"If you wanted the world,
I'd surround it with a wall, I'd scrawl
These words with letters ten feet tall
To you, with love..."

Lulu – “To Sir With Love”

When most people consider the British Invasion, the first acts that pop into their mind are male-led powerhouses, like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Hollies… that sort of thing.  While generally uncredited, female artists like Dusty Springfield, Petula Clark and Cilla Black also paved the way for the Brits to come on over.  One such singer, Scottish lass by the name of Lulu, would stand apart from her contemporaries thanks to her soulful, yet energetic voice that would help to make songs like “To Sir With Love” and “The Man With A Golden Gun” big hits and even further, turn them into staples of the era.

Born in Scotland, Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie (phew!) started her singing career as a child and shortened her name to Lulu.  By the age of 14, she had a European hit with her fierce and soulful rendition of the Isley Brothers hit “Shout” in 1962.  Her extraordinarily mature voice helped her to continue to make hits in Europe throughout the decade, but it would be five years before she’d find her real breakthrough.

In 1967, she made her acting debut in To Sir, With Love starring Sidney Poitier.  The film’s self-titled theme song, performed by Lulu, became a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, going straight to number one in the United States.  The song remained at the top for five weeks, and showed the world the incredible voice that came out of little Lulu.  She used the success of “To Sir, With Love” as a vehicle to come over with her fellow Brits, appearing on The Tonight Show, and scoring another hit in 1968, “Best of Both Worlds.”  The lush ballad featured an orchestral-backing, written by future Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones.

After the success of “Best of Both Worlds,” Lulu moved in a decidedly pop direction, taking first prize at the Eurovision Song Contest with the bubblegum way-inducing song “Boom Bang-A-Bang.”  Changing once more, at the end of the 1960s, Lulu turned to the soulful inspiration of Aretha Franklin for her next hit, “Oh Me Oh My (I’m A Fool For You Baby),” produced by Franklin’s own producer, Jerry Wexler.  

Through the mid 70s, she scored modest disco hits in Europe, and made waves with her theme song for the 1974 James Bond flick, The Man with the Golden Gun.  In the same year, she also teamed with David Bowie, who produced a sax-heavy version of his song “The Man Who Sold the World.”  The song included Bowie playing the sax and singing backup, and became a tremendous success that would reach into the U.K. Top 5.

After taking a hiatus, she returned to the studio in 1979 to record Don’t Take Love For Granted for Rocket Records, Elton John’s music label.  The album found a hit in 1981 with “I Could Never Miss You (More Than I Do)," which broke in the U.S. Top 20 that year.  As the 80s progressed, Lulu’s career morphed from being a one trick pony singer to becoming an all around entertainer, taking her acting experiences into theatrical productions, including hits like Guys and Dolls and Song and Dance, as well as the BBC series, The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 ¾.  She also began to revisit previous hits, with a remake of “Shout.”  The 1990s saw the dance-inspired side of Lulu, as she lit up European music charts with club hits like “I’m Back for More.”  She even wrote “I Don’t Wanna Fight” for the legendary Tina Turner.  

Lulu continues to be active, singing and entertaining.  She performed alongside Elton John for a duet in his musical, Aida, as well as continuing on with her own musical career performing with the popular British boyband, Take That.  She also has appeared numerous times with the girls from Absolutely Fabulous, French and Saunders, both on their hit TV show and for 1997’s Comic Relief, in a send-up performance portraying The Spice Girls, The Sugar Lumps.  She was also awarded the Order of the British Empire honor for her services to her country as an entertainer.  It’s no doubt that Lulu will continue to find success in whatever she does, in any arena.