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| The Scottish singersongwriter Jim Diamond, who has died unexpectedly aged 64, guaranteed himself a niche in the annals of pop music with a trio of top five hits during the 1980s. The biggest of these was I Should Have Known Better, which topped the UK charts in 1984. But pop quiz buffs will also be familiar with I Won’t Let You Down, which Diamond recorded as a member of the trio PhD, and Hi Ho Silver, which gained priceless exposure as the theme tune for the ITV series Boon. | The Scottish singersongwriter Jim Diamond, who has died unexpectedly aged 64, guaranteed himself a niche in the annals of pop music with a trio of top five hits during the 1980s. The biggest of these was I Should Have Known Better, which topped the UK charts in 1984. But pop quiz buffs will also be familiar with I Won’t Let You Down, which Diamond recorded as a member of the trio PhD, and Hi Ho Silver, which gained priceless exposure as the theme tune for the ITV series Boon. |
| It was his work with PhD that first brought Diamond to general public attention. He formed the band with Tony Hymas and Simon Phillips, who had both played with Jeff Beck, and the first single from their 1981 debut album, PhD, was I Won’t Let You Down, a slick synth-pop confection with a memorably anthemic refrain that reached No 3 in the UK charts in 1982. A second album, Is It Safe? (1983), produced the single I Didn’t Know, which flopped in the UK but was successful across Europe. | It was his work with PhD that first brought Diamond to general public attention. He formed the band with Tony Hymas and Simon Phillips, who had both played with Jeff Beck, and the first single from their 1981 debut album, PhD, was I Won’t Let You Down, a slick synth-pop confection with a memorably anthemic refrain that reached No 3 in the UK charts in 1982. A second album, Is It Safe? (1983), produced the single I Didn’t Know, which flopped in the UK but was successful across Europe. |
| Then Diamond contracted hepatitis, which prevented him from touring and prompted PhD to split. In 1984 he was back in action as a solo artist, triumphing with the No 1 heartbreaker I Should Have Known Better, often remembered for its soaring “I-I-I-I-I” chorus. The single, which was from his album Double Crossed (released in 1985), earned him a nomination for an Ivor Novello award. | Then Diamond contracted hepatitis, which prevented him from touring and prompted PhD to split. In 1984 he was back in action as a solo artist, triumphing with the No 1 heartbreaker I Should Have Known Better, often remembered for its soaring “I-I-I-I-I” chorus. The single, which was from his album Double Crossed (released in 1985), earned him a nomination for an Ivor Novello award. |
| In the same year Diamond went to No 1 again with the celebrity ensemble The Crowd on You’ll Never Walk Alone, a charity record for families of the victims of the Bradford City stadium fire. In 1986 his second solo album, Desire For Freedom, delivered the No 5 hit Hi Ho Silver, a song commissioned for Boon, starring Michael Elphick, and featuring yet another of Diamond’s catchy choruses, this time set to a briskly pumping reggae beat. | |
| Diamond was born in Glasgow’s East End to Sarah (nee Harper), a seamstress, and Lawrence, a firefighter, who would habitually get up to sing at parties. Apart from his father, his earliest musical inspirations were soul music greats such as Ray Charles, Sam Cooke and Otis Redding. By the age of 14 he had joined his first band, The Method, and later he became lead singer of the Glasgow group Jade, touring the country playing club and college gigs. Then he embarked on a European tour with the band Gully Foyle (he had seen their advertisement for a lead singer in Glasgow’s Evening Times), which included some dates supporting Procol Harum. | Diamond was born in Glasgow’s East End to Sarah (nee Harper), a seamstress, and Lawrence, a firefighter, who would habitually get up to sing at parties. Apart from his father, his earliest musical inspirations were soul music greats such as Ray Charles, Sam Cooke and Otis Redding. By the age of 14 he had joined his first band, The Method, and later he became lead singer of the Glasgow group Jade, touring the country playing club and college gigs. Then he embarked on a European tour with the band Gully Foyle (he had seen their advertisement for a lead singer in Glasgow’s Evening Times), which included some dates supporting Procol Harum. |
| His next stop was a quintet called Bandit, who were signed by Arista Records. The lineup made only one album, Bandit (1976), which was swept away by the emergence of punk rock. But the record brought Diamond, who had written five of its songs in various styles, to wider attention and was enough to prompt the NME’s reviewer, Tony Stewart, to comment that he was “an inspired and remarkable vocalist who projects himself well, displaying not only a passion for the music but a staggering range, which he uses fully”. | His next stop was a quintet called Bandit, who were signed by Arista Records. The lineup made only one album, Bandit (1976), which was swept away by the emergence of punk rock. But the record brought Diamond, who had written five of its songs in various styles, to wider attention and was enough to prompt the NME’s reviewer, Tony Stewart, to comment that he was “an inspired and remarkable vocalist who projects himself well, displaying not only a passion for the music but a staggering range, which he uses fully”. |
| Bandit split up soon afterwards, but Diamond and Bandit’s guitarist, Danny McIntosh (now Kate Bush’s husband), also appeared on Alexis Korner’s album Just Easy, while all of Bandit played on Korner’s The Lost Album, which was recorded in 1977 but languished in obscurity until the tapes were rediscovered in 1990. Diamond recalled Korner as “a hard man to please, he knew his stuff, and when you pleased him it was a buzz for him. Alexis was the boss: he told you what to do.” | Bandit split up soon afterwards, but Diamond and Bandit’s guitarist, Danny McIntosh (now Kate Bush’s husband), also appeared on Alexis Korner’s album Just Easy, while all of Bandit played on Korner’s The Lost Album, which was recorded in 1977 but languished in obscurity until the tapes were rediscovered in 1990. Diamond recalled Korner as “a hard man to please, he knew his stuff, and when you pleased him it was a buzz for him. Alexis was the boss: he told you what to do.” |
| Word was spreading about Diamond and his powerfully expressive singing, and he was invited to fly to Los Angeles to form a band with the guitarist and David Bowie collaborator Earl Slick and the drummer Carmine Appice, who had been playing with Rod Stewart. The trio worked in the studio with the producer Eddie Kramer, who had collaborated with a who’s who of stars from Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones to Led Zeppelin and Bowie. Before the project could come to fruition, Diamond was in demand again, returning to England to form PhD and embarking on the series of hits that sealed his reputation. | Word was spreading about Diamond and his powerfully expressive singing, and he was invited to fly to Los Angeles to form a band with the guitarist and David Bowie collaborator Earl Slick and the drummer Carmine Appice, who had been playing with Rod Stewart. The trio worked in the studio with the producer Eddie Kramer, who had collaborated with a who’s who of stars from Jimi Hendrix and the Rolling Stones to Led Zeppelin and Bowie. Before the project could come to fruition, Diamond was in demand again, returning to England to form PhD and embarking on the series of hits that sealed his reputation. |
| Diamond’s career cooled after his intense burst of success in the early and mid-80s, although he participated in another charity chart-topper, Ferry Aid’s recording of Let It Be, in 1987. Recently he had worked on behalf of the Cash For Kids appeal in Scotland in cooperation with the Scottish billionaire philanthropist Sir Tom Hunter. | Diamond’s career cooled after his intense burst of success in the early and mid-80s, although he participated in another charity chart-topper, Ferry Aid’s recording of Let It Be, in 1987. Recently he had worked on behalf of the Cash For Kids appeal in Scotland in cooperation with the Scottish billionaire philanthropist Sir Tom Hunter. |
| In 1993 he released the album Jim Diamond, which reached No 16 on the UK charts, and went on tour performing acoustic versions of his catalogue of songs. In the late 90s he teamed up with the saxophonist Chris “Snake” Davis, renowned for his studio work with M People, George Michael, Paul McCartney and many more, and they performed as The Blue Shoes. With the Hammond organist Paul Birchall, they also worked on Diamond’s 2005 album Souled and Healed. In 2009 PhD reunited to record a new album, Three. | |
| In 2011 Diamond joined up with a group of Scottish musicians, including veterans from Wet Wet Wet and the Proclaimers, to record City of Soul, a collection of soul music cover versions to raise money for Cash for Kids. | In 2011 Diamond joined up with a group of Scottish musicians, including veterans from Wet Wet Wet and the Proclaimers, to record City of Soul, a collection of soul music cover versions to raise money for Cash for Kids. |
| He is survived by his wife, Chris (nee Bailey), their daughter, Sara, and son, Lawrence.Adam Sweeting | |
| Ewen MacAskill writes: Jim Diamond had an almost infinite capacity for laughter. Bump into him in the street and, after a huge hug, a stream of anecdotes would follow, often with him doubling up at his own jokes and those of others. | Ewen MacAskill writes: Jim Diamond had an almost infinite capacity for laughter. Bump into him in the street and, after a huge hug, a stream of anecdotes would follow, often with him doubling up at his own jokes and those of others. |
| Typical of him was a small incident when we were watching our teenage kids play football. His son, Lawrence, was in goal, the opposing centre-forward burst through, and Lawrence rugby-tackled him. It was not malicious, just a reflex action. The small crowd chuckled and even the referee managed a smile. But Jim actually collapsed with laughter, on the ground, tears running down his cheeks. | Typical of him was a small incident when we were watching our teenage kids play football. His son, Lawrence, was in goal, the opposing centre-forward burst through, and Lawrence rugby-tackled him. It was not malicious, just a reflex action. The small crowd chuckled and even the referee managed a smile. But Jim actually collapsed with laughter, on the ground, tears running down his cheeks. |
| There was a serious side to him, too. He was passionate not only about his music but about politics; he was instinctively leftwing, a reflection of his working-class upbringing in Glasgow. One of his songs, Sugarolly Mountains, is about heaps of waste where he used to sit and dream about being a rock’n’roll singer. | There was a serious side to him, too. He was passionate not only about his music but about politics; he was instinctively leftwing, a reflection of his working-class upbringing in Glasgow. One of his songs, Sugarolly Mountains, is about heaps of waste where he used to sit and dream about being a rock’n’roll singer. |
| He did a lot of work for charity, was generous to young musicians, and retained integrity throughout his life. After one of the biggest hits of his career, his management company wanted him to follow up with another album of pop songs. He stubbornly refused, opting instead for a less commercial album of Scottish folk songs. He had a stint as a radio disc jockey which he enjoyed, but walked away in a row over advertising. He was working on a new play when he died. | He did a lot of work for charity, was generous to young musicians, and retained integrity throughout his life. After one of the biggest hits of his career, his management company wanted him to follow up with another album of pop songs. He stubbornly refused, opting instead for a less commercial album of Scottish folk songs. He had a stint as a radio disc jockey which he enjoyed, but walked away in a row over advertising. He was working on a new play when he died. |
| Lawrence, a musician in his own right with the indie band Citizens!, wrote affectionately about his dad on Facebook, saying that anyone who met him “knew he wasn’t quite a normal parent or indeed a normal person”. | Lawrence, a musician in his own right with the indie band Citizens!, wrote affectionately about his dad on Facebook, saying that anyone who met him “knew he wasn’t quite a normal parent or indeed a normal person”. |
| I am glad, too, that he was not “normal”. | I am glad, too, that he was not “normal”. |
| • James Diamond, musician, born 28 September 1951; died 8 October 2015 | • James Diamond, musician, born 28 September 1951; died 8 October 2015 |