Mary Hopkin was born into a Welsh-speaking family in Pontardawe; her father worked as a housing officer. She took weekly singing lessons as a child and began her musical career as a folk singer with a local group called the Selby Set and Mary. She released an EP of Welsh-language songs for a local record label called Cambrian, based in her hometown. Twiggy saw her winning the television talent show Opportunity Knocks and recommended her to Paul McCartney. She was one of the first artists to sign for Apple Records, owned by The Beatles.
Her debut single, “Those Were The Days”, produced by McCartney, was released in the UK on 30 August 1968. Despite competition from well-established star Sandie Shaw whose version was also released that year, Hopkin became Number 1 on the Uk Singles Chart. It reached number 2 on the US Billboard, where for three weeks it was held out of the top spot by the Beatles’ “Hey Jude”, and spent two weeks at number 1 on Canada’s RPM singles chart. It sold over 1,500,000 copies in the United States alone, and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA. Global sales topped 8,000,000.
In February 1969, Hopkin’s debut album, Postcard, again produced by McCartney, was released. It included covers of three songs from Donovan, who also played on the album, and one song each from George Martin and Harry Nilsson. It reached number 3 on the UK Albums chart, although it proved to be her solitary success in that chart. In the United States, Postcard reached number 28 on the Billboard.
The next single was “Goodbye”, written by McCartney), and released in March 1969. It reached number 2 on the UK Singles Chart, where it was kept from the top by the Beatles’ “Get Back”, number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number 15 on the RPM chart in Canada. Hopkin said she interpreted “Goodbye” as McCartney pledging to stop “micromanaging” her career, since she was uncomfortable with his positioning of her as a pop chanteuse. She also expressed dissatisfaction with her manager at this time, Terry Doran.
Hopkin’s third single, “Temma Harbour”, was a re-arrangement of a Philamore Lincoln song. Her first single not to be produced by McCartney, it was released in January 1970 and peaked at number 6 in the UK and number 42 in Canada. In the US, “Temma Harbour” reached number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 4 on the magazine’s Easy Listening chart.
In March 1970, Hopkin represented the United Kingdom in the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest, achieving second place with “Knock Knock Who’s There?” Produced by Mickie Most, “Knock, Knock Who’s There?” was released as a single in March 1970 and peaked at number 2 in the UK. It was a worldwide hit, selling over a million copies. Hopkin’s final big hit was “Think About Your Children”, released in October 1970, which reached number 19 in the UK. Hopkin has expressed dissatisfaction with the material produced by Most, who had taken over as her producer with “Temma Harbour”. After appearing in Eurovision, Hopkin wanted to return to her folk-music roots.
The last single to hit the British charts was “Let My Name Be Sorrow”, which reached number 46 in July 1971. It was produced by Tony Visconti, whom Hopkin had met earlier for a Welsh recording of “Sparrow”. “Let My Name Be Sorrow” was a hit in Poland in January 1972. Hopkin’s second album, Earth Song, Ocean Song, was released by Apple in October 1971. The album was produced by Visconti and included cover versions of songs written by Cat Stevens, Gallagher and Lyle and Ralph McTell, as well as the two title tracks by Liz Thorsen. Hopkin felt it was the album she had always wanted to make, so, coinciding with her marriage to Visconti and with little left to prove, she left the music scene. The album’s single, “Water, Paper and Clay”, missed the Billboard Hot 100. It was Hopkin’s last single for Apple Records, which she left in March 1972.
