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Labi Siffre
From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist
Labi Siffre, whose full name is Claudius Afolabi Siffre, is a British singer, songwriter and poet, born in London in 1945. His father was a Yoruba from Nigeria, his mother had Barbadian roots. As a child, on hearing One for My Baby by Frank Sinatra, he became convinced that music would be important to him. He studied at the Eric Gilder School of Music in Soho, worked as a taxi driver and a delivery man and in the 1960s played jazz guitar in Annie Ross's club.
Music and breakthrough
In 1970 he signed with Pye International and his first album came out, including a cover of Words by the Bee Gees. Success failed to come. His second album, The Singer and the Song, contained only his own work. In 1972 two hits followed from the album Crying Laughing Loving Lying: the title song and It Must Be Love, later covered by Madness. His best-known song came in 1987, (Something Inside) So Strong. He wrote it after a television documentary and directed it against apartheid. The song reached number four in Britain and earned him an Ivor Novello Award.
Influence
Siffre also wrote essays, a stage and television play and three volumes of poetry. His music is personal and direct: an acoustic guitar, a warm voice and lyrics in which love and social indignation stand side by side. He showed that a pop song can carry a political message without losing its melody.
Listening
Discography
Studio albums
- 1970Labi Siffre
- 1971The Singer and the Song
- 1972Crying Laughing Loving Lying
- 1973For the Children
- 1975Happy
- 1975Remember My Song
- 1988So Strong
- 1991Man of Reason