Engelbert Humperdinck

Biography

Arnold George Dorsey (born 2 May 1936), known professionally as Engelbert Humperdinck, is a British pop singer described by AllMusic as "one of the finest middle-of-the-road balladeers around". He achieved international prominence in 1967 with his recording of "Release Me".

Humperdinck started as a performer in the late 1950s under the name "Gerry Dorsey", but found success after 1965 when he partnered with manager Gordon Mills, who advised him to adopt the name of German composer Engelbert Humperdinck as a stage name. His recordings of the ballads "Release Me" and "The Last Waltz" topped the UK Singles Chart in 1967, selling more than a million copies each. Humperdinck scored further major hits in rapid succession, including "There Goes My Everything" (1967), "Am I That Easy to Forget" (1968), and "A Man Without Love" (1968). He attained a large following, with some of his most devoted fans calling themselves "Humperdinckers". Two of his singles were among the best-selling of the 1960s in the UK.

During the 1970s, Humperdinck had significant American chart successes with "After the Lovin'" (1976) and "This Moment in Time" (1979). He garnered a reputation as a concert performer and received renewed attention during the 1990s lounge revival with his recordings of "Lesbian Seagull" for the soundtrack of Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996) and a dance album (1998). The new millennium brought a range of musical projects, including the Grammy-nominated gospel album Always Hear the Harmony: The Gospel Sessions (2003) and the double album of duets Engelbert Calling (2014). Humperdinck represented the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Baku with the song "Love Will Set You Free", placing 25th out of 26. Humperdinck continues to record and tour, having sold more than 140 million records worldwide.

Dorsey was born in Madras, British India (now Chennai, India) in 1936, one of 10 children born to British Army NCO Mervyn Dorsey, who was of Irish descent, and his wife Olive who, according to the singer, was of German descent.His family moved to Leicester, England, when he was ten years old. He later showed an interest in music and began learning the saxophone. By the early 1950s, he was playing saxophone in nightclubs, but he is believed not to have begun singing until he was in his late teens. His impression of Jerry Lewis prompted friends to begin calling him "Gerry Dorsey", a name that he worked under for almost a decade. ...

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