heard "Les Trois Cloches" by Les Compagnons in Europe, and brought the record back to the US and played the song on his shows, which brought attention to the English version), and contacted the deejay to get a copy of the song. As radio stations at that time rarely played songs longer than three minutes, the Browns shortened each of the three verses to keep their recording under three minutes. The Browns recorded the song at the RCA Studio B in Nashville on June 3, 1959. The song was produced by Chet Atkins with Anita Kerr helping with the arrangement of the song. Atkins was convinced the song would be "the biggest hit ever", and told the Browns: "I've just recorded you a million-seller. There's no way you'll be quitting the business". The song was released on July 3, 1959. It reached number one on [[Billboard Hot 100|Billboard Hot 100]], staying there for four weeks. It also topped the Hot C&W Sides chart for 10 weeks, as well as reaching number ten on Billboards Hot R&B Sides chart. The song sold half a million copies within the first month of its debut on the chart, eventually selling over a million copies. The song received a Grammy nomination in 1959 for Best Record of the Year but lost to "Mack the Knife". Other versions The song has also been covered by many other artists. Brian Poole & The Tremeloes's version reached No. 17 on the UK chart in 1965. Nana Mouskouri recorded a version in 1974 which reached No. 7 on the Dutch charts. The Irish singer Daniel O'Donnell recorded a version which reached No. 19 on the Irish chart in 1991. Chart position Les Compagnons de la chanson The Browns Year-end charts All-time charts Jim Ed Brown Daniel O'Donnell See also While the Angelus Was Ringing References External links "Les trois cloches" from The Originals'' website 1959 singles The Browns songs Jim Ed Brown songs Andy Williams songs Gene Summers songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles French songs Song recordings produced by Chet Atkins Year of song missing