Jacquie O'Sullivan (born 7 August 1960)''

Smash Hits ''Smash Hits'' was a British music magazine aimed at young adults, originally published by EMAP. It ran from 1978 to 2006, and, after initially appearing monthly, was issued fortnightly during most of that time. The name survived as a brand fo ...

'', 1988. Personal File: Jacqui O'Sullivan, p. 11 is an English singer and songwriter, best known as a member of the pop group

Bananarama Bananarama are an English pop duo from London, formed as a trio in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when the trio became a duo. Thei ...

from 1988 until 1991, replacing

Siobhan Fahey Siobhan Maire Fahey (; born 10 September 1958) is an Irish singer whose vocal range is a light contralto. She was a founding member of the group Bananarama, who have had ten top-10 hits including the US number one hit single "Venus". She later ...

, who left in early 1988. The line-up with O'Sullivan had UK top five hits with "

I Want You Back "I Want You Back" is the first national single by the Jackson 5. It was released by Motown on October 6, 1969, and became the first number-one hit for the band on January 31, 1970. It was performed on the band's first television appearances, on ...

" (1988) and a cover of The Beatles' "

Help! ''Help!'' is the fifth studio album by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their Help! (film), film of the same name. It was released on 6 August 1965. Seven of the fourteen songs, including the singles "Help! ( ...

" (1989), recorded with comedy duo

French and Saunders ''French and Saunders'' is a British sketch comedy television series written by and starring comedy duo and namesake Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders that originally broadcast on BBC2 from 1987 to 1993, and later on BBC One until 2017. It is a ...

for the charity Comic Relief. In 1989, O'Sullivan joined the group on their first world tour. Prior to Bananarama, O'Sullivan was the lead singer of the band

Shillelagh Sisters The Shillelagh Sisters were a British female group composed of Jacquie O'Sullivan (vocals), Lynder Halpin (double bass), Patricia "Trisha" O'Flynn (saxophone) and Maria "Mitzi" Ryan (drums). Their music style was a mixture of rockabilly and ...

Career

Early years

O'Sullivan appeared in the

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for the song " Visage" performed Visage, in 1981. She also appeared in the music video for

Eurythmics Eurythmics were a British pop duo consisting of Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart. They were both previously in The Tourists, a band which broke up in 1980. The duo released their first studio album, '' In the Garden'', in 1981 to little succ ...

' 1983 hit single " "Who's That Girl?"", with the original

members also being featured in the video. O'Sullivan joined the

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

group

in early 1983. It was "a sort of a fun band, a kind of trendy band". The band name came about courtesy of their Irish connections. They released their first single " Give Me My Freedom" in April 1984. The band's dissatisfaction with their record label

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 ...

, along with differences between the band members, led to the band's demise in late 1984. O'Sullivan later stated that she felt the records they released "weren't very good".

1988–1991: Breakthrough with Bananarama

In March 1988, she was chosen by

Sara Dallin Sara Elizabeth Dallin (born 17 December 1961) is an English singer and a founding member of the pop group Bananarama. The group has achieved 28 UK top 50 and 11 US top 100 singles, including a US number one with "Venus" (1986). Other hits includ ...

and

Keren Woodward Keren Jane Woodward (born 2 April 1961) is an English singer and, with Sara Dallin and Siobhan Fahey, a founding member of the girl group Bananarama. In 1986, the trio reached number one on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 with their version of "Ven ...

(who had known O'Sullivan since they were eighteen) to become a member of

, as a replacement for outgoing member

, who also approved of the choice. Bananarama's

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...

streak continued with the addition of O'Sullivan. They re-recorded the vocals for the songs "

" and " Nathan Jones" with O'Sullivan to replace versions previously recorded by Fahey. The group scored eight consecutive

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...

hits in the UK with O'Sullivan. She appeared on Bananarama's fund-raising

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

' "

" for

Comic Relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic episo ...

alongside comedians

and

Kathy Burke Katherine Lucy Bridget Burke (born 13 June 1964) is an English actress, comedian, writer, producer, and director. She achieved fame with her appearances on sketch shows such as ''French and Saunders'' (1988–1999) and her recurring role as Mag ...

, who appeared as "Lananenenoonoo". The record peaked at number three 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 ...

in 1989. She also participated in

Band Aid II Band Aid were a charity supergroup featuring mainly British and Irish musicians and recording artists. It was founded in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for anti-famine efforts in Ethiopia by releasing the song " Do They Know ...

's 1989 re-recording of "

Do They Know It's Christmas? "Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a charity song written in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was first recorded by Band Aid, a supergroup assembled by Geldof and Ure consisting of pop ...

". O'Sullivan's only songwriting credits with Bananarama appeared on the song "

Love, Truth and Honesty "Love, Truth and Honesty" is a song by English girl group Bananarama from their first greatest hits album, '' Greatest Hits Collection'' (1988). Co-written and produced by the Stock Aitken Waterman (SAW) trio, the song was released on 12 Septemb ...

" from the

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

'' Greatest Hits Collection'' and on the song " Only Your Love". In 1991, Bananarama recorded the album '' Pop Life'', the only full-length album on which O'Sullivan appeared. Later that year, O'Sullivan left the group, a decision that was amicable with Dallin and Woodward. O'Sullivan later stated in interviews that her role in Bananarama was that of a paid employee and that she was given no say in the creative, musical or visual direction of the group. She said that this lack of input, along with the continued emphasis by the

music press Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...

that she was the "new girl" and constant questions of "How does it feel to replace Siobhan?", contributed to her exit. When

parodied Bananarama in their 1988 Christmas special as "Lananenenoonoo", O'Sullivan was portrayed by

as "Kim". O'Sullivan's perceived lack of input into the group was used as a source of humour, with Kim ignored and dismissed in interviews and group discussions.

1992–96: Slippry Feet

When she left Bananarama, O'Sullivan formed the

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

act Slippry Feet from 1992 to 1996. They recorded songs for a record titled ''Freak Time Viewing'' and then disbanded.

2001–present: New management, ''Freak Time Viewing'' and ''The Jacquie O Collection''

In 2001, O'Sullivan signed a three-album deal with AlmaFame Records, featuring unreleased songs from throughout her music career. The first release in late 2001 was the Slippry Feet album ''Freak Time Viewing''. In early 2002, the Shillelagh Sisters album, ''Sham'Rock & Roll'', was released and a third album, tentatively titled ''The Jacquie O Collection'', featuring new songs and re-recordings of her hits with Bananarama, was announced but the record label folded and nothing was released. In 2005, she appeared briefly on the second video clip (also called 'whitey version') of

's song "Pulsatron".

1994–2015: Yoga teacher and massage therapist

O'Sullivan went to India and in 1994 trained to be a yoga teacher. She continued to teach and on her travels has taught yoga all over the world. She continued with her yoga education, taking teacher training with the prestigious Prana Yoga College. She completed her two-year teacher training with the life centre, earning a distinction. O'Sullivan still teaches all over the world, but is now based in

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mus ...

, teaching many classes in various locations, gyms, dedicated yoga centres, corporate clients and many private clients. She is also a certified Level 2 Reiki Teacher as well as a massage therapist, specialising in Swedish and Deep Tissue massage.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osullivan, Jacquie 1960 births Living people Bananarama members English new wave musicians English women singer-songwriters Women new wave singers English women pop singers English people of Irish descent Musicians from London