Nicky Stevens

Nicky Stevens (born Helen Maria Thomas in Carmarthen, Wales, 3 December 1949) is a Welsh singer, best known as a member of the pop group Brotherhood of Man. To date she is the only Welsh person to have won the Eurovision Song Contest.

Nicky Stevens began singing at an early age. At the age of four she was singing in a chapel in Carmarthen, and following lessons eventually joined the Hywel Girls Choir. She also studied classical music as a singer and pianist. At the age of 16 she held a residency in Swansea's Townsman nightclub. During this period she also took on a job as a telephone operator. This lasted for nine months and is the only job she has ever had outside the entertainment business. She later toured the Continent as a singer, performing in night clubs. Following this she went on to tour South Africa as well as clubs around the UK. She also appeared on stage as a support act for the likes of Neil Sedaka, Norman Wisdom and Little and Large in the early 1970s. Stevens worked mainly performing popular songs and found it a struggle at first to adapt her vocals from her classical roots.

In 1972, while working as a session singer and trying to secure a record deal as a solo artist, Stevens came to the attention of Tony Hiller, who was looking to recruit new members for his group Brotherhood of Man. Hiller was manager and songwriter for the group, but they had recently disbanded and keen to keep the name alive, which was still in demand for television work, he recruited Stevens alongside Martin Lee and Lee Sheriden. In 1973, signed to Deram Records, they released their first single, "Happy Ever After".

Later in the year another female singer was added to the group, Sandra Stevens (no relation) and as a four-piece, Brotherhood of Man went on to enjoy great success around the world. Scoring their first hit in 1974 and first No.1 the year after, the group entered and won the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Save Your Kisses for Me". For the next three years, the group regularly hit the chart and scored two more No.1 singles in the UK, "Angelo" and "Figaro".

In addition to singing, Stevens is a pianist, and performed the piano accompaniment to an otherwise a cappella recording of "Send in the Clowns" in 1978, which was featured on the band's Twenty Greatest album.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.