Editing Cilla Black (section)

===Early fame – the Brian Epstein years===
Black signed her first contract with longtime friend and neighbour Terry McCann, but this contract was never honoured as it was made when she was underage (the age of majority was then 21) and her father subsequently signed her with [[Brian Epstein]].<ref name="Guardianobit">{{cite news|last=Laing|first=Dave|title=Cilla Black obituary|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/aug/02/cilla-black|date=2 August 2015|access-date=3 August 2015}}</ref>

She was introduced to Epstein by [[John Lennon]], who persuaded him to audition her. Lennon was encouraged by his [[Mimi Smith|Aunt Mimi]] to introduce Black to Epstein. Epstein had a portfolio of local artists but initially showed little interest in her. Her first audition was a failure, partly because of nerves, and partly because the Beatles (who supported her) played the songs in their usual vocal key rather than re-pitching them for Black's voice.<ref name="Independent">{{cite news|title=Cilla Black: Singer who was signed by Brian Epstein and went on to forge a successful career as a much-loved presenter|newspaper=The Independent|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/cilla-black-singer-who-was-signed-by-brian-epstein-and-went-on-to-forge-a-successful-career-as-a-muchloved-presenter-10434033.html|access-date=4 August 2015}}</ref>

In her autobiography ''What's It All About?'' she wrote:<ref>{{cite book|author=Cilla Black|title=What's It All About?|date=4 May 2009|publisher=Random House|isbn=978-1407025162|page=65}}</ref><blockquote>I'd chosen to do "Summertime", but at the very last moment I wished I hadn't. I adored this song, and had sung it when I came to [[Birkenhead]] with [[The Big Three (English band)|the Big Three]], but I hadn't rehearsed it with the Beatles and it had just occurred to me that they would play it in the wrong key. It was too late for second thoughts, though. With one last wicked wink at me, John set the group off playing. I'd been right to worry. The music was not in my key and any adjustments that the boys were now trying to make were too late to save me. My voice sounded awful. Destroyed—and wanting to die—I struggled on to the end.</blockquote>But after seeing her another day, at the [[Blue Angel (nightclub)|Blue Angel jazz club]], Epstein contracted with Black as his only female client on 6 September 1963.<ref name="Thompson2014">{{cite book|author=Douglas Thompson|title=Cilla - Queen of the Swinging Sixties|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qlkbBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT49|date=4 September 2014|publisher=John Blake Publishing, Limited|isbn=978-1-78418-006-5|pages=49–}}</ref> Epstein introduced Black to [[George Martin]] who signed her to [[Parlophone|Parlophone Records]] and produced her début single, "[[Love of the Loved]]" (written by [[Lennon–McCartney|Lennon and McCartney]]), which was released only three weeks after she joined Epstein. Despite an appearance on [[ABC Weekend TV]]'s popular [[Thank Your Lucky Stars (TV series)|''Thank Your Lucky Stars'']], the single peaked at a modest No. 35 in the UK, a relative failure compared to the débuts of Epstein's most successful artists (the Beatles, [[Gerry and the Pacemakers]] and [[Billy J. Kramer]] with [[The Dakotas (band)|the Dakotas]]).<ref name="Allmusicbio">{{cite web|title=Cilla Black Biography|publisher=Allmusic.com|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/cilla-black-mn0000122023/biography|access-date=4 August 2015}}</ref>
[[File:It's for You - Suffer Now I Must - Cash Box ad 1964.jpg|thumb|''[[Cashbox (magazine)|Cashbox]]'' advertisement, 29 August 1964]] 
Black's second single, released at the beginning of 1964, was a cover of the [[Burt Bacharach]]–[[Hal David]] composition "[[Anyone Who Had a Heart (song)|Anyone Who Had a Heart]]", which had been written for [[Dionne Warwick]]. The single beat Warwick's recording into the UK charts and rose to No. 1 in Britain in February 1964 (spending three weeks there), selling 800,000 UK copies in the process.<ref>{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p15856/biography|pure_url=yes}}|title=All Music Guide Cilla Black: Biography|date=12 April 2009|access-date=9 April 2009}}</ref> Her second UK No. 1 success, "[[You're My World]]", was an English-language rendition of the Italian popular song "Il Mio Mondo" by composer [[Umberto Bindi]]. She also enjoyed chart success with the song in America, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, South Africa and Canada. Both songs sold over one million copies worldwide, and were awarded [[music recording sales certification|gold discs]].<ref name="The Book of Golden Discs">{{cite book|first=Joseph|last=Murrells|year=1978|title=The Book of Golden Discs|edition=2nd|publisher=Barrie and Jenkins Ltd|location=London, UK|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/172 172–73]|isbn=0-214-20512-6|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/172}}</ref>

Black's two No. 1 successes were followed by the release of another Lennon–McCartney composition, "[[It's for You]]", as her fourth UK single. [[Paul McCartney]] played piano at the recording session, and the song proved to be another success for Black, peaking at No. 7 on the UK charts.<ref name="UKcharts">{{cite web|title=Cilla Black|publisher=Official Charts Company|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/10866/cilla-black|access-date=4 August 2015}}</ref> In [[CHUM Chart|Canada]] it reached No. 39.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://chumtribute.com/64-09-28-chart.jpg| title=CHUM Hit Parade - September 28, 1964}}</ref>

Black belonged to a generation of British female singers which included [[Dusty Springfield]], [[Helen Shapiro]], [[Petula Clark]], [[Sandie Shaw]], [[Marianne Faithfull]], and [[Lulu (singer)|Lulu]]. Other than Clark, these artists were not singer-songwriters but interpreters of 1960s contemporary popular music by songwriters and producers. Black recorded much material during this time, including songs written by [[Phil Spector]], [[Tim Hardin]] and Burt Bacharach. All were produced by George Martin at [[Abbey Road Studios]].<ref name="Stanley"/> [[Randy Newman]], writer and composer of "I've Been Wrong Before" which Cilla Black recorded in 1965, was quoted as saying: "Cilla Black's "I've Been Wrong Before" is about the best cover record anyone has ever done of my songs."<ref name="CB Complete">{{cite book  | last = Munns| first =Stephen| title =Completely Cilla| publisher = EMI| year = 2012}}</ref>

Black's version of "[[You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin']]" (1965) reached No. 2 on the UK charts. A week later [[the Righteous Brothers]]' original version of the same song went to No. 1 while Black's version dropped to No. 5. The single wasn't critically well received, however; [[the Rolling Stones]]' manager [[Andrew Loog Oldham]] took out an advert in the ''[[Melody Maker]]'' to deride Black's efforts compared with the original.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Medhurst|first1=Andy|title=Why Cilla Black was more than just a light entertainment star|url=http://www.open.edu/openlearn/history-the-arts/culture/media-studies/why-cilla-black-was-more-just-light-entertainment-star|website=OpenLearn|publisher=The Open University|access-date=7 August 2015}}</ref>

Being so closely associated with the Beatles, Black became one of a select group of artists in the 1964–65 period (the others being Billy J. Kramer & the Dakotas and [[Peter and Gordon]]) to record more than one Lennon–McCartney composition.<ref name="Guardianobit"/> Black continued to record Lennon–McCartney compositions throughout her time with Parlophone (1963–1973) and her recordings of "[[Yesterday (Beatles song)|Yesterday]]", "[[For No One]]" and "[[Across the Universe]]" became radio favourites. McCartney said Black's 1972 interpretation of "[[The Long and Winding Road]]" was the definitive version of the song.<ref name="Independent"/>

Black's career in the United States, although enthusiastically supported by Epstein and his PR team, was limited to a few television appearances (''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]'' among them), a 1965 cabaret season at the [[Plaza Hotel]] in New York City, and success with "You're My World", which made it to No. 26 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Cilla Black awards|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/cilla-black-mn0000122023/awards|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=4 August 2015}}</ref> The song was to be her only American Top 30 chart success, and [[Elvis Presley]] had a copy on his personal jukebox at his [[Graceland]] home. Black recognised that to achieve popular status in the USA she would need to devote much time to touring there. But she was plagued by homesickness and a sense of loneliness and returned to the UK.<ref name="RadioTimes"/>

In 1966 Black recorded the Bacharach-David song "[[Alfie (Burt Bacharach song)|Alfie]]", written as the signature song to the 1966 [[Alfie (1966 film)|feature film of the same name]]. While [[Cher]] sang "Alfie" on the closing credits of the American release of the film and Black on the UK version, Black was the only artist to have a hit with the song in the UK (No. 9). The next year, "Alfie" would become a success for Dionne Warwick in the US. Black's version of "Alfie" was arranged and conducted by Bacharach himself at the recording session at Abbey Road. Bacharach insisted on 31 separate takes, and Black cited the session as one of the most demanding of her recording career.<ref>{{cite news|last=Smith |first=Stephen |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/newsnight/4227326.stm |title=Bacharach still calling the tune |work=BBC News |date=8 September 2005 |access-date=3 August 2015}}</ref> For Bacharach's part, he said "...&nbsp;there weren't too many white singers around, who could convey the emotion that I felt in many of the songs I wrote but that changed with people like Cilla Black".<ref>{{cite web|title=Cilla—What's It All About|work=Stage & Screen|publisher=[[Lily Savage]]|date=21 December 2003|url=http://geocities.com/lilysavage_uk/radio.html|access-date=5 February 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027132031/http://geocities.com/lilysavage_uk/radio.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=27 October 2009}}</ref>

By the end of 1966, Black had been a guest on [[Peter Cook]] and [[Dudley Moore|Dudley Moore's]] show ''[[Not Only... But Also]]'', had appeared on ''The [[Eamonn Andrews]] Show'', and in a [[Ray Galton]]–[[Alan Simpson (scriptwriter)|Alan Simpson]] revue in London's [[West End theatre|West End]]—''Way Out in Piccadilly''—alongside [[Frankie Howerd]], and had starred in the television special ''Cilla at the Savoy'', which was one of the most watched music specials of the 1960s.<ref>{{cite web|title=Cilla's unique television spectacular "Cilla at the Savoy" arrived this week on DVD|publisher=CillaBlack.com|url=http://www.cillablack.com/cpt_news/cillas-unique-1966-television-spectacular-cilla-at-the-savoy-arrived-this-week-on-dvd|access-date=4 August 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141013140316/http://www.cillablack.com/cpt_news/cillas-unique-1966-television-spectacular-cilla-at-the-savoy-arrived-this-week-on-dvd|archive-date=13 October 2014}}</ref>

Epstein's attempts to make Black a film actress were less successful. A brief appearance in the beat film ''[[Ferry Cross the Mersey (film)|Ferry 'Cross the Mersey]]'' (1965) and a leading role alongside [[David Warner (actor)|David Warner]] in the psychedelic comedy ''[[Work Is a Four-Letter Word]]'' (1968) were largely ignored by film critics. In a 1997 interview with ''[[Record Collector]]'' magazine, Black revealed she was asked to appear in the film ''[[The Italian Job]]'' (1969), playing the part of [[Michael Caine|Michael Caine's]] girlfriend, but negotiations fell through between producers and her management over her fee.<ref name="RadioTimes">{{cite web|url=http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2015-08-03/cilla-black-in-her-own-words|title=Cilla Black in her own words|publisher=radiotimes.com|access-date=3 August 2015|archive-date=5 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150805000902/http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2015-08-03/cilla-black-in-her-own-words|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Epstein died of an accidental drug overdose in August 1967, not long after negotiating a contract with the [[BBC]] for Black to appear in a television series of her own. Relations between Epstein and Black had somewhat soured during the year prior to his death, largely because she felt he was not paying her career enough attention and the fact that her singles "A Fool Am I" (UK No. 13, 1966) and "What Good Am I?" (UK No. 24, 1967) were not big successes.

In her autobiography, Black said that Epstein had tried to pacify her by negotiating a deal that would see her representing the UK in the 1968 [[Eurovision Song Contest]]. However, Black refused on the basis that [[Sandie Shaw]] had won the previous year's contest and that the chances of another British female artist winning were few.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brooke |first=Michael |title=BFI Screenonline: Black, Cilla |url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/549919/index.html |website=[[Screenonline]]}}</ref>