Dusty Springfield | Artist

Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien OBE aka Dusty Springfield, was an English pop singer and record producer born 1939 in London. An important singer of "blue-eyed soul" and at her peak one of the most successful British female performers, Springfield had six top 20 singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 and sixteen on the UK Singles Chart from 1963-89. She is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and International polls have named Springfield among the best female rock artists of all time. In 1958 she joined her first professional group, The Lana Sisters and two years later formed a pop-folk vocal trio, The Springfields with her brother Tom Springfield and Tim Field. They became the UK's top selling act. Her solo career began in 1963 with the pop hit, "I Only Want to be With You". Many hits followed, including "Wishin' and Hopin'", "I Just Don't Know What to do With Myself", "You Don't Have to say you Love Me"" and "Son of a Preacher Man". Several of her hits were produced by Burt Bacharach, including "The Look of Love" from the James Bond film Casino Royale. After a string of successful UK album releases, Springfield made her mark on the US market with the Atlantic Records album Dusty in Memphis, which was recorded in Memphis, using local session players. With more of a US soul sound, the album has been ranked among the greatest albums of all time by Rolling Stone magazine and New Musical Express. The album was also awarded a spot in the Grammy Hall of Fame. In her lifetime Springfield released 17 studio albums, which included several early compilations for the US market, plus countless hit singles. Standout albums include A Girl Called Dusty (1964), Dusty (1964) Where am I Going? (1967), Dusty.. Definitely (1968), Dusty in Memphis (1969), and the 1988 compilation Silver Collection. Dusty Springfield ranked among the most successful British female performers on both sides of the Atlantic. Her image–marked by a peroxide blonde bouffant/beehive hairstyle, heavy makeup and evening gowns, as well as stylised, gestural performances–made her a cultural icon of the Swinging Sixties. But behind the show-biz veneer she was in constant fear of losing her career if exposed as a lesbian. Since her death in 1999 at the age of 59, Springfield has become an icon of the LGBT community.

Artist Website: wikipedia/Dusty_Springfield

Featured Albums: Dusty Springfield

Related Artists: Burt Bacharach, Pet Shop Boys, The Springfields

Collections: Women of Note