1966 No. 1 Love Song, Also Sang By Cover King Barry Manilow, Topped The Charts 60 Years Ago Today
While it's not necessarily true that the 1960s were a simpler, sweeter time, sometimes the music sure sounds like it. The '60s definitely granted us plenty of sweet-sounding love songs, one of which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 the last week of September 1966 and stayed there for three weeks: "Cherish" by the Association.
No matter their success at the time, the Association are something of a forgotten group at this point. Formed in 1965 from a disgruntled group of singers who broke off from their original 13-man group, the five-man Association started with some gigs at local places in and around Los Angeles. Characterized by lush harmonies and a versatile selection of songs, the group quickly cinched a record deal and put out their debut LP the next year in 1966, "And Then ... Along Comes The Association," which featured "Cherish." The song is a vocal-heavy ballad about unrequited love that showcases the group's harmonic talents and also squeezes some admirable nuance into its lyrics: "I could say I need you, but then you'd realize / That I want you just like a thousand other guys / Who'd say they love you with all the rest of their lies."
The Association could have faded away if not for the croons of top-tier songster Barry Manilow, who nabbed a Grammy nomination in 1977 for an ironically named cover of "I Write the Songs" (written by Beach Boy Bruce Johnston). Manilow covered "Cherish" along with the OG Association on his 2006 album, "The Greatest Songs of the Sixties."
Written by the Association, covered by Manilow
"Cherish" came from the pen of Association drummer and co-chief songwriter, Terry Kirkman, and comes with a nifty backstory that illustrates how much he, his band, and the producer cherished the song. Not wanting to alter the song's structure, which includes two bridges, Association producer Curt Boettcher simply lied about the song length when submitting it to radio stations, saying it was under the desired three minutes long (it's about three-and-a-half minutes long). This type of grit might seem out of place, but "Cherish" has more bite than you might think. The gamble paid off, and "Cherish" was a hit.
By the time Barry Manilow got around to covering "Cherish" way later in 2006, he'd already established himself as a master of melody-making, right down to an iconic 1972 jingle you might still recognize today. His version of "Cherish" amps up the background textures and features crisp, modern production — enough to elevate it above the quality of the original, in our opinion.
Manilow even employed the Association themselves for the song, which is actually a medley along with another No. 1 Association song from 1967, "Windy." Manilow's cover, officially titled "Cherish/Windy," blends the two songs so seamlessly that you wouldn't even realize you were listening to a medley if you weren't familiar with the originals. This version of "Cherish" (and "Windy") captures the spirit of the original and infuses some extra gusto and theatricality into the proceedings. The result is a song that ought to satisfy those who loved the Association when they hit No. 1, and delivers to the public a simple-sounding yet deceptively complex love song.