- Stuart Colman
Infobox musical artist
Name = Stuart Colman
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Background = non_vocal_instrumentalist
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Born = birth date and age|1944|12|19
Flagicon|EnglandHarrogate ,Yorkshire
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Genre = pop music
Occupation = musician, record producer, radio DJ
Years_active = 1960s - present
Label =Pye Records ,Epic Records
Associated_acts =Pinkerton's Assorted Colours
The Flying Machine
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Notable_instruments =Stuart Colman (born
19 December 1944 ,Harrogate ,Yorkshire ) into a well-known musical family, took uppiano andbass guitar , and enjoyed his first taste of success when he joinedPinkerton's Assorted Colours in 1966.Three years later, the group evolved into The Flying Machine and their first single under that name, "Smile A Little Smile For Me", made the top five in the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100 , selling over two million copies. In 1976 Colman jointly organized a march to theBBC , protesting about the lack ofrock and roll music onBBC Radio One . To his surprise, the corporation took him on as a presenter, headlining his own weekly show. Following the popularity of the programme,Epic Records brought Colman in to take over the production reins withrockabilly icon,Shakin' Stevens . There were hits straight away with "Hot Dog" and "Marie, Marie" followed by a string of number ones including "This Old House ", "Green Door " and "Oh Julie ". His success story then crossed over into the global market place, where combined sales with Stevens alone went on to top 35 million units. During this busy period he was called upon to produce a wide range of artists, ranging fromThe Shadows toPaul Kennerley , andClaire Hamill to The Revillos.In 1982, Colman was voted the top singles producer of the year by
Music Week magazine .Meanwhile, as a broadcaster, Colman was also hosting the highly-regarded "Echoes" on
BBC Radio London , a unique forum with a guest list that included SirPaul McCartney ,Dr. John ,Robert Plant andSteve Miller . He was also in demand as ajournalist writing a weekly column for theMelody Maker , as well as authoring a best-sellingbook , "They Kept On Rockin"'. Colman extended his chart successes by creating hits forKim Wilde ,The Jets andAlvin Stardust , and he madealbum s with his boyhood idols,Phil Everly andLittle Richard . Following his love of comedy recordings, Colman was asked byRichard Curtis andBen Elton to produce the inaugural Comic Relief record, and "Living Doll", featuring TV's "The Young Ones" along with pop legend Cliff Richard, became another international #1.In 1986, Colman opened his own Master Rock
recording studio inLondon , fitting the A room out with the first Focusrite recording console, and the B room with a state-of the-artSolid State Logic . Apart from his own productions withJeff Beck ,The Inmates andJane Harrison , the studio played host toElton John ,U2 ,Eric Clapton andSoul II Soul . Still pursuing his broadcasting career, Colman then joined London’s newly-launchedCapital Gold , where he played his beloved rock and roll at the weekends and anchored the evening slot during the week. At the same time he was producing many major TV music specials forCentral Television , where he worked with the likes ofNatalie Cole , T'Pau,Nona Hendryx andMeat Loaf . In 1995, geared by his love of Americanmusic , Colman decided to move with his family to Nashville,Tennessee where he went on to record with a wide variety of artists including Victoria Shaw,Nanci Griffith ,The Crickets andLinda Gail Lewis . He began by arranging and producing the country demo of theFaith Hill smash "This Kiss ", then co-produced with Jim Ed Norman the original version of the Garth and Trisha duet, "Where Your Road Leads " by Victoria Shaw andBilly Dean . He delivered a well-received Texas-Swing album byDon Walser forSire Records , as well as producing a fresh batch of tracks on The Osmond Brothers, a country album by Canadian diva Tracy Fidler, and the debut recordings by Brazilian newcomer, Leandro Beling.In 2002, Colman was diagnosed with
cancer of theoesophagus and he was subjected to an intense course ofchemotherapy ,radiation and surgery. The experience cost him hismarriage and he became, as he puts it, a born-again-bachelor. Even during this time he kept himself busy, writing liner notes for a great many CD's, including a critically-acclaimed boxed set ofDon Gibson recordings forBear Family , and at the same time he maintained his long-running column for the monthly rock and roll magazine, "Now Dig This ". Since his recovery, Colman has appeared in a movie depicting the life and times ofJack Clement , and he has also reunited withShakin' Stevens playing bass on tours throughoutEurope . In 2008, Colman has returned to the studios of Nashville, directing his energies into developing a set of new artists includingKentucky bornSulcer Evans ,singer-songwriter ,Seth Matthews , and the talented British tunesmiths, Dean Shannon and Jenny Bolton.
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