Laurie London - He's Got The Whole World (In His Hands) (1958)

Today we're going to discuss an almost totally forgotten hit record along with a little bit of related Billboard chart history.

The inspiration for this post came about while sorting through some extremely old 45s that I didn't remember I owned. I've had "He's Got The Whole World (In His Hands)" by Laurie London - a rare, popular, gospel hit - in my record collection since my childhood, even though it wasn't really mine. The single belonged to either my mother or my grandmother who lived with us. I played it once in awhile because I was always allowed free access to their records, and it was eventually absorbed into my collection.

Despite the name, teenager Laurie London (born January 19, 1944) was a boy singer who - at age thirteen - became a one-hit wonder in his native UK and in America the following year.

Information about London is sparse. Details vary depending on the particular website you're reading, but according to Wikipedia - not my favorite source, but in this case it's the place where I've found the most useful information on him - it appears the young man left the music business at age nineteen and managed a hotel until he sold it in 2000.

In addition to English, London also recorded in German, singing songs that were written specifically for him that would appeal to the European Union's most populated country.

As you can see, the record was released in the USA on Capitol. At the time, the label was a wholly owned subsidiary of Britain's EMI whose label, Parlophone, issued the record there. Recording for Parlophone indicates that he probably worked at Abbey Road Studios, quite possibly with the label's studio head, George Martin, who was famous for discovering and producing The Beatles.

"He's Got The Whole World (In His Hands)" is an old African-American spiritual that was published in 1927. It didn't become well-known to the general public until London's cover version topped the Most Played By Jockeys chart in the United States for four consecutive weeks in April 1958. It reached #12 in Britain the previous year.

The disc jockeys' survey wasn't the only one the recording industry employed throughout most of the 1950s to determine a record's popularity. Other frequently used charts at that time were Best Sellers In Stores where the single reached #2 and Most Played On Jukeboxes. They were all precursors to the current American Billboard Hot 100 that was launched in 1958. Most Played by Jockeys was discontiued later that year when the Hot 100 became the industry standard that continues to be used to this day and combines radio play, streaming, and both physical and digital sales to determine a song's popularity. The chart gives greater weight to sales figures and jukebox plays are no longer considered.

The song was the biggest American hit by a British male singer in the 50s. According to AllMusic, London enjoyed the first #1 hit by a British born artist after the birth of rock and roll, but as we all know quite well, it wouldn't be the last. The single became a certified gold record, yet few people remember it today.

The first video below is London performing on the Ed Sullivan Show while his record was at #1. It's followed by the original smash hit.