Released 1983 Genre Pop, new wave Label London | Recorded January 1982 Length 3:13 | |
Writer(s) Sara Dallin,
Siobhan Fahey,
Keren Woodward,
Robert Hodgens | ||
"Young at Heart" is a pop song first recorded in the 1980s by the British female singing trio Bananarama and appeared on their debut album Deep Sea Skiving in 1983. The song was later recorded by the Scottish pop group The Bluebells.
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Bananarama version
Bananarama's version of the song is credited to Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward of Bananarama, and Robert Hodgens of The Bluebells, Fahey's then-boyfriend.
The Bluebells' version
The song was reworked in 1984 by The Bluebells, a version originally credited to Hodgens and Fahey upon its re-release in 1993. In 2002, the session musician Bobby Valentino, who performed the violin solo on The Bluebells' version of "Young at Heart", won the right to be recognised as co-author of the song after taking legal action.
The Bluebells' version of the song was a UK top 10 chart success on two occasions, first reaching number 8 in the UK Singles Chart on its original release in 1984. Almost a decade later, after The Bluebells had disbanded, the song was re-released as a single in 1993 after being featured in a TV advert on British television for the Volkswagen Golf. It became a number one hit for four weeks, leading to the band reforming temporarily to perform the song on BBC Television's Top of the Pops, where they sent up the unexpected re-release by parodying various other famous acts of the time such as Shabba Ranks and 2 Unlimited. The performance from 25 March is also remembered for an unusual camera technique where a camera was fixed to the bow of the violinist, leading to several fast and humorous shots of the bow being used.