|
Links |
LEEE
JOHN
Beyond Imagination… Huw Collingbourne talks sex, drugs and rock’n’roll to jazz-singing child prodigy, Leee John…
“In some ways, the end of Imagination came as a relief. For ten years or so, I had walked and talked in threes. Eventually I thought I’ve got to do things for myself. As soon as I decided to do that I started having a lot more fun. I didn’t always have to be worrying oh what’s Ashley up to? Where’s Errol? When you’re in a group and you’re chief cook and bottle washer it’s more pressure than people think. I still carried on doing shows for a while. But at the same time I started doing production, I had my own chat show on Night Network. And in the ‘90s I had loads of dance hits. “Even so, the '90s for me wasn’t a very enjoyable time. It was like retirement in a sense. I ended up working with loads of different producers, I actually sang on a track for Take That… oh, I did loads of crap. I was doing stuff I didn’t want to do. Music wasn’t as creative in the ‘90s as it had been before. The technology was taking over. In the studio we always had the latest hardware, the latest software but it just wasn’t as creative.” Leee is now reshaping his career as a solo artist. His new album is musically far removed from the Imagination sound. It is a jazz album on which Leee sings thirteen songs ranging from classics such as Someone to Watch Over Me and Strange Fruit to new material. This dramatic change in direction is obviously a big risk. Many people associate Leee with Imagination and might be expecting him to sing the hits from the '80s. “Well, maybe I will sing those hits too,” he says, “Imagination will never be at an end. I’m opening new doorways. But I do sing some of the old Imagination songs too. People still want to hear them. “If people know your songs when you perform live it’s easier for you in a way. But for me at the present time, I’m often performing tracks from Feel My Soul. People come along who know me from Imagination and other people come along who don’t know me at all or who maybe just saw me on the Reborn in the USA show on TV. There are even people who know me from the more underground kind of dance records. I had a number one recently in Pete Tong’s Dance Charts. Isn’t that unbelievable!”
Born Again Maybe Leee’s enthusiasm for taking on new challenges and going in new directions can be explained by the fact that he’s been in show business practically all his life. He first started performing at the age of twelve. Ah, I bet he was a cutie…! “Well, I wasn’t like Bonnie Langford!” he snaps, “But yes, it’s true that it all started from my early teens. As a kid I used to perform in pubs and bingo halls - all over the place - singing all different styles of music. I lived in the States for about five years and in that period I was signed to a record company and I had the chance to do an off-Broadway show called The Me Nobody Knows. But my father pulled me out of it because he felt I needed to do my school work.” Sensible chap, I suggest. “I never forgave him! I even remember the songs I sang at my audition - Close To You, Me and Bobby McGee by Janis Joplin and Over The Rainbow. I used to write a lot too. I did part-time journalism when I was at school. And on weekends I’d play with bands. I was always gigging. I was in a band called The Sun Valley Serenaders. I use to do universities and colleges where they didn’t know who the Hell I was. And you just have to work it. That’s what makes you a better performer. It wasn’t like it is nowadays. These days you’re in the studio one day and the next day you’re playing Wembley.” In more recent times, one of the things that helped to bring Leee back to the attention of the British public was his participation in Reborn In The USA - a ‘reality’ TV show in which various seasoned performers had to try to wow American audiences. “Doing that show was a risk, I suppose,” Leee concedes, “But it was also fun. Big Brother had just been successful and we didn’t have any idea of what Reborn was going to be like. I’ve taken risks ever since I’ve been in this industry. I mean, think of Imagination - the way out outfit were years ago. We were trying to take it to another level. So I thought, take a deep break, it’s another risk - just walk the plank and see how far it goes… “It was interesting. But all the so called cat-fights they said were going on amongst us and that - no, it wasn’t really like that. It was all being built up. One producer was trying to get the crew members who were filming us to try to build up tension all the time. But most of us knew the ropes - we’d been working at this for twenty-odd years so it was all rock’n’roll to us.” It could have been worse - at least you didn’t have to wade up to through pools of poo like Toyah when they sent her to the jungle in I’m A Celebrity… “Exactly! Well, OK, that’s great for endurance. But for me I know what my strengths are. Wading through poo isn’t one of them! I like to end up doing what I do best which, is performing.” One of the things that strikes you when you see Leee is how little he’s changed since the early '80s. OK, so the shaved head had replaced the elaborate hair-dos of yesteryear. But he’s weathered the years remarkably well. Unlike, it has to be said, many of his contemporaries… “I do work at it,” he says, “I swim, I exercise. I do the things that I know I need to do. I think we all had our ‘rock and roll period’. I’m very lucky though - I never did drugs. I knew loads of people who did coke and smokes and stuff. But that wasn’t me.” Whatever his secret is, it’s obviously working. It will be interested to see which new directions Leee’s career will take from here on. “Well, it was good talking again after almost twenty-five years,” I tell him as we wrap up our chat, “How about doing another interview in another twenty-five years?” “Sure,” he says, “It’s a date!” I've put it my diary, Leee, so don't try to wriggle out of it...! November 2005
Visit Leee John’s web sites at: |
|
