"Yellow River" is a popular song recorded by the English band Christie. Written by band leader Jeff Christie, the song was offered to The Tremeloes, who recorded it with the intention of releasing it as a single early in 1970. However, after the success of their then most recent single, "Call Me Number One", and after considering it too pop-orientated for their future direction, they decided to follow it up with another of their own compositions, "By The Way", which ironically was only a minor Top 40 success. The song is the thoughts of a young man whose time in the army (presumably the Vietnam War, given the time the song was recorded) is over and he is looking forward to returning to his home town in the country on Yellow River. Producer Mike Smith therefore took their vocals off the recording and added those of Jeff Christie. Released in the spring of 1970, it became a massive international hit, reaching #1 on the UK singles chart for a single week in June 1970. It also reached #23 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the US. The Tremeloes' version, featuring lead vocals by drummer Dave Munden, has also appeared on various compilations of their greatest hits, both in English and also in Spanish as "No Comprendes", as it appeared as a single by them in Spain and in various South American countries, where they had always been popular.
"Yellow River" has spawned a host of cover versions by artists as diverse as R.E.M., Leapy Lee, Tubeless Hearts and a French version "L'Amerique" by Joe Dassin, as well as a Finnish version "Tuulensuojaan" by the eclipsed Ilkka "Danny" Lipsanen.
| Chart Position | Chart |
|---|---|
| 1 | UK Singles Chart |
| 23 | U.S Billboard Hot 100 |
| 2 | German Singles Chart |
| 4 | Swiss Singles Chart |
| 1 | Norwegian Singles Chart |
| Preceded by "Back Home" by England national football team |
UK number one single June 2 1970 |
Succeeded by "In the Summertime" by Mungo Jerry |
