Paul Curtis (musician)
Encyclopedia
Paul Michael Curtis is an English
singer, songwriter
, record producer
from London
, who holds the record for the most number of song
s to make the finals of the A Song for Europe
contest, the BBC
's annual competition to choose the UK
entry to the Eurovision Song Contest
, competing with 22 separate songs from 1975 to 1992.
" by The Shadows
doing best at Eurovision, finishing in second place at the final in Stockholm
, Sweden
in 1975. His second song to go on to the Eurovision final, which he wrote in collaboration with Graham Sacher, "Love Games" by Belle & The Devotions
, caused a storm of controversy when it was booed from the stage in Luxembourg
. Curtis and his co-writer Sacher, were accused of plaigiarism, and the singers on stage were largely faking their performance. In addition, Curtis has twice sung his own compositions in the UK national competition, "No Matter How I Try" in 1982 and as leader of 'Duke And The Aces' in 1980, performing "Love Is Alive".
Curtis was married to singer Ronnie France, who herself performed one of her husband's compositions in the 1978 UK final, "Lonely Nights". In 1984, Curtis wrote four of the eight finalists for the competition, having written three out of eight in 1982. He had a son in 1978, John-Paul France while married to Ronnie France.
Curtis released his own version of "Different Worlds, Different People" on single in 1982, including the track on his self-named album that same year, along with "No Matter How I Try", both from the Song for Europe contest.
Some artists got their first break by recording Curtis compositions and performing them in the Eurovision heat. Hazell Dean
and Sinitta both made their TV debuts in the A Song for Europe
contest singing Curtis' songs. Stage star David Ian
was part of two groups who sang Curtis songs, First Division in 1984 and Jump in 1986.
Of the four songs that Curtis wrote to win the UK competition, all made the UK Top 40 Music Week
/BBC
Singles chart. The Shadows
' "Let Me Be The One" reached no.12 in 1975; In 1984 Belle & The Devotions
' "Love Games" hit no.11; Emma (Booth)
reached no.33 with "Give A Little Love Back To The World" in 1990; and Samantha Janus
scored a no.30 hit in 1991 with "A Message To Your Heart".
In 1990, Curtis got together with songwriters Martin Lee
of Brotherhood of Man
and David Kane to compose a musical based on The Butterfly Children
books by Angela and Pat Mills
. The musical had its world premiere at the Mitchell Theatre in Glasgow, to open the 1990 Glasgow City of Culture and ran for a month and was performed by the Mitchell Theatre For Youth. Just three months later, the show transferred to the larger Kings Theatre in Glasgow and ran for two weeks. The show transferred in late 1992 to London's West End. The Butterfly Children, essentially a children's show, featured many differing styles of music from rap to rock and country and western to the more familiar pop the group were known for. The show's run ended after a short season, and has not been performed since.
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...
singer, songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, who holds the record for the most number of song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s to make the finals of the A Song for Europe
A Song for Europe
A Song for Europe may refer to:*A Song for Europe, former name of British pre-selection competition for the Eurovision Song Contest, now known as Eurovision: Your Country Needs You...
contest, the BBC
BBC
The 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...
's annual competition to choose the UK
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...
entry to the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
, competing with 22 separate songs from 1975 to 1992.
Career
Curtis also holds the record for having written the most number of UK entries at the Eurovision Song Contest. Four of his songs have won the UK selection contest, with his debut attempt, "Let Me Be The OneLet Me Be the One (Eurovision song)
Let me Be The One was the British entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1975, written by Paul Curtis and performed in English by the band The Shadows....
" by The Shadows
The Shadows
The Shadows are a British pop group with a total of 69 UK hit-charted singles: 35 as 'The Shadows' and 34 as 'Cliff Richard and the Shadows', from the 1950s to the 2000s. Cliff Richard in casual conversation with the British rock press frequently refers to the Shadows by their nickname: 'The Shads'...
doing best at Eurovision, finishing in second place at the final in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
in 1975. His second song to go on to the Eurovision final, which he wrote in collaboration with Graham Sacher, "Love Games" by Belle & The Devotions
Belle & the Devotions
Belle and the Devotions was a British pop music group, ostensibly a group name for the singer Kit Rolfe. Under this name she released the singles "Where Did Love Go Wrong?" and "Got To Let You Know" in 1983....
, caused a storm of controversy when it was booed from the stage in Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
. Curtis and his co-writer Sacher, were accused of plaigiarism, and the singers on stage were largely faking their performance. In addition, Curtis has twice sung his own compositions in the UK national competition, "No Matter How I Try" in 1982 and as leader of 'Duke And The Aces' in 1980, performing "Love Is Alive".
Curtis was married to singer Ronnie France, who herself performed one of her husband's compositions in the 1978 UK final, "Lonely Nights". In 1984, Curtis wrote four of the eight finalists for the competition, having written three out of eight in 1982. He had a son in 1978, John-Paul France while married to Ronnie France.
Curtis released his own version of "Different Worlds, Different People" on single in 1982, including the track on his self-named album that same year, along with "No Matter How I Try", both from the Song for Europe contest.
Some artists got their first break by recording Curtis compositions and performing them in the Eurovision heat. Hazell Dean
Hazell Dean
Hazell Dean is a British dance-pop singer, who achieved her biggest success in the 1980s as a leading Hi-NRG artist. She is best known for the top ten hits "Searchin' ", "Whatever I Do " and "Who's Leaving Who"...
and Sinitta both made their TV debuts in the A Song for Europe
A Song for Europe
A Song for Europe may refer to:*A Song for Europe, former name of British pre-selection competition for the Eurovision Song Contest, now known as Eurovision: Your Country Needs You...
contest singing Curtis' songs. Stage star David Ian
David Ian
David Ian Lane , is a former actor and now a theatre producer who The Stage has called "the most powerful man in UK theatre".-Biography:...
was part of two groups who sang Curtis songs, First Division in 1984 and Jump in 1986.
Of the four songs that Curtis wrote to win the UK competition, all made the UK Top 40 Music Week
Music Week
Music Week is a trade paper for the UK record industry.Founded in 1959 as Record Retailer, it was relaunched on 18 March 1972 as Music Week . On 17 January 1981 the title was again changed, owing to the increasing importance of sell-through videos, to Music & Video Week...
/BBC
BBC
The 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...
Singles chart. The Shadows
The Shadows
The Shadows are a British pop group with a total of 69 UK hit-charted singles: 35 as 'The Shadows' and 34 as 'Cliff Richard and the Shadows', from the 1950s to the 2000s. Cliff Richard in casual conversation with the British rock press frequently refers to the Shadows by their nickname: 'The Shads'...
' "Let Me Be The One" reached no.12 in 1975; In 1984 Belle & The Devotions
Belle & the Devotions
Belle and the Devotions was a British pop music group, ostensibly a group name for the singer Kit Rolfe. Under this name she released the singles "Where Did Love Go Wrong?" and "Got To Let You Know" in 1983....
' "Love Games" hit no.11; Emma (Booth)
Emma (singer)
Emma is a Welsh singer who sang the UK entry, "Give a Little Love Back to the World", in the Eurovision Song Contest 1990....
reached no.33 with "Give A Little Love Back To The World" in 1990; and Samantha Janus
Samantha Janus
Samantha Zoe Womack is an English actress, singer and director, both on television and stage. In recent years she has been best known for playing the role of Ronnie Branning in EastEnders, but made her name in the early 1990s as Mandy Wilkins in Game On, and also represented the United Kingdom in...
scored a no.30 hit in 1991 with "A Message To Your Heart".
In 1990, Curtis got together with songwriters Martin Lee
Martin Lee (singer)
Martin Lee is a singer-songwriter, best known as a member of the British pop group Brotherhood of Man.- Early career :...
of Brotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man
Brotherhood of Man are a British pop group who achieved success in the 1970s, most notably by winning the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest with "Save Your Kisses for Me"....
and David Kane to compose a musical based on The Butterfly Children
The Butterfly Children
The Butterfly Children is the title of a series of children's books created by husband and wife team, Pat and Angela Mills. The books were published during the 1990s by Peter Haddock Ltd. In 1990, a musical based on the characters was staged featuring songs written by Martin Lee, Paul Curtis and...
books by Angela and Pat Mills
Pat Mills
Pat Mills, nicknamed 'the godfather of British comics', is a comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since....
. The musical had its world premiere at the Mitchell Theatre in Glasgow, to open the 1990 Glasgow City of Culture and ran for a month and was performed by the Mitchell Theatre For Youth. Just three months later, the show transferred to the larger Kings Theatre in Glasgow and ran for two weeks. The show transferred in late 1992 to London's West End. The Butterfly Children, essentially a children's show, featured many differing styles of music from rap to rock and country and western to the more familiar pop the group were known for. The show's run ended after a short season, and has not been performed since.
A Song For Europe entries
- 1975 "Let Me Be The OneLet Me Be the One (Eurovision song)Let me Be The One was the British entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1975, written by Paul Curtis and performed in English by the band The Shadows....
" - The ShadowsThe ShadowsThe Shadows are a British pop group with a total of 69 UK hit-charted singles: 35 as 'The Shadows' and 34 as 'Cliff Richard and the Shadows', from the 1950s to the 2000s. Cliff Richard in casual conversation with the British rock press frequently refers to the Shadows by their nickname: 'The Shads'...
(1st) - 1976 "I Couldn't Live Without You For A Day" - Hazell DeanHazell DeanHazell Dean is a British dance-pop singer, who achieved her biggest success in the 1980s as a leading Hi-NRG artist. She is best known for the top ten hits "Searchin' ", "Whatever I Do " and "Who's Leaving Who"...
(=8th) - 1977 "Just For You" - High Society (=6th)
- 1977 "Everybody Knows" - Beano (10th)
- 1978 "One Glance" - The Jarvis Brothers (=3rd)
- 1978 "Lonely Nights" - Ronnie France (9th)
- 1979 "Let It All Go" - Sal Davis (9th)
- 1980 "Love Is Alive" - Duke And The Aces (7th)
- 1982 "No Matter How I Try" - Paul Curtis (=4th)
- 1982 "Different Worlds, Different People" - Lovin' FeelingBobby McVayRobert McVay is a British broadcaster and musician, currently the presenter of the breakfast show on Real Radio in South Wales....
(=4th) - 1982 "How Long?" - The Weltons (7th)
- 1983 "We've Got All The Time In The World" - Mirror (2nd)
- 1984 "Love GamesLove Games (Belle and the Devotions song)"Love Games", written and composed by Paul Curtis and Graham Sacher, was the United Kingdom's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1984, performed by the trio Belle and the Devotions, which was headed by Kit Rolfe....
" - Belle & The DevotionsBelle & the DevotionsBelle and the Devotions was a British pop music group, ostensibly a group name for the singer Kit Rolfe. Under this name she released the singles "Where Did Love Go Wrong?" and "Got To Let You Know" in 1983....
(1st) - 1984 "Where The Action Is" - First DivisionDavid IanDavid Ian Lane , is a former actor and now a theatre producer who The Stage has called "the most powerful man in UK theatre".-Biography:...
(2nd) - 1984 "Let It Shine" - Miriam Ann Lesley (5th)
- 1984 "Imagination" - Sinitta (3rd)
- 1985 "Let Me Love You One More Time" - Annabel (5th)
- 1985 "Dancing In The Night" - Keri Wells (2nd)
- 1986 "Don't Hang Up On Love" - JumpDavid IanDavid Ian Lane , is a former actor and now a theatre producer who The Stage has called "the most powerful man in UK theatre".-Biography:...
(2nd) - 1990 "Give a Little Love Back to the WorldGive a Little Love Back to the World"Give a Little Love Back to the World", written and composed by Paul Curtis, was the United Kingdom's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1990, performed by Emma...
" - EmmaEmma (singer)Emma is a Welsh singer who sang the UK entry, "Give a Little Love Back to the World", in the Eurovision Song Contest 1990....
(1st) - 1991 "A Message to Your HeartA Message to Your Heart"A Message to Your Heart", written and composed by Paul Curtis, was the United Kingdom's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1991, performed by Samantha Janus...
" - Samantha JanusSamantha JanusSamantha Zoe Womack is an English actress, singer and director, both on television and stage. In recent years she has been best known for playing the role of Ronnie Branning in EastEnders, but made her name in the early 1990s as Mandy Wilkins in Game On, and also represented the United Kingdom in...
(1st) - 1992 "This Is The Moment I've Been Waiting For" - Michael BallMichael Ball (singer)Michael Ashley Ball, born 27 June 1962) is a British actor, singer, and radio and TV presenter who is best known for the song "Love Changes Everything" and musical theatre roles such as Marius in Les Misérables, Alex in Aspects of Love, Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Edna Turnblad...
(5th)