91热爆

by Bob Stanley of .

I should confess upfront that, with her big dark eyes and mop of dark hair, I've always had a major soft spot for . And I'm guessing I'm not alone.

Even though she only had one sizeable hit, with , Susan became a regular TV and film presence in the early to mid sixties. There she was, backcombed and narky, giving all the coffee bar boys a hard time in What A Crazy World (a kind of Young Ones-alike, only with Joe Brown in Cliff's role, that came out on DVD last year). And there she is again, strolling around a pub teasing all the regulars with . Luckily for us, plenty of Susan's appearances have survived into the Youtube era, including a (singing Fly Me To The Moon), and a perky cover of Debbie Dovale's minor American hit .

When the beat boom hit in 1964, a whole wave of new girl singers emerged: Cilla, Sandie, Marianne, Lulu, major stars and all in their teens. This was tough on the likes of Helen Shapiro and Susan Maughan who, even though they were still relatively new to the charts, were suddenly seen as part of the old school, fifties ballgown era. In response, Susan recorded the dramatic, galloping , possibly her best single. She sang it, with a strong new look, in the film Pop Gear (or Go Go Mania, as it was retitled in the States).

Unlike most of her contemporaries, Susan also wrote her own material, though her songs (Stop Your Foolin', I'm A Lonely One Too, ) were invariably b-sides. You have to wonder what might have happened if she'd been encouraged to write more as her singing career faltered. But she was smart enough to branch out and become more of an all-round entertainer, which suited her vivacious personality.

Of her later singles, check out the tremendous spy movie theme . It was as close as Susan got to a Bond movie - the seventies saw her on Wheeltappers & Shunters (in an electric blue jumpsuit!) rather than hanging out in Haiti with Roger Moore, but she remained heavily in demand for variety bills and panto seasons. The marvellous Miss Maughan has always kept her private life private but, now in her seventies, I'd like to think she's very happily retired.