She was one of those artists whose voice was utterly distinctive and ideally suited to the style of her biggest hits Total Eclipse of the Heart and Holding Out For a Hero.
This, though, is her first hit, the more wistful, Lost in France. (The opening chords always remind me of those of Then He Kissed Me.)
Bonnie Tyler: Lost in France
Gaynor Sullivan Hopkins (Bonnie Tyler): 8/6/1951 – 8/7/2026. So it goes.
Co-founder of Hot Chocolate and, along with Errol Brown, co-writer of their early hits, Tony Wilson died in April. The promotion of Brown as lead singer eventually led to Wilson leaving the group. This is one of those early hits.
Hot Chocolate: Emma
Anthony Nathaniel (Tony) Wilson: 8/10/1936 – 24/4/2026. So it goes.
In my mind Clarence Carter, who died last month, was a one-hit wonder.
Of course technically he wasn’t, since that description is supposed to apply only to those who had a no 1 single and no other hits. Carter’s song Patches reached no 2 in the UK in 1970. (I also find he had a UK no 82 in 1989 but that hardly counts as a hit.)
That no 2, Patches, falls into that category of sentimentality which courses through USian culture. (Last week’s entry in this category counts there too but Patches bears more resemblance to The Son of Hickory Holler’s Tramp, a success for O C Smith in 1968.)
Clarence Carter: Patches
Clarence George Carter: 14/1/1936 –13/5/2026. So it goes.
He was one of the most distinctive pop acts of the late 1950s and early 1960s before the advent of The Beatles overturned everything.
His many songwriting credits include Stupid Cupid, a 1958 hit for Connie Francis, and Love Will Keep Us Together (Captain and Tenille, 1975.) (Is This the Way to) Amarillo (1971) eventually became a big hit for Tony Christie – aided by Peter Kay’s video – in 2005.
Sedaka’s own hits include Calendar Girl, Little Devil, Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen, Breaking Up Is Hard to Do.
He kind of reinvented himself as a singer-songwriter in the 1970s with a more adult-oriented approach.
Here’s a live performance from 1975.
Neil Sedaka: Laughter in the Rain
This one was a hit for The Carpenters but this is a Sedaka performance-
Neil Sedaka: Solitaire
Though he had an earlier hit with I Go Ape this was the song which really announced him in the UK in 1959.
Not quite Dunfermline’s finest but the band launched the career of guitarist Stuart Adamson, later of Big Country fame. Lead singer Richard Jobson became a TV presenter.
One more week, another obituary. This time of the Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir.
The band was primarily known for its live performances and not for its singles. They had a few top 100 hits in the US, though, but never troubled the UK charts.
This was written by Weir.
The Grateful Dead: One More Saturday Night.
Robert Hall Parber (Bob Weir) 16/10/1947 – January 10/1/2026. So it goes.
