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Jimmy Somerville
James William Somerville (born 22 June 1961) is a Scottish singer. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as a member the synth-pop groups Bronski Beat and the Communards; with the former, Somerville achieved commercial success worldwide with the 1984 single "Smalltown Boy", which peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart.
Bronski Beat's debut album The Age of Consent (1984) was the only release Somerville contributed to as lead vocalist before leaving the band in 1985 to join the Communards. With Somerville on lead vocals, the Communards released their self-titled debut album in 1986, spawning the internationally successful single "Don't Leave Me This Way" which became the best-selling single of 1986 in the United Kingdom. Further success came with single "So Cold the Night" and their second studio album Red (1987) before disbanding in 1988; Somerville then began a solo career.
Born on 22 June 1961, James William Somerville grew up in Ruchill, a neighbourhood of northern Glasgow. In 1980, he moved to London, where he lived in squats. He immersed himself in gay culture, and attended the London Gay Teenage Group.
In 1983, Somerville co-founded the synth-pop group Bronski Beat, which had several hits in the British charts. Their biggest hit was "Smalltown Boy", which peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart. In the music video Somerville plays the song's titular character, who leaves his hostile hometown for the friendlier city, reflecting Somerville's own experiences when he moved to London.
Bronski Beat signed a recording contract with London Records in 1984 after doing only nine live gigs. The band's debut single, "Smalltown Boy", about a gay teenager leaving his family and fleeing his home town, was a hit, peaking at No 3 in the UK Singles Chart, and topping charts in Belgium and the Netherlands. The single was accompanied by a promotional video directed by Bernard Rose, showing Somerville trying to befriend an attractive diver at a swimming pool, then being attacked by the diver's homophobic associates, being returned to his family by the police and having to leave home. (The police officer was played by Colin Bell, then the marketing manager of London Records.) "Smalltown Boy" reached 48 in the U.S. chart and peaked at 8 in Australia.
The follow-up single, "Why?", adopted a hi-NRG sound and was more lyrically focused on anti-gay prejudice. It also achieved Top 10 status in the UK, reaching 6, and was another Top 10 hit for the band in Australia, Switzerland, Germany, France and the Netherlands. At the end of 1984, the trio released an album titled The Age of Consent. The inner sleeve listed the varying ages of consent for consensual gay sex in different nations around the world. At the time, the age of consent for sexual acts between men in the UK was 21 compared with 16 for heterosexual acts, with several other countries having more liberal laws on gay sex. The album peaked at 4 in the UK Albums Chart, 36 in the U.S., and 12 in Australia.
Somerville left Bronski Beat in 1985 and formed The Communards with classically-trained pianist Richard Coles, who later became a Church of England vicar and broadcaster. They had several hits, including a cover version of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes' "Don't Leave Me This Way", which spent four weeks at No. 1 in the UK charts and became the biggest-selling single of 1986 in the UK. He also sang backing vocals on Fine Young Cannibals' version of "Suspicious Minds", which was a UK Top 10 hit.
The Communards split in 1988; Somerville began a solo career the following year. He released his debut solo album Read My Lips in November 1989, which contained three UK Top 30 hits, including a hit cover of Sylvester's disco song "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" and a cover of "Comment te dire adieu?", a duet with June Miles-Kingston, which reached number 14 in the UK Singles chart. He also sang on the second Band Aid project at the end of 1989.
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Jimmy Somerville
James William Somerville (born 22 June 1961) is a Scottish singer. He rose to prominence in the 1980s as a member the synth-pop groups Bronski Beat and the Communards; with the former, Somerville achieved commercial success worldwide with the 1984 single "Smalltown Boy", which peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart.
Bronski Beat's debut album The Age of Consent (1984) was the only release Somerville contributed to as lead vocalist before leaving the band in 1985 to join the Communards. With Somerville on lead vocals, the Communards released their self-titled debut album in 1986, spawning the internationally successful single "Don't Leave Me This Way" which became the best-selling single of 1986 in the United Kingdom. Further success came with single "So Cold the Night" and their second studio album Red (1987) before disbanding in 1988; Somerville then began a solo career.
Born on 22 June 1961, James William Somerville grew up in Ruchill, a neighbourhood of northern Glasgow. In 1980, he moved to London, where he lived in squats. He immersed himself in gay culture, and attended the London Gay Teenage Group.
In 1983, Somerville co-founded the synth-pop group Bronski Beat, which had several hits in the British charts. Their biggest hit was "Smalltown Boy", which peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart. In the music video Somerville plays the song's titular character, who leaves his hostile hometown for the friendlier city, reflecting Somerville's own experiences when he moved to London.
Bronski Beat signed a recording contract with London Records in 1984 after doing only nine live gigs. The band's debut single, "Smalltown Boy", about a gay teenager leaving his family and fleeing his home town, was a hit, peaking at No 3 in the UK Singles Chart, and topping charts in Belgium and the Netherlands. The single was accompanied by a promotional video directed by Bernard Rose, showing Somerville trying to befriend an attractive diver at a swimming pool, then being attacked by the diver's homophobic associates, being returned to his family by the police and having to leave home. (The police officer was played by Colin Bell, then the marketing manager of London Records.) "Smalltown Boy" reached 48 in the U.S. chart and peaked at 8 in Australia.
The follow-up single, "Why?", adopted a hi-NRG sound and was more lyrically focused on anti-gay prejudice. It also achieved Top 10 status in the UK, reaching 6, and was another Top 10 hit for the band in Australia, Switzerland, Germany, France and the Netherlands. At the end of 1984, the trio released an album titled The Age of Consent. The inner sleeve listed the varying ages of consent for consensual gay sex in different nations around the world. At the time, the age of consent for sexual acts between men in the UK was 21 compared with 16 for heterosexual acts, with several other countries having more liberal laws on gay sex. The album peaked at 4 in the UK Albums Chart, 36 in the U.S., and 12 in Australia.
Somerville left Bronski Beat in 1985 and formed The Communards with classically-trained pianist Richard Coles, who later became a Church of England vicar and broadcaster. They had several hits, including a cover version of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes' "Don't Leave Me This Way", which spent four weeks at No. 1 in the UK charts and became the biggest-selling single of 1986 in the UK. He also sang backing vocals on Fine Young Cannibals' version of "Suspicious Minds", which was a UK Top 10 hit.
The Communards split in 1988; Somerville began a solo career the following year. He released his debut solo album Read My Lips in November 1989, which contained three UK Top 30 hits, including a hit cover of Sylvester's disco song "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" and a cover of "Comment te dire adieu?", a duet with June Miles-Kingston, which reached number 14 in the UK Singles chart. He also sang on the second Band Aid project at the end of 1989.
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