Top 10 Petula Clark Songs

Petula Clark Songs

Petula Clark was born and raised in Surrey, England, in 1932, and her entertainment career began in 1940, during the Second World War, when she was still just a child. She performed as an actress and singer on the BBC’s national radio. Between acting, singing, and songwriting, Clark has been charming critics and fans worldwide for 80 years. She was dubbed the First Lady of the infamous British Invasion that rocked the North American music charts during the 1960s and has been a key influence for several artists whose vocal talent she has since inspired. With performances that have graced radio stations, stage productions, movies, and television, as well as concert tours, Petula Clark’s contributions have proven to be even beyond world-class.

With studio recordings dating back to 1956, which have since produced masterpiece after masterpiece until, so far, 2018, Petula Clark’s entertainment career is as long as the material is vast. To date, there are forty-six studio albums to her credit, as well as eight live albums, and twelve charted compilation albums. She also has 42 extended plays (EPs) recorded and released in English or French. From all those recordings, Petula Clark has a flood of singles that have soothed the ears of fans in two different dialects, among the music industry’s finest recordings of all time. Although Petula Clark’s home nation is the UK, fans around the world fell in love with Clark’s charm as an entertainer, whether it was acting out a character role or performing an unforgettable musical number.

During the 1960s, as part of the musical British Invasion, the four-year impression she made on the North American audience was career-defining, thanks to the upbeat music she delivered, which served as an inspiration for aspiring artists who wanted to follow in her footsteps. Clark’s career has seen over sixty-eight million of her albums sold worldwide. Nowadays, she resides outside Geneva, Switzerland, and owns a chalet in the French Alps. Although Clark hasn’t released any new singles since 2013 and is now eighty-nine years old, the timelessness of Petula Clark’s legacy as an entertainer remains as strong today as ever.

Top 10 Petula Clark Songs

# 10 – Who Am I

The social conscience “Who Am I” followed the same formula as the North American-focused songwriting style and was released in 1966, which was soon followed by a 1967 essay that was written by Canadian pianist Glenn Gould, titled The Search for Petula Clark, which came as an inspiration to him after hearing Petula Clark’s single. The essay, which was featured in a late 1967 edition of High Fidelity Magazine, referenced Petula Clark’s career breakthrough in the US and the contrast between her earlier hits and her more recent releases. Since then, Who Am I had become the standard opening each time Petula Clark performed in concert.

On the music charts, “Who Am I” peaked as high as number fourteen in Canada, number twenty-one on the US Billboard Hot 100, and number thirty-one on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary. It also made chart appearances at number forty-two in Australia and number fifty-two in the UK.

# 9 – Kiss Me Goodbye

When “Kiss Me Goodbye” was released in 1968, it quickly rose on the US Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at number 16. It was a number two hit on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and Belgium’s Ultratop 50 Flanders chart. In Canada, Kiss Me Goodbye reached number ten on its chart, and in Australia, it reached number twelve on the official singles chart. As Petula Clark has been best known to do, the French version of “Kiss Me Goodbye,” Dis-Moi au revoir, was also recorded and released, and became a number fifteen hit in that nation, as well as a number thirteen hit on Belgium’s Ultratop 50 Wallonia chart,several other versions performed in different languages featured artists from Germany and Italy.

# 8 – Colour My World

In 1966, “Colour My World” featured a sitar riff that perfectly complemented Petula Clark’s vocal talent, making it another hit. On the US Billboard Hot 100, Colour My World peaked at number sixteen, and it was a number ten hit on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and in Australia. In Canada, the single charted as high as number fourteen, and in New Zealand, at number thirteen. They have been covered many times over by different artists and in other languages. In pop culture, Colour My World has appeared in numerous commercials, movies, and television programs.

#7 – A Sign of the Times

“A Sign of the Times” was a 1966 single, a thought-provoking yet straightforward love song featuring a heavy percussion mix and a genius guitar performance by Mike Sullivan. “A Sign of the Times” peaked at number two on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and at number eleven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and in Australia. In Canada, A Sign of the Times charted as high as number eight.

#6 – Don’t Sleep in the Subway

In 1967, “Don’t Sleep in the Subway” was a number-one hit in Australia, Malaysia, and on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. It also charted in the top ten in Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, and the UK. On the US Billboard, “Don’t Sleep in the Subway” peaked at number five.

The construction of this single came from three different tracks previously composed by Tony Hatch, one of the chief songwriters who wrote music for Petula Clark. By the time the editing was complete, the single featured a pop-meets-symphonic-meets-beach-style track. In the song, Clark warns her love interest that unless he smartens up with his antics, his pride will cause him to sleep in the subway.

#5 – I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love

On the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, “I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love” was a number-one hit for Petula Clark in 1966. The song came as inspiration while songwriters Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent were romantically involved. Clark’s melodic performance of the single seemed to indicate “I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love” was a personal favorite of hers, and it was, something she admitted at a Montreal Gazette interview in 2017. On the US Billboard Hot 100, the single peaked at number nine, and it was a number six hit on the UK Singles Chart. It was also a top-40 single in Australia, Germany, and New Zealand.

#4 – I Know a Place

In Canada, “I Know a Place” marked Petula Clark’s second number-one hit on the music charts. Released in 1965, the similarities it shared with the previously released single, Downtown, were noted by music critics and fans alike. In addition to achieving international chart success in the top forty in many nations, “I Know a Place” has become a favorite featured in several big- and small-screen productions. In 1965, the single won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary (R&R) Vocal Performance, Female.

#3 – My Love

“My Love” was a 1965 classic ballad performed by Petula Clark, becoming yet another international hit for the multi-talented songstress. In addition to its English performance, My Love is also available in French and German, and it became a chart-topper for the audience the song was arranged for. The orchestration behind My Love was designed to appeal to the North American audience, which it did, as the single topped the US Billboard Hot 100 and reached number one in Canada. Globally, it was a top-ten hit in Australia, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland, and the UK.

When the song was recorded, Clark was personally disappointed with her performance and didn’t want it released as a single. It was released anyway and became the second time she would reach number one in the US, as well as a level of international greatness that remains a classic favorite to this day.

#2 – This Is My Song

In 1967, “This Is My Song” was written as a love ballad by Charlie Chaplin and performed by Petula Clark. Initially, the song was meant for Chaplin’s written and directed film, A Countess from Hong Kong, and it was to be sung by Al Jolson. However, Jolson passed in 1950, and a stubborn Chaplin refused to accept the news until he saw a photograph of Jolson’s tombstone. This resulted in This is My Song being performed in the movie as an instrumental piece only. Later, Chaplin requested Petula Clark sing the song. After considerable conflict over the song’s performance, especially in English, Clark finally agreed to sing it, along with the Wrecking Crew’s backup vocals.

When it was finally released, the opening lyric was excluded from the US release, while the rest of the world kept the English version as is. Globally, it became a number one hit in English, as well as in the other languages it was recorded in, namely French and German. On the US Billboard Hot 100, This Is My Song peaked at number one, as well as on the charts belonging to Australia, Britain, France, Ireland, and Italy.

#1 – Downtown

Although Petula Clark has a flurry of best-selling hits, “Downtown” is her all-time signature song. Just before recording the single, Clark was touching up the lyrics while still in the washroom, determined to connect with a younger audience with this song. It seemed Clark’s judgment was right on the mark as it became a number one sensation on the US Billboard Hot 100 upon its 1964 release, as well as on Canada Top Singles, French-Canadian Records, New Zealand’s Hit Parades, and West Germany’s Official German Charts.

It was also a top ten hit in Australia, Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, and the UK. With the UK’s BPI and the USA’s RIAA, Downtown became a certified gold hit. When the song was released, the critical favor it received saw an enthusiastic foreigner excited about America’s downtown scene that bustled with the exciting activity that, according to Clark’s performance, would be great.

Feature Photo: ETH-Bibliothek Zürich, Bildarchiv / Fotograf: Baumann, Heinz / Com_L15-0036-0002-0006 / CC BY-SA 4.0, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Updated December 20, 2025