Tony Christie
| Tony Christie | |
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Tony Christie performing at the Appen musiziert 2015 benefit concert in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Anthony Fitzgerald |
| Born |
25 April 1943 Conisbrough, Yorkshire, England |
| Genres | Pop, rock, schlager |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, actor, musician |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Associated acts | Peter Kay, Laruso, Richard Hawley |
| Website | TonyChristie.com |
Tony Christie (born Anthony Fitzgerald, 25 April 1943) is an English musician, singer and actor. He is best known for his recording of "Is This the Way to Amarillo", a double UK chart success. He lived for many years in Sheffield, where his wife, Sue, was born. He used to be a frequent artist on the stage at many working men's clubs like his contemporary, Joe Cocker.
Discovered and managed by Harvey Lisberg, he had three hits in 1971, beginning with "Las Vegas" which reached number 21 in the UK, and went on to have two Top Twenty hits in the UK Singles Chart with "I Did What I Did for Maria", which reached number two, and "Is This the Way to Amarillo", which peaked at number 18, all in 1971. Subsequently he had a minor hit with "Avenues and Alleyways" which reached number 37, and was the theme to the television series The Protectors. In addition he also charted with 'Drive Safely Darlin' in early 1976 which was recorded on the MCA label and reached 35 in the UK chart. "Is This the Way to Amarillo" had sold more than one million copies by September 1972, and was awarded a gold disc. His early songs were dramatic big-voiced numbers, many of which were written by Mitch Murray and Peter Callander.
He recorded albums regularly throughout the 1970s and made infrequent appearances on the charts. His album With Loving Feeling sold well boosted by the hit single "Is This The Way to Amarillo". He recorded an album in the United States in 1973 with the record producer Snuff Garrett, which did little to stop his commercial slide. A live album followed which sold relatively better. But by the mid-1970s recorded work became rarer and stage work took preference.
In June 1972, he was invited on the music festival, The Golden Orpheus, then in communist Bulgaria. The concert was recorded and published on vinyl by the government musical company Balkanton. He played the role of Magaldi on the original 1976 album recording of the musical Evita, and sought to represent the UK in the 1976 Eurovision Song Contest, with the song "The Queen of the Mardi Gras" but came third in the contest to select an entrant, behind eventual contest winners Brotherhood of Man.
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