Andrew Roachford (born 22 January 1965) is a British singer-songwriter and the main force behind the band Roachford, who scored their first success in 1989 with the hits " Cuddly Toy" and "Family Man". He has also had a successful solo career. He was appointed

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(MBE) in the

2019 Birthday Honours The 2019 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as ...

for services to music.

Early life and career

Andrew Roachford was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England to parents of West Indian descent. A band of the same name was formed in 1987, the line-up featuring Andrew Roachford (vocals, keyboards, percussion), Chris Taylor (drums), Hawi Gondwe (guitars) and Derrick Taylor (bass guitar). By 1988, the band were touring, supporting acts such as

Terence Trent D'Arby Sananda Francesco Maitreya (born Terence Trent Howard; March 15, 1962), who started his career with the stage name Terence Trent D'Arby, is an American singer and songwriter who came to fame with his debut studio album, '' Introducing the Hard ...

and the Christians. Shortly afterward, a seven-album

recording contract A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording act (artist or group), where the act makes an audio recording (or series of recordings) for the label to sell and ...

with Columbia was signed. They went on to have a string of success throughout the 1990s, becoming Columbia's biggest-selling UK act for ten years.Biography
''Roachford.co.uk''. Retrieved 5 November 2009. Roachford released his first solo studio album, ''Heart of the Matter'', in 2003. His next studio album ''Word of Mouth'' was released in June 2005 under the band name Roachford. In 2010, Roachford joined

Mike + The Mechanics Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and documenta ...

along with

Tim Howar Timothy Howar (born 24 November 1969) is a Canadian-born British singer with the pop-rock band Mike + The Mechanics who also acts in leading roles in West End and Broadway musicals. Career Howar was born in Spirit River, Alberta, Canada.Ma ...

. The following year the band's seventh studio album ''

The Road ''The Road'' is a 2006 post-apocalyptic novel by American writer Cormac McCarthy. The book details the grueling journey of a father and his young son over several months across a landscape blasted by an unspecified cataclysm that has destroyed ...

'' was released featuring Roachford and Howar as lead vocalists, as well as their eighth studio album '' Let Me Fly'' (2017). Roachford collaborated with

Beverley Knight Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English singer, songwriter, actress and radio personality. She released her first album, ''The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke ...

on his studio album ''Twice In a Lifetime'', which was released in September 2020. It charted at number 31 on the UK Albums Chart. This was the first Roachford album to chart in the top 40 after a 23-year absence, last charting in 1997 with '' Feel''.

Discography

Albums

Singles

* ⁺ "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" by MOBO Allstars was a charity single released collectively by

MOBO Award The MOBO Awards (Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBOs) are an annual British music award presentation honouring achievements in " music of black origin", including hip hop, grime, UK Drill, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and Bant ...

nominees in 1998, reaching No. 47 on the UK Singles Chart. The artists featured on the recording were Another Level,

Mica Paris Michelle Antoinette Wallen (born 27 April 1969), known professionally as Mica Paris ( ), is an English singer, presenter, and actress. Her debut album, '' So Good'', was released in 1988, spawning the singles " My One Temptation" and " Where I ...

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, Nine Yards, Don-E,

Hinda Hicks Hinda Hicks (born 1976) is a British and Tunisian-born singer, actress and artist who first gained notability with her musical career in the late '90s. She is best known for her debut album ''Hinda'', that charted at #20 on the 1998 UK Top 40 ...

, Celetia,

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Dru Hill Dru Hill is an American R&B boy band, whose repertoire included soul, hip hop soul and gospel music. The group was founded in Baltimore in 1992 by Tamir "Nokio the N-Tity" Ruffin, and as of 2023, is still active. Dru Hill recorded seven top 40 ...

Shola Ama Shola Ama (born 8 March 1979) is a British singer from London, who scored her biggest hits with " You Might Need Somebody" (1997), a cover of Randy Crawford's 1981 hit, " You're the One I Love" and "Still Believe" (1999) which was one of the ...

Truce A ceasefire (also known as a truce), also spelled cease-fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions often due to mediation by a third party. Ceasefires may b ...

Misty Oldland Misty Oldland (born Michéle Oldland) is a British singer-songwriter. Her songs include " A Fair Affair (Je T'Aime)" and "Got Me a Feeling", featuring soul singer Omar Lye-Fook. Three of her singles charted on the UK Singles Chart while also ...

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, Kleshay,

Lynden David Hall Lynden David Hall (7 May 1974 – 14 February 2006) was an English singer, songwriter, arranger, and record producer who emerged during the late 1990s as part of the neo soul movement. In 1999, he was the first UK performer ever voted "Best Mal ...

Kele Le Roc Kelly Biggs (born 5 October 1975 in East Ham, London), better known by her stage name Kele Le Roc, is an English singer. Career Biggs began singing at the age of three, and she attended Langdon Comprehensive School in East Ham. She first found ...

East 17 East 17 are an English pop boy band started by Tony Mortimer, Brian Harvey, John Hendy, and Terry Coldwell in 1991. They are best known for their 1994 hit single " Stay Another Day", which was the UK Christmas number one that year. The g ...

, Conner Reeves,

Des'ree Desirée Annette Weekes (born 30 November 1968), known by her stage name Des'ree (), is an English pop and soul recording artist and songwriter, who rose to prominence during the 1990s. Known for her distinctive contralto voice and uplifting l ...

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...

Glamma Kid Iyael Lyases Tafari Constable (born 14 March 1978), better known as Glamma Kid, is a toaster and former Royal Air Force trainee of part-Jamaican descent. He had two top 10 hits in 1999. Music career During the 1990s, Glamma Kid was featured on p ...

Honeyz The Honeyz are a British Contemporary R&B, R&B girl group currently composed of members Célena Cherry, Heavenli Abdi and Cherry's sister, Candace Cherry, as a touring member. The group had five UK top 10 hits between 1998 and 2000, with "Final ...

, Kelle Bryan, Roachford, Byron Stingily, Alyson Brown, D'Influence,

Michelle Gayle Michelle Patricia Gayle (born 2 February 1971) is a British singer, songwriter, actress and writer. Gayle had success as a Contemporary R&B, soul and R&B singer in the 1990s, having achieved seven top 40 single (music), singles in the UK Single ...

, Ignorants, Soundproof, Tony Dortie, David Grant and Carrie Grant.

References

External links

Roachford official UK site
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Roachford, Andrew 1965 births Living people 21st-century Black British male singers 21st-century British male singers Mike + The Mechanics members 20th-century Black British male singers 20th-century British male singers Black British rock musicians CBS Records artists English people of Barbadian descent Members of the Order of the British Empire