b. John Lewis, 14 March 1947, Southampton, Hampshire, England. A former session pianist and member of pub-rock band Brett Marvin And The Thunderbolts (and their alter ego Terry Dactyl And The Dinosaurs, who enjoyed a UK number 2 hit in 1972 with "Seaside Shuffle"), Lewie was one of several unconventional artists signed to the Stiff Records label at the end of the 70s. His Stiff debut On The Other Hand There's A Fist (1980) maintained the quirky approach of earlier acts, but despite an appearance on the highly publicized Be Stiff tour, the artist remained largely unknown until 1980 when the jaunty synthpop single "You'll Always Find Me In The Kitchen At Parties" broached the UK Top 20. The follow-up "Big Shot - Momentarily" was a failure but Lewie's next single, "Stop The Cavalry", reached number 3 later that year when its nostalgic brass arrangement and the line "wish I was at home for Christmas" proved popular in the Christmas market. However, a subsequent album, Heart Skips Beat, was unable to consolidate this success. Lewie enjoyed a minor European hit with "Louise (We Get It Right)" but failed to trouble the UK charts again. "Stop The Cavalry" continues to be an annual favourite during the Christmas season, thanks to its inclusion on compilation albums, and has enabled its composer to enjoy a relatively prosperous life.

Listen to Jona Lewie at Finetune.

• Frankie Goes to Hollywood
• Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
• New Order
• Human League
• Cascada
• Depeche Mode
• Gary Numan
• Soft Cell
• Bananarama
• Tears for Fears
• Erasure
• Men Without Hats
• Level 42
• Alison Moyet
• Alphaville
• Talk Talk
• Visage
• Yaz
• ABC
• Pet Shop Boys

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