Errol Brown

Errol Ainsworth Glenstor Brown MBE (born Lester Errol Brown; 12 November 1943 – 6 May 2015) was a British-Jamaican singer and songwriter, best known as the frontman of the soul and funk band Hot Chocolate. In 2004, Brown received the Ivor Novello Award for his Outstanding Contribution to British Music.

Career

Hot Chocolate

His break in music came in 1969 when he recorded a version of John Lennon's "Give Peace a Chance" with a band called "Hot Chocolate Band". Unable to change the lyrics without Lennon's permission, he sent a copy to The Beatles' record label, Apple, and the song was released with Lennon's approval.

The Hot Chocolate albums were produced by Mickie Most and recorded at the Rak Records studio. Most of their songs were written by Brown and Hot Chocolate bassist Tony Wilson (before Wilson's departure in 1975), including "Love Is Life", "You Could Have Been a Lady", "Brother Louie", "Emma", and "You Sexy Thing". The band had at least one charting song on the UK singles chart every year from 1970 to 1984.

Solo

Brown left the group in 1985 to take a hiatus from music. He soon went on to have a solo career, achieving success in the clubs with the 1987 single...

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