| Precious Wilson | |
|---|---|
| Born | 18 October 1957 |
| Origin | Spanish Town, Jamaica |
| Genres | Dance-pop, dance, soul |
| Occupations | Singer |
| Years active | 1975–1993 |
| Labels | Hansa Records, Jive Records |
| Associated acts | Eruption, Boney M. |
Precious Wilson (born 18 October 1957, Spanish Town, Jamaica) is a soul singer.
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Wilson started out as a backing singer for the all-male group Eruption. The group enjoyed a minor hit when they won a talent competition in 1975 with the song "Let Me Take You Back in Time". Unable to sustain their momentum, the lead singer left the group, and Precious stepped forward to front the band.
While on the road in Germany, Eruption was discovered in 1977 by German producer Frank Farian who hired them to support Boney M. on their tour. Signing them to Boney M.'s label, Hansa Records, Farian released the single "Party Party" but it was their cover version of Ann Peebles' "I Can't Stand the Rain" from their first album which broke big, giving them a UK #5 hit and a US #18 hit. After a second album and another hit single with "One Way Ticket" (UK #9), Wilson left the group to pursue a solo career.
Wilson's debut single as a solo artist was a cover version of Sam & Dave's "Hold On I'm Coming", released in August 1979. Produced by Frank Farian and set to a funky disco-beat, the single disappointingly failed to chart in Germany and the UK, reaching only a modest #45 in the Dutch charts.[1] The song was also included in Boney M.'s No. 1-album Oceans of Fantasy[2] which also yielded a guest performance by Wilson on the opening track "Let It All Be Music".
Her debut album On the Race Track, also produced by Farian, was completed during 1980 with high expectations from Hansa. It was released in October, heralded by the single "Cry to Me" which Wilson performed on TV, backed by the dancing troop Sky Train. The single reached #3 in Switzerland.[3] While it failed to reach the German charts, the album's second single, "We Are on the Race Track", however reached #11 there in early 1981.
In October 1981, she released a cover version of "I Need You" which peaked at #6 in Switzerland where her popularity was strong. In Germany, it only mustered #39. In the summer of 1982, the electro-pop track "I Don't Know" was released, followed by her second album All Coloured in Love. The album was released with a different track selection in the UK, Italy and France under the name Red Light followed by several different single releases in the various territories.
Hot on the heels of the current Aerobic craze and Farian's success with Sydne Rome's current album Aerobic Fitness Dancing, the theme song "Let's Move Aerobic (Move Your Body)" was rush-released with Wilson's vocals in March '83 but failed to chart. By then, Wilson's relationship to Hansa was cooling off considerably. Her third album Funky Fingers (December 1983), consisting of two side-long medleys of soul standards, was released with minimal support from Hansa and sank like a stone. In 1985, she signed with Jive Records and teamed up with multiple producer teams for the album Precious Wilson released the following year. Launching several singles, "I'll Be Your Friend" (a U.S. Top 40 R&B hit), the theme song from the movie The Jewel of the Nile, and "Nice Girls Don't Last" ("Love Can't Wait" in the U.S.), the album however didn't do as well as expected. A dance cover of Jerry Butler's "Only the Strong Survive" in 1987, produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, inexplicably failed to chart. After another single with "I May Be Right 4U" in 1990, she achieved two major hit singles in the early 1990s with a cover of Sheila and B. Devotion's "Spacer" (a hit single in France, 1992) and a cover of Donna Summer's "I Feel Love" (a UK #19 hit single with techno group Messiah, 1992). Since then, Wilson has been touring extensively internationally. She is the legal owner of the trademark Eruption, and also frequently tours as Eruption featuring Precious Wilson. Wilson lives in London.
| Year | Title | Chart positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GER[4] | SWI[5] | NL[1] | UK | US R&B | ||
| 1979 | "Hold On, I'm Coming" | - | - | 45 | - | - |
| 1980 | "Cry To Me" | - | 3 | 12 | - | - |
| 1981 | "We Are on the Race Track" | 11 | - | - | - | - |
| "I Need You" | 39 | 6 | - | - | - | |
| 1982 | "I Don't Know" | 33 | - | - | - | - |
| "Raising My Family" | 61 | - | - | - | - | |
| "Red Light" (FR) | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 1983 | "Let's Move Aerobic (Move Your Body)" | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1984 | "River Deep, Mountain High" / "Funky Fingers" |
- | - | - | - | - |
| 1985 | "I'll Be Your Friend" | - | - | - | - | 40[6] |
| 1986 | "The Jewel of the Nile" | - | - | - | - | - |
| "Nice Girls Don't Last" | - | - | - | - | - | |
| "Love Can't Wait" (US) | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 1987 | "Only the Strong Survive" | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1990 | "I May Be Right 4U" | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1992 | "I Feel Love" (Messiah feat. Precious Wilson) | - | - | - | 19[7] | - |
| "Spacer" (Funky French Guy & Precious Wilson) | - | - | - | - | - | |
Precious Wilson along with the other members of Eruption, and Boney M were all featured in the 1979 German movie "Disco Fever".