Leee John
Leee John (born John Leslie McGregor, 23 June 1957, Hackney, London, UK) of St Lucian descent, is a British musician and actor. He was educated in New York, later studying drama at the Anna Scher Theatre School.
He is best known as the lead singer for Imagination (1981-1992), the internationally popular pop, dance and soul team whose sales of CDs, albums, singles, videos and DVDs now exceeds some twenty-million copies. Starting with the double gold LPs 'Body Talk' and 'In The Heat Of The Night' and encompassing the classic hits 'Just An Illusion,' 'Music And Lights' and 'Changes.'
Born in London, Leee spent some of his formative years in New York, exposed to the R&B and soul music of the '70s. He signed his first record deal as part of a duo with family friend Russell Fraser but it was after working with Grammy award-winning producer Trevor Horn on the track 'Got To Be Good' with his new group Imagination that Leee came to the attention of producer Tony Swain who encouraged Leee to complete the lyrics and melody for the song 'Body Talk' which would become Imagination's first Top 5 single.
Subsequently, Imagination recorded seven albums, touring the world and establishing itself as one of the most popular dance, funk/soul and pop acts in contemporary music throughout the '80s. By 1991, the original line-up had changed although Leee continued to tour globally throughout the '90s and beyond (with stops in India, Sri Lanka, Angola, South Africa, the Middle East, the Far East, Russia and France) in the process hosting his own British television chat show, 'Leee's Place.' Along the way, Leee worked with producer Arthur Baker on his Back Beat Disciple album 'Give Into The Rhythm' and scored a major dance club hit in the UK and US in 1996 with the anthem 'The Mighty Power Of Love.' In 1997, using the pseudonym Johnny X, Leee enjoyed another UK dance hit with 'Call On Me' and he ended the decade as a roving reporter and interviewer for VHI as well as performing throughout the UK and France.
Time has passed and, with a slew of recent credits that include a starring role in the popular 2003 ITV show 'Reborn In The USA,' which took Leee literally from coast-to-coast in America on sold-out shows in major U.S. cities. The recipient of numerous silver, gold and platinum discs and a Diamond Award, Leee's list of career accomplishments includes performances for Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana, dinner at the home of Nelson Mandela and a rare 'Soul Train' appearance in which he sang to the legendary Marvin Gaye. Leee John who has written songs for such artists as MOBO winner Pete Hunnigale, Maxi Priest, Alison Limerick and Ultimate Chaos among others and has worked with top producers and musicians including Frankie Knuckles, Arthur Baker, Nick Martinelli, David Morales, Tony Humphries and Mike Pickering has now deemed himself ready for that first all-important solo set and the result is the brilliantly-crafted 'Feel My Soul,' which was released in October 2005 on Candid Records.
A musical tour-de-force, 'Feel My Soul' features Leee's highly expressive reading of classic standards such as Billie Holiday's haunting 'Strange Fruit,' 'Embraceable You' and Cole Porter's 'Someone To Watch Over Me' along with exciting original material including the standout opening cut, 'Sensuality,' the cool'n'hip 'Jazzmatazz,' 'Now Is The Time (C'est Le Moment)' and 'Thin Line.'
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