Climie Fisher
Encyclopedia
Climie Fisher were a UK
pop
duo
formed by vocalist Simon Climie
(born 7 April 1957) and former Naked Eyes
keyboardist
Rob Fisher
(5 November 1956 - 25 August 1999). In 1987-8, they had two international hit singles.
The duo is best known for the 1987 hit
single
"Love Changes (Everything)" which reached Number 2 in the UK
and in South Africa
(on re-release), Number 7 in Germany
, Number 8 in Switzerland
, Number 15 in Austria
and Number 23 in the US
, all in 1988. The hip hop-styled
remix of "Rise to the Occasion" had also previously reached Number 10 in the UK Singles Chart
and reached later Number 1 in South Africa, Number 14 in Germany, Number 17 in Sweden
and Number 19 in Austria. Their last hit single was "Love Like A River" in 1989, which reached Number 18 in Austria, Number 22 in the UK and Number 54 in Germany.
They wrote most of their own material together with Dennis Morgan
, who Climie had previously worked with; and hired Steve Lillywhite
and Stephen Hague
as producers. Although their first album Everything
charted in both the UK(#14)and US(#120), their second album Coming In for the Kill
(UK #45) was less successful and they split up shortly after its release.
Fisher later co-wrote Rick Astley
's song, "Cry for Help" single (UK #7 in 1991). He also contributed as songwriter to Astley's albums Free
(1991) and Body & Soul
(1993). He died on 25 August 1999 during surgery
for bowel cancer. Simon Climie had, before the success of Climie Fisher, co-written (with Dennis Morgan) the George Michael
/Aretha Franklin
single "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)
" in 1986. He worked as a producer
for recording artists such as Louise
, MN8
and Five Star
and as a co-songwriter
and musician
for Eric Clapton
, including the album with J.J. Cale
(featuring Derek Trucks
and Billy Preston
) The Road to Escondido
. Climie released a solo album and single, both titled "Soul Inspiration" in 1992. He also worked with former Doobie Brothers member Michael McDonald
on his Motown
albums. He produced the 2009 album by the American Idol
winner Taylor Hicks
, titled The Distance
.
is a fictional tale of what happened to the pair post breakup.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
duo
Duet (music)
A duet is a musical composition for two performers. In classical music, the term is most often used for a composition for two singers or pianists; with other instruments, the word duo is also often used. A piece performed by two pianists performing together on the same piano is referred to as...
formed by vocalist Simon Climie
Simon Climie
Simon Climie is a songwriter/producer and the former lead singer of the UK pop duo Climie Fisher, who had hits with "Love Changes " and "Rise to the Occasion"....
(born 7 April 1957) and former Naked Eyes
Naked Eyes
Naked Eyes is a British New Wave band that rose to prominence in the early 1980s. Originally a duo, the band is known largely for its singles: a cover of the Burt Bacharach/Hal David standard " Always Something There to Remind Me" , as well as the band's subsequent hits "Promises, Promises", "When...
keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
Rob Fisher
Rob Fisher
Rob Fisher was a British keyboardist and songwriter from Cheltenham, England, who achieved chart success as a member of Naked Eyes, and later Climie Fisher...
(5 November 1956 - 25 August 1999). In 1987-8, they had two international hit singles.
Career
Simon Climie met Rob Fisher at Abbey Road Studio, where they were both performing as session musicians.The duo is best known for the 1987 hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
"Love Changes (Everything)" which reached Number 2 in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
(on re-release), Number 7 in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Number 8 in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Number 15 in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Number 23 in the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, all in 1988. The hip hop-styled
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
remix of "Rise to the Occasion" had also previously reached Number 10 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
and reached later Number 1 in South Africa, Number 14 in Germany, Number 17 in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Number 19 in Austria. Their last hit single was "Love Like A River" in 1989, which reached Number 18 in Austria, Number 22 in the UK and Number 54 in Germany.
They wrote most of their own material together with Dennis Morgan
Dennis Morgan (songwriter)
Dennis Morgan is a songwriter and music publisher, best known for writing songs for Aretha Franklin, Faith Hill, Barbara Mandrell, and Eric Clapton. He has also published hit songs by Garth Brooks, All-4-One, Feargal Sharkey, and Trisha Yearwood.Morgan's career as a songwriter started as a session...
, who Climie had previously worked with; and hired Steve Lillywhite
Steve Lillywhite
Steve Lillywhite is an English Grammy Award winning record producer. Since he began his career in 1977, Lillywhite has been credited for working on over 500 records and has collaborated with a variety of musicians including XTC, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Dave Matthews Band, U2, Peter Gabriel,...
and Stephen Hague
Stephen Hague
Stephen Hague is an American music producer most active with various British acts in the 1980s. He was an influential figure in the synthpop movement.-Early career:...
as producers. Although their first album Everything
Everything (Climie Fisher album)
Everything is the first album by British pop duo Climie Fisher, released in 1987. The album includes the duo's biggest hit and best-remembered single, "Love Changes ", and reached #14 on the UK album chart...
charted in both the UK(#14)and US(#120), their second album Coming In for the Kill
Coming In for the Kill
Coming In for the Kill is the second and last album by British pop duo Climie Fisher, released in 1989. The album was less successful than its predecessor Everything, peaking at #35 in the United Kingdom....
(UK #45) was less successful and they split up shortly after its release.
Fisher later co-wrote Rick Astley
Rick Astley
Richard Paul "Rick" Astley is an English singer-songwriter, musician, and radio personality. He is known for his 1987 song, "Never Gonna Give You Up", which was a #1 hit single in 25 countries...
's song, "Cry for Help" single (UK #7 in 1991). He also contributed as songwriter to Astley's albums Free
Free (Rick Astley album)
Free is Rick Astley's third album, released in 1991. It was his first album not to be produced by the noted production team of Stock Aitken Waterman. It gave Astley another hit single in the ballad "Cry for Help", which became a Top 10 in both the UK and the US. Further singles "Move Right Out" and...
(1991) and Body & Soul
Body & Soul (Rick Astley album)
Body & Soul is Rick Astley's fourth album, released in 1993. It is generally considered to have been a flop, failing to enter the UK album chart. The album charted for a week at #185 on Billboard 200 and reached #28 in Italy. Two singles were released from the album...
(1993). He died on 25 August 1999 during surgery
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
for bowel cancer. Simon Climie had, before the success of Climie Fisher, co-written (with Dennis Morgan) the George Michael
George Michael
George Michael is a British musician, singer, songwriter and record producer who rose to fame in the 1980s when he formed the pop duo Wham! with his school friend, Andrew Ridgeley...
/Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
single "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)
I Knew You Were Waiting (for Me)
"I Knew You Were Waiting " is a song performed by Aretha Franklin and George Michael as a duet in 1987. It was written by Simon Climie and Dennis Morgan.-Music video:...
" in 1986. He worked as a producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
for recording artists such as Louise
Louise Redknapp
Louise Elizabeth Redknapp is an English singer and media personality. She was a member of the girl group Eternal from 1992 to 1995, before becoming a solo singer . She has presented several television shows and served as a judge on the UK version of So You Think You Can Dance...
, MN8
MN8
MN8 were an R&B group from the United Kingdom. They consisted of KG , G-Man , Kule T and Dee Tails .-Career:...
and Five Star
Five Star
Five Star are a British pop / R&B group, formed in 1983. Comprising siblings Stedman, Lorraine, Denise, Doris and Delroy Pearson, they were known for their flamboyant image, matching costumes and heavily choreographed dance routines...
and as a co-songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
for Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
, including the album with J.J. Cale
J.J. Cale
JJ Cale , born John Weldon Cale on December 5, 1938, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, is a Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter and musician. Cale is one of the originators of the Tulsa Sound, a loose genre drawing on blues, rockabilly, country, and jazz influences. Cale's personal style has...
(featuring Derek Trucks
Derek Trucks
Derek Trucks is a Grammy Award-winning, American guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. He founded The Derek Trucks Band and worked as a session musician when he was still in his early teens. Throughout those teenage years, he toured with The Allman Brothers Band primarily as a slide...
and Billy Preston
Billy Preston
William Everett "Billy" Preston was a musician who gained notoriety and fame, first as a session musician for the likes of Sam Cooke, Ray Charles and The Beatles, and later finding fame as a solo artist with hits such as "Space Race", "Will It Go Round in Circles" and "Nothing from...
) The Road to Escondido
The Road to Escondido
The Road to Escondido is an album by J. J. Cale and Eric Clapton. It was released on November 7, 2006. Contained on this album are the final recordings of Billy Preston, to whom the album is dedicated....
. Climie released a solo album and single, both titled "Soul Inspiration" in 1992. He also worked with former Doobie Brothers member Michael McDonald
Michael McDonald (singer)
Michael McDonald is a five-time Grammy Award winning American singer and songwriter. McDonald is known for a soulful baritone singing style and a multi-octave range. He began his career singing back-up vocals with Steely Dan...
on his Motown
Motown Records
Motown is a record label originally founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, United States, on April 14, 1960. The name, a portmanteau of motor and town, is also a nickname for Detroit...
albums. He produced the 2009 album by the American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
winner Taylor Hicks
Taylor Hicks
Taylor Reuben Hicks is an American singer who achieved fame in 2006, when he won the fifth season of American Idol. Hicks got his start as a professional musician in his late teens and performed around the Southeastern United States for well over the span of a decade, during which he also released...
, titled The Distance
The Distance (Taylor Hicks album)
-Singles:*"What's Right Is Right" – peaked at No.24 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks.*"Seven Mile Breakdown" - released May 4, 2009 to country radio.-Chart performance:...
.
Cultural References
The semi-quasi folk song 'The Ballad Of Climie Fisher' by Half Man Half BiscuitHalf Man Half Biscuit
Half Man Half Biscuit, often "HMHB", are an English rock band from Birkenhead, Merseyside, active since the mid-1980s, known for satirical, sardonic, and sometimes surreal songs. The group comprises Nigel Blackwell , Neil Crossley , Ken Hancock , and Carl Henry...
is a fictional tale of what happened to the pair post breakup.
Albums
- EverythingEverything (Climie Fisher album)Everything is the first album by British pop duo Climie Fisher, released in 1987. The album includes the duo's biggest hit and best-remembered single, "Love Changes ", and reached #14 on the UK album chart...
(EMI - 1987) (#14 UKUK Albums ChartThe UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
, #7 Germany, #10 Switzerland, #14 Sweden, #120 USA, #1 South AfricaSouth AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
) - Coming In for the KillComing In for the KillComing In for the Kill is the second and last album by British pop duo Climie Fisher, released in 1989. The album was less successful than its predecessor Everything, peaking at #35 in the United Kingdom....
(EMI - 1989) (#35 UK, #36 Sweden, #6 South Africa)
Singles
- "This Is Me" - 1986
- "Love Changes (Everything)" - 1987 - #67 UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
; #30 Netherlands - "Keeping The Mystery Alive" - 1987 - #35 Germany
- "Rise To The Occasion" - 1987 - #10 UK; #1 Netherlands; #1 South Africa; #14 Germany; #17 Sweden; #19 Austria
- "Love Changes (Everything)" (re-mix) - 1988 - #2 UK; #2 South Africa; #7 Germany; #8 Switzerland; #15 Austria; #23 Australia; #23 USA
- "This Is Me" (re-release) - 1988 - #22 UK; #34 Netherlands; #60 Germany
- "I Won't Bleed For You" - 1988 - #35 UK
- "Love Like A River" - 1988 - #22 UK; #18 Austria; #54 Germany
- "Facts Of Love" - 1989 - #50 UK; #54 Germany
- "Fire On The Ocean" - 1989
- "It's Not Supposed To Be That Way" - 1990