Kiki's impeccable vocal abilities have
established her impressive credentials
as a musician during a career which
has spanned some three decades. She
has covered all bases - from classic
interpretations of soul hits, to a repertoire
of live and recorded material which
includes eight UK Top Forty hits as
well as masterful performances in major
West End musicals.
It was in Bradford during the 60's that
Kiki began her career as a vocalist
with a local dance band. In 1964, her
debut solo recording of the Mitch Murray
song 'Early Night' led to a series of
Phil Spector style tracks before Kiki
moved on to cover contemporary US soul
hits. These skilful covers attracted
the attention of Tamla Motown's executives
and Kiki became the first European artist
to be signed to the label.
However, despite widespread critical
acclaim, commercial success remained
elusive until 1973 when Kiki signed
to Elton John's label Rocket Records.
The time was right, and the anticipated
commercial success suddenly materialised.
'Amoureuse' (1973), the first single
from the Elton John produced album 'Loving
And Free', became Kiki's first Top Twenty
hit and remained in the charts for thirteen
weeks. Following singles were 'I Got
The Music In Me' (1974) and 'You Don't
Know, How Glad I Am' (1975).
1976 was Kiki's year. 'Don't Go Breaking
My Heart', the duet with Elton John,
became a surprise number one single
in both the US and UK. Subsequent chart
hits for Kiki in the 70's and early
80's include 'Loving and Free' and 'Amoureuse'
reissue (1976), ''First Thing In The
Morning' (1977), 'Chicago' (1977), ''Star'
(1981) and ''Perfect Timing' (1981)
taken from the album of the same title.
Rising to a new challenge in 1984, Kiki
took her first singing and acting role
in the West End hit Pump Boys And The
Dinettes. She went on to star in Willy
Russell's award-winning Blood Brothers
for which she was nominated for a Laurence
Olivier Award.
In between Kiki took time out to work
on an album with Dave Stewart in 1986
and to record vocals for Elton's studio
album The One. In 1993 Kiki took the
chart by storm again with 'True Love',
the duet with Elton John.
About
Us
The collaboration of Kiki Dee and Carmelo
Luggeri brings together their eclectic
backgrounds from the worlds of soul,
pop and rock and results in acoustic
act that pushes the boundaries and takes
the listener on a journey through the
emotions.
Carmelo's abilities as a guitarist,
composer and producer have taken him
on a rich and interesting musical path
over the last two decades. Born in England
of Italian parents, Carmelo was mainly
self-taught with some classical training.
