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Lonnie Donegan, UK's first pop superstar, dies
LONDON, England -- Britain's pop world has paid tribute to the country's first pop superstar, Lonnie Donegan, who has died at age 71. Donegan, the UK's original skiffle performer, has been widely praised as being the inspiration behind such stars as Mark Knopfler, Bill Wyman, Marc Bolan and Cliff Richard. Sir Paul McCartney has described him as "the man," while some of his last work was with Sir Elton John and Van Morrison. Donegan, who was christened James Anthony, died after collapsing midway through a UK tour. He had suffered from a series of heart attacks. He took the British music scene by storm in the 1950s with his distinctive, lively sound based loosely on American folk music. His first big hit, "Rock Island Line," achieved the then rare distinction of soaring up the U.S. hit parade and from then until the Beatles era he was rarely out of the charts. Hits included "Does Your Chewing Lose Its Flavour (on the Bedpost Overnight)," "My Old Man's A Dustman," "Cumberland Gap" and "Puttin' on the Style." Skiffle kingThe skiffle king was often overlooked during a career that also took in television, the musicals and film work, only belatedly receiving an MBE from Prince Charles in the late 1970s. "I had wondered for many years why I hadn't got an MBE because every other schmuck had one," he said. "And Prince Charles agreed. When he presented it, he said `Not before time, Lonnie, not before time'. And I said `You're damn right, mate' -- or words to that effect." Sir Cliff Richard told the BBC's "Five Live" on Monday: "I think what was so good about it was it was home-made music ... so for those of us who had ambition bubbling, it was a way to start." A spokeswoman for Donegan said: "Lonnie Donegan was a legend -- he changed the face of British popular music. "In a career that covered over 50 years, he inspired nearly every major musician alive today." Beatles influenceSir Paul McCartney once said: "When we were kids in Liverpool, the man who really started the craze for guitars was Lonnie Donegan. "He was the first person we had heard of from Britain to get to the coveted No. 1 in the charts and we studied his records avidly. We all bought guitars to be in a skiffle group. He was the man." Donegan made regular comebacks and in 1978 persuaded stars such as Elton John and Ringo Starr to join him on the "Puttin' on the Style" album, which featured reworkings of many of his old hits. He enjoyed a renaissance in 2000 when he teamed up with Van Morrison to record the album "Skiffle Sessions: Live In Belfast." Donegan said at the time: "I have now achieved my final ambition which was to have one last chart hit." Born in Glasgow, Donegan changed his name after black American guitarist Lonnie Johnson. He left school at the age of 14 and worked as a clerk in a stockbroker's office before joining the army at 18. Military service took him to Vienna where he met an American who introduced him to the country and western music that was to inspire him. Donegan had the key ingredients for pop stardom, including good looks -- which attracted crowds of screaming girls. His songs were easy to copy and raucous for the time. Donegan loved being on the road and was regularly performing to sell-out crowds until the end, despite faltering health. He had three heart operations, most recently in May this year, but within a few months he was back on tour. He married his third wife, Sharon, a former teenage fan, at 48, and became a father for the seventh time in 1990 when he was 59.
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