Donovan

Donovan (born Donovan Philips Leitch; 10 May 1946) is a Scottish singer, songwriter and guitarist. He developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music (notably calypso). He has lived in Scotland, London and California, and, since at least 2008, in County Cork, Ireland, with his family.[1] Emerging from the British folk scene, Donovan reached fame in the United Kingdom in early 1965 with live performances on the pop TV series, Ready Steady Go!. Having signed with Pye Records in 1965, he recorded singles and two albums in the folk vein, after which he signed to CBS/Epic Records in the US - the first signing by the company's new vice-president Clive Davis - and became more successful internationally. He began a long and successful collaboration with leading British independent record producer Mickie Most, scoring multiple hit singles and albums in the UK, US, and other countries.[2][3][4] His most successful singles were the early UK hits "Catch the Wind", "Colours" and "Universal Soldier" in 1965. "Sunshine Superman" topped America's Billboard Hot 100 chart and went to number two in Britain, followed by "Mellow Yellow" at US #2 the following year, and then 1968's "Hurdy Gurdy Man" in the Top 5 in both countries. He became a friend of pop musicians including Joan Baez, Brian Jones and The Beatles. He taught John Lennon a finger-picking guitar style in 1968.[5] Donovan's commercial fortunes waned after parting with Most in 1969, and he left the industry for a time. Donovan continued to perform and record sporadically in the 1970s and 1980s. His musical style and hippie image were scorned by critics, especially after punk rock. His performing and recording became sporadic until a revival in the 1990s with the emergence of Britain's rave scene. He recorded the 1996 album Sutras with producer Rick Rubin and in 2004 made a new album, Beat Cafe. Donovan was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2014. Contents [hide] 1 Early life 2 Music career 2.1 1964–65: Rise to fame 2.1.1 Donovan and Dylan 2.1.2 Collaboration with Mickie Most 2.1.3 Sunshine Superman 2.1.4 Mellow Yellow 2.1.5 Arrest 2.2 1967–69: International success 2.3 1970s: Changes 2.4 Open Road band 2.5 Reunions with Linda Lawrence and Mickie Most 2.6 1980s: occasional appearances 2.7 1990s: a retrospective decade 2.8 2000s 3 Family 4 Discography 5 Filmography 5.1 Actor 5.2 As himself 5.3 Musical composer 5.4 Music and documentary DVD 6 Literary works 7 See also 8 References 9 External links Early life[edit] Donovan was born 10 May 1946, in Maryhill, Glasgow,[6][7] to Donald and Winifred (née Philips) Leitch. His father was Protestant and his mother was Catholic.[8] He contracted polio as a child. The disease and treatment left him with a limp.[9] In 1956, his family moved to Little Berkhamsted near Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England. Influenced by his family's love of folk music, he began playing guitar at 14. He enrolled in art school but soon dropped out, to live out his beatnik aspirations by going on the road.[