Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)

"Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" is the second single from Melanie Safka's 1970 album Candles in the Rain. It was her breakthrough hit in the United States, climbing to number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the Cash Box Top 100. The record was ranked number 23 on the Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1970. It was released in March 1970.

"Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)"
Single by Melanie
from the album Candles in the Rain
B-side"Candles in the Rain" (spoken word)
ReleasedMarch 7, 1970
Length3:49 (single)
7:39 (full)
LabelBuddah
Songwriter(s)Melanie Safka
Producer(s)Peter Schekeryk
Melanie singles chronology
"What Have They Done to My Song, Ma"
(1970)		 "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)"
(1970)		 "Ruby Tuesday"
(1970)

Background

The recording was a collaboration between Melanie and the Edwin Hawkins Singers, who had reached the national Top Ten the previous year with "Oh Happy Day". Melanie wrote the song after performing at Woodstock in August 1969. The song describes what she felt as she looked out at the sea of people in the audience.[1] The song's lyrics include the lines "We all sang the songs of peace. Some came to sing, some came to pray, some came to keep the dark away."

Charts
Chart (1970) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart[2] 3
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[3] 15
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[4] 49
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[5] 1
France (IFOP)[6] 4
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[7] 1
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[8] 1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[1] 6
U.S. Cash Box Charts[9] 3

Covers

Australian singer Max Sharam released the song as a single from her 1995 album, A Million Year Girl. It reached No. 36 on the ARIA Singles Chart in November 1995.[10] Icelandic singer Emilíana Torrini recorded a version that reached No. 1 on the Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 in mid-1996.[11]

See also

References
  1. ""Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)" - Melanie". Superseventies.com. Retrieved 17 January 2018.
  2. "Go-Set Australian charts - 29 August 1970". Poparchives.com. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  3. "Melanie & the Edwin Hawkins Singers – Lay Down" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  4. "Melanie & the Edwin Hawkins Singers – Lay Down" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  5. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 3829." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  6. "Infodisc.fr". Infodisc.fr. Retrieved January 17, 2018.
  7. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 13, 1970" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  8. "Melanie & the Edwin Hawkins Singers – Lay Down" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  9. "Cash Box Chart, July 11, 1970". Cashboxmagazine.com. Retrieved 17 January 2018.
  10. "Australian-charts.com – Max Sharam – Lay Down". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
  11. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (13.7. – 19.7. '96)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). July 13, 1996. p. 42. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
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