Sylvia McNeill (born 5 August 1947,

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor at ...

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

, England) is a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

pop and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

singer and songwriter. She began her career singing and playing bass guitar with various groups and bands. She went abroad for several years, touring American bases on the continent. In 1969, she moved to London; since then she has appeared as a soloist in cabaret through the UK and as a band with husband/guitarist Mike McNeill and son, drummer Mark McNeill. As well as a bass player for

Leapy Lee Lee Graham (born Graham Pulleyblank, 2 July 1939) better known by his stage name Leapy Lee, is an English singer, best known for his 1968 single " Little Arrows," which reached No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart, and was a Top 20 country and pop hit ...

, she recorded as a solo vocalist from 1968 to 1975, including

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

Bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inter ...

, and

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...

labels. McNeill recorded such titles as "That's Alright By Me" (composer Richard Kerr), "

Ugly Man Ugly Man Records is a British independent record label based in Rhos on Sea, Wales, originally in Manchester. It released debut singles for many Manchester bands, including Elbow, the Man From Delmonte and I Am Kloot. It was set up in Bootle, ...

" (composer

Jim Ford James Henry Ford (August 23, 1941 – November 18, 2007) was an American singer-songwriter originally from Johnson County, Kentucky. After living in New Orleans, Ford moved to Los Angeles, and finally settled in Fort Bragg, California. His ...

), "

Chelsea Morning "Chelsea Morning" is a song written and composed by Joni Mitchell and recorded for the singer's second album, ''Clouds'', which she released in 1969. Background The song was inspired by Mitchell's room in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City. ...

" (composer

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...

), "Be My Friend" (originally by

Free Free may refer to: Concept * Freedom, having the ability to do something, without having to obey anyone/anything * Freethought, a position that beliefs should be formed only on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism * Emancipate, to procur ...

), "

A Whiter Shade Of Pale "A Whiter Shade of Pale" is a song by the English rock band Procol Harum that was issued as their debut record on 12 May 1967. The single reached number 1 in the UK Singles Chart on 8 June and stayed there for six weeks. Without much promotion, i ...

" (originally by

Procol Harum Procol Harum () were an English rock music, rock band formed in Southend-on-Sea, Essex in 1967. Their best-known recording is the 1967 hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale", one of the few singles to have List of best-selling singles, sold over ...

) and "

I Don't Know How To Love Him "I Don't Know How to Love Him" is a song from the 1970 album and 1971 rock opera ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' written by Andrew Lloyd Webber (music) and Tim Rice (lyrics), a torch ballad sung by the character of Mary Magdalene. In the opera s ...

" (composers

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musicals, ...

and

Tim Rice Sir Timothy Miles Bindon Rice (born 10 November 1944) is an English lyricist and author. He is best known for his collaborations with Andrew Lloyd Webber, with whom he wrote, among other shows, ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'', ' ...

). The latter was released on 11 August 1972, as by Sylvie McNeill, in time for the first UK stage musical of ''

Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Gospels' accounts of the Passion, the work interprets the psychology of Jesus and other characters, with ...

''; she had performed it on ''

The Benny Hill Show ''The Benny Hill Show'' is a British comedy television show starring Benny Hill that aired on the BBC and ITV (from 1969) between 15 January 1955 and 1 May 1989. The show consisted mainly of sketches that were full of slapstick, mime, parody ...

'' (original air date: 23 February 1972). Her producers included

Kenny Young Kenny Young (born Shalom Giskan, April 14, 1941 – April 14, 2020) was an American songwriter, musician, producer and environmental campaigner who wrote and in some cases produced hit songs for The Drifters, Ronnie Dove, Herman's Hermits, Mark ...

, Jack Good, Tony Hall,

Tony Macaulay Tony Macaulay (born Anthony Gordon Instone; 21 April 1944) is an English author, composer for musical theatre, and songwriter. He has won the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors Award twice as 'Songwriter of the Year' (1970 an ...

, and

Ed Welch Edward William Welch (born 22 October 1947) is an English songwriter, composer, conductor and arranger. Early life and education Ed Welch had a classical music upbringing. He attended Christ Church Cathedral School from 1957-1961, where he ...

. She recorded and toured with the band ZAC. In one 18-month period, McNeill made over 30 appearances on television, including ''

'', ''The Dave Allen Show'', '' The Morecambe & Wise Show'', ''The

Simon Dee Cyril Nicholas Henty-Dodd (28 July 1935 – 29 August 2009), better known by his stage name Simon Dee, was a British television interviewer and radio disc jockey who hosted a twice-weekly BBC TV chat show, ''Dee Time'', in the late 1960s. Aft ...

Show'', ''The

Dick Emery Richard Gilbert Emery (19 February 19152 January 1983) was an English comedian and actor. His broadcasting career began on radio in the 1950s, and his self-titled television series ran from 1963 to 1981. Life and career Richard Gilbert Emery was ...

Show'', ''

Roger Whittaker Roger Henry Brough Whittaker (born 22 March 1936) is a British singer-songwriter and musician, who was born in Nairobi to English parents. His music is an eclectic mix of folk music and popular songs in addition to radio airplay hits. He is bes ...

's World Of Music'', ''

The Golden Shot ''The Golden Shot'' is a British television game show produced by ATV for ITV between 1 July 1967 and 13 April 1975, based on the German TV show '' Der goldene Schuß''. It is most commonly associated with host Bob Monkhouse, but three other ...

'', ''

Anglia Television ITV Anglia, previously known as Anglia Television, is the ITV franchise holder for the East of England. The station is based at Anglia House in Norwich, with regional news bureaux in Cambridge and Northampton. ITV Anglia is owned and operated b ...

's'' ''Glamour '70'' series (the search for Miss Anglia 1970, Heat 7 - staged in Grimsby, England), Ulster TV and her own eight-week series for

Grampian Television Grampian Television was the original name of the Channel 3 service for the north of Scotland founded in 1961 and now named STV. The northern region's coverage area includes the Northern Isles, Western Isles, Highlands (except Fort William and ...

. In addition to her own recordings, she sang on the track "Anne Boleyn/The Day Thou Gavest Lord Hath Ended" for keyboardist

Rick Wakeman Richard Christopher Wakeman (born 18 May 1949) is an English keyboardist best known as a former member of the progressive rock band Yes across five tenures between 1971 and 2004, and for his solo albums released in the 1970s. Born and raised ...

's 1973 album, '' The Six Wives of Henry VIII'', and was session backing singer for

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

on his 1972 recording of "

What's Made Milwaukee Famous (Has Made a Loser Out of Me) "What's Made Milwaukee Famous (Has Made a Loser Out of Me)" is a song written by Glenn Sutton. The song's title is a reference to beer, specifically Schlitz beer, which for many years was advertised with the slogan, "The beer that made Milwauke ...

". In 1971, she acted in Emil Dean Zoghby and Ray Pohlman's musical, ''

Catch My Soul ''Catch My Soul'' is a 1974 film produced by Jack Good and Richard M. Rosenbloom, and directed by Patrick McGoohan. It was an adaptation of Good's stage musical of the same title, which itself was loosely adapted from William Shakespeare's ''Ot ...

'', at the

Prince of Wales Theatre The Prince of Wales Theatre is a West End theatre in Coventry Street, near Leicester Square in London. It was established in 1884 and rebuilt in 1937, and extensively refurbished in 2004 by Sir Cameron Mackintosh, its current owner. The theatre ...

in London, England with

Lance LeGault William Lance LeGault (May 2, 1935 – September 10, 2012) was an American actor. He was best known as U.S. Army Colonel Roderick Decker in the 1980s American television series ''The A-Team''. Early and personal life LeGault was born May 2, 193 ...

Lon Satton Lon Satton (born Alonzo Louis Lee Staton; February 11, 1927 – October 30, 2020) was an American singer and actor based in the United Kingdom. He is widely-known for originating the role of Poppa in the Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical ''Starlight ...

, Sharon Gurney, and Malcolm Rennie in the cast. This rock musical was produced by Jack Good and directed by

Braham Murray Braham Sydney Murray, OBE (12 February 1943 – 25 July 2018) was an English theatre director. In 1976, he was one of five founding Artistic Directors of the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester, and the longest-serving (he retired in 2012). Ear ...

and Michael Elliott.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McNeill, Sylvia 1947 births Living people People from Harrogate Women rock singers British pop singers British women singer-songwriters