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Post by Tony Walshaw on Aug 13, 2014 8:30:50 GMT
Yes indeed, she would have excelled in the powerful, flowing MOR of the later 60s. I can picture her belting out some brass-led soul-pop on TOTP in 1968, right up there with the Love Affair and Dusty. Might even have managed a Memphis album  And a long-running TV show into the 70s. Then in more recent times, recording new hits with contemporary artists. It could have happened. P.S: a little disconcerting to see the devious Mr. Savile compering. Showing how he won over the audience and the TV execs. |
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Post by Patrick Coles on Aug 13, 2014 10:57:04 GMT
Yeah both Kathy & lovely Alma Cogan were 'gone far too soon' (literally in poor Alma's case !) from the pop chart world of the sixties when both HAD the voices, talent and ability to easily do a 'Pet Clark' & 'Shirley Bassey' and move from 'pre-Beat Boom' late fifties/early sixties success on into the more contemporary pop group filled music world with ease and style...
Kathy did have a few 'Beat' style hits circa 1963-64 - look at her swinging vocal take on 'Dance on', and 'Let Me Go, Lover' and the way she hits that powering high vocal intro to 'Secret Love' !
Kathy was moved towards ballads and MOR material when a more youth aimed stylish approach might have kept her in the charts longer...her 'Debbie Harry' look is timeless we know !
Likewise Alma - notwithstanding her health problem suddenly surfacing - she had her last UK chart hit with 'Cowboy Jimmy Joe' (pure fifties style) in 1962 but while well established in the 'older' audience eyes she was so associated with novelty and comedy songs that she was not taken as seriously by the next generation of record buyers as she should & ought to have been...
The Beatles (Lennon especially) rated her highly (as Lennon did Petula Clark - who sang on 'Give Peace A Chance' !)
- Alma cut fine beat band versions of a few Beatles songs, notably John's 'I Feel Fine' & 'Help!' and a sensitive version of Paul's 'Yesterday' plus the jokey 'Love Ya illya' (re David McCallum's 'Man From UNCLE' character) and a driving beat version of 'Tennessee Waltz' but largely had been doing ballads and older styled material - her version of 'Tell Him' (a hit for Billie Davis) was excellent but not sung in English when a UK version might have scored for her....again as with Kathy she probably suffered from having older less contemporary 'A & R' people around her (she was on HMV for most of her career only at the end on Columbia)
If Alma didn't have the health problem (she was forced to drop out of a 'Juke Box Jury' show where Lulu took her place due to her increasing ill health) she might, with better more contemporary material that the likes of Dusty, Cilla, Lulu , Sandie and of course Pet and Shirl each had, continued having chart hits and mantained a more 'modern' profile, likewise Kathy Kirby.
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Post by Tony Walshaw on Aug 14, 2014 7:42:38 GMT
Kathy did have a few 'Beat' style hits circa 1963-64 - look at her swinging vocal take on 'Dance on', and 'Let Me Go, Lover' and the way she hits that powering high vocal intro to 'Secret Love' ! Kathy was moved towards ballads and MOR material when a more youth aimed stylish approach might have kept her in the charts longer...her 'Debbie Harry' look is timeless we know ! Likewise Alma....as with Kathy she probably suffered from having older less contemporary 'A & R' people around her. If Alma didn't have the health problem (she was forced to drop out of a 'Juke Box Jury' show where Lulu took her place due to her increasing ill health) she might, with better more contemporary material that the likes of Dusty, Cilla, Lulu , Sandie and of course Pet and Shirl each had, continued having chart hits and mantained a more 'modern' profile, likewise Kathy Kirby. Yes. I like Kathy's version of 'Dance On'. By the late 60s, the established MOR artists, and the orchestras and production teams, were really looking over their shoulders with all the musical changes. As a consequence they sometimes recorded the best songs of their entire career. Swinging, powerful, exciting work. It was a kind of final party for them, as this style did not sustain into the 70s. A lot of the artists did continue, but in a TV variety/cabaret style. |
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Post by johnstewart on Aug 19, 2014 16:43:20 GMT
Just to say I think I was thinking of Blue Mink specifically doing a version c. 1970. It would have been a Saturday night ITV show similar to David Frost. Remembered that after I posted.
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