Tony Christie the UK Singles Chart with "I Did What I Did for Maria", which reached number two, and "Is This the Way to Amarillo", which peaked at number 18, all in 1971. Subsequently he had a minor hit with "Avenues and Alleyways" which reached number 37, and was the theme to the television series "The Protectors". In addition he also charted with 'Drive Safely Darlin' in early 1976 which was recorded on the MCA label and reached 35 in the UK chart. "Is This the Way to Amarillo" had sold more than one million copies by September 1972, and was awarded
(Is This the Way to) Amarillo the song was first released in Europe, where it has become much more popular than in the composers' native country, with a big-band/orchestral pop arrangement sung by Tony Christie. Christie's version was a major hit in Europe and a modest success in his native United Kingdom upon its release, then became even more popular in the mid-2000s when the song was reissued. As Christie's version failed to make a major impact in the U.S., Sedaka released his own recording of the song in 1977, which narrowly missed the top 40 but was an easy listening hit in the U.S. and