| Dave Dee | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | David John Harman |
| Also known as | Dave Dee |
| Born | 17 December 1943[1] Salisbury, Wiltshire, England |
| Died | 9 January 2009 (aged 65) Kingston upon Thames, [Surrey], England |
| Genres | Pop, rock, beat |
| Occupations | Musician, singer-songwriter, A&R manager, businessman, fundraiser |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1962–2008 |
| Labels | Various |
| Associated acts | Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich |
| Website | www.dddbmt.com |
Dave Dee (born David John Harman 17 December 1941 – 9 January 2009), was an English singer-songwriter, musician, A&R manager, fundraiser and businessman. He was the frontman for 1960s pop band Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich.[2]
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Dave Dee was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire and attended Adcroft School, Trowbridge. Upon leaving school he became a police cadet with the Wiltshire Constabulary and as such was one of the first on the scene of the car crash that resulted in the death of Eddie Cochran and serious injury of Gene Vincent.[3] He later recounted that he started learning to play the guitar using Cochran's impounded Gretsch over several nights at the station.[4]
He became a professional musician in 1962. His first group was called ‘Dave Dee and the Bostons’, who toured the UK and Germany and were a support act to The Honeycombs in 1964.[2] Known for their variety act, which included comedy routines and risque comments interspersed amongst the song, the band came to the notice of Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley, changed their name to Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich, and were signed to Fontana Records, with whom they had a string of hits between 1966 and 1969.[2]
Dee left the band to become a solo artist in September 1969, and reached No 42 in the charts with his single "My Woman’s Man". He then gave up performing and became an A&R Manager for WEA Records,[2] during which period he was at least partly responsible for their signing AC/DC, Boney M and Gary Numan. Later he became a businessman and founder committee member for disadvantaged children through the charity Nordoff-Robbins, which he helped found and worked with for over 30 years[3] He also became a Justice of the Peace.[3] In his later years he lived in Cheshire. He suffered from prostate cancer from early 2001, but continued to perform with his band almost up until his death from that disease in Kingston Hospital, South West London, on 9 January 2009.