Professor Wurzel's Disc Notes:
Issued
on the CBS label, this single was not a typical Wurzels
song, and apart from a Benny Hill-style spoken bit in the
middle, it doesn't sound like Adge Cutler and The Wurzels
at all. The song was originally a hit in 1957 for the American
group The Diamonds, and this single is a fairly straight
cover of the original - apart from the spoken bit by Adge
of course. The song was written by Maurice Williams who
originally recorded it in the USA with his group The Gladiolas.
Pete Budd recalls that the producer Roger Easterby ( of Chicory Tip etc ) contacted Adge in the belief that 'Little Darlin' would have a much bigger crossover appeal than many of his previous songs.Commercially, he thought it would be a big hit. Unfortunately this hope didn't materialise and the single failed to chart.
The single is notable in the fact that it was the first Wurzel record to be released outside the UK - copies were manufactured and released in France, Holland and Germany. Foreign fans were treated to picture sleeves on their purchases - as can be seen above. The French however had a minor problem at the printers and released a sleeve showing a band who certainly weren't the Wurzels!
The
'b' side of this single - 'Mother Nature Calling' was written
by band members Reg Quantrell and Tony Baylis. The song
has never been re-released - and is a wonderful little skip-along
fun number by the band - definitely worth a listen!
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