1959 in British music
Encyclopedia
This is a summary of 1959 in music in the United Kingdom
, including the official charts from that year.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, including the official charts from that year.
Events
- April 21 - Ballerina Margot FonteynMargot FonteynDame Margot Fonteyn de Arias, DBE , was an English ballerina of the 20th century. She is widely regarded as one of the greatest classical ballet dancers of all time...
is jailed for 24 hours in PanamaPanamaPanama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
on suspicion of planning a coup against the government of president Ernesto de la Guardia. - June 1 - The first edition of Juke Box JuryJuke Box JuryJuke Box Jury was a musical panel show which originally ran on BBC Television from 1 June 1959 until December 1967. The programme was based on the American show Jukebox Jury, itself an offshoot of a long-running radio series....
, presented by David JacobsDavid Jacobs (disc jockey)David Lewis Jacobs CBE is a British actor and broadcaster who gained prominence as presenter of the peak-time BBC Television show Juke Box Jury and the BBC Radio 4 political forum, Any Questions?-Early career:...
, is broadcast on BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television. The first panel consists of Pete Murray, Alma CoganAlma CoganAlma Cogan was an English singer of traditional pop music in the 1950s and early 1960s. Dubbed "The Girl With the Laugh/Giggle/Chuckle In Her Voice", she was the highest paid British female entertainer of her era...
, Gary MillerGary Miller (singer)Gary Miller born Neville Williams was an English popular music singer and actor of the 1950s and 1960s. His career spanned only 13 years before he died of a heart attack in 1968. He released 24 singles and six EPs on the Pye Records label between 1955 and 1967...
and Susan StranksSusan StranksSusan Stranks is a British actress, television presenter and producer.-Career:Born in London, Stranks was ten years old when she played the role of the younger Emmeline Foster in the 1949 romantic adventure film The Blue Lagoon....
.
Classical music: new works
- Arnold BaxArnold BaxSir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax, KCVO was an English composer and poet. His musical style blended elements of romanticism and impressionism, often with influences from Irish literature and landscape. His orchestral scores are noted for their complexity and colourful instrumentation...
- Symphony No. 4 - Francis Jackson - Diversion for Mixtures
- Grace WilliamsGrace Williams-Biography:Williams was born in Barry, near Cardiff, Wales.She was educated at Barry County School, and won a scholarship to Cardiff University . She then went to the Royal College of Music, London, where she was taught by Ralph Vaughan Williams...
- All Seasons shall be Sweet
Births
- January 14 - Chas SmashChas SmashCathal Smyth, also known as Chas Smash is an English musician, best known as the backing singer and dancer in the ska/pop band Madness. He also plays trumpet, acoustic guitar and various percussion instruments...
(MadnessMadness (band)In 1979, the band recorded the Lee Thompson composition "The Prince". The song, like the band's name, paid homage to their idol, Prince Buster. The song was released through 2 Tone Records, the label of The Specials founder Jerry Dammers. The song was a surprise hit, peaking in the UK music charts...
) - January 28 - Dave SharpDave SharpDave Sharp is an English guitarist who co-founded, along with Mike Peters, the Welsh punk rock band The Alarm.-Early career:...
(The AlarmThe AlarmThe Alarm are an alternative rock band that emerged from North Wales in the late 1970s. They started as a mod band and stayed together for over ten years. As a rock band, they displayed marked influences from Welsh language and culture...
) - February 25 - Mike PetersMike Peters (musician)Mike Peters is a Welsh musician, best known as the lead singer of The Alarm. He currently lives in Dyserth, North Wales with his family. After The Alarm split up in 1991, Peters wrote and released solo work, which he has been releasing under the name "The Alarm" since 2000...
, singer/songwriter (The AlarmThe AlarmThe Alarm are an alternative rock band that emerged from North Wales in the late 1970s. They started as a mod band and stayed together for over ten years. As a rock band, they displayed marked influences from Welsh language and culture...
) - March 17 - Mike LindupMike LindupMike Lindup is best known as the keyboard player and falsetto voiced singer, who joined with Mark King and brothers Phil and Boon Gould to form the 1980s - 1990s British funk/rock/pop band, Level 42....
, singer/keyboard player (Level 42Level 42Level 42 are an English pop rock and jazz-funk band who had a number of worldwide and UK hits during the 1980s and 1990s.The band gained fame for their high-calibre musicianship—in particular that of Mark King, whose percussive slap-bass guitar technique provided the driving groove of many of the...
) - April 10 - Brian SetzerBrian SetzerBrian Setzer is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He first found widespread success in the early 1980s with the 1950s-style rockabilly revival group The Stray Cats, and revitalized his career in the late 1990s with a jazz-oriented big band.-Career:Setzer was born in Massapequa, New York...
, singer/guitarist (The Stray Cats) - April 21 - Robert SmithRobert Smith (musician)Robert James Smith is an English musician. He is the lead singer, guitar player and principal songwriter of the rock band The Cure, and its only constant member since its founding in 1976...
, singer (The CureThe CureThe Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
) - June 18 - Sean Terrington WrightSean Terrington WrightSean Terrington Wright is a British songwriter, singer, guitarist, record producer, artist, writer, and poet. He has collaborated with Kim Fowley, Najam Sheraz, Mark Linkous, Mark Tinley, Enrico Coniglio, Yvalian, Josh Woodward, & many indie artists...
singer/songwriter (International HeroesInternational HeroesThe New Wave of British Heavy Metal band International Heroes was formed in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, in 1981 by Dave Maile and Pete Archer . They recruited Kevin Howell , Gary 'Wally' Wallace on lead guitar, Paul 'Doug' Douglas, bass guitar, and Roger Perriam, keyboards...
) - June 24 - Andy McCluskeyAndy McCluskeyGeorge Andrew "Andy" McCluskey is the lead singer, bass guitarist, and primary songwriter for the band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark ....
(Orchestral Manoeuvres in the DarkOrchestral Manoeuvres in the DarkOrchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark are a synthpop group whose founding members are originally from the Wirral Peninsula, England...
) - October 4 - Chris LoweChris LoweChris Lowe is an English musician, who, with colleague Neil Tennant, makes up the pop duo Pet Shop Boys.-Childhood:...
, keyboard player (Pet Shop BoysPet Shop BoysPet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....
) - October 10 - Kirsty MaccollKirsty MacCollKirsty Anna MacColl was an English singer-songwriter.MacColl scored several pop hits from the early 1980s to the early 1990s...
, singer/songwriter (d. 2000) - November 27 - Charlie BurchillCharlie BurchillCharles "Charlie" Burchill is a Scottish musician and composer. He was one of the founders of Scottish rock group Simple Minds. He plays guitar, keyboard, saxophone, drums and violin.-Style:...
(Simple MindsSimple MindsSimple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
) - December 30 - Tracey UllmanTracey UllmanTracey Ullman is a British stage and television actress, comedienne, singer, dancer, screenwriter and author ....
, actress and singer
Deaths
- March 25 - Billy MayerlBilly MayerlBilly Joseph Mayerl , was an English pianist and composer who built a career in music hall and musical theatre and became an acknowledged master of light music. Best known for his syncopated novelty piano solos, he wrote over 300 piano pieces, many of which were named after flowers and trees,...
, pianist and composer (b. 1902) - June 9 - Sonnie HaleSonnie HaleSonnie Hale was an English theatre and cinema actor and director.John Robert Hale-Monro was born in London, the son of Robert Hale and Belle Reynolds. His father and sister, Binnie Hale were actors. He worked chiefly in musical and revue theatre, but also acted in several films with occasional...
, actor and singer (b. 1902) - September 6 - Kay KendallKay KendallKay Kendall was an English actress.Kendall began her film career in the 1946 musical London Town. Though the film was a financial failure, Kendall continued to work regularly until her appearance in the comedy Genevieve brought her widespread recognition...
, musical comedy actress (b. 1926) (leukaemia) - September 21 - Agnes NichollsAgnes NichollsAgnes Nicholls was one of the greatest English sopranos of the 20th century, both in the concert hall and on the operatic stage....
, operatic soprano (b. 1877) - September 28 - Gerard HoffnungGerard HoffnungGerard Hoffnung was an artist and musician, best known for his humorous works.- Early years :Born in Berlin, and named Gerhard, he was the only child of a well-to-do Jewish couple, Hildegard and Ludwig Hoffnung...
, German-born artist, musician and humorist (b. 1925) (cerebral haemorrhage) - November 26 - Albert KetèlbeyAlbert KetèlbeyAlbert William Ketèlbey , born Ketelbey, was an English composer, conductor and pianist.-Biography:...
, pianist, conductor and composer (b. 1875) - December 30 - G. W. BriggsG. W. BriggsGeorge Wallace Briggs was an English hymn writer and Anglican clergyman.He was born in Nottingham and educated at Loughborough Grammar School and Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He served as a padre in the Royal Navy before becoming Vicar of St. Andrew's Church, Norwich and in 1918 became Rector of...
, hymn-writer (b. 1875)