Peter and Gordon (1964 album)

Peter and Gordon
Mono and stereo album cover available on streaming.
Studio album by
Peter and Gordon
Released
  • 5 June 1964 (1964-06-05)
  • 1964 (North America)
GenrePop
Length
  • 30:28 (Peter and Gordon)
  • 26:50 (A World Without Love)
Label
Producer
Peter and Gordon chronology
Peter and Gordon
(1964) 		In Touch with Peter and Gordon
(1964)
Singles from Peter and Gordon
  1. "A World Without Love"
    Released: 28 February 1964[3]
Alternative cover
North American cover

Peter and Gordon (titled A World Without Love in North America) is the debut album by English music duo Peter and Gordon, released on 5 June 1964.[a]

Background

"A World Without Love" was composed sometime around 1963, when its songwriter Paul McCartney moved in with his then-girlfriend Jane Asher, who was sharing a room with her brother Peter.[4]

Release

Peter and Gordon was released on 5 June 1964 in the United Kingdom by Columbia Records. The record's only single, "A World Without Love" was released on 28 February 1964 and became a worldwide hit.[5] The album was reissued in 1999 on compact disc in stereo alongside the already existing mono mix.[6]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic (Peter and Gordon)[6]
AllMusic (A World Without Love)[7]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Both versions)[8]

Reviewing the U.K. release, critic Bruce Eder states it is "not bad", noting that "nothing here is distinguishable from work by the Merseybeats, the Roulettes, or a dozen other groups of the period or, indeed, is as distinctive as the best work of either of those bands", stating that the songs the duo are best on are the folk tracks.[6] Reviewing the North American release, a writer of Cash Box wrote the duo "display an easy-listening teen-folk delivery with broad appeal, and have a real feeling for the American folk idiom".[9]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Lucille"
2:11
2."Five Hundred Miles"Hedy West3:18
3."If I Were You"
2:32
4."Pretty Mary"
2:19
5."Trouble in Mind"Richard M. Jones2:22
6."A World Without Love"Lennon–McCartney2:44
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Tell Me How"
2:21
2."You Don't Have to Tell Me"Asher–Waller2:39
3."Leave My Woman Alone"Ray Charles1:56
4."All My Trials"Traditional, arranged by Asher–Waller2:35
5."Last Night I Woke"Asher–Waller2:48
6."Long Time Gone"Traditional, arranged by Asher–Waller3:27

Notes

  • "Long Time Gone" is absent from the North American versions.

Personnel

Charts

Chart performances for Peter and Gordon and A World Without Love
Chart (1964) Peak
position
UK Albums (OCC)[10] 18
US Billboard Top LPs[11] 21

References

Notes

  1. ^ Date unknown in North America, but is likely the same date or similar.

Citations

  1. ^ Newell 1964.
  2. ^ Anon.(a) 1964.
  3. ^ Unterberger 2006, p. 345.
  4. ^ Jackson, Andrew Grant (22 April 2013). "The Songs the Beatles Gave Away". Slate. Brow Beat: Slate's Culture Blog. Retrieved 12 May 2013.
  5. ^ Beviglia, Jim (2024-06-19). "The Story and Meaning Behind "A World Without Love," the Peter & Gordon Hit that Paul McCartney Delivered from Next Door". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2025-08-24.
  6. ^ a b c Eder, Bruce. "Peter and Gordon". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  7. ^ "A World Without Love". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  8. ^ Larkin 2006, p. 498.
  9. ^ Anon.(b) 1964.
  10. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  11. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1996). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Albums 1955–1996. Record Research. pp. 602–603. ISBN 0898201179.

Sources

Peter and Gordon at Discogs (list of releases)

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