Mary Sandeman (born 20 November 1947), better known by her former stage name Aneka ( ), is a retired Scottish

traditional singer A traditional singer, also known as a source singer, is someone who has learned folk songs in the oral tradition, usually from older people within their community. From around the beginning of the twentieth century, song collectors such as Cecil ...

. In 1981, she reached number one in the UK Singles Chart with her song "

Japanese Boy "Japanese Boy" is a single by Scottish singer Aneka, which was released by Hansa Records in July 1981. The song became her highest-charting release, reaching number one in several countries, including the United Kingdom. The song's success wou ...

". She was well known for the Oriental image she took on for the song. After her brief foray into pop, she reverted to her real name and reestablished herself as an accomplished performer of

Scottish traditional music Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

Career

''Introducing Mary Sandeman'' (1979–1981)

Under her real name, Aneka released two albums; one in 1979 titled ''Introducing Mary Sandeman'', featuring traditional folk songs sung both in English and Scots language. Aneka had been a Gold Medal winner at The Mòd. After her commercial success ended, Aneka dropped the Aneka name and returned to her Scottish folk roots and continued to perform under her real name.

"Japanese Boy" and ''Aneka'' (1981–1983)

Mary Sandeman recorded the song "Japanese Boy" in 1981. Impressed with the results, her record company Hansa decided to release it as a single with full promotion. Having discovered the name ''Aneka'' in a telephone directory, Aneka devised a suitable image for her performances of the song. Released in summer 1981, "Japanese Boy" climbed the charts impressively and reached no. 1 for one week in August. Buoyed by this success, the record company commissioned an album and looked to find a follow-up single. The song "Little Lady" was chosen, but caused some concern as to what image to use, as it was felt that a Japanese look would be inappropriate for the song as well as giving the artist a limited life-span. In the event Aneka adopted an 18th-century "lady" image, but retained the same high-pitched voice as used for her hit. The song failed to chart highly in the UK, reaching only no. 50; securing her the label of

one-hit wonder A one-hit wonder is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music performers with ...

. Aneka's first pop album, entitled ''Aneka'', was released at the same time (although she had in 1979 released an album under her own name) and featured a mix of upbeat tracks in the vein of "Japanese Boy" and a selection of slow-paced numbers, sung in her true singing voice. The album however failed to chart. In 1981,

South Uist South Uist (, ; ) is the second-largest island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland. At the 2011 census, it had a usually resident population of 1,754: a decrease of 64 since 2001. The island, in common with the rest of the Hebrides, is one of the ...

poet

Dòmhnall Iain Dhonnchaidh Donald John MacDonald, () (lit. "Donald Ian Duncan", fig. "Donald Ian, son of Duncan") legally Dòmhnaill Iain MacDhòmhnaill (7 February 1919 in Peninerine, South Uist, Scotland – 2 October 1986 in Glasgow, Scotland) was a Scottish people, Scott ...

agreed, as part of a bridge-building exercise organized by Gaelic language radio, to compose both literary translations and original lyrics set to

aria In music, an aria (, ; : , ; ''arias'' in common usage; diminutive form: arietta, ; : ariette; in English simply air (music), air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrument (music), instrumental or orchestral accompan ...

s from

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

and

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi ( ; ; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto, a small town in the province of Parma, to a family of moderate means, recei ...

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

s. Mary Sandeman ultimately made ''"Nìghneagan Òga"'', his translation of '' Voi Che Sapete'' from Mozart's ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienn ...

'', a regular part of her repertoire. Sandeman not only recorded the aria twice, but even sang the Gaelic words before an audience of more than 5,000 at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...

. A third single was released in early 1982. This was "Ooh Shooby Doo Doo Lang", which told a light-hearted tale of a singer bemoaning the fact that she has been relegated to backing vocals; the lyrics go on to mention

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

and

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

and both "Japanese Boy" and "Little Lady". The song missed the UK chart; however in Europe it gave her a third hit and was followed there by the release of another album track, "I Was Free".

Non–album singles (1983–1994)

Two further singles were released over the next two years, "Heart to Beat" in 1983 and "

Rose, Rose, I Love You "Rose, Rose, I Love You" () is a 1940 Mandarin popular song composed by Chen Gexin and first recorded by Yao Lee. An English-language version whose lyrics have little in common with the original Mandarin was first recorded by Frankie Laine in ...

" in 1984, but neither of them found success. Aneka then dropped the Aneka title and continued with the folk-singing career she had begun before her fame. In 1991, she released the album ''Reflections on Scotland''. In 1994 she made a documentary entitled ''Aite Mo Ghaoil: Mary Sandeman and Islay''. She has also appeared on STV music shows such as ''Thingummyjig'' and

Hogmanay Hogmanay ( , ) is the Scots language, Scots word for the last day of the old year and is synonymous with the celebration of the New Year in the Scottish manner. It is normally followed by further celebration on the morning of New Year's Day (1 ...

celebrations.

Work before retirement (1994–2006)

Aneka featured in a 2006

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

documentary titled '' 'Bring Back The One Hit Wonders'''.

Justin Lee Collins Justin Lee Collins (born 1974) is a former actor and radio and television presenter from Bristol, England.Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

Artistry

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano (, ), or mezzo ( ), is a type of classical music, classical female singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A bel ...

, she has appeared with the Scottish Fiddle Orchestra in concert and on record. In 1994 she made a documentary entitled ''Aite Mo Ghaoil: Mary Sandeman and Islay''. She has also appeared on STV music shows such as ''Thingummyjig'' and

celebrations.

Personal life

Aneka is divorced from her husband. They had two sons. Her brother, David, was killed in a flying accident in 1975.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Notes

References

{{Authority control 1948 births Living people British dance musicians 20th-century Scottish women singers Scottish folk singers Hansa Records artists Musicians from Edinburgh