| Sign of the Times | |
| Cover: | signoftime.jpg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Petula Clark |
| Album: | My Love |
| B-Side: | Time for Love |
| Released: | March 1966 |
| Recorded: | 1966 |
| Genre: | Pop |
| Length: | 2:55 |
| Label: | Pye 7N 17071 (UK) Warner Bros. (US) Vogue STU 42223 (DEN) |
| Producer: | Tony Hatch |
| Prev Title: | My Love |
| Prev Year: | 1965 |
| Next Title: | I Couldn't Live Without Your Love |
| Next Year: | 1966 |
"Sign of the Times", also known as "A Sign of the Times", is a song performed by Petula Clark, featured on her album My Love and released as a single in March 1966. It was the follow-up to her #1 US hit "My Love," the title track from the aforementioned album, and it continued her association with writer/producer Tony Hatch and songwriter Jackie Trent. However, "Sign of the Times" had a more percussive sound than had been evident on Clark's previous singles, or than would become evident on her later ones.[1] [2] [3] [4] Clark discussed the song with Carl Wiser for Songfacts.com in 2013. "I loved it. It had a slightly different feel. 'A Sign of the Times,' I suppose you might expect some big political statement or something, but it was just a straight-ahead love song. I think Tony rather liked finding titles that made you think, like 'Don't Sleep in the Subway.' People would think, is it about drugs? Is it about this? And these were just straightforward songs. I like 'Sign of the Times.' I think it's a good song."
The song was recorded at the Pye Studios in Marble Arch in a session which featured guitarist Big Jim Sullivan and the Breakaways vocal group.
Clark introduced "A Sign of the Times" on The Ed Sullivan Show broadcast of 27 February 1966. The single would debut on the Billboard Hot 100 dated 26 March 1966 and reached its peak of #11 that 23 April. It peaked at #2 on Billboards "Easy Listening" survey.
Beginning with her American breakout, "Downtown," Clark's singles had all had higher chart peaks in the US than in the UK. (The 1966 #23 UK hit "You're the One" was not released in the US.) "A Sign of the Times" became the most extreme example of this discrepancy by spending only one week – that of 27 April 1966 – in the UK Top 50 at #49.[5] Although this trend was reversed with Clark's next single: "I Couldn't Live Without Your Love" (UK #6/US #9), Clark's last two 1966 single releases: "Who Am I?" (US #21) and "Colour My World" (US #16) both failed to rank in the UK Top 50.
"A Sign of the Times" was a hit in Australia (#11) and South Africa (#2).
"A Sign of the Times" also served as the title cut for a live CD by Petula Clark released by Varèse Sarabande 13 November 2001 comprising footage from her concert dates at Chrysler Hall in Norfolk, Virginia on 20 and 21 May 2001 featuring guests Richard Carpenter and Lou Rawls.
Track listing:
See main article: 2001 Clear Channel memorandum. In 2001, the radio giant Clear Channel Communications listed "A Sign of the Times" on an advisory list of records that stations might voluntarily choose to avoid playing—on a temporary basis—in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks, the title possibly being construed to refer to a portent of the end of the world.[7]