Derek Joseph Patrick Leahy (20 May 1937 – 30 August 2020) was a British music industry executive. Leahy first came to prominence as A&R manager at

Philips Records Philips Records is a record label founded by the Dutch electronics company Philips. It was founded as Philips Phonographische Industrie in 1950. In 1946, Philips acquired the company which pressed records for British Decca's Dutch outlet in ...

in the late 1960s. He managed the Bell Records label in the early 1970s, which had a string of hits in the U.K. He formed the equally successful label

GTO Records GTO Records was a British record label which released many hits during the 1970s. It ran from 1974 to 1981 and mainly concentrated on pop music and disco. The acronym represented the Gem Toby Organization. Background The record label was co-fo ...

in 1974 before moving into music publishing in the 1980s, notably working with

Wham! Wham! (briefly known in the US as Wham! U.K.) were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981. The duo consisted of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They became one of the most commercially successful pop acts of the 1980s, selling mor ...

and George Michael.

Biography

Derek (Dick) Joseph Patrick Leahy was born on 20 May 1937 in

Hornchurch Hornchurch is a suburban town in East London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross. It comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential area. It historically formed a l ...

, Essex, to Patrick Leahy, an Irishman who worked at the Ford Motor Company's automotive factory in nearby Dagenham, and Gladys (née Jackson). One of six children, Leahy was educated at grammar school, after which he served his

national service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The ...

and worked various jobs until in the late 60s, he was appointed A & R manager at Fontana Records, a subsidiary of

, responsible for a stable of artists including

Dusty Springfield Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien (16 April 1939 – 2 March 1999), known professionally as Dusty Springfield, was an English singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano sound, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, pop and dram ...

, the

Pretty Things The Pretty Things were an English band formed in September 1963 in Sidcup, Kent. They took their name from Willie Dixon's 1955 song "Pretty Thing". A pure rhythm and blues band in their early years, with several singles charting in the Unit ...

and

The Walker Brothers The Walker Brothers were an American pop group of the 1960s and 1970s which included Noel Scott Engel (eventually known professionally as Scott Walker), John Walker (born John Joseph Maus, but using the name Walker since his teens) and Gary Le ...

. There, Ken Howard, manager of

Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich were an English rock band active during the 1960s. Formed in Salisbury in 1964, the band consisted of David John Harman (Dave Dee), Trevor Leonard Ward-Davies (Dozy), John Dymond (Beaky), Michael Wilson (Mick ...

, described him as "a real livewire - the person at Philips who was most on top of what was new and happening". In the early 1970s, he joined Bell Records, overseeing the establishment of the American company's independent label in the U.K., and achieving success in the U.K. with

Tony Orlando and Dawn Tony Orlando and Dawn is an American pop music group that was popular in the 1970s, composed of singer Tony Orlando and the backing vocal group Dawn (Telma Hopkins and Joyce Vincent Wilson). Their signature hits include " Candida", " Knock Thre ...

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, Gary Glitter,

The Drifters The Drifters are several American doo-wop and R&B/soul vocal groups. They were originally formed as a backing group for Clyde McPhatter, formerly the lead tenor of Billy Ward and his Dominoes in 1953. The second group of Drifters, formed in ...

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Barry Blue Barry Blue (born Barry Ian Green, 4 December 1950) is an English singer, producer, and songwriter. As an artist, he is best known for his hit songs " Dancin' (on a Saturday Night)" and "Do You Wanna Dance" (both 1973). Blue has also been a pr ...

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and Slik. He signed the Bay City Rollers to the label after seeing them performing in a club in Edinburgh, saying "I really couldn't hear what they were playing or singing. All I could hear was this constant screaming." In 1974, Leahy teamed with fellow music executive Laurence Myers to form the independent label

. After a string of hit records with the likes of Donna Summer,

The Dooleys The Dooleys were a British male–female pop group comprising at its peak eight members – six of them in the Dooley family. The group achieved several UK chart hits between 1977 and 1981, including top-ten hits " Wanted", "Love of My Life" ...

Heatwave A heat wave, or heatwave, is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate countries. While definitions vary, a heat wave is usually measured relative to the usual climate in th ...

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and Dana, the label was sold to

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

in 1977. Leahy left the label in 1981 to form a music publishing business with

Bryan Morrison Bryan Morrison (14 August 1942 – 27 September 2008) was an English businessman, music publisher and polo player. Career He served as representative for musicians such as Pink Floyd. His company, the Bryan Morrison Agency, became one of th ...

, former manager of the

. In 1982, they signed a publishing agreement with

on the strength of their demo material. After the duo split in 1986, Leahy continued as George Michael's music publisher and confidante. Leahy was married twice with four children. He died on 30 August 2020.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leahy, Dick 1937 births 2020 deaths People from Hornchurch British music industry executives