Maxine Daniels (2 November 1930 – 20 October 2003) was an English jazz singer who achieved notability in the post-war era.

Early life

Daniels was born Gladys Lynch in Stepney, London, an elder sister of singer and entertainer, Kenny Lynch.Obituary
Thedeadrockstarsclub.com; accessed 5 December 2011. She was one of thirteen children.

Career

Her first recognition as a singer came from winning a local talent contest, at the age of 14, in a Stepney cinema.'Encyclopedia of Popular Music' in Oxford Reference
/ref> Local recognition lead to a first singing job with a semi-professional band led by a

Canning Town Canning Town is a district in the London Borough of Newham, East London. The district is located to the north of the Royal Victoria Dock, and has been described as the "Child of the Victoria Docks" as the timing and nature of its urbanisation ...

grocer, until another talent competition organised by the ''

Daily Sketch The ''Daily Sketch'' was a British national tabloid newspaper, founded in Manchester in 1909 by Sir Edward Hulton. It was bought in 1920 by Lord Rothermere's Daily Mirror Newspapers, but in 1925 Rothermere sold it to William and Gomer Berry ...

''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography - Maxine Daniels, singer by Val Wilmer
/ref> and sponsored by bandleader

Ted Heath Sir Edward Richard George Heath (9 July 191617 July 2005), often known as Ted Heath, was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1974 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1965 to 1975. Heath a ...

. A long residency (1954–56) with bandleader Denny Boyce followed at The Orchid Room in Purley. At Boyce's suggestion, she changed her stage name: through their regular Radio Luxembourg broadcasts, she gained a wider audience, and the opportunity to record for the

Oriole Oriole or Orioles may refer to: Animals * Old World oriole, colorful passerine birds in the family Oriolidae * New World oriole, a group of birds in the family Icteridae Music * The Orioles, an R&B and doo-wop group of the late 1940s and earl ...

label.

Personal life

She married Charlie Daniels in 1950, and had they had a daughter, Hazel Annette. Charlie died in 1988. In the late 1950s, Maxine shared a mutual attraction with actor

Sean Connery Sir Sean Connery (born Thomas Connery; 25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond on film, starring in seven Bond films between 1962 and 1983. Origina ...

, whom she met while performing at a theatre. Connery purportedly made a pass at her, but was informed she was already happily married with a daughter. Maxine Daniels died in Romford in 2003, aged 72. She was survived by her daughter and two grandsons.

Discography

* ''Coffee Bar Calypso'' (

, 1957) Maxine Daniels - Discography on 45cat.com
/ref> * ''A Foggy Day'' (Oriole, 1957) * ''I Never Realised'' (Oriole, 1958) * ''Somebody Else Is Taking My Place'' (Oriole, 1958) with Denny Boyce & His Orchestra * ''When It's Springtime in the Rockies'' (Oriole, 1958) with Denny Boyce & His Orchestra * ''Passionate Summer'' (Oriole, 1958) * ''Pete Corrigan and His Band of Hope'' (CBH, 1984) featuring Maxine DanielsMaxine Daniels - Discography on Discogs
/ref> * ''The Magic of Maxine Daniels... Every Night About This Time'' (Calligraph, 1986) * ''A Pocketful of Dreams'' (Calligraph, 1987) * ''From the Heart'' (Calligraph, 1993) * ''The Memory of Tonight'' (Calligraph, 1996)

References

External links

''The Guardian'' obituary, 30 October 2003
1930 births 2003 deaths English jazz singers Singers from London British women jazz singers 20th-century English singers 20th-century English women singers {{UK-jazz-musician-stub