|
Sandie's singing career began when she was introduced to Adam Faith who then invited her to audition by singing for him in his dressing room. Adam then introduced her to his formidable manager, Eve Taylor, a person with whom Sandie appears to have got on with better than Adam did. Although her first single was ignored, and is now a collector's item, her second went all the way to the top. A long string of chart successes followed fueled by her association with songwriter Chris Andrews. Despite the fact that all Andrews' songs seemed to need the accompaniment of a German marching band, they fitted Shaw's singing style well. So it was with 'Puppet On A String', a song she hated, which became her third UK #1. She had been pressed by Taylor to do the Eurovision Song Contest and although she won, she blamed the event for destroying her credibility. Admittedly, the rate of chart successes were beginning to come more slowly at this time, but it's more likely that the Eurovision song gave a fillip to her otherwise flagging fortunes. |
|
Despite the fact that the EP illustrated here "Long Live Love" on Pye NEP24220 did not enter the EP best seller chart, it obviously sold very well because it is quite an easy one to find. Her highest chart entry in that respect was with "Tell The Boys" on Pye (NEP24281) which reached #4 during 1967. However, that is a lot harder to find and evidence that the format was in decline by the latter half of the 1960s. |
 |
| Despite her statuesque appearance and bare feet the chart hits finally ceased in 1969 and she slowly sank into near obscurity. It was not until the 1980s that she would reappear as a significant performer again. She was fortunate to be something of a fantasy figure for the Smith's singing songwriter Morrissey and while at the peak of his own career he persuaded Sandie to return to the recording studio. This resulted in a further two chart entries and a series of well attended concert appearances. | |
