Gary Miller (singer)
| Gary Miller | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
Neville Williams 1924 Blackpool, Lancashire |
| Died | 15 June 1968 (aged 43–44) |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Nationality | English |
| Occupation | Singer, actor |
Gary Miller, born Neville Williams (1924 – 15 June 1968[1]) was an English popular music singer and actor of the 1950s and 1960s. His career spanned only 13 years before he died of a heart attack in 1968. He released 24 singles and six EPs on the Pye label between 1955 and 1967. Pye released a further compilation EP after his death.
Career
Miller had several Top 40 singles early in his career, his debut single, "The Yellow Rose of Texas" reaching #13 on the UK Singles Chart.[1] The most successful was "Robin Hood" (the theme to The Adventures of Robin Hood) which spent 28 weeks in the chart[2] and peaked at #10, his only Top 10 hit.[1]
Miller had a number of small acting roles in the television series The Saint and Gideon's Way, and was a regular panelist on Juke Box Jury. He provided the singing voice for Troy Tempest in the Gerry Anderson series Stingray and recorded "Aqua Marina", the end titles theme for the series. He also recorded vocals for two different versions of an ultimately-unused end titles theme for Thunderbirds. The song was later re-worked as "Flying High" for the episode Ricochet; one of the original two versions appears on the Thunderbirds 2 compilation album.
Miller appeared on stage in the 1964 production of She Loves Me at the Lyric Theatre and on the cast album of that production.[3] He also began appearing in the musical Come Spy with Me with Danny La Rue and Barbara Windsor, shortly before his death. He died shortly before production finished on an episode of The Saint, "The People Importers", in which he was also playing a key part. The series' associate producer, Johnny Goodman, later remarked that Miller was "working night and day" as a consequence of his twin commitments, and that production on the Saint episode had to be completed with a double in place of the late actor.[4]
Selected discography
Singles
| Year | Title | Label | UK Singles Chart[1] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | "The Yellow Rose of Texas" | Nixa | |
| 1956 | "Robin Hood" | Nixa | |
| 1957 | "Garden of Eden" | Pye Nixa | |
| 1957 | "Wonderful, Wonderful" | Pye Nixa | |
| 1958 | "The Story of My Life" | Pye Nixa | |
| 1961 | "There Goes That Song Again"/"The Night is Young (And You're so Beautiful)" | Pye | |
References
- 1 2 3 4 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 366. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ↑ White, Bob. "Rockin' Robin - A study of the outlaw Robin Hood's links with popular music". Retrieved 2007-08-22.
- ↑ "Gary Raymond filmography". Retrieved 2007-08-22.
- ↑ Episode #111 - 6-14