Billy Don't Be a Hero Billy Don't Be a Hero "Billy Don't Be a Hero" is a 1974 pop song that was first a UK hit for Paper Lace and then, some months later, a US hit for Bo Donaldson and The Heywoods. The song was written and composed by two British songwriters, Mitch Murray and Peter Callander. Because the song was released in 1974, it was associated by some listeners with the Vietnam War, though the war to which it actually refers is never identified in the lyrics. It has been suggested that the drum pattern, references to a marching band leading soldiers in
Anyone Who Had a Heart (song) Olympic Studios on 21 January 1964. The Breakaways – who sang on Cilla Black's "Anyone Who Had a Heart" - also sing on Springfield's recording. Shirley Bassey, the vocalist for whom "Anyone Who Had a Heart" was brought to the UK, recorded it only in 1978 for her "The Magic Is You" album with veteran producer Nick DeCaro. He had previously produced a version by Vikki Carr included on the 1968 album "The Way of Today!". The 1982 B.E.F. album "Music of Quality and Distinction, Vol. 1" featured a rendering of "Anyone Who Had a Heart" by Sandie Shaw, marking