Nicholas David Kershaw is an English singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He came to prominence in 1984 as a solo artist. He released eight singles that entered the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart during the decade, including "Wouldn't It Be Good", "Dancing Girls", "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me", "Human Racing", "The Riddle", "Wide Boy", "Don Quixote", and "When a Heart Beats". His 62 weeks on the UK Singles Chart through 1984 and 1985 beat all other solo artists. Kershaw appeared at the multi-venue benefit concert Live Aid in 1985 and has also penned a number of hits for other artists, including a UK No. 1 single in 1991 for Chesney Hawkes, "The One and Only".
"I Want You Back" is the first national single by the Jackson 5. It was released by Motown in October 1969, and became the first number-one hit for the band on January 31, 1970. It was performed on the band's first television appearances, on October 18, 1969, on The Hollywood Palace and on their milestone performance on December 14, 1969, on The Ed Sullivan Show. "I Want You Back" has sold over 6 million copies worldwide.
Human Racing is the debut studio album by the English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw, released on 27 February 1984 by MCA Records. Several songs like "Drum Talk" were based around improvisation; other songs, like "I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me", had a political message.
The Riddle is the second studio album by English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw, released on 19 November 1984 by MCA Records.
"All or Nothing" is a song by American singer and actress Cher from her 22nd studio album, Believe (1998). It was released as the third international single from Believe on June 7, 1999, by WEA and Warner Bros. Records. "All or Nothing" reached the top 40 of the US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales chart at number 38 and peaked at number one on the Billboard Dance Club Play chart. In Europe, the single was a top-10 hit in the Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary, and Scotland.
"Freak Me" is a song by American R&B group Silk. It was released in February 1993 as the second single from their debut album, Lose Control. It was co-written and co-produced by Keith Sweat, for whom Silk was a touring opening act. Tim Cameron, Jimmy Gates and Gary "Lil G" Jenkins sing lead on the song. The song was the group's highest-charting hit, reaching number-one on both the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks, and the U.S. Hot R&B Singles chart for eight weeks. On the Hot 100, this song also spent ten weeks at number two. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and sold over 1.3 million copies domestically.
"Don't Lose My Number" is a song by the English singer Phil Collins from his third solo studio album No Jacket Required. The single was not released in the UK, though it peaked at No. 4 in the US in September 1985. The B-side, "We Said Hello Goodbye" was released as a bonus track on the CD for No Jacket Required. In Australia, the single was released with the title "(Billy) Don't Lose My Number".
"Wouldn't It Be Good" is a song by the English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw, released on 20 January 1984 as the second single from his debut studio album, Human Racing (1984). The release was Kershaw's second single, with the non-album track "Monkey Business" as its B-side; it was a bonus track on the 2012 re-release of the album. The music video was directed by Storm Thorgerson.
"Paninaro" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, originally a B-side to the 1986 single "Suburbia". In 1995, a re-recording titled "Paninaro '95" was released to a wider market, to promote the duo's B-side compilation album Alternative, though only the original version was included on the compilation.
"Nobody Knows" is a song by the English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw. It was released as the lead single from his third studio album Radio Musicola (1986). The release was Kershaw's tenth single, and features the non-album track, "One of Our Fruit Machines Is Missing", as its B-side.
"I Won't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" is a song by English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw from his debut studio album, Human Racing (1984). It was his first single, released on 9 September 1983 to limited success. When re-released on 4 June 1984, the song became Kershaw's highest-charting single on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number two. It features the non-album track "Dark Glasses" as the B-side, which was also released as a bonus track on the 2012 re-release of the album.
"Human Racing" is a song by the English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw. It was the title track for his hit debut studio album of the same name, released in September 1984 by MCA Records. It was the fourth hit single from the album, reaching No. 19 in the UK Singles Chart. It entered the chart in the week ending 15 September 1984, and remained within for seven weeks. An earlier version of the song, titled "Look Behind You", appeared on the studio album Till I Hear from You (1980) by Fusion, a band with Kershaw on lead vocals and guitar.
"The One and Only" is the debut single of British singer and actor Chesney Hawkes. Written by Nik Kershaw, the single was released by Chrysalis Records in January 1991. Produced by Kershaw and Alan Shacklock, and recorded and mixed by Gareth Cousins, the song was featured in the 1991 film Buddy's Song which starred Hawkes as the eponymous Buddy and Roger Daltrey as his father. The film performed moderately well at the UK box office, but the song was a hit in that country's music charts, spending five weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart in March and April 1991. Kershaw's influence can also be heard throughout the track not only in guitar style, but in the backing vocals on the intro and choruses, with Hawkes singing the verses.
The Hits Album 2 or Hits 2 as it is often called, is a compilation album that was released in April 1985 in the UK. The spine of the album as well as the inside cover lists the title as HITS 2 THE ALBUM. It was released by CBS and WEA. It reached #1 in the UK Top 100 Album Chart for 6 weeks. Selected tracks from this and the first album were released on VHS and Betamax by CBS/FOX Video, under the title The Hits Video.
"When a Heart Beats" is a song by the English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw, released as the lead single from his third studio album, Radio Musicola (1986)—although the song does not appear on the LP version of the album, only on the cassette and CD editions. Kershaw's eighth single overall, it features the track "Wild Horses"—which was originally included on his previous studio album, The Riddle (1984)—as its B-side.
"The Riddle" is a song by the English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw, released in 1984 as the lead single from his second studio album of the same name. Kershaw described the lyrical content as being nondescript to fill as a "guide vocal" for the production. It reached number three on the UK Singles Chart and peaked within the top 10 in countries like Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Australia and New Zealand. An accompanying music video was made for the song and features references to Lewis Carroll's book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865).
"Sussudio" is a song by English singer-songwriter Phil Collins. It was released on January 14, 1985 in the United Kingdom by Virgin Records as the lead single from his third solo studio album, No Jacket Required (1985). The song served as the second single from the album in the United States, being released on April 30, 1985 by Atlantic Records, following "One More Night". The song’s title is a pseudoword Collins randomly came up with during a practice session.
"One Step Ahead" is a song by English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw, released on 23 January 1989 as the lead single from his fourth studio album The Works (1989). It was written by Kershaw, and produced by Kershaw and Julian Mendelsohn. A music video was filmed to promote the single, and Kershaw also performed it on the Dutch TV show POP Formule.
"Elisabeth's Eyes" is a song by the English pop musician Nik Kershaw, released in 1989 as the second and final single from his fourth studio album, The Works (1989). It was written by Kershaw, and produced by Kershaw and Julian Mendelsohn.
"Don Quixote" is a song by English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw from his 1984 studio album The Riddle. Released in August 1985 as the final single from that album, it reached No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart in September 1985, and became Kershaw's seventh consecutive UK top 20 hit single.
