Barry Blue

For other people of the same name, see Gunshot (band).
Not to be confused with Berry Blue.
Barry Blue
Birth name Barry Ian Green
Born (1950-12-04) 4 December 1950
London, England
Genres Pop, glam rock
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter, record producer
Instruments Vocals
Labels Bell Records
Associated acts Bee Gees, Lynsey de Paul, Heatwave, Lydia Canaan, Bananarama, Toto Coelo, Cheryl Lynn, Brotherhood of Man, Toto Coelo, Five Star, Dina Carroll, Andrea Bocelli, Diana Ross, Celine Dion, The Saturdays, Pixie Lott

Barry Blue (born Barry Ian Green)[1][2] is an English singer, producer, and songwriter. He is best known for his hit songs "Dancin' (on a Saturday Night)" and "Do You Wanna Dance" (both 1973).[2]

Early career

At the age of 14, Blue signed to record producer Norrie Paramor whose erstwhile assistant was Tim Rice – the producer of Blue's first song "Rainmaker Girl",[3] which became a hit for Gene Pitney in the United States. Later he became a bassist in the line-up of Spice, the precursor to the heavy rock band Uriah Heep.[2] He followed this in 1966 by a two-year period in A&R at the Bee Gees' publishing company Abigail Music. In 1970, Blue signed as a songwriter to ATV-Kirshner. His first major success was "Sugar Me" (1972),[4] which became a hit for Lynsey de Paul,[5] and was the first of a series of songs that they co-wrote. At the time he was still using his real surname of Green.[4]

Career

He signed to Bell Records in 1973 billed as Barry Blue,[2] and had five hit singles, including "School Love" (1974).[6] His final Top 40 hit in the UK Singles Chart occurred in October 1974, when "Hot Shot", another song co-penned with de Paul, climbed to number 23.[7]

Further success came with the production of the British funk/soul band Heatwave, who enjoyed hits in the UK and US with "Boogie Nights", "Always and Forever", and "The Groove Line".[8][9][10] In 1989, under the banner of Cry Sisco!, Blue had another minor UK hit with a song called "Afro Dizzi Act", which reached number 42 on the UK Singles Chart.[11][12]

Blue continued to work in the music industry as a record producer for other artists, including Bananarama, Toto Coelo and Cheryl Lynn.[2]

Blue has also been a prolific songwriter for other acts. Among his hit compositions are:

He has written album tracks for other musicians, and has had over forty hits with such artists as Andrea Bocelli, Diana Ross, Celine Dion, The Saturdays and Pixie Lott. In film and television, Blue has provided scores and/or themes for productions including The Eyes of Laura Mars, Long Good Friday, and Escape to Athena.[2]

A compilation album, Greatest Hits was released on Repertoire Records in 2002.[22] Blue was the founder of Connect 2 Music, now owned by Universal Music Publishing.[2] He is a supporter of the creator's rights in music of all genres and styles, and is dedicating his time to become more pro-active in this pursuit. From 2010, Blue has served on the board of directors of PRS for Music.[23][24]

Discography

Singles

Albums

References

  1. ↑ "Barry Blue". IMDb.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Barry Blue (4 December 1950). "Barry Blue – Music Biography, Credits and Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  3. ↑ "Gene Pitney – Run Run Roadrunner (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  4. 1 2 "Lynsey De Paul – Sugar Me (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  5. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 145. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  6. ↑ "Barry Blue – School Love (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  7. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 65. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  8. ↑ "Heatwave – Boogie Nights (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  9. ↑ "Heatwave – Always And Forever / Mind Blowing Decisions (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  10. ↑ "Heatwave – The Groove Line (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  11. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 129. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  12. ↑ "Cry Sisco! – Afro Dizzi Act (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  13. ↑ "Brotherhood of Man – Kiss Me, Kiss Your Baby (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  14. ↑ "Total Coelo* – I Eat Cannibals (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  15. ↑ "Five Star – All Fall Down (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  16. ↑ "Beautiful Life by Lydia Canaan". Soundcloud.com. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  17. ↑ "Lydia Canaan - Beautiful Life". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  18. ↑ "Dina Carroll – Escaping (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  19. ↑ "The Sound of Love by Lydia Canaan". Soundcloud.com. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  20. ↑ Archived 17 June 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  21. ↑ "Dogbrain Music". Dogbrain Music. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  22. ↑ "Greatest Hits [Repertoire] – Barry Blue : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. 11 June 2002. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  23. ↑ "New Directors, a New Chief Executive and New Challenges". Prsformusic.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  24. ↑ "M meets... Barry Blue | M Magazine: PRS for Music online magazine". M-magazine.co.uk. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  25. ↑ "ChartArchive – Barry Blue". Chartstats.com. 1 January 2013. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
  26. ↑ "Barry Blue Discography – UK". 45cat. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  27. ↑ "Barry Blue Discography at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 7 January 2013.

External links

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