Barbara Dickson(I)
- Actress
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Barbara Dickson was born on September 27, 1947 in Dunfermline,
Scotland, the daughter of a policeman turned Rosyth dockyard worker.
Barbara's mother was a housewife, and the family's strong interest in
music led to Barbara taking up the piano from the tender age of five.
By the age of twelve Barbara had also started to learn to play the
guitar and upon leaving school at seventeen, she moved to Edinburgh
combining a job in the Registrar General's office with evening spots as
a folk singer in local pubs and clubs.
When Barbara was offered a short-term contract singing at a club in
Copenhagen, she was refused time away from her day job, and she
resigned, deciding to try her luck as a professional singer.
The mid-to late '60s saw Barbara "paying her dues" as a respected
singer on the Scottish folk club circuit, enjoying some success,
particularly with Archie Fisher and Rab Noakes. She cut three albums
for Decca Records in the early 1970s, which were well-received but
Barbara began to become disillusioned with the fading Scottish folk
scene of the time, and on the advice of Hamish Imlach and Christy Moore
she began to concentrate on the booming folk scene of the North of
England.
Fate intervened one evening late in 1972 when Bernard Theobald attended
one of Barbara's shows in Wolverhampton and offered to become her
manager. So began a successful partnership which has endured thirty
years. Around this time Barbara also became acquainted with Willy Russell,
who managed a folk club in Runcorn and was himself touring the folk
circuit with his group The Kirkby Town Three. The friendship led to
Barbara being offered a major role in Willy's musical 'John Paul George
Ringo...& Bert', which was to be staged by Liverpool's Everyman
Theatre. Barbara was on stage throughout the entire show, singing The
Beatles' songs at the piano, and the show became an instant success,
quickly transferring to London's West End. Here the show was seen by
Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, who invited Barbara to sing on the studio cast
recording of their new musical 'Evita' - the subsequent single,
'Another Suitcase In Another Hall', released early in 1977, became a
huge hit.
Barbara signed a deal with RSO Records, and in 1976 enjoyed her first
commercial success, ahead of 'Another Suitcase...', with the single
'Answer Me'. 1977 saw Barbara in Nashville recording the 'Morning Comes
Quickly' album, but by 1978 she had signed to CBS/Epic Records and TV
exposure in shows such as The Two Ronnies (1971) began her breakthrough to a much
wider audience.
1980's 'January, February' proved Barbara's biggest hit to date, and
the accompanying LP, 'The Barbara Dickson Album' went gold in the UK.
1982's phenomenally successful "All For A Song" collection cemented
Barbara's status as a major recording artist. In 1983 Barbara accepted
the lead role of Mrs. Johnstone in a new Willy Russell musical, 'Blood
Brothers', which again opened in Liverpool. The show, which provided
Barbara with her first major acting role, earned her rave reviews, a
West End transfer and the first of many 'Best Actress' awards from the
Society Of West End Theatres.
Barbara was also firmly establishing herself as a must-see concert
artist, with lengthy sold-out concert tours which took her to every
major town and city within the UK, culminating in shows at London's
prestigious Royal Albert Hall.
Barbara's 1985 duet with Elaine Paige, 'I Know Him So Well', from the
musical 'Chess', reached number one in the UK singles' chart, clocking
up sales of over 900,000 copies, and the 'Gold' album for K-Tel the
same year achieved platinum status.
By 1987, tiring of record company politics, Barbara and Bernard decided
to release future singles and albums through their own label, beginning
with the live 'After Dark' album.
The early 1990s saw Barbara rethinking her career, and she began to
move more towards her folk roots with 1992's "Don't Think Twice It's
All Right" and 1994's "Parcel Of Rogues". Away from the pop treadmill,
she diversified into acting more and more with parts on radio and
television, including a guest role in STV's popular 'Taggart' series.
In 1995 Barbara accepted the role of Anita Braithwaite in Kay Mellor's
gritty _"Band of Gold" (1995) (mini)_, about the lives of a group of Bradford prostitutes -
the role won her great acclaim and the show went on to run for three
series. Other TV and stage work, including the award-winning "7 Ages Of
Woman", were combined with recording and concert work and in 1999
Barbara scored another huge success on the London stage with the lead
role of Viv Nicholson in the new musical 'Spend, Spend, Spend'. The
show won her Best Actress in a Musical at the Laurence Olivier and
Critics' Circle Awards that year, and Barbara was honoured by the Queen
with an OBE in the New Years' Honours the same year.
2002 saw Barbara releasing her double CD, 'For The Record', combining
live tracks with greatest hits, and a highly-successful accompanying UK
tour. And with plans for a new album, further concerts, and her first
movie role recently under her belt, Barbara shows no signs of slowing
down!
Scotland, the daughter of a policeman turned Rosyth dockyard worker.
Barbara's mother was a housewife, and the family's strong interest in
music led to Barbara taking up the piano from the tender age of five.
By the age of twelve Barbara had also started to learn to play the
guitar and upon leaving school at seventeen, she moved to Edinburgh
combining a job in the Registrar General's office with evening spots as
a folk singer in local pubs and clubs.
When Barbara was offered a short-term contract singing at a club in
Copenhagen, she was refused time away from her day job, and she
resigned, deciding to try her luck as a professional singer.
The mid-to late '60s saw Barbara "paying her dues" as a respected
singer on the Scottish folk club circuit, enjoying some success,
particularly with Archie Fisher and Rab Noakes. She cut three albums
for Decca Records in the early 1970s, which were well-received but
Barbara began to become disillusioned with the fading Scottish folk
scene of the time, and on the advice of Hamish Imlach and Christy Moore
she began to concentrate on the booming folk scene of the North of
England.
Fate intervened one evening late in 1972 when Bernard Theobald attended
one of Barbara's shows in Wolverhampton and offered to become her
manager. So began a successful partnership which has endured thirty
years. Around this time Barbara also became acquainted with Willy Russell,
who managed a folk club in Runcorn and was himself touring the folk
circuit with his group The Kirkby Town Three. The friendship led to
Barbara being offered a major role in Willy's musical 'John Paul George
Ringo...& Bert', which was to be staged by Liverpool's Everyman
Theatre. Barbara was on stage throughout the entire show, singing The
Beatles' songs at the piano, and the show became an instant success,
quickly transferring to London's West End. Here the show was seen by
Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, who invited Barbara to sing on the studio cast
recording of their new musical 'Evita' - the subsequent single,
'Another Suitcase In Another Hall', released early in 1977, became a
huge hit.
Barbara signed a deal with RSO Records, and in 1976 enjoyed her first
commercial success, ahead of 'Another Suitcase...', with the single
'Answer Me'. 1977 saw Barbara in Nashville recording the 'Morning Comes
Quickly' album, but by 1978 she had signed to CBS/Epic Records and TV
exposure in shows such as The Two Ronnies (1971) began her breakthrough to a much
wider audience.
1980's 'January, February' proved Barbara's biggest hit to date, and
the accompanying LP, 'The Barbara Dickson Album' went gold in the UK.
1982's phenomenally successful "All For A Song" collection cemented
Barbara's status as a major recording artist. In 1983 Barbara accepted
the lead role of Mrs. Johnstone in a new Willy Russell musical, 'Blood
Brothers', which again opened in Liverpool. The show, which provided
Barbara with her first major acting role, earned her rave reviews, a
West End transfer and the first of many 'Best Actress' awards from the
Society Of West End Theatres.
Barbara was also firmly establishing herself as a must-see concert
artist, with lengthy sold-out concert tours which took her to every
major town and city within the UK, culminating in shows at London's
prestigious Royal Albert Hall.
Barbara's 1985 duet with Elaine Paige, 'I Know Him So Well', from the
musical 'Chess', reached number one in the UK singles' chart, clocking
up sales of over 900,000 copies, and the 'Gold' album for K-Tel the
same year achieved platinum status.
By 1987, tiring of record company politics, Barbara and Bernard decided
to release future singles and albums through their own label, beginning
with the live 'After Dark' album.
The early 1990s saw Barbara rethinking her career, and she began to
move more towards her folk roots with 1992's "Don't Think Twice It's
All Right" and 1994's "Parcel Of Rogues". Away from the pop treadmill,
she diversified into acting more and more with parts on radio and
television, including a guest role in STV's popular 'Taggart' series.
In 1995 Barbara accepted the role of Anita Braithwaite in Kay Mellor's
gritty _"Band of Gold" (1995) (mini)_, about the lives of a group of Bradford prostitutes -
the role won her great acclaim and the show went on to run for three
series. Other TV and stage work, including the award-winning "7 Ages Of
Woman", were combined with recording and concert work and in 1999
Barbara scored another huge success on the London stage with the lead
role of Viv Nicholson in the new musical 'Spend, Spend, Spend'. The
show won her Best Actress in a Musical at the Laurence Olivier and
Critics' Circle Awards that year, and Barbara was honoured by the Queen
with an OBE in the New Years' Honours the same year.
2002 saw Barbara releasing her double CD, 'For The Record', combining
live tracks with greatest hits, and a highly-successful accompanying UK
tour. And with plans for a new album, further concerts, and her first
movie role recently under her belt, Barbara shows no signs of slowing
down!