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Lulu was born in Lennox Castle, near Glasgow Scotland, on November 3rd, 1948. At birth she was named Marie McDonald MacLaughlin Lawrie, but when she began singing as a child, everyone said she was a "Lulu of a singer" and the nickname stuck. The official billing on the record "Shout" recorded when she was just 15, was given to "Lulu & the Luvers"; a group which, I believe, included her brother Billy Lawrie, who would later join the group "Tin Tin".
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Everyone loved "Shout" & in Britain she is very well remembered for that single. It's vitality & energy level far outstrips the original version by the Isley Brothers, in my opinion. A string of hits would follow, both ballads & rockers. A string of hair-styles also followed!
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My interest in Lulu first began in 1978. We had an English lady named Maggie helping us out after my mother passed away, & we were discussing brushes with fame. She told me she had once stood next to Lulu in a hotel elevator in London. She also told me that Lulu had once been married to one of my favorite singers, Bee Gee Maurice Gibb. I was just becoming a huge Bee Gees fan at that time, which I remain to this day, so I thought I would see what Lulu sounded like too. I bought "To Sir With Love" first, & thought it was great! I began collecting her other records, & I have about a dozen of them now, although several still elude me.
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It was even better trying to find her LP's after I discovered that she regularly covered Bee Gees songs, such as "I Started A Joke" "Marley Purt Drive" and the title of this web site, "Melody Fair" among others. And she has covered them well, I might add! Lulu has a strong, clear highly melodic voice, which is extremely versatile. She can sound raw & gritty, soulful & sexy, and with her fiery red hair & miniskirts, she epitomized the Mod-1960's to a tee! (And that sounds a lot like The Spice Girls in the 1990's too!) Her look, her style, her voice, are all things I have always admired about Lulu. (That and the fact that she had married a Bee Gee! Please visit My Bee Gees Site later.)
In fact, The Spice Girls, whom I also really like, remind me quite a bit of Lulu. More about that on the next page...
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