David Courtney (born David Alexander Cohen, 18 December 1949,

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

, East Sussex) is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. Courtney's first big break was as a songwriter with

Adam Faith Terence Nelhams Wright (23 June 1940 – 8 March 2003), known as Adam Faith, was an English singer, actor, and financial journalist. As a British rock and roll teen idol, he scored consecutive No. 1 hits on the UK singles chart with " What ...

and

Leo Sayer Leo Sayer (born Gerard Hugh Sayer, 21 May 1948) is an English-Australian singer and songwriter who has been active since the early 1970s. He has been an Australian citizen and resident since 2009. Sayer launched his career in the United Kingd ...

; Courtney co-wrote several hit songs with them (including " Giving it All Away", recorded by both Sayer and

Roger Daltrey Sir Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is the co-founder and lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Who, known for his powerful voice and charismatic stage presence. His stage persona ear ...

) and he co-produced Faith's 1974 album, ''I Survive''. He released one album of his own on

United Artists United Artists (UA) is an American film production and film distribution, distribution company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, it was founded in February 1919 by Charlie Chaplin, D. W. Griffith, Mary Pickford an ...

in 1974 entitled ''David Courtney's First Day'' which had some success on both sides of the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

, and peaked at number 194 on the US ''Billboard'' 200. Courtney did not release any further material until 2005, when some of his unreleased material, including a 1980 studio album, was released on indie label The White Room. As a producer, Courtney has also worked with musicians such as

Gene Pitney Gene Francis Alan Pitney (February 17, 1940 – April 5, 2006) was an American pop and country singer, songwriter, and musician. Pitney charted 16 top-40 hits in the United States, four in the top ten. In the United Kingdom, he had 22 top-40 h ...

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

David Gilmour David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter who is a member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined in 1967, shortly before the departure of the founder member Syd Barrett. By the early 1980s, Pink F ...

and

Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician and producer who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the Rock music, rock band Led Zeppelin. Page began his career as a studio session musician in Lo ...

. In September 2015, Courtney celebrated his 50th anniversary in music with the release of his ''Anthology'' album on Angel Air Records. In 2002, Courtney was responsible for introducing the first Walk of Fame cultural attraction in the UK, located in

. In September 2015 Courtney joined forces with The National Football Museum and sports artist Paul Trevillion to announce the world's first Football Walk of Fame, which would be launched in Cathedral Square, Manchester. Courtney was awarded Russia's Tsarskoselskaya Artistic Premium of 2016, as a composer and producer of the 2016 album ''Matinee'', a collaboration between Courtney and Russian singer Marina Kapuro. Courtney is the first British composer to receive the award.

Discography

*''David Courtney's First Day'' (United Artists, 1974) *''Shooting Star'' (The White Room, 2005) *''Midsummer Madness'' (White Room, 2005) *''Here's One I Made Earlier'' (White Room, 2006) *''The Show Must Go On'' (Yellow & White, 2010) *''The Truth Behind the Music'' 'audiobiography' (Whiteroom, 2011)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Courtney, David 1950 births Living people British male singer-songwriters British record producers Musicians from Brighton