Born: August 10th, 1940, Croydon, Greater London (United Kingdom)
Died: December 26th, 2007, Basingstoke, England (United Kingdom)
Nationality: British
In due course, the short impression below will be replaced with a more extensive career overview
BIOGRAPHY
Les Humphries was christened John Lesley Humphreys and joined the Music Corps of the Royal Marine at the tender age of thirteen. In 1966, he moved to Hamburg (West Germany) and played in several orchestras as an organist and pianist. In 1970, he co-founded the Les Humphries Singers, a group of vocalists with which Humphries recorded gospels and spirituals to great success, most notably ‘To My Father’s House’, ‘Mexico’ (written by Humphries himself), and ‘Mama Loo’, all of which were international hit singles. Humphries also worked as an arranger for other gospel ensembles, such as the Lee Patterson Singers. He composed the signature melody of Derrick, Germany’s most popular TV detective of all times. In 1991, the Les Humphries Singers came together again for a short time, but, after that, Humphries withdrew from the music scene altogether.
EUROVISION SONG CONTEST
The Les Humphries Singers took part in the Eurovision Song Contest in 1976, when their heyday as an internationally acclaimed music group was over already. They came second in the German final, but when winner Tony Marshall was disqualified, they were allowed to represent West Germany in The Hague with ‘Sing Sang Song’, composed by Ralph Siegel. Les Humphries co-wrote the English lyrics, while the arrangement was penned by Norbert Daum. In The Hague, he conducted the Metropole Orchestra during the rendition of ‘Sing Sang Song’, which finished 15th. Actually, this meant the death-knell for the group, which disbanded that same year.
EUROVISION INVOLVEMENT YEAR BY YEAR
Country – West Germany
Song title – "Sing, Sang, Song"
Rendition – Les Humphries Singers (Judy Archer / Jimmy Bilsbury / Jürgen Drews / Peggy Evers / John Lawton / David O’Brien)
German lyrics – Kurt Hertha
English lyrics – Jimmy Bilsbury / Les Humphries
Composition – Ralph Siegel
Studio arrangement – Norbert Daum
Live orchestration – Norbert Daum
Conductor – Les Humphries
Score – 15th place (12 votes)
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