As the glamour of New Wave made its way through the UK music scene with acts like Visage, Duran Duran, and Spandau Ballet, a band made out of three black men was making the most, sashaying into TV studios with an extravagant image and hypnotic tunes to match.
Vocalist Leee John, bassist Ashley Ingram, and drummer Errol Kennedy ruled both the charts and the dancefloors with their own silky and soulful "Imagination" sound, created in collaboration with innovative production team Steve Jolley and Tony Swain, later architects of pop classics recorded by Spandau, Alison Moyet, and Bananarama.
In this special CHOONS episode, Leee takes a trip back to his days working the pub circuit and learning from the greats, his pre-Imagination recordings, the inspiration behind his first hit singles with the band, and the treacherous session that led to one of the most unforgettable floor-fillers of the 1980s.
Show Tracklisting:
- Just An Illusion - Nightdubbing Version (Imagination)
- Haven't Stopped Dancing Yet (Gonzalez)
- Walk On The Wild Side (Lou Reed)
- Body Talk (Imagination)
- Burnin' Up (Imagination)
- I'll Always Love You (But Don't Look Back) (Imagination)
- Flashback (Imagination)
- True (Spandau Ballet)
- Just An Illusion - Instrumental (Imagination)
- Just An Illusion (Imagination)
- In The Heat of The Night (Imagination)
Pre-order Imagination featuring Leee John "40 Years" Limited Edition Box Set Out February 2023: https://leeejohn.lnk.to/imagination40
Leee John on Social Media:
Host and Producer: Diego Martinez
Executive Producer: Nicholas "NickFresh" Puzo
Audio Engineer: Adam Fogel
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