Helen Clare

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Helen Clare (singer)
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Helen Clare
Birth nameNelly Harrison
Born(1916-11-29)29 November 1916
traditional pop
InstrumentsVocals
LabelsRex, Decca, Regal Zonophone
WebsiteHelen Clare

Helen Clare (born Nelly Harrison; 29 November 1916 – 15 September 2018) was a British singer who was well known in the 1930s and 1940s through her work in variety, radio, television and recording. Clare worked extensively in

British dance bands.[1] Her distinctive soprano voice saw her working with some of the biggest names of the era, including bandleaders Jack Jackson and Henry Hall.[2]
She was one of the last surviving British singers who had been active in the 1930s.

Early life

Nelly Harrison was born in

Dame Nellie Melba, who she duetted with.[6]

Harrison's voice brought her to the attention of the critics and audiences, with Melba remarking, "this voice must be preserved and not be used for years to come".[1] A 1926 Sydney Opera House production of Aladdin was reviewed by The Sydney Morning Herald, in which it was noted that Harrison won applause from the audience. Harrison, "a diminutive child-prodigy, sang fluently and correctly, with shades and roulades, all in a tiny voice, the valse-air from Edward German's comic opera Tom Jones", the review added.[7]

Career

Early success

Following the Wall Street Crash in 1929, and the subsequent Great Depression, Harrison and her family returned to Yorkshire, living in Shipley, outside Bradford. After leaving school, she worked as a costing clerk in a raincoat factory, but sang in clubs during the evenings. She also appeared with her brother Tom Harrison's band in Bradford. "Unlike their usual singer, I didn't need a megaphone", she said.[6]

Harrison began getting bookings in the

North of England, and, having been offered an audition by Eric Maschwitz, the then-Head of BBC Variety, she started to broadcast for the BBC North region in 1934.[3] In the mid-1930s, Harrison joined Conri Tait's Orchestra, who appeared at the Grand Hotel in Harrogate.[1]

By 1936, she was broadcasting under her

Radio Normandie, Lyon and Luxembourg stations.[6] Whilst there, she was befriended by a young Danny Kaye, who was appearing in cabaret at the hotel. Clare began appearing on BBC Television when the medium was still in its infancy, becoming one of the first female singers to appear on the small screen in 1937.[6]

That year, she sang George and Ira Gershwin's "They Can't Take That Away From Me" in Cabaret Cartoons, a television programme produced by Cecil Madden. On 22 June that year, she made her recording debut at a Rex session with Jay Wilbur and his Band, when Clare sang a duet with Jack Cooper, "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off", which had been introduced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the film Shall We Dance.[10] She made several more recordings with Wilbur's band, and also broadcast with him.[1]

On 26 November 1937, she made her first recording with Jack Jackson and his Orchestra at a Decca session in which she sang "I'm a Little Prairie Flower" as part of a vocal ensemble with Jackson, Jackie Hunter and Jack Cooper. In December 1937, the Popular Music and Film Song Weekly wrote of Clare:

"…there are relatively few dance-band crooners who possess what the professors would describe as a 'real voice'. Pretty Helen Clare, however is one of the very few. Maybe you can detect the 'quality' when you hear her on the air with Jack Jackson from the Dorchester."[1]

She also recorded three duets with Jackson – one of the most prominent bandleaders of the era – for his orchestra in January and May the following year.[11] In addition, she appeared on television with him until 1939.[1]

War and post-war fame

Following the outbreak of the Second World War, Clare was asked to join the BBC Variety department in

Leslie 'Hutch' Hutchinson, appearing regularly on BBC Radio. She broadcast with the BBC's in-house orchestras and those led by such notable bandleaders as Carroll Gibbons, Henry Hall, Billy Ternent and Jack Hylton.[1]

It was thought that Bristol would be safer than London, but this was proven wrong when the city suffered

Comin' In On A Wing And A Pray'r", both wartime-themed songs.[10]

Offered the chance to work with bandleader

Allied forces. It was in this programme that the 9-year old Petula Clark made her broadcasting debut, later described by Clare as "this lovely little thing".[3][12]

In early 1944, she recorded vocals at three sessions with

Allied Expeditionary Force band in April 1945. Commenting on this, she said, "When I sang I was part of that song, and the songs then spoke of so many sentiments, and they tell a story".[1]

Following the end of the war in Britain, Clare continued to work in variety and light music. The latter included operetta, in which she would be accompanied by orchestras led by Sidney Torch and George Melachrino. She continued to broadcast on popular radio shows such as Variety Bandbox and Palace of Varieties. In 1957, Friday Night Is Music Night, which had begun on the BBC Light Programme in 1953, featured Clare, accompanied by the BBC Concert Orchestra.[1]

Later life

Clare continued performing professionally and appearing in broadcasts until the 1960s, when she had a mild heart attack. However, she gave singing lessons for the next thirty years, and, until the age of 90, was active in the Wallington Operatic Society.[3]

In May 2015, aged 98, she was interviewed by

100th birthday, in a visit featured on Holding Back the Years, a BBC One programme hosted by Ainsley Harriott. Joined by her daughter, granddaughter and great-grandchildren, she was serenaded by Alex Mendham and His Orchestra.[16][17]

In 2018, the first album of Clare's recordings was released, All The Things You Are.[1] Asked for the secrets to a long life, Clare said "There isn't a secret. You just have to be interested in things, in what's happening in the world. And keep your sense of enjoyment going."[6]

Personal life and death

In 1939, following the start of the Second World War, Clare lived at 88 Maida Vale (later a

Queen Elizabeth II addressed to her married name, Mrs Helen Riddle.[21]

Clare lived in

Carshalton, Sutton, in 1995, where she remained until 2011. Clare later moved into sheltered accommodation in Wallington, and died on 15 September 2018, aged 101.[22][1][23] She was survived by her daughter, granddaughter and three great-grandchildren.[3][22]

See also

  • Mary Lee (1921–2022), the last surviving British dance band singer of the 1930s

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Helen Clare singing Star of the 1930s 1940s & 1950s. BBC, Radio, recording and concert artist". www.helenclare.com. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
  2. ^ "BBC One - Songs of Praise, 75th Anniversary of VE Day, Feature: Forces' Sweetheart Helen Clare". BBC. 7 May 2020. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Obituaries, Telegraph (25 September 2018). "Helen Clare, singer – obituary". The Telegraph. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  4. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916-2007 [database on-line]. General Register Office; United Kingdom; Reference: Volume 9b, Page 222
  5. ^ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Helen Clare obituary". The Times. 3 October 2018. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  7. ^ ""Aladdin." At the Opera House". The Sydney Morning Herald. 28 December 1926. p. 6. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  8. ^ "Jazz Pie". The Radio Times. BBC Genome. 12 June 1936. p. 65. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  9. ^ "Jack Jackson and His Band". The Radio Times. BBC Genome. 29 January 1937. p. 84. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  10. ^ .
  11. .
  12. ^ "Saturday Live - Nigel Havers - BBC Sounds". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 19 April 2021. at 22 minutes in
  13. ^ "ORBS". www.mgthomas.co.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
  14. ^ "BBC One - Songs of Praise, 10/05/2015". BBC. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  15. ^ "Meet Helen Clare, wartime BBC star". BBC Blogs. 31 October 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  16. ^ "Holding Back the Years". BBC. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  17. ^ "Ainsley Harriott ‹ Series 1 ‹ Holding Back the Years". subsaga.com. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  18. ^ Ancestry.com. 1939 England and Wales Register [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2018.
  19. ^ Denson, Alan (22 October 2011). "Frederick Riddle". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  20. ^ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
  21. ^ Holding Back the Years. Season 1. Episode 3. 29 March 2017. BBC One.
  22. ^ a b Kituno, Nick (28 September 2018). "Tributes paid to one of television's earliest songstresses who has died at 101". Your Local Guardian. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  23. ^ Neal, Tessa (31 October 2016). "Wartime star from Sutton planning to release 'fascinating' autobiography after she turns 100". Your Local Guardian. Retrieved 21 March 2021.

External links