INCLUDED IN THE DEAL ARE SOME OF SAYER’S BIGGEST HITS SUCH AS “YOU MAKE ME FEEL LIKE DANCING,” “THUNDER IN MY HEART,” “DREAMIN’,” AND “WHEN I NEED YOU”
NEW YORK, N.Y. (December 14, 2020) – Legendary singer and songwriter Leo Sayer is the latest icon to join the Primary Wave Music Publishing family. In a deal that was announced today, the leading independent publisher of iconic and legendary music will acquire a stake in the hit-maker’s music publishing catalog and master recordings. The acquisition includes some of the award winner’s biggest hits such as “Thunder In My Heart,” “Dreamin’” (a worldwide hit for Cliff Richard), “Long Tall Glasses,” “Orchard Road,” and his Top 5 hit, “Moonlighting.” The deal also includes Sayer’s Grammy-winning single, “You Make Me Feel Like Dancing.” Released in 1977, the song reached #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100, making it his first number-one single in the United States and went on to win a Grammy Award for “Best R&B Song” in 1978.
The agreement will also give Leo access to the publishing firm’s marketing team and publishing infrastructure, which includes digital strategy, licensing, synch opportunities and film & TV production.
“I am really thrilled to be in a new partnership with Primary Wave, especially in joining such an impressive roster of major artists, bands and music creators.,” says Sayer. He goes on, “At 72, my creative activities and ambitions remain undimmed, so I’m sure that together we’ll achieve and create even more success globally, not only with the music I’ve already made, but also with all the ideas still to come.”
Adam Lowenberg, Chief Marketing Office at Primary Wave Music Publishing, adds, “We are thrilled to begin this partnership with the incredibly talented and legendary songwriter Leo Sayer. Personally, I am a huge fan of his catalog, so much so I have covered his songs in my band many times. We couldn’t be more excited to have him join the Primary Wave family and look forward to a long partnership.”
Leo Sayer began his musical career as the leader of the London-based Terraplane Blues Band in the late 1960s. In 1970 he would meet David Courtney, ultimately forming a remarkable creative partnership. Sayer began recording some solo material written with David at Roger Daltrey’s (lead singer of The Who) studio and in 1973, he had his first hit with “The Show Must Go On” which went to number one in the U.K. The following year he released his first album, Silverbird, followed quickly by Just a Boy, which included two more British hit singles, “One Man Band” and “Long Tall Glasses (I Can Dance),” the latter breaking Sayer into the American Top Ten in early 1975. In 1976, he released Endless Flight, produced in the USA by Richard Perry. This album featured the number one singles “You Make Me Feel Like Dancing” and “When I Need You.” The record became his biggest hit in both the U.S. and the U.K., selling over a million copies in the States. Following this album, Sayer quickly became a fixture on the American Top 40. He began the 80s by releasing the number two hit “More Than I Can Say” and followed that in 1981 with the hit “Living in a Fantasy.” Touring through most of the 80s, he returned to the studio in 1989 to record Cool Touch. He would stay on the road through most of the 90s and, in 2005, while Leo was fulfilling a lifelong ambition to live in Australia, he received a request from DJ Meck to remix his 1977 classic “Thunder In My Heart.” The track became a monster dance hit all over the world and gave Leo his third official number one in the UK. Sayer moved to Australia in 2005, becoming a full citizen in 2008. His new home saw the release of new recordings including Don’t Wait Until Tomorrow in 2008. Over the years he has worked in Australian TV, film ads and radio, while also touring regularly back in Europe. Restless Years, a collection of new material, appeared in 2015, followed by a completely self-recorded album, Selfie, in 2019.