Today’s classic song of the day for a beautiful Sunday morning is “Beautiful Sunday” by a British singer named Daniel Boone. Released in February of 1972, this sunny little single peaked at #15 on the Billboard Hot 100, #16 on the Cash Box Top 100, and #6 on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart. It was a Top Ten hit all around the world, hitting number one in Germany, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, and South Africa. (It peaked at #4 in Canada and #21 in Boone’s native UK.)
Not surprisingly, Daniel Boone was not Daniel Boone’s real name. The artist known as Daniel Boone was born Peter Green in Birmingham, England; he later changed his name to Peter Lee Stirling. It was under the Stirling name that he started a band called the Beachcombers in 1958, as their lead vocalist and guitarist. That band later became the Bruisers, touring with a singer named Tommy Bruce. That group broke up in 1967. In 1971, Stirling changed his name again, this time to Daniel Boone, and embarked on a solo career.
Green/Stirling/Boone wrote “Beautiful Sunday” with another British songwriter named Rod McQueen. It was his only hit in the U.S.; a previous release, a cover of “Daddy Don’t You Walk So Fast” (a hit for Wayne Newton here in the States), was a Top Twenty hit for Boone in the UK. He continued in the business for a number of years, mainly as a songwriter. Peter Green passed away in 2023 at the age of 80.
And here’s your bonus video of the day, a promo film for “Beautiful Sunday” from some Dutch television program back in 1972. It’s… interesting.
