Barry Biggs
Born1946 (age 76–77)[1]
St. Andrew, Jamaica
GenresReggae
Occupation(s)Singer
Instrument(s)Vocals
Years active1960s–present

Barry Biggs (born 1946[1] St. Andrew, Jamaica) is a Jamaican reggae singer, best known in the UK for his cover of the Blue Magic song, "Sideshow", which got to number 3 in the UK Singles Chart in 1977.[2]

Career

Biggs worked as a recording engineer and cameraman with the Jamaican Broadcasting Company, and also spent time as a member of the band the Astronauts, before becoming the lead singer for Byron Lee's Dragonaires.[1][3]

It was at Lee's Dynamic Sounds studio (where he also worked as a producer and engineer) that Biggs recorded his first Jamaican hit, a cover of the Osmonds' "One Bad Apple".[1][3] He broke through to international success in 1976 with "Work All Day", which had been recorded seven years earlier.[1][3] Biggs had six hit singles on the UK Singles Chart between 1976 and 1981, the most successful of these, "Sideshow", reaching number 3 in January 1977.[2] He recorded two songs with Bunny Lee; "Sincerely" and "You're Welcome" which did well in the reggae charts.[3] He topped the reggae chart in the UK with "Wide Awake in a Dream" and "A Promise Is a Comfort to a Fool".[3]

Many of Biggs' recordings were reggae cover versions of popular soul hits, including songs such as Stevie Wonder's "My Cherie Amour"; "Sideshow" and "Three Ring Circus" by Blue Magic; and others originally by the Chi-Lites, the Moonglows ("Sincerely"), and the Temptations ("Just My Imagination").[4] His version of "Love Come Down", originally recorded by Evelyn "Champagne" King, was a top 10 hit in 1983 in the Netherlands. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Biggs avoided the political and Rasta themes then popular in Jamaica.[1]

Biggs continued to perform occasionally in the 2000s, notably at a 2008 service of thanksgiving for his former bandleader, Byron Lee.

Discography

Studio albums

  • Mr. Biggs – (1976) – Dynamic Sounds (also issued in 1977 as Side Show)
  • Sincerely – (1977) – Dynamic Sounds
  • Wide Awake in a Dream – (1980) – Starlight
  • A Promise Is A Comfort to a Fool – (1982)
  • Barry Biggs & The Inner Circle – (1983) – Trojan
  • Coming Down With Love (1983) – Ariola
  • So in Love – (1989) – Starlight
  • Wide Awake – (1990) – Mango
  • Night Like This – (1994) – WEA
  • Love Come Down – (2000) – Wesgram Records
  • I've Got It Covered – (2021) – Burning Sounds[5]

Compilation albums

  • Sideshow: The Best of Barry Biggs – (1995) – Jamaican Gold
  • Vintage Series: Barry Biggs – (2001) – VP
  • Just My Imagination – (2002) – Disky Records
  • Sideshow: The Very Best of Barry Biggs – (2002) – Music Club
  • Sideshow (The best of) – (2004) – Trojan
  • Reggae Max – (2007) – Jet Star

Singles

Year Title Peak chart positions Certifications
BEL
[6]		 NLD
[7]		 UK
[2][8]
1971 "One Bad Apple" ― ― ―
1972 "How Could I Let You Get Away" ― ― ―
1973 "I'm Stone in Love with You" ― ― ―
1975 "Lonely Girl" ― ― ―
1976 "You're Welcome" ― ― ―
"Work All Day" ― ― 38
"Sideshow" ― 17 3
1977 "You're My Life" ― ― 36
"Three Ring Circus" ― ― 22
"Sincerely" ― ― ―
1978 "Give Me a Call" ― ― ―
"Surely" ― ― ―
1979 "Too Much Heaven" ― ― ―
"What's Your Sign Girl?" ― ― 55
1981 "Wide Awake in a Dream" ― ― 44
"Love on a Two-Way Street" ― ― ―
"Promise Is a Comfort to a Fool" ― ― ―
"You're My Life" ― ― ―
1982 "This Is Good Life" ― ― ―
"Break Your Promise" ― ― ―
"Rain from the Sky" ― ― ―
"Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying" ― ― ―
1983 "One of the Poorest People" ― ― ―
"Love Come Down" 23 7 ―
"Reflections of My Life" (with Ruddy Thomas) ― 34 ―
1986 "All I Have to Do Is Dream" ― ― ―
"Conversation" ― ― ―
1987 "If You Wanna Make Love" ― ― ―
"Since You've Been Gone" ― ― ―
1988 "A Night Like This" ― ― ―
1994 "Time for Love" ― ― ―
1994 "True Love" ― ― ―
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Leggett, Steve. "Barry Biggs Biography". AllMusic.
  2. 1 2 3 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 57. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Larkin, Colin (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae. Virgin Books. p. 26. ISBN 0-7535-0242-9.
  4. ↑ "Coversproject.com". Archived from the original on 28 September 2007. Retrieved 26 June 2007.
  5. ↑ "Barry Biggs | Album Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  6. ↑ "Discografie Barry Biggs". ultratop.be. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
  7. ↑ "Discografie Barry Biggs". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 July 2022.
  8. ↑ "BARRY BIGGS - full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
  9. ↑ "Barry Biggs - Sideshow". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
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