50 years in the music business.

It was in 1958 that Harry Webb as Cliff was Christened, became the lead singer of a rock and roll group called at the time the Drifters. For his debut recording session, the producer Norrie Paramor provided Cliff with "Schoolboy Crush", a cover of an American record by Bobby Helms, but he was allowed to record one of his own songs for the B-side; this was "Move It", which was written by one of the Drifters, on a number 715 Green Line bus on the way to Cliff’s house for a rehearsal. Anyway, there are several assumed reasons why, but the A-side was replaced by the intended B-side and the single went to No. 2 in the UK charts; and this was such an important recording, John Lennon was quoted in the future as saying that "Move It" was the first English rock record. At the time though the song and the way Cliff performed it were not regarded in the same wholesome way that Sir Cliff is regarded as today.

Cliff was marketed and thought of as the British equivalent to Elvis Presley and he adopted Presley-like dress and hairstyle. In performance he struck a pose of rock attitude, rarely smiling or looking at the audience or camera. His third follow up single was important and it was "Living Doll" and that was the first record that the Drifters backed him on. The group was then obliged to change its name to "The Shadows" after legal complications with the U.S. Drifters.
The band also performed on their own, but even after having 5 number one hits, they continued to appear and record with him and wrote many of his hits. On more than one occasion, a Shadows' instrumental replaced a Cliff Richard song at the top of the British charts.

Cliff Richard's fifth single "Living Doll" triggered a softer, more relaxed, sound. And subsequent hits cemented his status as a mainstream pop entertainer and throughout the early sixties his hits were consistently in the top five.
In the early days, Cliff sometimes recorded without the Shadows in order to cater to other styles and often with an orchestra on songs such as "It's all in the Game" and "Constantly". Cliff Richard and The Shadows never achieved hit status in the United States, although they toured and were well-received; but support and distribution from the record company proved costly, and the chance was lost.

Cliff and The Shadows appeared in six feature films, most notably The Young Ones, Summer Holiday, Wonderful Life and Finders Keepers.
As with other existing rock acts in Britain, Cliff’s career was affected by the sudden advent of The Beatles and the Mersey sound, but his popularity was such that he weathered the storm. He also moved more into Christianity and in 1968 he sang the UK's entry in the Eurovision Song Contest: "Congratulations;" and it came second to Spain's entry by one vote, which has since been thought to be a vote buying scam by the winners. Cliff has also sang another Eurovision song,  “Power to All Our Friends;” and presented the Eurovision preview programmes and heats.

After the Shadows split in 1968, Cliff continued to record and he has been recording ever since and has graced many television shows with his songs and friendly chat and even got a singsong going at Wimbledon, when rain was preventing play. The culmination of his career came in 1995, when he was knighted, the first rock star to be so honoured. And in 2008 he is celebrating 50 years in show business. Well done Sir Cliff, you are a great guy.