Five Star (also styled as 5 Star) are a British
pop group, formed in 1983 and comprising siblings
Stedman,
Lorraine
Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gr ...
,
Denise,
Doris and
Delroy Pearson. Between 1985 and 1988, Five Star had four top 20 albums and 15 top 40 singles in the UK, including the top 10 hits "
System Addict
"System Addict" is a 1985 single by the British pop group Five Star. It was the group's first Top 10 hit, reaching #3 in 1986. It is also their second biggest-selling single, being certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry for sales ...
" (1986), "
Can't Wait Another Minute
"Can't Wait Another Minute" is a 1986 hit single by British pop group Five Star, peaking at number 7 on the UK Singles Chart and giving them their highest ever peak of 41 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United States where it also reached num ...
" (1986), "
Find the Time
"Find the Time" is a 1986 single by the British pop group Five Star. It was the second single to be taken from their million-plus selling second album, '' Silk & Steel,'' and peaked at #7 in the UK in July 1986.
The single was written by Nick ...
" (1986), "
Rain or Shine" (1986), "
Stay Out of My Life" (1987) and "
The Slightest Touch
"The Slightest Touch" is a 1987 single by the British pop group Five Star. It reached No. 4 in the UK singles chart, becoming the group's final Top 10 hit to date.
Taken from their second album, '' Silk & Steel'', Five Star chose legendary remix ...
" (1987). They won the 1987
Brit Award
The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...
for Best British Group.
Biography
1980s
The five-piece group of siblings from
Romford
Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romford ...
were masterminded by their father and manager,
Buster Pearson
Buster Pearson (4 May 1941 – 14 October 2012), born Stedman Pearson in Jamaica, was a musician and producer, and father and former manager of British pop group Five Star. He also owned and ran a number of record labels, most notably the 1970s ...
, who modelled them in the style of
the Jackson 5
The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...
.
He was a former recording artist and session musician who had worked with
Wilson Pickett
Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter.
A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the ''Bill ...
and had set up Tent Records Ltd in 1982.
Their debut single was released on Tent in 1983 and although it did not chart, it gave them TV exposure and a record deal with
RCA Records
RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
(with future releases being joint Tent/RCA releases).
After two unsuccessful singles in 1984, their chart breakthrough came in 1985 with the release of "
All Fall Down" which peaked at No. 15 on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
,
and No. 65 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the US, where it also reached the top 20 (No. 16) on the
Hot R&B Singles
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...
chart and the top 10 (No. 6) on the
Hot Dance/Disco
Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...
chart.
The group released their debut album, ''
Luxury of Life
''Luxury of Life'' is the debut album by the British pop group Five Star. Though not a great success when it was first released in the summer of 1985, the album eventually peaked at number 12 in early 1986, and spent a total of 70 weeks in the U ...
'', in June 1985.
It included their last three singles and was followed by the single "
Let Me Be the One" which was another UK Top 20
and US Hot 100 hit, also peaking at No. 2 on the US Hot R&B chart. After another two singles in the UK in 1985 which failed to reach the top 20, the group scored their first top 10 hit in early 1986 with "
System Addict
"System Addict" is a 1985 single by the British pop group Five Star. It was the group's first Top 10 hit, reaching #3 in 1986. It is also their second biggest-selling single, being certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry for sales ...
", the seventh UK single from their debut album.
The single peaked at No. 3 in the UK,
and was certified silver. Its success also led to increased sales of the album which peaked at No. 12 on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
in February 1986, and would be certified platinum in the UK later in the year. Also in 1986, the instrumental track "First Avenue" (which had been released as the
B-side
The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...
of "All Fall Down") was nominated for a
Grammy Award for Best R&B Instrumental Performance The Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many ...
, and a remixed version of "
Love Take Over
"Love Take Over" is a 1985 hit single by British pop group Five Star. The single was written and produced by Rob Van Schaick and Bernard Oates (a.k.a. The Limit). "Love Take Over" was a UK Top 30 success, peaking at #25 and also at #9 in the Ho ...
" gave them another US Hot R&B top 10 hit (reaching No. 9).
Their first new material in 1986, the single "
Can't Wait Another Minute
"Can't Wait Another Minute" is a 1986 hit single by British pop group Five Star, peaking at number 7 on the UK Singles Chart and giving them their highest ever peak of 41 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United States where it also reached num ...
", gave the group another top 10 hit on the UK Singles,
US Hot R&B and US Hot Dance/Disco charts and also their highest-ever US Hot 100 peak, reaching No. 41. The song was used in the film ''
Gung Ho
''Gung ho'' () is an English term, with the current meaning of "overly enthusiastic or energetic". It originated during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) from a Chinese term, ( zh, hp=gōnghé, l=to work together), short for Chinese ...
''. After another UK top 10 hit ("
Find the Time
"Find the Time" is a 1986 single by the British pop group Five Star. It was the second single to be taken from their million-plus selling second album, '' Silk & Steel,'' and peaked at #7 in the UK in July 1986.
The single was written by Nick ...
"), the group released their second album, ''
Silk and Steel'', in August 1986.
The album reached No. 1 and sold 1.2 million copies in the UK (being certified triple platinum by 1987).
The single "
Rain or Shine" gave the group their highest ever UK chart position, peaking at No. 2.
"
If I Say Yes
"If I Say Yes" is a 1986 single by British pop group Five Star, and was the follow-up to their biggest-ever UK single, the #2 ranked " Rain or Shine". It was the fourth release from the group's '' Silk & Steel'' album. A 3:43 remixed version of t ...
" (a UK top 20 hit) became their final entry on the US Hot 100.
In 1987, two further singles from ''Silk and Steel'', "
Stay Out of My Life" (penned by Denise) and "
The Slightest Touch
"The Slightest Touch" is a 1987 single by the British pop group Five Star. It reached No. 4 in the UK singles chart, becoming the group's final Top 10 hit to date.
Taken from their second album, '' Silk & Steel'', Five Star chose legendary remix ...
", made the UK top 10 with US-only single "
Are You Man Enough?" (remixed by
Shep Pettibone
Robert "Shep" Pettibone (born 10 July 1959) is an American record producer, remixer, songwriter and club DJ, one of the most prolific of the 1980s.
Career
Shep Pettibone surfaced after his work with Arthur Baker on Afrika Bambaataa & the Jazz ...
) making the US Hot R&B top 20. The group won the 1987
BRIT Award
The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...
for Best British Group with ''Silk and Steel'' also nominated for Best British Album.
At the height of their success the family bought Stone Court, a large security-gated mansion in Berkshire (featuring a built-in recording studio) from former
P.M. Dawn
P.M. Dawn was an American hip hop and R&B act that formed in 1988 by the brothers Attrell Cordes (known by his stage name Prince Be, sometimes credited as Prince Be the Nocturnal) and Jarrett Cordes (known as DJ Minutemix) in Jersey City, New J ...
manager Nick Hemmings, in which they all lived and worked.
They also owned a fleet of supercars, including Lamborghinis and Ferraris. Their affluent lifestyle was heavily publicised in the press and on television.
New single "
Whenever You're Ready" narrowly missed the UK top 10 (peaking at No. 11) but its only placing in the US was No. 39 on the Hot R&B chart. August 1987 saw the release of their third album, ''
Between the Lines'', which reached No. 7 in the UK and was another platinum seller, but sales did not match their previous success.
The
Diane Warren
Diane Eve Warren (born September 7, 1956) is an American songwriter. She has received several awards including a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, three ''Billboard'' Music Awards and an Honorary Academy Award.
Wa ...
-penned ballad "
Strong as Steel
''Strong as Steel'' is the second studio album by Australian pop music, pop singer Tina Arena, released in 1990 by EMI.
Album information
The album has a very light tone and a pop rock feel to it compared to Arena's subsequent albums, which we ...
" was taken as the next single but it peaked at No. 16 in the UK and failed to chart at all in the US. The next UK single, "
Somewhere Somebody
"Somewhere Somebody" is the name of a 1987 hit single by British pop group Five Star
Five Star (also styled as 5 Star) are a British pop group, formed in 1983 and comprising siblings Stedman, Lorraine, Denise, Doris and Delroy Pearson. ...
" failed to reach the top 20 and no further singles were released from the album.
In 1988, the group attempted to change their clean-cut image to a more adult-oriented "leather-clad" look, matched with a slightly harder-edged dance sound. Led by the
Leon Sylvers III
Leon Frank Sylvers III (born March 7, 1953, Memphis, Tennessee) is an American singer, songwriter, disc-jockey, record producer and multi-instrumentalist. He was a member of the family group The Sylvers and became one of the most successful pro ...
-produced single "
Another Weekend" in the UK (which reached No. 18), their fourth album ''
Rock the World'' met with only moderate success, and was their last top 20 album, peaking at No. 17. The album's second UK single, "
Rock My World", became their last top 40 hit, and further singles from the album were unsuccessful.
In the US, "
Someone's in Love" was chosen as the lead single, but that and "Another Weekend" only managed minor placings on the Hot R&B chart.
In April 1989, their new single "
With Every Heartbeat
"With Every Heartbeat" is a song by Swedish record producer Kleerup and Swedish singer-songwriter Robyn. It was first released on 10 January 2007 in Sweden and later on 30 July 2007 in the United Kingdom. It was released as the second single f ...
" again missed the top 40, peaking at No. 49. Later that year, a ''
Greatest Hits
A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...
'' collection was released but peaked at a lowly No. 53 on the UK Albums Chart. Amid reports of bankruptcy, the family had been forced to sell their Berkshire mansion after only two years.
The family then moved to
Hatfield, Hertfordshire
Hatfield is a town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, in the borough of Welwyn Hatfield. It had a population of 29,616 in 2001, and 39,201 at the 2011 Census. The settlement is of Saxon origin. Hatfield House, home of the Marquess of ...
.
While promoting "With Every Heartbeat", the group made an infamous appearance on the British children's TV show ''
Going Live
''Going Live!'' was a British children's television series that aired on BBC1 from 26 September 1987 to 17 April 1993. It was presented by Phillip Schofield and Sarah Greene. Other presenters included Trevor and Simon, Annabel Giles, Phillip Hod ...
'', when, during a live phone-in, a teenage caller verbally abused them and asked why they were "so fucking crap".
1990s
Now at loggerheads with RCA, Buster Pearson signed the group to
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America
Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...
in 1990, and the group's fifth studio album, simply titled ''
Five Star
Five Star (also styled as 5 Star) are a British pop group, formed in 1983 and comprising siblings Stedman, Lorraine, Denise, Doris and Delroy Pearson. Between 1985 and 1988, Five Star had four top 20 albums and 15 top 40 singles in the UK ...
'', was self-produced at the family home with every track being written by the group members.
Despite heavy promotion, its two singles, "
Treat Me Like a Lady" and "
Hot Love", failed to reach the top 40. The album itself failed to chart and a planned third single, "
What About Me Baby" was shelved.
In October 1990, Stedman Pearson pleaded guilty to a charge of
public indecency
Indecent exposure is the deliberate public exposure by a person of a portion of their body in a manner contrary to local standards of appropriate behavior. Laws and social attitudes regarding indecent exposure vary significantly in different ...
,
after being arrested in a public toilet in
New Malden
New Malden is an area in South West London, England. It is located mainly within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames and the London Borough of Merton, and is from Charing Cross. Neighbouring localities include Kingston, Norbiton, Raynes ...
in London.
Following this, the band relocated to the United States.
After the 1991 release of their sixth album, ''Shine'' (which was not released at all in the UK), Epic Records dropped the group. In 1994, the group released an album independently on their father's own Tent label, ''
Heart and Soul'', which was reissued in 1995 in the UK. Again, chart success eluded them and the group informally ended. Denise got married and had children, and Delroy went into music production.
2000s
In 2001, a new Five Star single, "
Funktafied
"Funktafied" is the name of a 2001 single by British pop group Five Star, peaking at #26 on the U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published we ...
", peaked at No. 99 on the US Hot R&B chart. However, the accompanying new album ''
Eclipse
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ce ...
'' was not a success and is the group's final album to date. Five Star returned to the UK in 2002, as a trio of Stedman, Denise and Lorraine, to perform on various tours, including the ''
Here and Now'' nostalgia tour. In 2005, "System Addict" was re-recorded and re-released. Five Star were booked to perform a gig at
Butlins
Butlin's is a chain of large seaside resorts in the United Kingdom. Butlin's was founded by Billy Butlin to provide affordable holidays for ordinary British families.
Between 1936 and 1966, ten camps were built, including one in Ireland and o ...
in October 2006, in which all five members were billed. However, three impersonators were used to mime to backing tapes.
Denise Pearson said in 2007 that she was working on solo material, resulting in the release of her debut single in 2009.
In March 2007,
Sony BMG
Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...
released a compilation
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...
of all the group's videos, entitled ''
Five Star Performance''.
For Five Star's 25th anniversary in 2008, Denise joined Stedman and backing dancers for gigs at Butlins during October and November 2008. Earlier that year, Denise stated in an interview with ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' newspaper that if she could convince sister Lorraine to join them, then all five original members of the group would like to perform one last tour together.
The following year, she made her West End debut performing in ''
Thriller - Live'' at the Lyric Theatre from January to December 2009.
2010s
In 2010,
Cherry Pop Records
A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit).
Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...
released expanded "Special Edition" versions of the group's first two albums ''
Luxury of Life
''Luxury of Life'' is the debut album by the British pop group Five Star. Though not a great success when it was first released in the summer of 1985, the album eventually peaked at number 12 in early 1986, and spent a total of 70 weeks in the U ...
'' and ''
Silk and Steel''. By 2013, they had released expanded versions of all six albums originally released on RCA and Epic (both labels now being part of
Sony BMG
Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...
).
The very first song recorded by Five Star from 1983, "Problematic", was released digitally on 18 July 2011, along with a previously unreleased track called "It", which is an outtake from the ''Heart and Soul'' album sessions from 1994.
All five siblings performed at the 2012
Rewind Festival
The Rewind Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Temple Island Meadows, Remenham, Berkshire near Henley-on-Thames, England, Capesthorne Hall, Cheshire, England, and Scone Palace, Perthshire in Scotland. It was first held in Au ...
s on 21 July at Scone Palace, Perth, Scotland, and on 18 August in Henley-on-Thames. The band's father and manager, Buster Pearson, died in October 2012.
In 2013, Cherry Pop Records released ''The Remix Anthology'', which included 7" and 12" remixes of the singles released on RCA and Epic between 1984 and 1991 which had not already been included on the "Special Edition" album reissues. This is the first compilation to include the non-charting 1984 singles, the US-only singles from 1987–88 and the Epic singles from 1990–91.
Five Star performed as a four piece after 2012. Delroy, Denise, Doris and Stedman performed every summer at festivals in the UK such as Rewind, Let's Rock and Lytham since Lorraine's departure.
In 2018, Denise announced UK tour dates under the Five Star name, which, for the first time, included four supporting artists who were not her siblings. The new line-up went on to perform at numerous gigs and concerts throughout the summer. Around the same time, Lorraine Pearson conducted a live interview on ''
Loose Women
''Loose Women'' (previously known as ''Live Talk'' from 2000 to 2001) is a British talk show that broadcasts on ITV1 weekdays from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm. The show focuses on a panel of four female presenters who interview celebrities, talk about ...
'' on UK television in which she declared that herself and Denise were no longer friends and she had been offended by the new line-up.
2018 also saw a limited edition deluxe re-issue of all major Five Star projects on one CD box set. Denise helped curate the collection's track list and promoted its release on her social media feed.
Members
*
Denise Pearson
Denise Lisa Maria Pearson (born 13 June 1968), sometimes credited as Deniece Pearson, is an English singer-songwriter. She was the lead vocalist with the British pop/ R&B group Five Star, which comprised herself and her four siblings. The grou ...
– lead vocals, songwriter
(1983–1995, 2001–2002, 2012–present)
*
Doris Pearson
Doris Pearson (born Doris May Pearson, June 8, 1966) is an English singer and ex member of the pop group, Five Star.
Career
Doris Pearson, the eldest of the three Pearson sisters, was born in Brent, London. She was the choreographer of the g ...
– vocals, songwriter, choreographer
(1983–1995, 2001–2002, 2012–2018)
*
Lorraine Pearson
Lorraine Pearson (born Lorraine Samantha Jean Pearson; 10 August 1967 in Wembley, London, England) is a British singer and was a member of the pop group, Five Star.
She is the sister of Denise, Doris, Delroy and Stedman Pearson, and the daughter ...
– vocals, spokesperson, and songwriter
(1983–1995, 2001–2002, 2012–2013)
*
Stedman Pearson – vocals, costume designer
(1983–1995, 2001–2002, 2012–2018)
*
Delroy Pearson
Delroy Pearson (born 11 April 1970) is an English singer and a member of the pop group Five Star. Pearson played his part in the group by writing songs and playing instruments on some of the band's hits. He scored success in the U.S. with the ...
– vocals, songwriter, and producer
(1983–1995, 2001–2002, 2012–2018)
Discography
Studio albums
* ''
Luxury of Life
''Luxury of Life'' is the debut album by the British pop group Five Star. Though not a great success when it was first released in the summer of 1985, the album eventually peaked at number 12 in early 1986, and spent a total of 70 weeks in the U ...
'' (1985)
* ''
Silk and Steel'' (1986)
* ''
Between the Lines'' (1987)
* ''
Rock the World'' (1988)
* ''
Five Star
Five Star (also styled as 5 Star) are a British pop group, formed in 1983 and comprising siblings Stedman, Lorraine, Denise, Doris and Delroy Pearson. Between 1985 and 1988, Five Star had four top 20 albums and 15 top 40 singles in the UK ...
'' (1990)
* ''
Shine
Shine may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Shine'' (film), a 1996 Australian film based on the life of David Helfgott, a pianist
* Shine, a fictional character in the American animated TV series ''Shimmer and Shine''
Lite ...
'' (1991)
* ''
Heart and Soul'' (1995)
* ''
Eclipse
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ce ...
'' (2001)
References
{{Authority control
British contemporary R&B musical groups
English pop music groups
Black British musical groups
Sibling musical groups
Musical groups established in 1983
Musical groups from the London Borough of Havering
British soul musical groups
Brit Award winners
Epic Records artists
RCA Records artists
Female-fronted musical groups