"Hurdy Gurdy Man" | |||||||||||
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Single by Donovan | |||||||||||
from the album The Hurdy Gurdy Man | |||||||||||
B-side | Teen Angel | ||||||||||
Released | May 1968 (UK) June 1968 (US) |
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Format | 7-inch single | ||||||||||
Recorded | April 3, 1968, CBS Studios, London, England | ||||||||||
Genre | |||||||||||
Length | 3:15 | ||||||||||
Label |
Pye (UK) Epic (US) |
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Writer(s) | Donovan | ||||||||||
Producer(s) | Mickie Most | ||||||||||
Donovan UK singles chronology | |||||||||||
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"Hurdy Gurdy Man" is a song by the Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan. It was written during a trip to India, was recorded in early 1968, and was released in May 1968 as a single. It gave its name to the album The Hurdy Gurdy Man, which was released in October of that year in the U.S. The single reached No.5 in the U.S. and No.4 in the UK pop charts.
The song features a harder rock sound than Donovan's usual material, supplying a range of distorted guitars. It also features an Indian influence with the use of a tambura. The song may have been influenced by "Green Circles", a psychedelic 1967 UK single by Small Faces. The similarity is in the melody of the descending verse, the strange vocal delivery, and most tellingly, the topic of being visited by an enlightened stranger. In 2012, Donovan said that he had made friends with them in 1965.
According to some sources, the song was written for the band Hurdy Gurdy (which included Donovan's old friend and guitar mentor Mac MacLeod) with Donovan intending to be the producer, but the collaboration was cancelled due to creative disagreements, leading Donovan to record the song himself. However, there is no mention of this story in the chapter of Donovan's autobiography that is devoted to the song – there he says that he originally wanted it to be recorded by Jimi Hendrix.
In the booklet that came with Donovan's 1992 double CD, Troubadour: The Definitive Collection 1964–1976, Allan Holdsworth and Jimmy Page are listed as the electric guitar players and John Bonham and Clem Cattini (spelled as "Clem Clatini") as drummers on the recording. John Paul Jones, who arranged and played bass on the track (and also booked the session musicians), was reported to have said by email that Clem Cattini played the drums and Alan Parker played the electric guitar. This line-up was confirmed by Cattini. In Donovan's autobiography, he credits Cattini (spelled as "Catini") and Bonham for the drums. In a published interview circa 2013, Donovan is quoted as primarily crediting Cattini for the drums but saying he wasn't sure whether Bonham was also involved, and said he and Jones both credit Holdsworth for the guitar.