Ron Roker

Last updated

Ron Roker
Birth nameRonald Ernest Alfred Roker
Born (1941-01-23) 23 January 1941 (age 83)
Genres Pop
Occupation(s)Songwriter, singer, record producer
Instrument(s)Vocals
Years active1970s–present
Website ronroker.com

Ronald Ernest Alfred Roker [1] (born 23 January 1941) [2] [3] is an English songwriter, singer and record producer.

Contents

Roker has written UK chart hits for Jackie Lee, The Fortunes, Barry Blue, Tina Charles, Polly Brown, The Pearls, The Real Thing and Sweet Dreams.

Career

Early 1970s

Roker first worked as a song-plugger. His first taste of chart success was provided by the theme music to children's TV programme The Adventures of Rupert Bear . The song "Rupert", co-written with Len Beadle and recorded by Beadle's wife Jackie Lee, made the UK Singles Chart in 1971. [4] [5] He also wrote the theme for Inigo Pipkin (later renamed Pipkins ). [6] Further success was attained when Roker met up with Lynsey Rubin (who was about to change her name to Lynsey de Paul). Together they penned "Storm in a Teacup" for The Fortunes, [7] [8] which landed them a Top Ten hit single; [9] "When You've Gotta Go" which made the Dutch Tipparade (peak number 17) in late 1972, [10] as well as the lower reaches of the Australian Aria chart in 1973; [11] and also de Paul's third single, "All Night", which made the UK chart breakers listing in May 1973 [8] and No. 17 on the Dutch Single Tip chart. [12] Together with de Paul, he also wrote "Taking It On" and "It's Been a Long Time", both recorded by the Young Generation on their 1973 album Give Me Love. [13]

Roker also began writing with De Paul's partner Barry Blue, (with whom he is often confused) notably on the song, "Do You Wanna Dance", [8] a Top Ten hit at the end of 1973, [14] as well as some album tracks. The three of them also wrote "Sugarloaf Hill" recorded by reggae artist Del Davis and released on the Trojan record label in 1972. [15] "Sugarloaf Hill" appeared as a track on the 2003 compilation CD Trojan Carnival Box Set. [16]

Moving from pop to a more soulful/dance vein, he was behind the Tina Charles hits "Love Bug" and "Dance Little Lady Dance". [8] His profile in the US benefited from Dionne Warwick recording one of his songs, "Do You Believe in Love at First Sight", [8] and this became the theme song of the film of the same name, starring Dan Aykroyd. "Up in a Puff of Smoke", also written by Roker and recorded by Polly Brown (aka Polly Browne, formerly of Pickettywitch), [17] was a Top 20 hit in America in the 1970s and charted in the UK. [18] Together with Gerry Shury, he wrote "Guilty", which was recorded both by The Pearls [19] and First Choice and was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic.

Mid to late 1970s

One song he did not write was Sweet Dreams' cover version of the ABBA song "Honey, Honey", although Roker actually sang the male vocal on that record, in a duet with Polly Brown. He also co-wrote and co-produced "Stone Cold Love Affair", a 1975 single by The Real Thing. [20]

Working with Gerry Shury, they produced a record for former 1976 Eurovision British contestant Louisa Jane White. They produced the single, "Don't Stop" which they both composed. It was backed with a Van McCoy and Charles Kipps composition, "Don't Pity Me", released on Pye 7N 45661 in 1977. [21] [22]

Roker together with Blue and Shury also wrote "Devil's Gun", a US and UK chart hit for C. J. & Company. [23] [24] It was the first record played by DJ Richie Kaczor at the opening night of Studio 54 on 26 April, 1977. [25] It was also featured on the soundtrack to The Get Down (Original Soundtrack From The Netflix Original Series). [26] The original version of the song was released in 1973 by Great Expectations. [27] Other versions of "Devil's Gun" were recorded and released by Inner Strength [28] and Blue himself, who released it as a single in 1975. [29]

1980s

In 1983, Roker resurfaced with Jan Pulsford and Phil Wigger as the songwriters of the UK's Eurovision Song Contest entry, "I'm Never Giving it Up". [30] It was recorded by another band called Sweet Dreams, which came in sixth in the song contest. That year his protégé group, Two Way (featuring actor Anthony Head), released a single "Face in the Window", penned by the same writers. [31]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynsey de Paul</span> English singer-songwriter

Lynsey de Paul was an English singer-songwriter and record producer. After initially writing hits for others, she had her own chart hits in the UK and Europe in the 1970s, starting with UK top 10 single "Sugar Me", and became the first British female artist to achieve a number one with a self-written song. She represented the UK in the 1977 Eurovision Song Contest, coming second and scoring another chart-topping hit in Switzerland, and had a successful career as a songwriter, record producer, actress and television celebrity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gordon Mills</span> British music industry manager and songwriter (1935–1986)

Gordon William Mills was a successful London-based music industry manager and songwriter. He was born in Madras, British India and grew up in Trealaw in the Rhondda Valley, South Wales. During the 1960s and 1970s, he managed the careers of three highly successful musical artists - Tom Jones, Engelbert Humperdinck and Gilbert O'Sullivan. Mills was also a songwriter, penning hits for Cliff Richard, Johnny Kidd & the Pirates, Freddie and the Dreamers, the Applejacks, Paul Jones, Peter and Gordon and Tom Jones, most notably co-writing Jones's signature song "It's Not Unusual" with Les Reed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barry Blue</span> English singer, producer and songwriter

Barry Blue is an English singer, producer, and songwriter. As an artist, he is best known for his hit songs "Dancin' " and "Do You Wanna Dance".

Hello are an English glam rock band. They originally recorded for the Bell Records label.

Philip Neil Wainman is an English record producer and songwriter, primarily active in the 1970s. He is noted for his work with Sweet, XTC, Dollar, Mud, and the Bay City Rollers. His greatest chart success, however, was the production of "I Don't Like Mondays" by the Boomtown Rats, written by Bob Geldof and arranged by Fiachra Trench.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me</span> 1973 single by The New Seekers

"You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me" is a 1973 single by British pop group The New Seekers. Written by Tony Macaulay and Geoff Stephens, arranged by Gerry Shury and produced by Tommy Oliver.

Andrew Gerard Hill is an English record producer and songwriter who worked with Bucks Fizz and Celine Dion during the 1980s and 1990s.

Polly Brown is an English singer from Birmingham. A member of Pickettywitch and Sweet Dreams - and with each group lead singer on a Top Ten hit, respectively "That Same Old Feeling" and "Honey Honey" - Brown had an international solo hit in 1975 with "Up in a Puff of Smoke".

Anthony Philip Swern, known as Phil "The Collector" Swern, is an English radio producer and music collector, who earned the nickname "The Collector" from working on Sounds of the 60s with Brian Matthew. Born in Ealing, London, he was formerly a record producer and songwriter, and has also written for television. He produced Pick of the Pops for Radio 1 in the late 1980s and early 1990s and had produced the show for BBC Radio 2 from 1997 to 2023. He has also produced Sounds of the 60s for Radio 2 from 2007 to 2022 and formerly produced the Saturday night Bob Harris Show for the same station, also producing Harris's Radio 1 shows in the early 1990s. He also devised the questions for the PopMaster quiz on Radio 2's Ken Bruce Show until this role was assumed by Neil Myners and Simon Bray. Swern co-wrote the quiz show Pop the Question with Jeremy Beadle and co-created fellow quiz show That's Showbusiness with screenwriter Jeremy Pascall.

Two Man Sound was a Belgian pop trio of the 1970s. Their style combined the disco music typical of the era with samba and bossa nova. Their signature hits were 1975 "Charlie Brown" and a Latin track called "Disco Samba", released in 1977. "Charlie Brown" was a success in Belgium and Italy. The medley of Brazilian pop songs "Disco Samba" became a huge European hit in the early 1980s, with repeated hit-listings in euro-charts from 1983 through 1986 as well as the official Reza family song. Always in 1977, on the US Dance chart, the single "Capital Tropical" was the most successful of two entries peaking at #11. In 1979, another samba song "Que Tal America" became an "underground disco anthem" in North America.

Sweet Dreams were an English studio group who scored a hit single in 1974 with a cover of the ABBA song "Honey Honey".

The Pearls were an English 1970s girl vocal duo from Liverpool, England, featuring Lyn Cornell and Ann Simmons. They released a total of 12 singles, the most successful being "Guilty", which reached No. 10 in the UK Singles Chart in June 1974. Various Pearls singles were released around the world with different catalogue numbers and sometimes different labels. They had releases throughout Europe and in the Far East, USA, Canada, South Africa, Japan, New Zealand and Australia.

"Eternally" is a song with music by Charlie Chaplin, and words by the English lyricists Geoff Parsons and John Turner. The music was initially composed for Chaplin's film Limelight (1952) and titled "Terry's Theme"; the film won an Oscar for "Best Original Dramatic Score" at the 45th Academy Awards in 1973.

Del Davis is a reggae singer of the 1970s. His cover of "World Without Love" was featured on Mellow Dubmarine. His 1972 single "Sugarloaf Hill", released on 15 September 1972 on the Trojan Record label received favourable reviews in the music press at that time. It was included on the Trojan Carnival Box Set compilation album, released in 2003, and was rated as one of the album's highlights by AllMusic. His reggae version of "World Without Love" appeared on the album A Reggae Tribute To The Beatles, and his version of the Gerry and the Pacemakers hit song "How Do You Do It?" was released as a duet with Jackie Edwards.

"Devil's Gun" is a 1977 song by C. J. & Company from the album of the same name. "Devil's Gun" was written by Barry Green, Ron Roker, and Gerry Shury and produced by Mike Theodore and Dennis Coffey.

"Tip of My Tongue" is a song written by Lynsey de Paul and Barry Blue that was originally registered as "On the Tip of My Tongue" (ISWC:T0104548028). It has been a modest hit in different territories for at least 4 artists during the 1970's and 1980's and is also a Barry Blue fan favourite.

<i>Just a Little Time</i> 1994 studio album by Lynsey de Paul

Just a Little Time is an album by Lynsey de Paul. It was originally released on 30 September 1994 on the Music Deluxe label but has since been released on the Tring International PLC label and on Arc Records/The Magic Collection. All of the songs on the album are written or co-written by de Paul.

"All Night" is a song written by Lynsey de Paul and Ron Roker. De Paul released her version of the song on 27 April 1973 as her third single released on MAM Records, with arrangements by Martyn Ford and John Bell and produced by de Paul. The song is listed in the U.S. Library of Congress Catalog of Copyright Entries and in "The Directory of American 45 R.p.m. Records". It features an uncredited male vocal. A slinky, sexy song, it compares a love relationship to that of the spider and a fly. The single is backed by the more socially aware song "Blind Leading the Blind", composed and produced by de Paul. The song was an unusual release since neither the A-side or the B-side featured as tracks on her debut album. Surprise had been released a little more than a month earlier - presumably it was not included since "All Night" has a very different style than the tracks on Surprise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Up in a Puff of Smoke</span> 1974 single by Polly Brown

"Up in a Puff of Smoke" is a song recorded in 1974 by Polly Brown, released as a non-album single to become an international Top 40 hit in 1975.

Gerald Roland Shury was a British songwriter, arranger, and record producer who worked in the late 1960s and 1970s.

References

  1. ↑ "Ron Roker Discography". Discogs.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  2. ↑ "Ronald Roker". Companiesintheuk.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  3. ↑ "Dellam Corporate Information Limited, England". Dellam.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  4. ↑ "Artist: Ronald Ernest Alfred Roker". Second Hand Songs. 22 December 2003. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  5. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 316. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  6. ↑ "Ron Roker Discography". Rock.discogs.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  7. ↑ Storm In A Teacup on YouTube
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Songs composed by Ron Roker". AllMusic . Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  9. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 208. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  10. ↑ Top 40, Stichting Nederlandse. "Solomon King - When You've Gotta Go". Top40.nl.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ↑ "Top Singles of 1973". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  12. ↑ "Dutch Charts". Dutchcharts.nl.
  13. ↑ "Vinyl Album: The Young Generation - Give Me Love (1973)". 45worlds.com.
  14. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 65. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  15. ↑ "Del Davis - Sugarloaf Hill". 45cat.com. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  16. ↑ "Various - Trojan Carnival Box Set". Discogs.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  17. ↑ "Up in a Puff of Smoke – PollyBrowne : Listen, Appearances, Song Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  18. ↑ "up in a puff of smoke | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com.
  19. ↑ "Pearls, The – Guilty (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  20. ↑ "Real Thing, The – Stone Cold Love Affair (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  21. ↑ Shropshire Star, September 30, 2019 - Singing schoolgirl knocked on door of stardom by Toby Neal
  22. ↑ Louisa Jane White - Don't Stop / Don't Pity Me Album, Dynaero.fr
  23. ↑ "C.J. & Company". Billboard.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  24. ↑ "C.J. & CO | full Official Chart History". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  25. ↑ "Studio 54 @ Disco-Disco.com". Disco-disco.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  26. ↑ "Various - The Get Down (Original Soundtrack From The Netflix Original Series)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  27. ↑ "Great Expectations - Devils Gun / Bigger And Better". Discogs.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  28. ↑ "Inner Strength - Devils Gun". Discogs.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  29. ↑ "Barry Blue - Devil's Gun / You Make Me Happy (When I'm Blue)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  30. ↑ "Sweet Dreams – I'm Never Giving Up (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
  31. ↑ "Two Way – All Dressed Up (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 15 January 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.