Dusty Springfield Brief Biography

Dusty Springfield was probably the greatest female pop singer to come out of Britain and Ireland (Dusty was English-born with Irish parents). Having a wide vocal range, and a voice which could move through the gears effortlessly, Dusty's vulnerability - both in her voice and persona - made her such a beloved singer of the 1960s to the present day.

As shy, self-conscious teenager Mary O'Brien, Dusty Springfield blossomed into Britain's biggest female singing star of the 1960s, and found success in the US. Finding some fame with late '50s girl group The Lana Sisters, Dusty's first real success came with The Springfields, a group she formed with brother Tom in 1960. The group were very successful, and their most famous song was the 1962 UK top five single, 'Island Of Dreams'.

Dusty Springfield decided to go solo late in 1963, and she was to have a glorious few years, with 10 top ten singles in the UK, including timeless classics 'I Only Want To Be With You', 'I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself', 'Goin' Back', 'You Don't Have To Say You Love Me (surprisingly her only chart topping single in the UK)', 'I Close My Eyes And Count To Ten', and 'Son Of A Preacher Man'. Ironically, after Dusty's memorable 'Dusty In Memphis' album, widely acknowledged as her greatest work, and proof that a white girl could 'do soul', her career began to falter, and she stepped back from the limelight. She was to have no more chart success until her relationship with The Pet Shop Boys in the 1980s. Dusty sang with them on the 1987 hit 'What Have I Done To Deserve This?', and they produced her recording of a song they had written for the movie 'Scandal (about the John Profumo affair)' - 'Nothing Has Been Proved' in 1989. Her last ever hit came the same year with another Pet Shop Boys song, also produced by them - 'In Private'.

After a long fight against cancer, Dusty Springfield passed away on March 2nd, 1999. Elton John remarked when she died with a short and powerful comment: "I think she is the greatest white singer that there ever has been."

Though there has been a fair bit of gossip about Dusty Springfield's private life, she happily contributed to it herself by admitting she was bi-sexual. She was eccentric in that endearing way so many British people are, and part of her will indicated that her feline companion Nicholas was to be married to a female feline, which lived with a friend of Dusty's. It should also be remembered that Dusty Springfield was a rebel against apartheid long before most people in Europe or America really knew much about the issue. She was deported from South Africa in 1964 for playing in front of a black and white audience. But that was Dusty. Underneath the sweet demeanour, the girl was a bit of a rebellious rock chick!

- Paul Rance/booksmusicfilmstv.com.

Dusty Springfield UK/US Singles Discography & Chart Positions