The Hit Songs of Dusty Springfield

Stay Awhile: This Number 13 UK hit is a song that includes much that is reminiscent of Phil Spector's Wall of Sound. It seems the three minute single had not fully arrived yet, as this clocks in at a little under two minutes.

I Just Don't Know What to Do With Myself: One of Dusty Springfield's biggest hits of the 1960s, this is an emotionally laden ballad that defined her plaintive, soulful vocals. It reached Number 3 in the UK, but strangely failed to chart in the USA.

Losing You: Dusty's third and final UK Top 20 hit of 1964. Catch a glimpse of Gene Pitney in the video from the 1960s pop show Ready, Steady, Go!

Your Hurtin' Kinda Love: A minor Top Forty hit in the UK, this was nevertheless another Dusty vocal tour-de-force, as she infuses her soulful voice into a standard pop-style Sixties song.

In the Middle of Nowhere: Another huge hit in the UK that missed the mark in the US, the song is an uptempo "growler" from Dusty that made the Top Ten in July.

Some of Your Lovin': Written by the famed songwriting team of Gerry Goffin and Carole King, this song became Dusty Springfield's favourite performance and was another Top 10 hit in October.

Little By Little: 1966 was to be Dusty Springfield's most successful year singles wise. This first hit of the year really did not indicate the direction in which she was headed, but it nevertheless gave her a rock inspired Top 20 hit.

You Don't Have to Say You Love Me: Surprisingly, this was Dusty's only ever UK Number One hit. Originally an Italian song entitled Lo Che Non Vivo (Senza Te), it was given an English lyric full of unrequited love in which she gives one of her finest vocal performances.

Goin' Back: Not released as a single in the US, if pushed, this is quite possibly my favourite of Dusty Springfield's songs. Another track penned by Gerry Goffin and Carole King, Dusty's rendition will surely break your heart. It peaked at Number 10 in July.

All I See is You: Dusty is still in distress as the lyrics prove with this emotional ballad that saw it rise up the British charts to a peak of Number 9 in October.

I'll Try Anything: A return to an uptempo Dusty, this song was more reflective of her soul preferences, sounding somewhat like the Tamla Motown sound that she was happy to promote. However, it broke a streak of three UK Top 10 hits by only peaking at Number 13.

Give Me Time: This tearjerker followed later in 1967, but by this time the record buying public's attention was being drawn to the Summer of Love and not impassioned ballads. Still a fine recording, though it did not perform well in the music charts, peaking at a lowly Number 24. It became the B-Side of her American hit The Look of Love.

I Close My Eyes and Count to Ten: Dusty Springfield returned to the UK Top Five with this plaintive mid tempo number that produced yet another fine vocal performance.

Son of a Preacher Man: This would be Dusty Springfield's last UK Top 10 hit for eighteen years, but it seems she saved the best for last. As the 1960s came to a close, she finally recorded several songs in a genre that was close to her heart, with musicians whom she admired. Son of a Preacher Man was lifted from one of the best albums of the decade: Dusty in Memphis.

In the late 1980s, pop-synth duo The Pet Shop Boys rediscovered Dusty Springfield and featured her on their latest single of the time, What Have I Done to Deserve This? This led to a revival in her career and saw her appear in both the UK and US music charts into the early 1990s.

Several of these hit songs were either written and/or produced by The Pet Shop Boys and are included here. They are Nothing Has Been Proved, In Private, Reputation, and Arrested By You which were all taken from her UK Top Twenty album: Reputation & Rarities.

For the sake of completeness, it would be remiss to forget about Dusty's contribution to The Springfields' successful output of the early 1960s. Included here are the group's two major British hits, Island of Dreams and Say I Won't Be There, along with their US-only hit Silver Threads and Golden Needles.