Phil Cordell

Phil Cordell
Also known as Springwater, Dan the Banjo Man, Variation
Born (1947-07-17)July 17, 1947
Origin Enfield, London, United Kingdom
Died March 31, 2007(2007-03-31) (aged 59)
Genres Pop, new age, folk
Instruments keyboards, guitar, bass, drums
Years active 1963–2007
Labels Polydor, Rare Earth, MoWest

Phil Cordell (17 July 1947 – 31 March 2007) was a British musician who released a number of records in the late 1960s and 1970s under several names, most notably in the UK as Springwater and Dan the Banjo Man in Germany. He was a multi-instrumentalist and usually played all the instruments on his recordings.

Background

After leaving school in 1963, Phil Cordell joined North London band Steve Douglas and the Challengers as a guitarist. The band soon morphed into The Prophets, but saw no mainstream success.[1] Following this, Cordell formed a band called Tuesday's Children, and following a few single releases he left in 1967 to go solo.[2] His first single, "Pumping the Water" was released in 1969 (although is sometimes credited under its B-side "Red Lady"). On this he was the sole instrumentalist, playing all the instruments himself as well as doing the vocals. Much of his subsequent work would be without vocals.

In 1971, under the name Springwater he released the single "I Will Return" which gave him his first hit, reaching No. 5 in the UK, No. 1 in Switzerland and top three in Germany and the Netherlands.[3][4][5] Under this name he released three more singles as well as his debut album Springwater in 1972, none of these could repeat the success however.[6]

In 1973 (after a one-off single under the name Variation)[7] he reverted to performing under his own name and released a single "Close to You" on Motown spin-off label MoWest Records. Concurrent to this he released another single "Dan the Banjo Man" on another Motown spin-off Rare Earth Records. This single was released under the moniker Dan the Banjo Man and although failed to chart in the UK, became a number one hit in Germany.[8] During 1974 and 1975 he released a number of other singles under both his own name and Dan the Banjo Man, releasing an album under the latter.[9][10] Around this time he also assisted with production on the Tucky Buzzard album Allright on the Night.

In 1977, under his own name he released another album Born Again, but this would prove to be his last.[11] After a few more singles in the late 1970s he once again performed under the name Springwater, releasing two singles in 1980. None of these found success however.

Cordell carried on performing and in 2005 recorded a number of new tracks for a CD release of the Dan the Banjo Man album, including a remake of the title track with his son Charlie. Cordell died on 31 March 2007, leaving behind three children.[1]

Discography

Singles
Albums

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Phil Cordell obituary, 2007
  2. ↑ Czar - Tuesday's Children
  3. ↑ Official UK charts - Springwater
  4. ↑ Swiss charts - Number One hits, 1972
  5. ↑ Swiss charts - Springwater
  6. ↑ Discogs - Springwater discography
  7. ↑ 45cat - Variation, Press release
  8. ↑ German charts - Number one hits, 1974
  9. ↑ Dan the Banjo Man - Discogs
  10. ↑ 45cat - Phil Cordell
  11. ↑ Discogs - Phil Cordell
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