By Denny Dyroff, Staff Writer, The Times
Lulu
Lulu is a veteran singer whose name you may not recognize. But, music fans – especially music fans who are also movie fans –almost definitely know some of her songs.
Remember the title track to the hit movie “To Sir with Love”? That was Lulu singing. And, she also acted in the film.
How about the James Bond film “The Man with the Golden Gun”? That was a hit movie which featured Lulu singing the title track.
However, there is a lot more to Lulu’s musical resume than just those two hits.
Lulu, who was born in Glasgow, Scotland, is the only singer to have a U.K. Top 20 hit record in each of five consecutive decades.
Lulu started her career with a Top 10 single – her version of the Isley Brothers’ hit “Shout.” She has been a top international recording artist ever since.
Now, the talented singer who is a resident of London, England, is out on her biggest North American tour ever – the “All About Music Tour” that brings her to the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808, www.st94.com) on May 30.
“We’re here in Toronto for three days of rehearsal before we start the tour,” said Lulu, during a phone interview last week while taking a break from a rehearsal session with her band.
“We’re adding songs that were hits in America but not in the U.K. – songs such as ‘Oh Me Oh My (I’m a Fool for You Baby)’ and
‘I Could Never Miss You (More Than I Do).’
“I always sing ‘The Man with the Golden Gun’ and it means even more now that Roger (Moore) has just passed away. Roger was one of the funniest men you could ever meet.”
With more than 75 singles and over 25 albums over the course of five decades, Lulu has a lot of songs from which to choose for her set list for shows on this tour.
“Making a set list – if you’re me, it’s the most joyous thing,” said Lulu, whose first Number 1 hit was “To Sir with Love” in 1967. “I like to try things out — like changing an arrangement or taking advantage of updated technology.
“When I do ‘The Boat That I Row,’ which was written by Neil Diamond, I don’t do the arrangement from the single that Mickie Most produced in 1967.
“Arrangements from that era don’t hold up. I’m not a retro act. I love modern music. The most important thing – everything I do has to have soul.
“Wait until you hear my (backup) singers. They are really great singers. And, I have great musicians in my band. We have a wide range in the music – Motown, Stax, blues, R&B and even country-and-western.”
Lulu, who was born Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie, started her music career as a 15-year-old Scottish soul sensation.
Since then, she has sung at the Eurovision, hosted a Saturday night light entertainment TV show, acted in films, theater and television and sold her own brand of makeup.
Some of her classic hits have been “To Sir with Love,” the 1969 soul smash “Oh Me Oh My (I’m A Fool for You Baby)”, the Bond film song in 1974, a Bowie collaboration on “The Man Who Sold The World” in the mid-1970s and her 1993 hit “Take That.”
Her most recent, self-written album “Making Life Rhyme,” which was released on Decca Records, is as strong as anything she’s done in the past.
“When the album came out a couple years ago, I got the best reviews of my life,” said Lulu, “Songwriting – I never developed that part of me for a long time. I learned my craft by observing.”
The 60s was when Lulu began her music career and is still her favorite decade.
“I think the 60s was the most incredible time,” said Lulu. “I’m lucky to have been part of it.”
Video links for Lulu – https://youtu.be/fs5Xr2CU-NI and “To Sir with Love” (1967) – https://youtu.be/k8-M_wg8AI4.
The show at Sellersville, which has Sharon Little as the opening act, will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $35 and $49.50.
The Wild Now
The Wild Now has been existence for more than three years but has yet to play Philadelphia.
On May 30, the band from Austin, Texas will make its Philly area debut at Kung Fu Necktie (1248 North Front Street, Philadelphia, 215-291-4919,www.kungfunecktie.com).
The nucleus of The Wild Now is Taylor Baker and Drew Walker. The duo is currently joined by Errol Siegel on guitar, Chase Goldman on bass and Greg Clifford on drums.
“I was born and raised in Austin,” said Baker, during a phone interview last week from a tour stop in Atlanta, Georgia. “Drew and I met when we were both living in Austin.”
Baker and Walker first met at a “Local Natives” show at SXSW 2013.
“We met there and hung out,” said Baker. “He ended up playing trumpet with my band the next day. Then, my guitar player left so Drew took over on guitar.”
They began playing and recording together as Taylor & The Wild Now.
“We released our first self-titled EP in 2014,” said Baker. “But, it’s nothing like we are now so we pulled it. It’s not even on Spotify or iTunes anymore.
After a while, the duo shortened its name to The Wild Now and hooked up with Austin producer David Beck to do some recording sessions.
“We released our second EP, ‘Tides,’ in 2016,” said Baker. “Our new EP, ‘Afterglow,’ just came out on May 19. It was an independent release.
“We recorded it in Austin at a small studio called Fast Horse Studios. We did all the recording analog and made five songs for the EP. We usually record two or three songs at a time. The EP just evolved over time.”
Beck produced four tracks and Austin’s Max Frost produced a single from the EP. All the tracks were mixed by Matty Green.
While “Tides” offered dreamy indie-pop tunes, “Afterglow” features pulsating synth music along with guitar work with a jungle-disco feel. In its formative days, the band’s music was more in the Americana vein.
“The Americana influence is fading away,” said Baker. “We’re heading a little more toward an electronic sound while still maintaining our indie-pop sound.
“We realized that a lot of our older songs were slower. We wanted faster songs that would get people excited. Soon, we’re going to have a deejay remix one of our new tracks.
“In our live set, we play some songs from the new EP, some from the previous one and sometimes a cover or two that we like – including Nina Simone and Major Lazer.”
Video link for The Wild Now — https://youtu.be/8yG9p_7aQaM.
The show at Kung Fu Necktie, which has Rasan In The Heyday, Carolyn Thorn, and Josh Nussbaum as opening acts, will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $7.
