Mike Smith (singer)
Michael George Smith (born December 6, 1943 in Edmonton, North London , † February 28, 2008 in Aylesbury , Buckinghamshire ) was a British singer , composer and record producer .
In the 1960s, Smith was the lead singer and keyboardist of The Dave Clark Five , which was one of the representatives of the British Invasion alongside the Beatles .
biography
Smith began playing the piano when he was five . He later took classical piano lessons and was accepted at Trinity Music College in London at the age of 13. At the age of 17 he was invited by Dave Clark , with whom he had played on the same soccer team, to join his band Dave Clark Five as lead singer and keyboardist. Smith's singing style showed clear influences from Elvis Presley . After the band split up in 1970, Smith continued to play with Clark for a few years, now under the name "Dave Clark & Friends". From 1976 he worked as a music producer and composer for jingles in television advertising .
In 2003, he fell so unhappily in his home in Spain that he suffered paraplegia, from the consequences of which he never recovered. Only after four years of treatment was he released from the hospital on December 6, 2007. He died of complications on February 28, 2008 - eleven days before he was to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Dave Clark Five .
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| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Smith, Mike |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Smith, Michael George (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British rock and pop singer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 6, 1943 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | London |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 28, 2008 |
| Place of death | Aylesbury , England |