* En anglais uniquement
One of England's top session vocalists,
Lesley Duncan sang on recordings by
Elton John,
the Dave Clark Five,
Pink Floyd,
the Alan Parsons Project,
Michael Chapman, and
Joyce Everson and the soundtrack of Jesus Christ Superstar. Her songs have been covered by
Elton John,
Olivia Newton-John, and
Long John Baldry.
Although her debut 1963 single, "I Want a Steady," credited to
Lesley Duncan & the Jokers, was a commercial failure,
Duncan found success six years later when
Elton John included her tune "Love Song" on his album
Tumbleweed Connection. The song's popularity led to a recording contract with CBS/
Columbia. Her debut eponymously titled album, produced by her husband and keyboard player,
Jimmy Horowitz, included her song "Sing Children Sing," featuring
John on piano.
Duncan and
John continued to collaborate on
Duncan's 1976 album, Moonbathing, which included a live duet version of "Love Song."
While her vocals and songwriting brought her respect from the British music press,
Duncan was unable to break through as a soloist. Dropped by
MCA in 1976 due to poor album sales, she continued to work with producer Tony Cox as a singles artist until 1986. Her last album vocal appearances came in 1979 with "If I Could Change Your Mind" on the
Alan Parsons Project album
Eve and in 1980 with "Hold on to Love" from the album Exiled by the Bob Mitchell/Steve Coe Mysteries.
Duncan's early albums, Sing Children Sing and Earth Mother, were released on CD in the early 2000s. During her latter years
Duncan continued to perform with
Jimmy Horowitz on keyboards and
Chris Spedding on guitar. She died from cerebrovascular disease at age 66 on March 12, 2010, on the Isle of Mull in Scotland. ~ Craig Harris