Junior Giscombe

Norman Washington "Junior" Giscombe (born 6 June 1957) is an English singer often known as simply Junior who was one of the first British R&B artists to be successful in the United States. He is best known for his 1982 hit single, "Mama Used to Say".

Career Giscombe was born in Wandsworth, London, England, and was a backing vocalist with Linx between 1980 and 1982.

"In the early to mid 70s, Junior collaborated with classmates to establish a record label in Balham, South London. They released a record titled Nice and Slow, of which Junior later said it had reached number one in Australia".

"In 1978 or 1979, Get Up And Dance/Hot Up And Heated was recorded and later released in 1980. According to Junior, it reached number one in France as well as number one on the Billboard Breakout Chart".

When turning towards a solo career, he was first billed simply as Junior. He scored a No. 7 hit in the UK Singles Chart in 1982, with "Mama Used to Say Junior has claimed that the song was number one on US Cashbox." His follow-up single, "Too Late (Junior)" also made the top 20 in the UK.

"Junior's single Unison was released in 1983 and achieved some commercial success, particularly on the U.S. Dance Chart. While Junior has claimed that the song reached the number one position, official chart records indicate that it peaked at number 16.

Sometime (most likely) around 1984 and 1985, Giscombe recorded (and very possibly co-wrote) an unknown number of songs with Phil Lynott, the former leader, vocalist and bass player of hard rock band Thin Lizzy. Lynott died in January 1986 and the songs were never officially released. Most remain as demos, but one of the songs, "Lady Loves to Dance", was mastered and nearly released before being pulled by the record company. Some of the songs are available on YouTube, including "What's the Matter Baby" (Giscombe provides backing vocals) and "Time (and Again)" and the unreleased track of Breakdown (Giscombe shares vocals with Lynott).

After a period outside the charts, Giscombe made a brief return to the top 10 in 1987 when he sang duet with Kim Wilde on "Another Step (Closer to You)" which peaked at number 6 in the UK Singles Chart and, according to Giscombe, number 3 in the French Charts, as well as an unspecified chart position in Germany. In 2017, Giscombe appeared on Mike City's album The Feel Good Agenda, Vol. 1 on the song "Sang and Dance".

"Sweet Tender Love" is a song by Junior Giscombe that peaked at number 15 on the UK Heritage Chart. It was released in 2024.

Personal life Junior Giscombe was raised as the youngest of eight children.

He met his childhood sweetheart Nardia when he was 19 and she was 17 and remained together until her death. At the age of 24, Nardia was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and died of complications from the condition in 2008 aged 50. Junior and Nardia had two children. Their second child, Jenique, was also diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2008 (six months before her mother's death) and she died in May 2017. Giscombe dedicated his 2020 album "Everything Set" to his daughter's memory.

Giscombe is the uncle of British comedian Richard Blackwood, who sampled "Mama Used to Say" on his single "Mama – Who Da Man" in June 2000.

Discography Albums Studio albums Title Album detailsPeak chart positions UK US US R&B Label: London, Mercury Formats: CD, LP, MC——34Sophisticated Street Released: April 1988 Label: London Formats: CD, LP, MC——56Stand Strong Released: February 1991 Label: MCA Formats: CD, LP, MC———Renewal Released: November 1992 Label: MCA Formats: CD, LP, MC———Honesty Released: 1995 Label: Provocative Formats: CD, LP———Oceans Released: 2006 Label: M2M/High Quest Formats: CD———Prisoner of Hope Released: 31 October 2011 Label: Prisoner of Hope Formats: CD———"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Compilation albums Title Album detailsThe Best of Junior Released: 1995 Label: Mercury Formats: CDHis Very Best Released: 2000 Label: Time Music Formats: CDThe Best Of Junior (New Recordings Of His Greatest Hits And More) Released: 2002 Label: Mercury Formats: CD

Singles