With more than 30 hit singles on British charts and ten studio albums that altogether sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, Kim Wilde stands as one of three most successful UK female singers of all times. She put the stamp on the 80s and influenced many artists no matter their genre. Kim was active on the scene until mid 90s and then made a big return in 2001. She is still active.
Kim Wilde is daughter of British rock n roll star from the late 50s - Marty Wilde and Joyce Baker - ex member of the longest standing female music group in the world - The Vernons Girls. Although in the beginning she mainly leaned on the opinion of her father Ricky Wilde who was also the author of most of her songs from the first couple of years of her career. Over time, when she started writing her own songs, she gained her identity and became respected in music circles as top-notch pop artist.
Kim Wilde is one of the rare pop singers who never had a scandal, and she has her father to thank for that who taught her how to dive through the showbiz world. When she was nine years old, she moved with family from London to rural Hertfordshire. She returned to London to start her art and design studies at St.Alban's College. She didn't finish her degree because she fell madly in love with music. Among other things, she worked as caretaker in one health institution, she was employed in famous mall Harrods, was a home cleaner for her piano teacher and performed as a back singer at her father's concerts.
In 1981, Kim dropped her debut single Kids In America with lyrics about haste life tempo across the pond. The song reached second spot on UK Singles Charts right behind Shakin Stevens' This Ole House. It became a pop classic that will be covered by many artists in the following years. The second single from her upcoming debut album is another upbeat track Chequered Love reached no 4 and becomes a global hit. It was clear from the very onset that the world is witnessing the birth of a superstar. Her debut album Kim Wilde was predominantly guitar-driven and all of the songs were written by Marty and Ricky Wilde. It went on to become one of the best selling albums in Europe in 1982.
Cambodia promoted her sophomore album. I love this song because it speaks about the wife of a missing British military pilot who lives in Thailand. Authors found inspiration in tragic incidents that occurred in Southern Vietnam. It is another pop classic covered by numerous musicians. In an interview in 1982, she declared her desire to write her own songs, although she said she would like to rely on the materials of her brother and father. The synth-driven Select, her second album, landed on 19th spot on UK Album Charts. Around the same time, Kids In America started ruling over radios in United States.
Kim Wilde scored a nickname Brigitte Bardot of rock right before her first big tour in UK that close in London's Dominion Theater. The same year she also performed in Paris Olympia and appeared in Christmas edition of Razzmatazz. In 1983, she wins BRIT Award for Best British Female Act and premiers jazz-swings single Love Blonde that underperformed on the charts. Other two singles from her third continued in the same underwhelming fashion.
It wasn't until 1987 and the single You Keep Me Hangin On that Kim Wilde experienced commercial success again. The song became her first No 1 US hit and she was only the fifth British solo female singer to achieve that. For the rest of her discography, you will have to visit Spotify, Deezer r some other streaming service. Dig through it, it's worth it. But now I am going to focus on few of my Kim Wilde favorites.
My favorite album of this magnificent pop artist is Love Is. It brought a modern-classic pop rock sound and now I see that it was also critically praised at the time. Who Do You Think You Are taken from the album is probably one of my favorite songs ever. Duet with German superstar Nena titled Anyplace.Anywhere.Anytime from 2003 was one of my favorite songs when I was a highschooler.
There you have it folks. I hope this week's SundaySpotlight triggered your attention enough to enrich your playlists with some Kim Wilde.
