John Miles obit

John Miles Has Died

 He was not on the list.

I am hugely saddened by the news that my good friend and musical genius John has passed. I am so very proud to have worked with him on some of the greatest vocal performances ever recorded, including of course Music, which as well as being a big hit internationally, became an anthem for the hugely popular "Night Of The Proms” concerts. Whenever I invited John to sing on the Alan Parsons Project albums he always delivered magical and sensitive renditions. He will be greatly missed not only by his many friends and associates but also by the millions of fans who recognize his amazing talent. You will be missed John Miles’ Music - Official.

Miles signed a recording contract with the Decca UK label in 1975 and issued four albums; Rebel (1976) - No. 9 on the UK chart, Stranger in the City (1977) - No. 37 UK, Zaragon (1978) - No. 43 UK and More Miles Per Hour (1979) - No. 46 UK. Miles had the most success with singles and released a total of eighteen during this era, with four reaching the UK top 40. In addition to "Music", he also charted in the UK with "Highfly" (1975) - No. 17, "Remember Yesterday" (1976) - No. 32,[16] and "Slow Down" (1977) - No. 10. In 1975, the readers of the Daily Mirror voted Miles as Best Newcomer. Not long after "Music"'s release, Miles was described by Melody Maker as "the brightest, freshest force in British rock".

"Music" won Miles an Ivor Novello Award for Best Middle of the Road Song in 1977. Most of his songs were co-written with the bassist in his backing group, Bob Marshall.

At the peak of his success, in 1976 and 1977, Miles made several appearances on the weekly pop TV shows Supersonic[24] and Top of the Pops.[25][26] The debut album did receive some attention in the US. Two singles from the debut album reached the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, "Highfly" peaked at No. 68,[27] followed by "Music" which stalled at No. 88. In Canada, "Highfly" reached No. 74, and "Slow Down" reached No. 68.[29] However, "Music" reached No. 1 on the Dutch and Belgian charts and No. 4 on the Swiss charts.[31] "Slow Down" was his biggest US chart hit, peaking at No. 2 on the disco chart,[32] and at No. 34 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1977. It was later featured in the 1979 film Players, starring Ali MacGraw and Dean Paul Martin. The album Zaragon reached No. 3 on the Swedish and Portuguese charts. On his US tour to promote Zaragon, Billboard stated that "Miles boast several strengths: solid vocals, sharp guitar play and strong material".

Miles opened for Elton John on his tour. Miles and his band would go on to open for other famous artists, such as Fleetwood Mac, Aerosmith, Jethro Tull and the Rolling Stones. In 1978, Miles was invited to appear on the BBC Sight and Sound in Concert programme which was simultaneously on BBC Radio 1 and BBC 2 on 11 March 1978.

The early success of Rebel tailed off so much that Ian Gilbey in Electronics & Music Maker wrote:

In the world of Rock music, there can be no greater travesty than the way John Miles' music has been ignored, especially by the weekly music press. Musical skill has never been high on their list of pre-requisites for stardom and as soon as John's fifteen minutes of fame had terminated in the mid-Seventies, the shutters came down with a resounding bang. 'Passe' and 'old-fashioned' were the usual glib diatribes flung insultingly in Mr. Miles' direction with every subsequent record release, yet to those prepared to listen, each and every album contained material that consolidated his status as an exceptional songwriting talent.

From 1985, Miles participated almost every year in the Night of the Proms, a series of concerts held yearly in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, Poland, Denmark and the United States. Regularly there were also shows in Spain, France, Austria, Switzerland and Sweden. The concerts consist of a combination of pop music and popular classical music (often combined) and various well-known musicians and groups usually participate.