It was in the era of 1970s glam rock that Alvin Stardust, who has died aged 72, became a household name. Thanks to a dramatic appearance on Top of the Pops in 1973, his debut single My Coo Ca Choo climbed to No 2 in the British charts and blossomed into an international hit. The follow-up, Jealous Mind, went to No 1. During the 80s, Stardusts allure proved durable enough to take him back into the Top 10 with Pretend (1981), I Feel Like Buddy Holly (1984) and I Wont Run Away (1984).
Yet before he adopted the chartbusting persona of Alvin Stardust, who resembled a glittery 70s version of the 50s rocker Gene Vincent, he had already had a trial run at pop stardom as Shane Fenton, lead singer with Shane Fenton and the Fentones. The group scored a handful of minor hits at the start of the 60s, beginning with 1961s Im a Moody Guy. In 1962, they managed to crack the Top 20 with Cindys Birthday, and that year Fenton appeared in the Michael Winner-directed movie Play It Cool alongside Billy Fury and Helen Shapiro. However, the Fentones split up after a subsequent string of flops.
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