Tracie Young
Encyclopedia
Tracie Young (born 1965, Derby
, England
) was a pop
singer
in the 1980s. She achieved success after becoming a protégée of Paul Weller
.
frontman, Paul Weller, through an advertisement in Smash Hits
magazine
for his Respond Records label
. Weller's ad solicited demo tapes from female singers between the ages of 18 and 24, for the purpose of hiring a vocalist alongside the group The Questions
. Although just 17 years old, Young replied and sent Weller a cassette of a Phoebe Snow
-inspired version of the Betty Wright
hit "Shoorah Shoorah". Young's tape was singled out from among the hundreds received, and shortly thereafter was invited to London for an audition. Performing old soul numbers "Band of Gold" and "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" for the audition, Young impressed Weller enough to win the job and become his priority signing for the Respond label.
Before recording solo work for Respond, Weller sought to increase exposure for Young. He promptly utilized her for backing vocals on The Jam's final single, "Beat Surrender
", which was released on 26 November 1982 and became the band's fourth #1 single. Weller also had Young join the group for their appearance on Top Of The Pops to promote the song.
In January 1983, Young contributed vocals for The Style Council
's first single, "Speak Like a Child
", and also appeared in the promotional video for the song. As an unofficial member of the group, Young toured with The Style Council for part of 1983, while also performing as a solo artist as part of a Respond package tour
Young was featured on the cover of the April 9, 1983 issue of New Musical Express with the banner "Tracie: The girl star Paul Weller would build". She was also voted "Most Fanciable Female" in Smash Hits 1983 readers' poll.
Signed to Respond, she had UK
hit single
s in March 1983 with "The House That Jack Built" and in July with "Give it Some Emotion" (both credited simply to 'Tracie')
Her debut album, Far from the Hurting Kind
, was released in 1984 under the name Tracie. It featured production
, backing, and songwriting
from Weller, as well as an Elvis Costello
song written especially for her, "(I Love You) When You Sleep". The album was reissued in Japan
in 1996.
Young recorded with The Style Council again in 1985, contributing backing vocals to the song "Boy Who Cried Wolf", a single taken from the album Our Favourite Shop
.
Respond ceased operations in 1986 and Young was briefly signed by Polydor. The second album she recorded whilst signed to Polydor, titled No Smoke Without Fire, remains unreleased.
Since the late 1990s Young has enjoyed a second career as a radio presenter, currently working at Southend Radio 105.1, Chelmsford Radio 107.7 and also Connect FM in Peterborough and Northamptonshire. In 2009 Young did a one-off gig, supporting Billy Franks (formerly of The Faith Brothers) at The Shepherd's Bush Empire. The show was on June 6, 2009 and Tracie was backed by Southend rock band, Soliss. In the wake of the show, Young released a self-produced, limited edition six-song EP of previously released material, titled It Happened One Night...And Other Songs .
In 2010, with the cooperation of Young, Cherry Red Records reissued her 1984 debut Far from the Hurting Kind
, marking the first time the album has been available in the UK on CD. The 20 track CD features the 10 tracks from the original album release plus 10 bonus tracks.
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) was a pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
singer
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
in the 1980s. She achieved success after becoming a protégée of Paul Weller
Paul Weller
Paul Weller is an English singer-songwriter. Starting with the band The Jam , Weller then went on to branch out musically to a more soulful style with The Style Council...
.
Career
Born in Derby and raised in Essex, Young began her singing career when she was discovered by The JamThe Jam
The Jam were an English punk rock/New Wave/mod revival band active during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They were formed in Woking, Surrey. While they shared the "angry young men" outlook and fast tempos of their punk rock contemporaries, The Jam wore smartly tailored suits rather than ripped...
frontman, Paul Weller, through an advertisement in Smash Hits
Smash Hits
Smash Hits was a pop music based magazine, aimed at teenagers and young adults and originally published in the United Kingdom by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006 and was issued fortnightly for most of that time...
magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
for his Respond Records label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
. Weller's ad solicited demo tapes from female singers between the ages of 18 and 24, for the purpose of hiring a vocalist alongside the group The Questions
The Questions
The Questions were a Scottish pop band, active during the late 1970s and early 1980s.-History:Although they emerged from the same scene as Orange Juice, Aztec Camera and The Bluebells, The Questions were distinguished from their peers for their blue-eyed soul sound. ...
. Although just 17 years old, Young replied and sent Weller a cassette of a Phoebe Snow
Phoebe Snow
Phoebe Snow was a fictional character created by Earnest Elmo Calkins to promote the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad. The advertising campaign, based on a live model, using impressionistic techniques and a fictional character, was one of the first of its kind.-The advertising...
-inspired version of the Betty Wright
Betty Wright
Bessie Regina Norris, better known by her stage name, Betty Wright , is a Grammy winning Miami-based soul and R&B singer-songwriter, who won fame in the 1970s with hits such as "Clean Up Woman" and "Tonight Is the Night"...
hit "Shoorah Shoorah". Young's tape was singled out from among the hundreds received, and shortly thereafter was invited to London for an audition. Performing old soul numbers "Band of Gold" and "Reach Out (I'll Be There)" for the audition, Young impressed Weller enough to win the job and become his priority signing for the Respond label.
Before recording solo work for Respond, Weller sought to increase exposure for Young. He promptly utilized her for backing vocals on The Jam's final single, "Beat Surrender
Beat Surrender
"Beat Surrender" was The Jam's final single released on 26 November 1982.It became the band's fourth #1 UK single for two weeks in December 1982. The 7" was backed by the B-side "Shopping"...
", which was released on 26 November 1982 and became the band's fourth #1 single. Weller also had Young join the group for their appearance on Top Of The Pops to promote the song.
In January 1983, Young contributed vocals for The Style Council
The Style Council
The Style Council were an English band, formed in 1983 by the ex-The Jam singer and guitarist Paul Weller, with keyboardist Mick Talbot. The permanent line-up grew to include drummer Steve White and Weller's then-wife, vocalist Dee C. Lee. Other artists such as Tracie Young and Tracey Thorn also...
's first single, "Speak Like a Child
Speak Like a Child
"Speak Like a Child" was the debut single from The Style Council and was included on the album, Introducing The Style Council in 1983 . Backed with "Party Chambers", it became a big hit, peaking at #4 on the UK Singles Chart. Paul Weller and Mick Talbot were already well-known from their previous...
", and also appeared in the promotional video for the song. As an unofficial member of the group, Young toured with The Style Council for part of 1983, while also performing as a solo artist as part of a Respond package tour
Young was featured on the cover of the April 9, 1983 issue of New Musical Express with the banner "Tracie: The girl star Paul Weller would build". She was also voted "Most Fanciable Female" in Smash Hits 1983 readers' poll.
Signed to Respond, she had 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...
hit single
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...
s in March 1983 with "The House That Jack Built" and in July with "Give it Some Emotion" (both credited simply to 'Tracie')
Her debut album, Far from the Hurting Kind
Far from the Hurting Kind
Far From the Hurting Kind is the debut album by British pop singer Tracie Young. The album was originally released in the U.K. on 18 June 1984, and reached #64 on the UK Albums Chart. Far From the Hurting Kind was the second album released on Paul Weller's Respond record label. The album was...
, was released in 1984 under the name Tracie. It featured production
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...
, backing, and songwriting
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...
from Weller, as well as an Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
song written especially for her, "(I Love You) When You Sleep". The album was reissued in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 1996.
Young recorded with The Style Council again in 1985, contributing backing vocals to the song "Boy Who Cried Wolf", a single taken from the album Our Favourite Shop
Our Favourite Shop
Our Favourite Shop is the second album from the band The Style Council. The majority of the album's material was released in the USA as Internationalists by Geffen Records Our Favourite Shop is the second album from the band The Style Council. The majority of the album's material was released...
.
Respond ceased operations in 1986 and Young was briefly signed by Polydor. The second album she recorded whilst signed to Polydor, titled No Smoke Without Fire, remains unreleased.
Since the late 1990s Young has enjoyed a second career as a radio presenter, currently working at Southend Radio 105.1, Chelmsford Radio 107.7 and also Connect FM in Peterborough and Northamptonshire. In 2009 Young did a one-off gig, supporting Billy Franks (formerly of The Faith Brothers) at The Shepherd's Bush Empire. The show was on June 6, 2009 and Tracie was backed by Southend rock band, Soliss. In the wake of the show, Young released a self-produced, limited edition six-song EP of previously released material, titled It Happened One Night...And Other Songs .
In 2010, with the cooperation of Young, Cherry Red Records reissued her 1984 debut Far from the Hurting Kind
Far from the Hurting Kind
Far From the Hurting Kind is the debut album by British pop singer Tracie Young. The album was originally released in the U.K. on 18 June 1984, and reached #64 on the UK Albums Chart. Far From the Hurting Kind was the second album released on Paul Weller's Respond record label. The album was...
, marking the first time the album has been available in the UK on CD. The 20 track CD features the 10 tracks from the original album release plus 10 bonus tracks.
Singles
- "The House That Jack Built" (March 1983) UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#9 - "Give It Some Emotion" (July 1983) UK #24
- "Souls On Fire" (March 1984) UK #73
- "(I Love You) When You Sleep" (May 1984) UK #59
- "I Can't Leave You Alone" (July 1985) UK #60
- "Invitation" (October 1985)
- "We Should Be Together" (July 1986)
- "(When You) Call Me" (October 1986)