Betty Thatcher
Encyclopedia
Betty Thatcher was an English
lyricist, who wrote most of the lyrics for the UK progressive rock
band Renaissance
.
, central London. She was taught to read newspapers at home, started conventional school at the age of eight and became a fast and prolific reader. After passing the Eleven plus exam, she won a scholarship to a grammar school, where she refused to partake in any examinations. After two years excelling in English and Art, she transferred to a school that accepted difficult students.
, the younger sister of ex-Yardbirds
singer Keith Relf
. When Keith and Jane formed Renaissance
, they asked her to be the lyricist, Relf having read Thatcher's letters to Jane. When the threesome moved to St Ives, Cornwall
, she sent her lyrics from there to Jim McCarty
who would write songs around them, including "Love Is All" and "Past Orbits Of Dust" from the album Illusion
, which was produced by Paul Samwell-Smith
and released in Germany in 1971, but not released in the UK until 1976.
(vocals), John Tout (keyboards), Michael Dunford (guitar), Jon Camp (bass guitar/vocals) and Terence Sullivan (drums). Dunford sent tapes of his compositions to her when it was inconvenient to play through his ideas in person and claimed that "she writes amazingly quickly... three days later I get these stunning lyrics back in the post!"
During this period, Thatcher wrote most of the band's lyrics for the studio albums Prologue
, Ashes Are Burning
, Turn of the Cards
, Scheherazade and Other Stories
, Novella
, A Song for All Seasons
and Azure d'Or
. Notably, she wrote the lyrics to their 1978 UK top 10 hit single "Northern Lights". After further line-up changes, she wrote lyrics for the 1981 album Camera Camera
, being her final contributions to the band. She wrote the words to "Bonjour Swansong" as "a private goodbye to the group."
McCarty formed the group Shoot in 1973 whose only album, On The Frontier, featured the McCarty/Thatcher-composed title track that Renaissance recorded for Ashes Are Burning
.
"Carpet of the Sun" conveys Thatcher's "joy of being alive, and seeing the grass grow" and "Ashes Are Burning" relates "a near death experience". "Running Hard" tells of "a long dark cliff path, that if you miss the last bus from Hayle
to St. Ives, you have to walk... the sea's at one side of you and there's a train the other side... the trees looked like webs and the stars and the moon looked like mirrors". "I Think of You" conveys how "you can love everybody, in every way, even the unlovable". "Black Flame" relates to the Vietnam War
and the horrors of killing. "Mother Russia
" was inspired by Alexander Solzhenitsyn's book One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
. About "Ocean Gypsy", Thatcher "always thought the sun was the man and the moon was the woman... it's like they're lovers and they never really meet". "The Vultures Fly High" was "actually written for Wishbone Ash
and it had even darker words... so I tried to make it a little lighter". Thatcher "always regretted writing "Sounds of the Sea" because I felt that it was such a personal thing... every time I heard it for the first five years I cringed and thought, oh my God, everyone can see into my brain". Thatcher revealed that "Can You Hear Me?" is "about the city and... people hiding behind their social facades".
album, which was recorded with Louis Clark
and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
. Thatcher and Clark also recorded an album entitled The Life of Dorian Gray which was never released. She contributed lyrics to Don Airey
's 1989 album K2. In 1998, Thatcher wrote the words for a Japanese commercial for Nikka
Whiskey which won five awards.
and then in Hayle
. In her late years she was not in the best of health, suffering from emphysema
. Thatcher died of cancer on 15 August 2011, in Hayle.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
lyricist, who wrote most of the lyrics for the UK progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
band Renaissance
Renaissance (band)
Renaissance are an English progressive rock band, most notable for their 1978 UK top 10 hit "Northern Lights" and progressive rock classics like "Carpet of the Sun", "Mother Russia" and "Ashes Are Burning".-Original incarnation :...
.
Early life
Betty Mary Newsinger was born in Great Titchfield StreetGreat Titchfield Street
Great Titchfield Street is a street in the West End of London. It runs north from Oxford Street to Greenwell Street, just short of the busy A501 Marylebone Road and Euston Road. It lies within the informally designated London area of Fitzrovia. In administrative terms it is in the City of Westminster...
, central London. She was taught to read newspapers at home, started conventional school at the age of eight and became a fast and prolific reader. After passing the Eleven plus exam, she won a scholarship to a grammar school, where she refused to partake in any examinations. After two years excelling in English and Art, she transferred to a school that accepted difficult students.
Renaissance with Keith and Jane Relf
Thatcher's friend Liz Kellett introduced her to her school friend Jane RelfJane Relf
Jane Relf is the younger sister of Keith Relf of the Yardbirds. After the Yardbirds disbanded, Keith formed Renaissance and Jane joined on vocals. After Keith's death the surviving members of Renaissance reformed as Illusion, under which name they recorded two albums with Jane's vocals to the fore...
, the younger sister of ex-Yardbirds
The Yardbirds
- Current :* Chris Dreja - rhythm guitar, backing vocals * Jim McCarty - drums, backing vocals * Ben King - lead guitar * David Smale - bass, backing vocals...
singer Keith Relf
Keith Relf
Keith William Relf , was a musician best known as the lead singer and harmonica player of The Yardbirds. After the Yardbirds broke up Relf formed the acoustic duo Together, with fellow Yardbird Jim McCarty, followed by Renaissance, which also featured his sister, singer Jane Relf, then hard rock...
. When Keith and Jane formed Renaissance
Renaissance (band)
Renaissance are an English progressive rock band, most notable for their 1978 UK top 10 hit "Northern Lights" and progressive rock classics like "Carpet of the Sun", "Mother Russia" and "Ashes Are Burning".-Original incarnation :...
, they asked her to be the lyricist, Relf having read Thatcher's letters to Jane. When the threesome moved to St Ives, Cornwall
St Ives, Cornwall
St Ives is a seaside town, civil parish and port in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town lies north of Penzance and west of Camborne on the coast of the Celtic Sea. In former times it was commercially dependent on fishing. The decline in fishing, however, caused a shift in commercial...
, she sent her lyrics from there to Jim McCarty
Jim McCarty
Jim McCarty is an English musician, best known as the drummer for The Yardbirds and Renaissance.-Early life:...
who would write songs around them, including "Love Is All" and "Past Orbits Of Dust" from the album Illusion
Illusion (Renaissance album)
Illusion was a 1971 album by progressive rock band Renaissance. It was originally released only in Germany and did not receive a wider release until 1973. It was first released in the U.K...
, which was produced by Paul Samwell-Smith
Paul Samwell-Smith
Paul Samwell-Smith is best known as a founding member and bassist of the 1960s English band, The Yardbirds, a group that spawned such noteworthy musicians as Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page...
and released in Germany in 1971, but not released in the UK until 1976.
Renaissance with Annie Haslam
After many personnel changes, the Renaissance line-up finally stabilised from 1972 to 1980, with Annie HaslamAnnie Haslam
Annie Haslam is an English progressive rock vocalist and songwriter.Originally a fashion student, she began studying under opera singer Sybil Knight in 1970 and developed her five-octave vocal range...
(vocals), John Tout (keyboards), Michael Dunford (guitar), Jon Camp (bass guitar/vocals) and Terence Sullivan (drums). Dunford sent tapes of his compositions to her when it was inconvenient to play through his ideas in person and claimed that "she writes amazingly quickly... three days later I get these stunning lyrics back in the post!"
During this period, Thatcher wrote most of the band's lyrics for the studio albums Prologue
Prologue (Renaissance album)
Prologue was a 1972 album by progressive rock band Renaissance.-Information about the album:In 1972, Renaissance's then-new management disbanded the lineup at the time , retaining only Haslam and Tout to build a new band around. The new members added at this point were Camp, Sullivan, and...
, Ashes Are Burning
Ashes Are Burning
Ashes Are Burning is an album by progressive rock band Renaissance, released in 1973 . It was the first of several Renaissance albums to feature an orchestra playing along with the band on some songs.-Information about the album:...
, Turn of the Cards
Turn of the Cards
Turn of the Cards is a 1974 album by progressive rock band Renaissance.-Information about the album:* "Things I Don't Understand" was founder member Jim McCarty's last contribution to the band; it had already been performed live for several years when it was finally recorded.* "Running Hard" quotes...
, Scheherazade and Other Stories
Scheherazade and Other Stories
Scheherazade and Other Stories is a 1975 album by progressive rock band Renaissance. It has often been considered their overall best album....
, Novella
Novella (Renaissance album)
Novella was a 1977 album by progressive rock band Renaissance.- Information about the album :Due to the bankruptcy of the band's UK label BTM, this album was released in the USA some months before its UK release, leading to a number of UK fans importing copies...
, A Song for All Seasons
A Song for All Seasons
A Song For All Seasons was a 1978 album by progressive rock band Renaissance. It marked the return of electric guitars to the band's music after several years of absence.-Information about the album:...
and Azure d'Or
Azure d'Or
-Personnel:*Annie Haslam - lead & backing vocals*Jon Camp - bass, guitars, backing vocals, lead vocal on "Only Angels Have Wings"*Michael Dunford - guitars*John Tout - keyboards*Terence Sullivan - drums, percussion, backing vocals on "Golden Key"...
. Notably, she wrote the lyrics to their 1978 UK top 10 hit single "Northern Lights". After further line-up changes, she wrote lyrics for the 1981 album Camera Camera
Camera Camera (Renaissance album)
Camera Camera was a 1981 album by progressive rock band Renaissance.-Information about the album:After losing two of their five members and being dropped from their label, Renaissance signed on to I.R.S. Records. The departed members were replaced by keyboardist/singer Peter Gosling and drummer...
, being her final contributions to the band. She wrote the words to "Bonjour Swansong" as "a private goodbye to the group."
McCarty formed the group Shoot in 1973 whose only album, On The Frontier, featured the McCarty/Thatcher-composed title track that Renaissance recorded for Ashes Are Burning
Ashes Are Burning
Ashes Are Burning is an album by progressive rock band Renaissance, released in 1973 . It was the first of several Renaissance albums to feature an orchestra playing along with the band on some songs.-Information about the album:...
.
Michael Dunford's Renaissance
In 1994, Thatcher wrote the lyrics for the album The Other Woman by Michael Dunford's Renaissance, which featured singer Stephanie Adlington. These were written "during the painful period when a relationship was coming to an end... during which I was unable to speak, so I tried to put some of my feelings to song".Terence Sullivan's Renaissant
In 2005, Thatcher wrote lyrics for the album South of Winter by Terence Sullivan's group Renaissant, which featured John Tout on keyboards, Terry's wife Christine on most of the vocals and Terry singing lead on two songs.About the lyrics
John Tout described Thatcher's lyrics as "reclusive, almost. They're not drawn from the normal sort of thing that people write about in a rock band" and Jon Camp opined "What she's written has always been correct for the group. It fits very well with what we've tried to do musically"."Carpet of the Sun" conveys Thatcher's "joy of being alive, and seeing the grass grow" and "Ashes Are Burning" relates "a near death experience". "Running Hard" tells of "a long dark cliff path, that if you miss the last bus from Hayle
Hayle
Hayle is a small town, civil parish and cargo port in west Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated at the mouth of the Hayle River and is approximately seven miles northeast of Penzance...
to St. Ives, you have to walk... the sea's at one side of you and there's a train the other side... the trees looked like webs and the stars and the moon looked like mirrors". "I Think of You" conveys how "you can love everybody, in every way, even the unlovable". "Black Flame" relates to the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and the horrors of killing. "Mother Russia
Mother Russia (Renaissance song)
Mother Russia is the closing song on Renaissance's 1974 album Turn of the Cards. It also appears on the 1976 live album Live at Carnegie Hall, the compilation Tales of 1001 Nights, Vol...
" was inspired by Alexander Solzhenitsyn's book One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich is a novel written by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, first published in November 1962 in the Soviet literary magazine Novy Mir . The story is set in a Soviet labor camp in the 1950s, and describes a single day of an ordinary prisoner, Ivan Denisovich Shukhov...
. About "Ocean Gypsy", Thatcher "always thought the sun was the man and the moon was the woman... it's like they're lovers and they never really meet". "The Vultures Fly High" was "actually written for Wishbone Ash
Wishbone Ash
Wishbone Ash are a British rock band who achieved success in the early and mid-1970s. Their popular records included Wishbone Ash , Argus , There's the Rub , and New England...
and it had even darker words... so I tried to make it a little lighter". Thatcher "always regretted writing "Sounds of the Sea" because I felt that it was such a personal thing... every time I heard it for the first five years I cringed and thought, oh my God, everyone can see into my brain". Thatcher revealed that "Can You Hear Me?" is "about the city and... people hiding behind their social facades".
Work with other artists
During the seventies, Thatcher wrote English lyrics for German and Spanish hits. In 1985, she wrote the lyrics to Annie Haslam's Still LifeStill Life (Annie Haslam album)
Still Life is the second solo album by Renaissance vocalist Annie Haslam, recorded with Louis Clark and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in 1985....
album, which was recorded with Louis Clark
Louis Clark
Louis Clark is a British musical arranger and keyboard player.He trained at Leeds College of Music. He was the conductor of the orchestra and choir hired to back Electric Light Orchestra's sound, introduced on their album Eldorado in 1974...
and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
. Thatcher and Clark also recorded an album entitled The Life of Dorian Gray which was never released. She contributed lyrics to Don Airey
Don Airey
Donald Airey has been the keyboardist in the rock band Deep Purple since 2002, succeeding Jon Lord...
's 1989 album K2. In 1998, Thatcher wrote the words for a Japanese commercial for Nikka
Nikka Whisky Distilling
The is a producer of Japanese whisky headquartered in Tokyo. They have two malt whisky distilleries, one in Yoichi, Hokkaidō , and the other in Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Northern Honshū...
Whiskey which won five awards.
Personal life
In 1972, she married at the Kensington and Chelsea registry office and became Betty Brown. She divorced in 1976, and changed her name back to Newsinger in the early 1980s, when her name gained political significance. She was a private person as was her ex husband. She lived most of her life in St IvesSt Ives, Cornwall
St Ives is a seaside town, civil parish and port in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town lies north of Penzance and west of Camborne on the coast of the Celtic Sea. In former times it was commercially dependent on fishing. The decline in fishing, however, caused a shift in commercial...
and then in Hayle
Hayle
Hayle is a small town, civil parish and cargo port in west Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated at the mouth of the Hayle River and is approximately seven miles northeast of Penzance...
. In her late years she was not in the best of health, suffering from emphysema
Emphysema
Emphysema is a long-term, progressive disease of the lungs that primarily causes shortness of breath. In people with emphysema, the tissues necessary to support the physical shape and function of the lungs are destroyed. It is included in a group of diseases called chronic obstructive pulmonary...
. Thatcher died of cancer on 15 August 2011, in Hayle.