faded time and place gone in the lyrics of the song "Hiroshima Mon Amour" by the band Ultravox[citation needed]. The B-side, 'Teddy The Dink', is featured on the band's second album Trance and Dance.
The map shown on the cover of the Canadian and US version of the single is of the eastern part of Toronto, including the Beaches neighbourhood, the Leslie Street Spit, and a portion of the Toronto Islands. The UK version of the single shows the north-western end of the Fleet Lagoon and the bar of Chesil Beach, the location of Abbotsbury Swannery in Dorset. It has been modified to show Chesil Beach being named as Echo Beach.
In 2010, the band released a 30th anniversary version of "Echo Beach". A commentator described the new version as "definitely a different song compared to the previous version; it's slower and the famous guitar riff that introduces the song is acoustic. [The original] was also good to be danced to, whereas the new one is darker and languid."[5] Mark Gane explained, "We wanted to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the song, by not trying to replicate the version that we originally recorded, but as musicians who've experienced three decades of living. We'd like to refer to the new recording of 'Echo Beach' as our 'grown-up' version."[5]
In June 2011, concert promoter Live Nation opened a 4,000-person outdoor concert facility in Toronto and named it after the song.[6][7]
In 1996 the song was featured on Oh, What a Feeling, a 4-CD collection of Canadian music. In 2003, Q magazine listed "Echo Beach" among the 1001 best songs ever.[8] In 2005, it was named the 35th greatest Canadian song of all time on the CBC Radio One series 50 Tracks.[citation needed]
Track listing
- 7-inch single
- A. "Echo Beach" – 3:38
- B. "Teddy the Dink" – 3:32
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[15] | Gold | 75,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[16] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Toyah version
| "Echo Beach" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Toyah | ||||
| from the album Desire | ||||
| B-side | "Plenty" | |||
| Released | April 6, 1987[17] | |||
| Length | 3:20 | |||
| Label | E.G. | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Mark Gane | |||
| Producer(s) | Mike Hedges | |||
| Toyah singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Echo Beach" on YouTube | ||||
British singer Toyah covered "Echo Beach" on her 1987 album Desire. The song was released as the lead single from the album and reached number 54 in the UK Singles Chart.[18] It is Toyah's last charting single in the UK to date.
Track listings
- 7-inch single
- A. "Echo Beach" – 3:20
- B. "Plenty" – 3:40
- 12-inch single
- A. "Echo Beach" (Surf mix) – 5:36
- B1. "Echo Beach" (7-inch mix) – 3:20
- B2. "Plenty" – 3:40
Charts
| Chart (1987) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles (OCC)[19] | 54 |
References
- ^ Bush, John. "Martha and the Muffins | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
- ^ "Martha and the Muffins back after 18 years". CBC.ca. February 2, 2010. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 351. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ "Gold/Platinum: Martha and the Muffins". Music Canada. Retrieved October 22, 2011.
- ^ a b Roberta Capuano (August 20, 2010). "Martha and the Muffins – Echo Beach". AAA Music.
- ^ Vaccaro, Mishki (April 26, 2011). "Live Nation to open Echo Beach, a new 4,000-person venue in Toronto". Toronto Life. ISSN 0049-4194. OCLC 2545264. Archived from the original on July 4, 2011.
- ^ "TD Echo Beach Upcoming Shows in W. Toronto, Ontario — Live Nation". Echobeach.ca. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
- ^ Trynka, Paul, ed. (2003). "1001 Best Songs Ever". Q (Special edition). Top 10 80s Pop.
- ^ "One Hit Wonders". australian-charts.com. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ a b "National Top 100 Singles for 1980". Kent Music Report. No. 341. January 5, 1981. Retrieved August 30, 2022 – via Imgur.
- ^ "RPM 100 Singles". RPM. Vol. 33, no. 20. August 9, 1980. p. 7. Retrieved March 7, 2013.
- ^ "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". irishcharts.ie. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 75: 23 March 1980 - 29 March 1980". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
- ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles - December 20, 1980" (PDF).
- ^ "Canadian single certifications – Martha and the Muffins – Echo Beach". Music Canada. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
- ^ "British single certifications – Martha & The Muffins – Echo Beach". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 28, 2020.
- ^ Smith, Robin (April 4, 1987). "News Digest". Record Mirror. p. 20. ISSN 0144-5804.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 563. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100: 26 April 1987 - 02 May 1987". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
External links
This page was last edited on 21 April 2024, at 21:37