Lulu Kennedy-Cairns, OBE, is a Scottish singer, actress, television personality and businesswoman. She is noted for her powerful singing voice.
"The Man Who Sold the World" is a song written by English singer-songwriter David Bowie. The title track of Bowie's third studio album of the same name, it was released in November 1970 in the US and in April 1971 in the UK by Mercury Records. Produced by Tony Visconti, it was recorded at Trident and Advision Studios in London in May 1970, towards the end of the album's sessions; Bowie recorded his vocal on the final day of mixing for the album, reflecting his generally dismissive attitude during the sessions. Musically, it is based around a "circular" guitar riff from Mick Ronson. Its lyrics are cryptic and evocative, being inspired by numerous poems including "Antigonish" by William Hughes Mearns. Bowie's vocals are heavily "phased" throughout and have been described as "haunting".
"Nothing Fails" is a song by American singer-songwriter Madonna from her ninth studio album, American Life (2003). Written by Madonna, Guy Sigsworth and Jem Griffiths, and produced by the singer along with Mirwais Ahmadzaï and Mark "Spike" Stent, it was released as the third single from the album on October 26, 2003. Originally demoed as "Silly Thing", "Nothing Fails" is a love song which has acoustic guitar chords and a gospel choir appearance. Lyrically, the song discusses a lover who is the one, and how their meeting was not just chance. A number of remixes of the song were done, with one of them being included on Madonna's remix album Remixed & Revisited (2003).
Engelbert Humperdinck, born Arnold George Dorsey on 2 May 1936, is an English pop singer. Humperdinck has been described as "one of the finest middle-of-the-road balladeers around". His singles "Release Me" and "The Last Waltz" both topped the UK music charts in 1967, and sold more than a million copies each. In North America, he also had chart successes with "After the Lovin'" (1976) and "This Moment in Time" (1979). He has sold more than 140 million records worldwide.
"Angel" is a song by American rock musician Jimi Hendrix, featured on his 1971 posthumous studio album The Cry of Love. Written and self-produced by Hendrix, he recorded it for his planned fourth studio album just months before he died in September 1970.
Paul Mealor OStJ CLJ OSS FRSA is a Welsh composer. He is considered one of the world's most performed living composers. A large proportion of his output is for chorus, both a cappella and accompanied. He came to wider notice when his motet Ubi Caritas et Amor was performed at the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton in 2011. He later composed the song "Wherever You Are", which became the 2011 Christmas number one in the UK Singles Chart. He has also composed an opera, three symphonies, concerti and chamber music.
Faryl Smith is a British soprano who rose to fame after appearing on the second series of the ITV television talent show Britain's Got Talent in 2008. Although a favourite to win after the second round, she finished outside the top three in the live final on 31 May. During the competition, she was tutored by the singing coach Yvie Burnett and received offers from various record labels. After the show, she, unlike other finalists, did not sign with the judge Simon Cowell's record label Syco, although she did appear on fellow finalist Andrew Johnston's debut album, One Voice.
Dame Vera Margaret Lynn was an English singer, songwriter and entertainer whose musical recordings and performances were very popular during the Second World War. She was widely referred to as the "Forces' Sweetheart" and gave outdoor concerts for the troops in Egypt, India and Burma during the war as part of Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA). The songs most associated with her are "We'll Meet Again", "(There'll Be Bluebirds Over) The White Cliffs of Dover", "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" and "There'll Always Be an England".
Gareth Edmund Malone is an English choirmaster and broadcaster, self-described as an "animateur, presenter and populariser of choral singing". He is best known for his television appearances in programmes such as The Choir, which focus on singing and introducing choral music to new participants. Malone was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2012 Birthday Honours, for services to music.
Mayhem is the third studio album by Irish rockabilly musician Imelda May, released on 3 September 2010 on Decca Records.
Lulu is a collaboration album between rock singer-songwriter Lou Reed and heavy metal band Metallica. It was released as double album on October 31, 2011, by Warner Bros. in the U.S. and Vertigo elsewhere. The album is the final full-length studio recording project that Reed was involved in before his death in October 2013. It was recorded in San Rafael, California, during April to June 2011, after Reed had played with Metallica at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 25th Anniversary Concert which led to them wanting to collaborate. The lead single, titled "The View", was released on September 27, 2011.
"Wherever You Are" is a song written by Paul Mealor and performed by the Military Wives Choir, sung by ladies from Chivenor and Plymouth under the direction of Gareth Malone. It is a spin-off of the BBC Two television series The Choir: Military Wives. It was released on 19 December 2011 following a campaign to make it the 2011 UK Christmas number one. The song entered the UK Singles Chart at number 1, claiming the Christmas number 1 – selling more than 556,000 copies in the week, more than the rest of the Top 12 combined. The song also claimed the status of the biggest first week sales since "A Moment Like This" by Leona Lewis sold over 571,000 copies in its first week in 2006. The song was included on their debut studio album In My Dreams.
The Military Wives Choirs is a registered charity and network of 75 choirs in British military bases across the UK and overseas, bringing women in the military community closer together through singing. With over 2,200 members, the MWC network is tri-service and any woman with a military connection can join including those currently serving, veterans, mothers, sisters and daughters, empowering women from across the military community. The organisation is also a subsidiary charity of SSAFA.
"Sing" is a song written by Take That singer-songwriter Gary Barlow and composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, and performed by a number of artists assembled by Barlow from across The Commonwealth, to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. The track was released via digital download and CD single on 28 May 2012, and was performed as part of the Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee Concert celebrations on 4 June 2012.
The Official Classical Singles Chart was a record chart based on downloads and streaming of classical music in the United Kingdom. Each week's chart was compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC) and was first published on Monday afternoon on their official website. The chart ran for 140 weeks from 2012 to 2015, during which time a total of 23 singles by 22 artists reached number one. The most successful artist was the Italian pianist Ludovico Einaudi, who topped the chart with three singles for a total of 54 weeks, while the most successful record label was Decca Records, which spent 89 weeks at number one with six singles. Einaudi's track "I Giorni" from his album of the same name spent 51 weeks at number one, longer than any other single. In January 2013, following the release of Einaudi's album In a Time Lapse, singles by the pianist accounted for 13 of the Top 20 on the Official Classical Singles Chart. Martin Talbot, managing director of the OCC, described him as one of the chart's "biggest and most consistent stars".
Laura Mvula is a British recording artist, songwriter and composer. Her debut album, Sing to the Moon, was released on 4 March 2013, with an orchestral re-recording released on 11 August 2014. Her second album, The Dreaming Room, was released in 2016. Both albums were received to critical acclaim and garnered Mercury Prize nominations.
"Unapologetic Bitch" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter Madonna for her thirteenth studio album, Rebel Heart (2015). It was written by Madonna, Thomas Wesley Pentz, Shelco Garcia, Bryan Orellana, Maureen McDonald and Toby Gad, with production being done by Madonna, Garcia & Teenwolf, BV, Diplo and Ariel Rechtshaid. The song's demo was leaked to the internet in December 2014, with twelve other tracks from the album. Its final version was released on December 20, 2014, with five other tracks on the iTunes store, as "an early Christmas gift" to avoid more leakage. The song was conceived while Madonna was in the studio with Diplo, who worked with the singer on more than eight songs for the album.
This is a summary of the year 2015 in British music.
Tracker is the eighth solo studio album by the British singer-songwriter and guitarist Mark Knopfler, released on 16 March 2015.
