Musicians - Keith Hampshire

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	Musicians - Keith Hampshire

Keith Hampshire is a British-born Canadian "rock star" of the 1970s, mostly famous, at least in Canada, for cover versions of other people's hits.

Biography

The gifted vocal cords of Keith Hampshire got their first workout on November 23, 1945, in a south London hospital. Born in East Dulwich, Keith quickly progressed in his entertainment skills, and by the age of four, participated in a children's dance show. Two years later, the family settled in Calgary, after passing through New York and then Toronto. Vocal lessons and a stint in the church choir eventually prepared Keith for a solo gig at The Depression Coffeehouse (where Joni Mitchell also played). Soon after, he joined his first rock 'n' roll group, The Intruders, followed by The Bristols and then three years of success with Keith & The Variations. Their greatest moments would be opening for Roy Orbison in 1965 at the Calgary Stampede Corral, and appearing on Whoopee-A-Go-Go, a local TV show.

Keith's rock 'n' roll credentials earned him a steady job at a Calgary radio/TV station as a camera operator, but he was soon itching for something more exciting. The answer was a 1966 trip to his homeland, and a regular spot as disc jockey with Radio Caroline, a pirate station in the North Sea. Millions of music fans tuned in to listen to Keefers' Uprising in the morning and Keefers' Commotion in the afternoon. For a little over a year, Keith became a local celebrity, spinning records from all over the world, and recording a one-off single, "Millions of Hearts."

Although he left Radio Caroline in 1967, the airwaves were still in Keith's blood, so he returned to Canada and began a two year stint with CKFH in Toronto. When the station decided to make some changes in the fall of 1969, Keith branched out to performances on stage and television. Musical productions of You Better Believe It and Oops! (and its cast recording LP) were well received, as were his appearances on The Wayne & Shuster Comedy Hour. Around this time, Keith also met Bill Misener, a producer with RCA Records in Canada. They got together in the studio to record Keith's first official single, "Ebenezer" (a.k.a. "I Wish I Could Wish Away"). Although RCA wasn't interested in further releases, Misener produced another gem in "Daytime Night-time," originally recorded by Manfred Mann as Each and Every Day. Keith was certain it would be a hit, and got A&M Records involved in releasing it. "Daytime Night-time" hit the top 10 in Canada, and number 51 in the U.S., and was included on the LP, The First Cut. "The First Cut is the Deepest" also became a single, making it to number one in Canada, in May of 1973. On its heels came "Big Time Operator," another top 10 smash near the end of the year.

Keith recorded several more singles, including "Sixteen Tons" and "You're No Good," but they didn't get released (until 2005), causing the bubble to burst. Six months later, Linda Ronstadt took "You're No Good" to number 1, much to Keith's chagrin. Consequently, he left A&M to host a weekly Canadian rock 'n' roll show titled, Music Machine. It had a successful, 2 year run, featuring guest artists like Rush, Klaatu, The Bells, Copperpenny, Lighthouse, Valdy and others.

When Music Machine wound down, Keith decided to step out of the limelight and spend more time with his growing family. For several years he kept busy singing and providing voices in radio and TV commercials. At the close of the decade, Keith worked for Freedom Records as A&R man, signing acts like David Wilcox and Lee Aaron to their first recording contracts. While with the label, he also released his 1981 album, Variations, which included the singles, "Nobody's Child," "I Can't Wait Too Long" and a reworked version of "Something Good." Two years later, Keith provided lead vocals on what would become his best-selling single, "OK Blue Jays." It was a tribute to Toronto's hot baseball team, and earned Keith a gold record.

Except for the occasional live performance, such as Ottawa's Canada Day 2000 celebrations in front of 110000 people, Keith remains behind the scenes putting his vocal talents to good use in TV and radio jingles.

Discography

Singles

1967 - Millions of Hearts (b/w Lonely Boy)
1971 - Ebenezer (b/w Sing Angel Sing)
1972 - Daytime Night-time (b/w Turned the Other Way)
1973 - First Cut is the Deepest (b/w You Can't Hear the Song I Sing)
1973 - Big Time Operator (b/w You Can't Hear the Song I Sing)
1974 - For Ever and Ever (b/w Jeraboah)
1974 - Hallelujah (b/w Waking Up Alone)
1976 - I'm Into Something Good (b/w Waking Up Alone)
1981 - I Can't Wait Too Long (b/w Nobody's Child)
1983 - OK Blue Jays (b/w same)

Albums

1972 - Oops! (original cast recording)
1973 - The First Cut
1981 - Variations
2005 - The Best of Keith Hampshire: The Millennium Collection

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