Devil Woman was recorded at Abbey Road in London on September 8 and 9, 1975, at sessions which also produced the popular Miss You Nights song. It was the first session produced by Bruce Welch exclusively and the first session recording with backing vocalists Tony Rivers, John Perry and Tony Harding, whom Cliff would use for many years to come. The song had been presented to Cliff months earlier by writer Terry Britten, but Cliff had rejected it. It was at producer Bruce Welch's persistence that Cliff finally recorded the song.

The song was released as a 7" single in the UK by EMI on May 1976 with stock number "EMI 2448" and having the Cliff Richard-penned song Love On (Shine On), a song unique to this single, on the B-side. It was also the 8th track on the I'm Nearly Famous album and the second single taken from that album (with the first being Miss You Nights). It is Cliff's 66th single release (approximately, as the counting of Cliff's singles varies depending upon how they are counted). The single was reissued in 1981 with the same stock number, but this time with an original picture sleeve and a new record label. It was released in the USA as a 7" single on a Rocket Record Company single (PIG-40574) with the same Love On (Shine On) song on the B-side and on the I'm Nearly Famous LP, the first Cliff LP release in the US since the Two A Penny soundtrack in 1968.

Devil Woman was released during a period when Cliff's popularity and chart success were waning. It was the first top ten hit since 1973 and the third top ten hit of the 1970s. It entered the UK Top 50 chart on May 8, 1976, peaked at #9 on June 5, 1976, and spent 8 weeks in the chart. Although it was not a monster hit in the UK, it had big international success. It is also significant that it was a breakout hit for Cliff in the USA, being his first USA charting song since 1968's Congratulations (which peaked at a meager #99). It entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart on July 4, 1976, reached #6 for three consecutive weeks on September 26, October 3 and October 10, 1976, spending 22 weeks in the chart. It is Cliff's highest charting hit on the USA charts ever, being certified gold (having sold half a million copies) on October 20, 1976.

The song is a truely pivotal song, ushering in a renaissance for Cliff. The I'm Nearly Famous LP is the first LP of many successful LPs that featured exclusive production by Shadow Bruce Welch. The album was also picked up by Rocket Record Company in the USA thanks to the insistance of Cliff's friend, Elton John, where a major push behind the album and Devil Woman single was able to propel them both to great success. Today, the I'm Nearly Famous album is considered by fans and critics to be one of Cliff's finest, with both Devil Woman and Miss You Nights still being played on the radio and performed in concerts today.

There has been a lot of confusion over exactly who wrote the song. In reality it is a collaboration by songwriters Terry Britten and Christine Holmes with Terry writing the music and Christine writing the lyrics. Although Britten's authorship has never been questioned, Holmes' has varied greatly because of the many stage names she has used over the years. Her birth name is Christine Hodgson, for a while she was using the stage name Kristine Sparkle, and she was married to Barry Authors and sometimes using his family name professionally. Thus the writing credits vary radically, with the first name sometimes written as "Christine" or "Kristine" combined with variable last names, including "Holmes", "Hodgson", "Sparkle", "Authors" and "Anchor". One source even credits the song to Barry Authors himself, which is clearly an error. But the most proper credit is for Christine Holmes as that is the name she finally settled on using. Curiously, although Cliff went on to record many Terry Britten songs, he never recorded any other songs written by Christine Holmes.

Christine Holmes recorded the song herself under the stage name "Kristine" (no last name) on her 1976 I'm A Song album, although it remains unclear if she recorded the song before or after Cliff released and had a hit with his version. A sample of the Kristine version can be heard HERE.

It is unclear why Cliff was resistant to recording the song af first, but it has been suggested that he primarily did not like the lyrics and their occult theme. Bruce Welch persisted and Cliff finally relented after changing some of the lyrics to more overtly suggest that the "devil woman" was dangerous and should be avoided. It is unknown what the original lyrics were that Cliff changed. The lyrics as performed on the Kristine I'm A Song album, are sung in third person ("He's had nothing but bad luck..."), use the lyrics "I can see me a gypsy woman" instead of "I can see me a tall dark stranger" and "and he knew what he came there for" instead of and "I wonder what I came there for" in the second verse, and excludes the "stay away" and "look out" lyrics from the second bridge. It is known that Cliff added the "Stay away! Look out!" parts, however if this and the aforementioned changes are all that Cliff changed, then he changed very little at all for his version. He also likely changed the line to "I wonder what I came there for" which clearly obscures the meaning of what he, the singer, was doing there.

In interviews, Cliff very often accounts a story of the song for which he is very proud. He tells of having been contacted by a fan in Australia who told of being lost and having no direction in life. She had been considering and dabbling in the occult as a means to finding her needed direction. Upon hearing Cliff's recording of Devil Woman and taking the lyrics to heart, she turned away from the occult and became a Christian very involved in her church. Cliff has told this story many, many times over the years and apparently it's a great source of pride.

Structure and Lyrics

Below is the structure of the fullest, most complete version of the originally released song as available on the standard issues of the I'm Nearly Famous album.

-Guitar Intro
   Guitar intro
-Verse 1
   I've had nothing but bad luck
   Since the day I saw that cat at my door
   So I came into you sweet lady
   Answering your mystical call
   Crystal ball on the table
   Showing the future, the past
   Same cat with them evil eyes
   And I knew it was a spell she cast
-Chorus 1
   Ooh!
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you from behind
-Bridge 1
   Long guitar note
-Verse 2
   Give me the ring on your finger
   Let me see the lines on your hand
   I can see me a tall dark stranger
   Giving you what you hadn't planned
   I drank the potion she offered me
   I found myself on the floor
   Then I looked in those big green eyes
   And I wonder what I came there for
-Chorus 2
   Ooh!
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you from behind, from behind
-Bridge 2
   Stacatto guitar notes with Cliff whispers Stay away! Look out!
-Verse 3
   If you're out on a moonlit night
   Be careful of the neighbourhood strays
   Of a lady with long black hair
   Trying to win you with her feminine ways
   Crystal ball on the table
   Showing the future, the past
   Same cat with them evil eyes
   You better get out of there fast
-Chorus 3
   Ooh!
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you
-Chorus 4
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you... Ah, stay away!
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you (get you!)
-Chorus 5
   She's just a devil woman
   With evil on her mind
   Beware the devil woman
   She's gonna get you
   She's just a devil woman...

Variations

There are three known non-live variations of the original Devil Woman They are:

-Devil Woman (Standard Release)
-Devil Woman (Edited Remix Version)
-Devil Woman (My Kinda Life Version)

The standard release was used on the original I'm Nearly Famous LP and the original Devil Woman single and this was the only release for many years. In the late 1980s, the track was remixed, giving it a crisper drum and bass section, and (probably by accident) the fade out was changed so that the song ended two lines earlier. It is uncertain when or why the song was remixed, but it first appeared on the 1989 40 Golden Greats CD (the CD version of the 1977 LP) and great care had been taken with this CD to replace the mock stereo versions of tracks on the LP with mono or true stereo versions, thus Devil Woman was probably remixed at that time. This remix appeared again on the 1998 1970s compilation album and has appeared on all rereleases since then, including the I'm Nearly Famous remaster.

In 1992, Cliff released a French compilation called My Kinda Life (EMI 7994322) in which he reworked several of his previously released songs, enhancing them with new vocals and/or instrumentation. Included in this was a new version of Devil Woman to which guitars, drums and percussion (but no new vocals) were added over the existing backing track. The drums are much stronger and the guitars have more intensity, giving the song a harsher and more "evil" sound. In addition, the fade out is extended by an additional 10 seconds, allowing for all of chorus 5 and part of chorus 6 to be heard.

Song Section	Lyric/Part	Devil Woman (Standard Release)	Devil Woman (Edited Remix Version)	Devil Woman (My Kinda Life Version)
Guitar Intro	Guitar Intro	YES	YES	YES
Verse 1	I've had nothing but bad luck	YES	YES	YES
	Since the day I saw that cat at my door	YES	YES	YES
	So I came into you sweet lady	YES	YES	YES
	Answering your mystical call	YES	YES	YES
	Crystal ball on the table	YES	YES	YES
	Showing the future, the past	YES	YES	YES
	Same cat with them evil eyes	YES	YES	YES
	And I knew it was a spell she cast	YES	YES	YES
Chorus 1	Ooh!	YES	YES	YES
	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you	YES	YES	YES
	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you from behind	YES	YES	YES
Bridge 1	Long guitar note	YES	YES	YES
Verse 2	Give me the ring on your finger	YES	YES	YES
	Let me see the lines on your hand	YES	YES	YES
	I can see me a tall dark stranger	YES	YES	YES
	Giving you what you hadn't planned	YES	YES	YES
	I drank the potion she offered me	YES	YES	YES
	I found myself on the floor	YES	YES	YES
	Then I looked in those big green eyes	YES	YES	YES
	And I wonder what I came there for	YES	YES	YES
Chorus 2	Ooh!	YES	YES	YES
	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you	YES	YES	YES
	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you from behind, from behind	YES	YES	YES
Bridge 2	Stacatto guitar notes with Cliff whispers Stay away! Look out!	YES	YES	YES
Verse 3	If you're out on a moonlit night	YES	YES	YES
	Be careful of the neighbourhood strays	YES	YES	YES
	Of a lady with long black hair	YES	YES	YES
	Trying to win you with her feminine ways	YES	YES	YES
	Crystal ball on the table	YES	YES	YES
	Showing the future, the past	YES	YES	YES
	Same cat with them evil eyes	YES	YES	YES
	You better get out of there fast	YES	YES	YES
Chorus 3	Ooh!	YES	YES	YES
	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you	YES	YES	YES
	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you	YES	YES	YES
Chorus 4	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you... Ah, stay away!	YES	YES	YES with additional effects added to the Ah, stay away! lyric
	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you (get you!)	YES	YES	YES but without the additional (get you!) lyric
Chorus 5	She's just a devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	With evil on her mind	YES	YES	YES
	Beware the devil woman	YES	YES	YES
	She's gonna get you	YES	-	YES
	She's just a devil woman	YES	-	YES
	With evil on her mind	-	-	YES
	Beware the devil woman	-	-	YES
	She's gonna get you	-	-	YES
Chorus 6	She's just a devil woman	-	-	YES
	With evil on her mind	-	-	YES
	Beware the devil woman...	-	-	YES

Musicological Analysis

From a musicological perspective the song has 4 sections: riff (verse), pre-chorus, chorus and bridge. To understand some of these sections, it is helpful to first understand the blues pentatonic scale. This scale is made up of the 1, flat-3, 4, 5, and flat-7th degrees of the corresponding major scale, so the D blues pentatonic scale - the one relevant to Devil Woman - comprises the (natural) notes D, F, G, A and C.

A major chord is made up of 3 notes played simultaneously: the root note (after which the chord is named), the note four semi-tones higher than the root note (an interval of a major 3rd, hence this note is called "the 3rd"), and the note 7 semi-tones higher than the root note (an interval of a perfect 5th, hence this note is called "the 5th"). So the major chords based on the D blues pentatonic scale and their spellings are:

Chord	Spelling
	Root	3rd	5th
D	D	F#	A
F	F	A	C
G	G	B	D
A	A	C#	E
C	C	E	G

This set of chords has been termed the (D) "blues harmonic scale". Note, however, that all of these chords except F major contain notes that are not themselves part of the blues pentatonic scale on which the chords are based:

• D (The I chord) which has F# as its 3rd
• G (The IV chord) which has B as its 3rd
• A (The V chord) which has C# as its 3rd and E as its 5th (i.e. 2 non-scale tones)
• C (The flat-VII - also written bVII - chord) which has E as its 3rd

Two of these tones - the F# in the D chord and the C# in the A chord - are the natural 3rd and 7th tones of the D major scale. The clash of flat-3rd and flat-7th notes in a melody against the natural 3rd and 7th tones in the accompaniment is one of the most defining features of the blues, and this is exactly what this group of chords gives us when set against the scale comprising their root notes (i.e. the blues pentatonic scale).

In Devil Woman, the riff that starts the record is a sequence of dyads. A dyad is a pair of notes played simultaneously, so a major chord with one note removed is, by definition, a dyad. The specific chord progression on which the riff is based is D, G, F, C and D (I-IV-bIII-bVII-I) with chord degrees 5, 3, 5, 3 and 3 making up the notes removed to produce the dyads. The riff is repeated twice as the introduction, then two more times as the backing to the first verse. The tune of the verse uses notes from the blues pentatonic scale, giving the verse of Devil Woman a very bluesy flavour and making it a perfect example of a blues melody being harmonised by blues harmonic major chords.

Following the verse, the pre-chorus - i.e. "Crystal ball on the table .... spell she cast" - shifts to the parallel minor (D minor), mainly utilising the natural form of the minor scale but borrowing the A major chord from the harmonic minor as a transitional chord to the chorus. The tune in this section stays within the mode, using only the 4 natural notes D, E, F and G (the D natural minor scale also includes the notes A, Bb and C, but these do not appear in tune of the pre-chorus). The chord progression in this section is bVII-i-bVII-i-bVII-i-bVI-V (C-Dm-C-Dm-C-Dm-Bb-A), all for one bar each.

The chorus returns to blues-modal harmony. The first 3 bars has a strictly blues pentatonic tune, all harmonised by a D major chord. The melody for the last bar adds the 2nd degree of the D minor scale (E natural), and is harmonised by an interrupted bVI-bVII cadence - half a bar each of Bb and C. The cadence is completed (back to I) by overlapping the D major chord that signifies the return of the riff.

After once through the riff the verse, pre-chorus and chorus repeats. This time the interrupted cadence is prolonged by another 4 bars of alternating flat-VI and flat-VII chords (Bb and C) before returning to the riff. For these 4 bars - which comprise the bridge - the harmonic rhythm is halved, with a full bar between each chord change.

There is no new musical material in the rest of the record: two passes of the riff, the final verse and pre-chorus before concluding with repeated choruses. Overall the song exhibits a reasonably high degree of musical invention mixing blues material cast in a relatively modern harmonic setting with traditional tonal music.

Music Chart

These are the known statistics for the various countries' music charts. If you can fill in the missing information or know of charting information in other countries, please let me know at the email address listed at the bottom of this page.

	Week 1	Week 2	Week 3	Week 4	Week 5	Week 6	Week 7	Week 8	Week 9	Week 10	Week 11	Week 12	Week 13	Week 14	Week 15	Week 16	Week 17	Week 18	Week 19	Week 20	Week 21	Week 22	Week 23	Week 24
UK Official Top 50 Chart Entry Date: May 8, 1976	41	24	21	11	9 (June 5, 1976)	12	15	33
USA Billboard Hot 100 Chart Entry Date: July 4, 1976	87	77	67	57	47	42	34	30	20	17	13	7	6 (September 26, 1976)	6 (October 3, 1976)	6 (October 10, 1976)	7	14	32	51	61	80	80
USA Cash Box Top 100 Chart Entry Date: June 26, 1976	88	79	70	62	57	43	30	24	17	14	12	9	7	6	5 (October 2, 1976)	5 (October 9, 1976)	5 (October 16, 1976)	16	26	33	36	42	44	67
USA Record World Top 40 Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #5 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart
Australia Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #3 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart
Canada Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #3 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart
Hong Kong Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #9 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart
India Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #10 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart
Ireland Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #6 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart
New Zealand Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #5 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart
Norway Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #7 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart
South Africa Chart Entry Date: [DATE UNKNOWN]	Peak at #1 during a run of an unknown number of weeks on the chart

Releases

Here are all the known UK releases of the song:

Devil Woman (Standard Release)

• Running Time: 3:41
• Released On:
  
  • Devil Woman 7" single (1976 April 23 — UK — EMI EMI 2448)
  • I'm Nearly Famous LP album (1976 May — UK — EMI EMC 3122)
  • 40 Golden Greats LP album (1977 October — UK — EMI EMTVS 6)
  • I'm Nearly Famous LP album (1982 May — UK — Fame FA 3010)
  • Cliff 7" singles box set (1982 — UK — EMI CRBOX ONLY 1)
  • Devil Woman 7" single (1982 — UK — EMI EMI 2448)
  • The Video Connection VHS videotape (1983 — UK — Picture Music ?)
  • From The Heart LP album (1985 — UK — Telly Disk TELLY28)
  • It's A Small World LP album (1985 May — UK — Myrrh MYRR1209)
  • It's A Small World CD album (1985 May — UK — Myrrh MYRCD 1209)
  • The Video Connection VHS videotape (1992 — UK — 2 Entertain Video MC2081)
  • The 31st Of February Street/I'm Nearly Famous CD album (1993 October 4 — UK — EMI 0777 7 80491 2 8)
  • It's A Small World CD album (1994 — UK — Alliance ALD 023)
  
  

Devil Woman (Edited Remix Version)

• Running Time: 3:35
• Released On:
  
  • 40 Golden Greats CD album (1989 July — UK — EMI CDS 7924252)
  • 1970s CD (1998 October 12 — UK — EMI 7243 4 97134 2 0)
  • 1960s 1970s 1980s CD album (1998 October — UK — EMI 7243 4 98264 2 7)
  • The Whole Story - His Greatest Hits CD album (2000 October 9 — UK — EMI 7243 5 29322 2 1)
  • I'm Nearly Famous CD album (2001 July 9 — UK — EMI 7243 5 33114 2 1)
  • The Singles Collection CD album (2002 August 12 — UK — EMI 7243 5 37551 2 6)
  • Platinum Collection CD album (2005 November 14 — UK — EMI 0946 3 33803 2 5)
  • The Collection CD album (2006 April — UK — Marks & Spencer MS2037)
  • ...And They Said It Wouldn't Last! {My 50 Years In Music} CD album box set (2008 September 15 — UK — EMI 5099921659225)
    [The Hits: Number Ones Around The World CD (EMI 5099921659720)]
  • 50th Anniversary Album CD album (2008 November 3 — UK — EMI 50999 2 42389 2 2)
  
  

Devil Woman (London Palladium - March 4 1978)

• Running Time: 3:36
• Written By: Terry Britten & Christine Holmes
• Produced By: Bruce Welch
• Engineered By: Tony Clark
• Remixed by: Peter Vince
• Remix Location: Abbey Road, London
• Performed By: Cliff Richard (vocals), Terry Britten (guitar), Dave Christopher (guitar), Graham Murray (guitar), Mo Foster (bass), Graham Todd (keyboards), Graham Jarvis (drums), Clem Cattini (drums), Tony Rivers (backing vocals), Stuart Calver (backing vocals), John Perry (backing vocals)

• Released On:
  
  • Thank You Very Much LP album (1979 February 2 — UK — EMI EMTV 15)
  • Thank You Very Much LP album (1984 October — UK — Music For Pleasure MFP 41 56771)
  • Green Light/Thank You Very Much CD album (1993 October 4 — UK — EMI 0777 7 80496 2 3)
  • Thank You Very Much CD album (2004 July 26 — UK — EMI 7243 4 73356 2 4)
  
  

Devil Woman (Savoy Theatre, New York - April 2 1981)

• Running Time: Unknown
• Written By: Terry Britten & Christine Holmes
• Produced By: Unknown
• Engineered By: Unknown
• Performed By: Cliff Richard (vocals), other artists and instruments unknown

• Released On: Unreleased

Devil Woman (Royal Albert Hall, London - November 23 1982)

• Running Time: 4:54
• Written By: Terry Britten & Christine Holmes
• Produced By: Cliff Richard & Richard Hewson
• Engineered By: John Kurlander
• Mixed By:Keith Bessey
• Mix Location:Strawberry Studios South, Surrey
• Performed By: Cliff Richard (vocals), The London Philharmonic Orchestra (orchestra), Richard Hewson (orchestra conductor), David Cooke (synthesizer), Mark Griffiths (bass), Graham Jarvis (drums), Steve Gray (piano), Tony Rivers (backing vocals), Tony Harding (backing vocals), Stuart Calver (backing vocals), John Perry (backing vocals)

• Released On:
  
  • Dressed For The Occasion LP album (1983 May 9 — UK — EMI EMC 3432)
  • Dressed For The Occasion CD album (1989 July — UK — EMI CDP 792420 2)
  • Dressed For The Occasion CD album (2004 January 19 — UK — EMI 7243 583389 2 8)
  
  

Devil Woman (Sydney, Australia - November 1984)

• Running Time: 4:19
• Written By: Terry Britten & Christine Holmes
• Produced By: Cliff Richard
• Engineered By: Unknown
• Performed By: Cliff Richard (vocals), Graham Jarvis (drums), Alan Park (keyboards), Dave Cooke (keyboards), John Clark (guitar), Mart Jenner (guitar), Mark Griffiths (bass), Tony Rivers (backing vocals), John Perry (backing vocals), Stuart Calver (backing vocals)

• Released On:
  
  • Rock In Australia VHS videotape (1985 — UK — Picture Music MC2056)
  • Rock In Australia VHS videotape (1991 — UK — 2 Entertain Video ?)
  
  

Devil Woman (May 1988)

• Running Time: 3:50
• Written By: Terry Britten & Christine Holmes
• Produced By: Unknown
• Engineered By: Unknown
• Performed By: Cliff Richard (vocals), Alan Park (keyboards), Mark Griffiths (bass), John Clark (guitar), Steve Lauri (guitar), Paul Moessl (keyboards), Henry Spinetti (drums, percussion), Mick Mullins (backing vocals), Peter Howarth (backing vocals)

• Released On: Live & Guaranteed 1988! videotape/CD album (1995 March — UK — EMI Sound & Vision 7243 8 31697 2 6)

Devil Woman (My Kinda Life Version)

• Running Time: 3:50
• Record Date: September 8 & 9 1975 (original backing track), April 20 to 23 1992 (new instrumentation)
• Record Location: Abbey Road, London (original backing track), R.G. Jones Recording Studios, Wimbledon (new instrumentation)
• Written By: Terry Britten & Christine Holmes
• Produced By: Bruce Welch (original backing track), Cliff Richard & Paul Moessl (new instrumentation)
• Engineered By: Tony Clark & John Barrett (original backing track), Gerry Kitchingham & Ben Robbins (new instrumentation)
• Performed By: Cliff Richard (vocals), Terry Britten (guitar), Alan Tarney (bass), Clem Cattini (drums), Graham Todd (keyboards), Tony Rivers (backing vocals), Paul Moessl (drums, keyboards), John Clark (guitar)

• Released On:
  
  • My Kinda Life CD album (1992 May 18 — France — EMI 7994322)
  • Human Work Of Art CD single CD2 (1993 June 1 — UK — EMI CDEM 267/7243 8 80658 2 5)
  
  

Devil Woman (Live And Kicking Tour - April/May 2004)

• Running Time: Unknown
• Record Date: April 4 to 24 2004
• Record Location: Royal Albert Hall, London
• Produced By: Unknown
• Engineered By: Unknown
• Performed By: Cliff Richard (vocals), Alan Park (keyboards), Keith Hayman (keyboards), Mick Mullins (backing vocals), Peter Howarth (backing vocals, guitar), Keith Murrell (backing vocals), Peter May (drums), John Clark (guitar), Steve Stroud (bass), Mike Haughton (brassy instruments)

• Released On: Unreleased (bootlegged)

Tours

Devil Woman has been performed on most all tours following its release. Cliff has taken to doing a particular cat-like dance on stage while performing the song.

More information on Cliff's performance of Devil Woman on tour and various live performances will be determined at a future date.

Pictures

UK vinyl single * EMI * EMI 2458	UK I'm Nearly Famous album * EMI * EMC 3122	UK vinyl 1981 re-issue single * EMI * EMI 2458	USA vinyl single * Rocket Record Company/MCA Records * PIG-40574	USA vinyl re-issue single * Capitol Records * URC 1107
Holland vinyl single * EMI * 5C 006-06 143	Germany vinyl single * EMI * 1C 006-06143

Cover Versions

• Hank Marvin on his Hank Plays Cliff album (1995)
• Cradle of Filth on their Nymphetamine special edition album (2005)

Use in Movies and TV programs

There are no currently known movies or TV programs that have used Devil Woman as part of the soundtrack.

Sheet Music

   
Please note that because this is published and copyrighted material, the full sheet music cannot be shown here.

Promotional Videos and TV Performances

There was a promotional video made of Devil Woman that features just Cliff and a microphone on a black soundstage. The entire video uses optical effects to show repeated images of Cliff singing the song that often fade into the background. The performance is a lip synch of the album/version of the song. And the video has never been commercially released.

Televised performances of the song will be documented at length at a future date.

Quotations

Devil Woman (Standard Release)
"[Devil Woman is] still No. 1 in my chart!"
Cliff Richard (1985 - liner notes for From The Heart album)

"The most successful of [the 1976 singles], Devil Woman reached No.9 and Miss You Nights No.15... For the September 1975 sessions at Abbey Road, three songs had been channelled to Cliff through Bruce Welch, who was producer for Devil Woman, I Can't Ask For Anymore Than You and Miss You Nights. Collectively these singles showed that Cliff had not only caught up with the contemporary scene, but was breaking new ground as well. April 23 1976: Cliff's 66th single, Devil Woman/Love On [sic], is released. One reviewer, Bob Edmonds, asks: 'Has Cliff been caught up again? He cut a previous single, Honky Tonk Angel, without apparently knowing what it was about. This time someone may have forgotten to tell him what the words devil and woman mean. You see, Cliffie, a devil is a naughty person and a woman is more or less a person of the opposite sex. Now, is it right for an upstanding young man to sing about naughtiness and sex? Isn't this just setting a bad example to his followers?' June 26 1976: Devil Woman picks up heavy 'FM' air-play on San Fanciscan radio stations. August 1976: In America, Devil Woman enters the Cashbox and Billboard charts to give Cliff his third-ever hit Stateside and his first since It's All In The Game in 1964. October 1976: His single Devil Woman becomes Cliff Richard's biggest-ever hit on the other side of the Atlantic, making both the No.6 position in the Billboard charts and the No. 5 spot in the rival Cash Box chart."
Mike Read, Nigel Goodall & Peter Lewry (1995 - The Complete Chronicle)

"...there is a common misconception that Cliff had no success in the United States until Devil Woman in 1976. Although it is true that the Rocket Records release was his first American Top Tenner, Living Doll did reach the US Top 30 [in 1959]."
Paul Gambaccini (1997 - liner notes for The Rock 'N' Roll Years 1958-1963 album)

"It would be difficult to decide whether Devil Woman or We Don't Talk Anymore [as one of my greatest experiences]. Devil Woman, I think, is the record I'd most like to be remembered for. But We Don't Talk Anymore is the biggest single I ever sung. [...] Yeah, [Devil Woman was about the occult], but it was a warning against the occult. In fact, I added some words... I just changed... You don't have to change many words to make it positive. Originally, it was just the story of a man who goes and meets with a woman who can read the future. And he had nothing but bad luck. And that's okay, but I thought to myself, I don't want to sing about the occult unless I speak against it. And so all I did was change a few lyrics and said, 'You'd better stay away. Beware the devil woman. If you find yourself with her, then get out of there fast.' And I changed it and made it really positive. And the really good part of this story is that when I was in Australia a girl came to me... She wrote a letter saying, 'I was about to become involved with the occult and I heard Devil Woman.' And she said, 'I listened to the lyrics and I listened to the warning and I didn't go.' And she said, 'I'm only writing to tell you now that I'm a Christian in this church in Melbourne and God has entered my life.' And I thought, isn't that fantastic. Devil Woman may have been recorded... I know I like it. I'm sure a lot of you would have liked Devil Woman. But I like to think that this song was written for her because it saved her life."
Cliff Richard (December 26, 1998 - Musikbutikken TV show)

"It is ironic that what is arguably the most significant recording date of Cliff Richard's post rock 'n' roll career came about almost by accident, when, in one forty-eight hour period in September 1975, Cliff made the decision to record, under the production guidance of Bruce Welch, Devil Woman and Miss You Nights. It was these two recordings, later released as top side singles in February and May 1975 respectively, that would set the tone for what many would call the renaissance of Cliff Richard's recording career. Cliff had already been given... Devil Woman, the story of a seductive fortune teller, not by Welch, but by the writer Terry Britten, some months earlier but had done nothing with it. It was only through Welch's sheer persistence and a no let-up pressure that Cliff ended up recording the song, exactly as the demo had sounded... Although Miss You Nights, the first single to be released [from the I'm Nearly Famous sessions] sold well enough to place Cliff back in the top twenty for the first time in two years, ever since Hangin' On [sic] charted just outside the ten in May 1974, it was Devil Woman, released two months later that re-established his chart presence once more, eventually becoming Cliff's biggest selling single since The Young Ones in 1961. He was also given another chance of a stab at the American singles market, thanks to Elton John and manager John Reid's Rocket label releasing the track that June. [...] With Devil Woman, things momentarily changed. The record entered the Billboard charts at number eighty-four, and over the coming two months slowly crept its way into the top ten eventually peaking at number six, becoming in the process Cliff's first American million seller. Released in May 1976 this single gave Cliff his first top ten single since Power To All Our Friends back in 1973. After entering the chart on 8 May 1976 at #41 it climbed to #9 during a run of 12 weeks. The single qualified for a gold award from the Record Industry Association of America."
Peter Lewry & Nigel Goodall (July 2001 - liner notes for I'm Nearly Famous remaster album)

"As [Terry] Britten has previously done with Devil Woman [songwriters], the riff came from him, the story from someone else. With Devil Woman, it was from Christine Holmes, a singer and children's television presenter who came up with the title and wrote the story."
Peter Lewry & Nigel Goodall (July 2001 - liner notes for Rock 'N' Roll Juvenile remaster album)

"In the case of Devil Woman, for instance... You know, it's interesting, when I first recorded Devil Woman, the press in Britain said, 'Oh!' They tutted their tongues and said, 'Oh my goodness! Here's Christian Cliff Richard singing about the devil and you know, devil is Satan and woman is sex. Sex and Satan! Oh, Cliff!' And I guess they were just having fun. But they kind of missed the point as quite often critics do miss the point. Particularly if they're not necessarily fans of yours. And I can understand that people aren't fans of everybody that they criticize. Devil Woman in fact, was a song that is anti-the occult. So it was easy for me to agree to sing it. It was-- I did change some of the lyrics to make sure that it was anti-occult. And I don't know whether I've told you this Steve and Johnnie, when I went to Australia once, I got a letter from a girl saying she was about to become involved with the occult, when a friend of hers said, 'Look, I know your a fan of Cliff's. Just listen to this new record, Devil Woman.' And she said in her letter, 'I listened to the song and I heeded the warning in the lyrics. And I'm now a member of a church in Melbourne and helping run the Sunday school...' And I'm thinking, 'Oh my goodness. That record may well have been recorded just for her.'"
Cliff Richard (February 18, 2005 - WGN Radio 720 Chicago interview)

"The intro to Devil Woman - I got that idea from Heard It through the Grapevine [sic]. Without a doubt. 'Cause I was so fascinated with the mystery of [Sings intro melody to Grapevine] and the atmosphere it created straight away. When you listen to Devil Woman at the start it's got the real mystery to it. You don't know quite what's going to happen. It's a bit of a riff, yeah. I like riffs. I can use it a few times. Carrie was another one. Actually it was quite involved, that one, but still had that mystery. I love creating atmosphere, it's really important. Yeah [Devil Woman was quite a radical departure for Cliff Richard in 1976] I had that riff for quite a while and at sound checks I'd just work on it. And then I got together with somebody who did a few lyrics and I don't know how that came about, we've only ever written the one song together. But these odd things happen in your life which are fantastic. You suddenly find yourself in a flat in Kensington, co-writing. You think 'Why the hell am I doing this? I don't want to work with this person.' And then you find yourself there. I said, 'Well, let's write a song for Cliff. I've got this riff.' And she came up with a title, and I thought, well it's not a very original title, it's been done. There had already been a song called Devil Woman, a country song. Marty Robbins. But it worked. And it was commercial. Christine Holmes, her name was. She was a TV presenter at one time. Oh yeah, [Cliff liked it straight away and] Bruce Welch went crazy. We had a great time recording it at Abbey Road. It was fantastic. And then it all went horribly wrong. 'Cause Cliff had this Honky Tonk Angel song out and somebody said, 'Oh, Cliff obviously doesn't know what a honky tonk angel is, a prostitute, and here is Cliff Richard, the Christian, singing about a prostitute.' And poor old naive Cliff, as soon as he realise, he pulled the record. Killed it off. And of course what's the next thing you do after that? Well you can't do that, you see. So it sat on the shelf for a year. We recorded it in '74 at Abbey Road, Allan Clarke from the Hollies was walking down the corridor, came in, put his head around and went, 'That's a hit.' And the engineer went, 'America. This is going to be a hit in America.' And Cliff's never had a hit in America, so I'm going, 'Ah, people, what do they know?' Mr Confidence, you know. But when they brought it out, I remember I was in Epsom in the kitchen, I was making my breakfast, it was eight o'clock in the morning, and it came on and he said, 'Listen to this! You're never going to guess who this is!' He said, 'I'll play it again! I'll tell you what, let's have a competition. You ring in and tell me who you think this is singing this song.' And I don't believer this - twice he's played it. Then he played it three times in a row, and I'm going, 'Wow!' It sounded fantastic on the radio. And there was this buzz. It was huge in America. Even now, it gets played in America. I would have liked to do more like that, but Cliff being the beast that he is has got this thing about always trying something different. Which is accepted here, but in America you had Devil Woman out and in America if that's what you do, that's what you do. But he came out next with this falsetto, funny, lightweight track, and I thought, why on earth are they wasting this opportunity by not following through with a similar vibe?"
Terry Britten (2005 - Songwriters Speak by Debbie Kruger)

"One of the most successful of the 1970s singles was Devil Woman, which although it missed the coveted chart position in the UK, it was #1 in South Africa. It was one of several singles from the I'm Nearly Famous ground-breaking album that saw Cliff return to the contemporary music scene."
Nigel Goodall & Peter Lewry (2008 - liner notes for The Hits: Number Ones Around The World album in the ...And They Said It Wouldn't Last! {My 50 Years In Music} set)

Devil Woman (Edited Remix Version)
Some time in the late-1980s, Devil Woman was remixed, giving the bass and drums more kick. In addition, the song's fade out was changed to slightly earlier, cutting the last two lines of the fifth chorus-- it's assumed that this earlier fade was inadvertant and done by an engineer who was a little too fast on the knob. This version first appeared on the 1989 40 Golden Greats CD, then reappeared on the 1998 1970s album and has been released on all compilations and reissues since. It's not entirely clear why the song was remixed or changed, but it is probably the case that it was revisited for the 40 Golden Greats where several songs were slightly remastered from the album's LP counterpart.

Devil Woman (London Palladium - March 4 1978)
"[For the Thank You Very Much concert and album] the old hits were mainly drawn from the sixties repertoire while, for new material, naturally the recent his Devil Woman was chosen..."
Mike Read, Nigel Goodall & Peter Lewry (1995 - The Complete Chronicle)

"But with Cliff's older material, [John] Tobler continued in his review, things were somewhat different. '...more contemporary hits like Miss You Nights and Devil Woman were unsurprisingly very similar to the recorded versions, which is a tribute to the ability of Cliff and his band to reproduce their recorded sound in a live environment.'"
Peter Lewry & Nigel Goodall (July 2004 - liner notes for Thank You Very Much remaster album)

Devil Woman (Savoy Theatre, New York - April 2 1981)

Devil Woman (Royal Albert Hall, London - November 23 1982)

Devil Woman (Sydney, Australia - November 1984)

Devil Woman (May 1988)

Devil Woman (My Kinda Life Version)
This version uses the original 1975 take of the song, but adds new guitars over the existing backing track and the fade out is extended by an additional 15 seconds.

Devil Woman (Live And Kicking Tour - April/May 2004)

Robert Porter
January 2010