John Otway

John Otway born 2 October 1952 is an English singersongwriter who has built a cult audience through extensive touring Otway was born in Aylesbury Buckinghamshire From the age of nine all he ever wanted to be was a pop star Although his first single GypsyMisty Mountain was released in 1972 Otway gained wider recognition riding the wave of punk rock and his unique performance on The Old Grey Whistle Test His sixth single the halfspoken love song Really Free reached number 27 in the UK singles chart in 1977 It would be his greatest success for some time The song earned him a fivealbum deal with Polydor Records who viewed him as a punk rather than merely an eccentric His first album recorded with Wild Willy Barrett was produced by Pete Townshend but sold only fitfully The followup singles fared no better despite some imaginative promotion which included an offer for Otway to come to a buyers house and perform the 1979 single Frightened and Scared if their copy was one of only three copies from which the vocal had been omitted Otways and Barretts only other UK chart success came in July 1980 with DK 5080 a modest No 45 hit When Otway turned solo his audience remained loyal despite poor record sales In the mid1980s he often appeared on Vivian and Ki LongfellowStanshalls showboat the Old Profanity Showboat in Bristols Floating Harbour He also appeared as the musical guest in the final episode of the British sitcom The Young Ones Summer Holiday