Silverbird | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | November 1973 | |||
Recorded | 1971-1972 | |||
Studio | The Barn, Sussex; Olympic Studios, London; Nova Studios, London | |||
Genre | Soft rock | |||
Length | 34:53 | |||
Label | Chrysalis (UK) Warner Bros. (USA) | |||
Producer | David Courtney, Adam Faith | |||
Leo Sayer chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Christgau's Record Guide | B− [2] |
Silverbird is the debut solo studio album by English singer-songwriter Leo Sayer. It was originally released in November 1973 by Chrysalis (UK), and Warner Bros. (US). It was co-produced by former British pop teen idol Adam Faith and David Courtney.
Sayer began his career as a recording artist under the management guidance of Adam Faith and David Courtney who signed Sayer to the Chrysalis label in the UK and Warner Bros. Records in the USA. His debut single "Why Is Everybody Going Home" failed to chart, but he shot to national prominence in the UK with his second single, the plaintive music hall-styled song "The Show Must Go On", which Sayer memorably performed on British television wearing a pierrot costume and make-up. The single went quickly to No. 2 on the UK chart, [3] as did this debut album, which Courtney and Sayer wrote all eleven tracks;
The recording of Silverbird was a difficult and somewhat experimental process, Adam Faith and David Courtney were having loads of ideas but had no real experience in record production. The writers were inspired however and the album started to come together at Virgin Records' Manor Studios in Shipton-on-Cherwell in Oxfordshire. Further recording took place at the Who's lead singer Roger Daltrey's Barn Studio, Burwash, East Sussex, Nova Studios and Olympic Studios, and later at the Beatles' Apple studios. At Daltrey's the recording took further shape with the team creating, amongst others, the unique "The Show Must Go On". [4]
All lyrics by Leo Sayer, music by David Courtney.
Chart (1974) | Peak Position |
---|---|
Australia (Kent Music Report) [6] | 14 |
USA Pop Albums | 209 |
UK Albums Chart [7] | 2 |
Terence Nelhams Wright, known as Adam Faith, was an English singer, actor, and financial journalist. As a British rock and roll teen idol, he scored consecutive No. 1 hits on the UK Singles Chart with "What Do You Want?" (1959) and "Poor Me" (1960). He became the first UK artist to lodge his initial seven hits in the top 5, and was ultimately one of the most charted acts of the 1960s. He was also one of the first UK acts to record original songs regularly.
Gerard Hugh "Leo" Sayer is an English-Australian singer and songwriter who has been active since 1973. He has been an Australian citizen and resident since 2009.
Who Are You is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Who, released on 21 August 1978 by Polydor Records in the United Kingdom and MCA Records in the United States. Although the album received mixed reviews from critics, it was a commercial success, peaking at number 2 on the US charts and number 6 on the UK charts.
Just a Boy is the second album by English singer-songwriter, Leo Sayer, and was released in 1974. It features his interpretations of two songs written by Sayer and David Courtney for The Who's lead vocalist Roger Daltrey's debut album, Daltrey. Sayer's singles "One Man Band" and "Long Tall Glasses" both hit the charts in the U.K. and around the world. Leo Sayer was now popular in Europe and made many promotional appearances there. He headlined in Paris at The Theatre D’ Champs Elysees, the theatre known as the home of his then-hero, mime artist Marcel Marceau.
Another Year is the third album by English singer-songwriter Leo Sayer, which was released in 1975.
Endless Flight is the fourth album by English singer-songwriter Leo Sayer, which was released in 1976. It was released in the US and Canada by Warner Bros. Records and in the UK by Chrysalis Records.
Thunder in My Heart is the fifth album by the English singer-songwriter, Leo Sayer, and was released in 1977. In 2006, a remixed dance version of the track, entitled "Thunder in My Heart Again", was released, credited to Meck featuring Leo Sayer. It reached No. 1 in the United Kingdom, and No. 16 in Australia. Along with a follow-up single, "Easy to Love", the song reached the Top 40 in the US and Canada.
World Radio is the ninth album by the English singer-songwriter, Leo Sayer, and was released in May 1982. It was his tenth successive Top 50 chart entry in the UK Albums Chart, in a period of a little over eight years.
Have You Ever Been in Love is the tenth studio album by recording artist Leo Sayer. It was originally released in November 1983 by Chrysalis (UK), and Warner Bros. (US) as the follow-up to his ninth album World Radio (1982). It was co-produced by the Grammy Award-winning Arif Mardin, in association with Alan Tarney, and Christopher Neil producing the other tracks. Sayer is credited as co-writer on the tracks "Don't Wait Until Tomorrow", and "Orchard Road".
Here is the seventh original album by the English singer-songwriter, Leo Sayer, and was released in 1979.
Enrico Antonio Giorgio Spinetti is a Welsh session drummer whose playing has featured on many prominent rock and pop albums.
The Mighty Lemon Drops were an English rock group active from 1985 to 1992.
Daltrey is the debut solo studio album by the English rock singer Roger Daltrey, lead vocalist of the Who. It was released on 20 April 1973 by Track Records in the United Kingdom and MCA Records in the United States. Daltrey was the third member of the group to make a solo album. The bulk of the record was written by David Courtney and Leo Sayer. It took six weeks to record during January and February 1973. Sessions took place at Daltrey's Barn Studio, Burwash, East Sussex, where the backing tracks were laid down; vocals, overdubs, and mixing was completed at the Beatles' Apple Studios at 3 Savile Row, and at Nova Sound Studios.
"The Show Must Go On" is a song co-written by Leo Sayer and David Courtney and first recorded by Sayer. It was released in the United Kingdom in 1973, becoming Sayer's first hit record. The song reached #3 on the Irish Singles Chart in January 1974, and was included on Sayer's debut album Silverbird.
Ride a Rock Horse is the second solo studio album by English singer Roger Daltrey, released on 4 July 1975 by Track in the UK and MCA in the US. Ride a Rock Horse was recorded during Daltrey's filming commitments for Ken Russell's film Lisztomania. The album's cover, which is photographed and designed by Daltrey's cousin Graham Hughes, depicts the singer as a rampant centaur.
The Very Best of Leo Sayer was a greatest hits compilation album released in May 1979. His seventh album, it was in the #1 spot in the UK Albums Chart for 3 weeks, and in Australia for 1 week. It is his only chart-topper in the UK Albums Chart. It was never released in the United States.
Moonlighting: The Anthology is a compilation album released by Roger Daltrey on 7 February 2005. The collection includes tracks from various projects throughout his career, such as stage and film appearances, as well as a good sampling of songs from his discography. It was released on the Sanctuary label in the UK and also included "A Second Out," a previously unreleased song written by Daltrey and Steve McEwan of the band UnAmerican.
Go West is the debut studio album by the English pop duo Go West, released in April 1985 by Chrysalis Records. The album brought the band into the limelight, scoring them a string of top 40 hits in the UK and New Zealand. "We Close Our Eyes" was the most successful single, reaching No. 4 in New Zealand and No. 5 in the UK. The album itself reached No. 8 in the UK.
David Courtney is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. Courtney's first big break was as a songwriter with Adam Faith and Leo Sayer; Courtney co-wrote several hit songs with them and he co-produced Faith's 1974 album, I Survive. He released one album of his own on United Artists in 1974 entitled David Courtney's First Day which had some success on both sides of the Atlantic, and peaked at number 194 on the US Billboard 200.
"Giving It All Away" is the debut solo single by Roger Daltrey, the lead vocalist of the Who. The song was written by the then-unknown Leo Sayer with David Courtney. Adam Faith and David Courtney produced the track.
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