Hazel O'Connor Trivia Quiz

Answer: Will You

This record is on my personal list of top singles ever. The track "Will You" is in away split into two parts, the beginning has Hazel singing the song and the second part has a solo by the saxophonist Wesley Magoogan. It really does make your spine tingle. Wesley Magoogan was a group member of Hazel O'Connor's Megahype band. Wesley played on the albums "Breaking Glass", 1980, "Sons and Lovers", 1980, and Cover Plus, 1981. The next time Wesley Magoogan would be involved with the band was in 1993 with Hazel O'Connor's "To Be Freed tour". When Wesley left Hazel O'Connor's band in the 80's he joined the Beat or as the Americans called them 'The English Beat'. Later on in his career he had a stint for Billy Ocean and also recorded 4 albums for Joan Armatrading.

Wesley Magoogan's career ended with a freak accident when he lost his fingers in a circular saw. Although his fingers were sewn back on, he has only one hand that is fully functional. Don't take my word for this single, listen to it yourself and make up your own mind on this fantastic track.

Answer: Eighth Day

"Eighth Day" is the seventh track on the album "Breaking Glass". The single reached the 5th spot on the UK singles chart. Hazel O'Connor ran away from home when she was sixteen and traveled Europe, she then went on to Tokyo with a dance group and ended up in Beirut. She then made her way through West Africa and crossed the Sahara Desert. Hazel spent a little time with a three piece group before returning back home.

In 1980 Hazel O'Connor got the starring role of Kate in the movie "Breaking Glass", which also co-starred Phil Daniels; she also finished up writing and performing all the songs for the soundtrack. The album reached number 5 in the UK album chart and produced 3 top ten hits.

Answer: Cover Plus

Cover Plus was the third album by Hazel O'Connor. The album reached number 32 on the UK Albums Chart. The album contains a mixture of ballads and anthems. Tracks from the album include "Hanging Around", "So You're Born", "Animal Farm (We Will Be Happy?)" and "Men Of Good Fortune".

Answer: Smile

"Smile" was Hazel's 4th studio album. The album was produced by her friend and collaborator Martin Rushent, who had produced music for the UK bands The Stranglers, The Buzzcocks, Human League and a few others. Tracks from "Smile" include "Just Good Friends", "Don't Touch Me", "Today Could Be So Good" and "Bring It Home To Me".

Most people think of Hazel O'Connor as a "Punk Rocker", but by the end of the late 70's/early 80's punk had died down and was being replaced by the "New Wave" sound. While the sound is similar to punk, New Wave is more up market or refined, if you'd like to call it that. That's not knocking the punk sound in anyway. Punk rock will go down in the history books the same as any other fad of the day.

Answer: Chris Thompson

Chris Thompson was born in England, but was brought up in New Zealand. As a school boy Chris Thompson was in a band called the Paragons, later to be known as Dynasty. At the age of 26 Chris returned to England and a year later joined the UK band, Manfred Mann's Earth Band. Chris, a talented singer and guitarist, left the band in 1978 and formed the American rock band Night.

The Nights had two Top 40 hits in 1979 with, "Hot Summer Nights" (18) and "If You Remember Me" (17). Night disbanded in 1982 and Chris rejoined Manfred Mann's Earth Band.

The first solo album by Chris was in 1981 titled "Out Of The Night". Between 1983 and 2006, 8 other albums were released, the latest being "If You Remember Me". The talents of Chris Thompson have been used by other artists including Alan Parsons, Bonnie Tyler and Mike Oldfield, to name but a few.

Answer: True

Hazel O'Connor had a guest part in the series, as a singer. She also wrote and sang 2 songs for the series. The titles of the songs were "We Tried Boy (Didn't We?)" and "Today could be so good", released on Red Bus Records.

In 1986, Hazel also wrote, sang and co-produced the opening song for "Fighting Back", a 5 part mini series for BBC TV. Hazel also had the starring role in series, playing the part of a mum trying to bring up her children on her own.

Answer: To Be Freed

Hazel O'Connor's album "To Be Freed" was released in 1993. Other tracks from the album include, "Tell Me Why", "To Be Freed", "Driftwood" and "Those Eyes". One more album was released in 1993 called "Over The Moon...Live", a mixture of new and old songs performed live with a few tracks from her "To Be Freed" album.

Answer: Beyond The Breaking Glass

"Beyond the Breaking Glass" was released in 2000. The double CD has 18 tracks from the past to present (2000).

The life story of Hazel O'Connor can be seen in her musical stage show, "Beyond Breaking Glass", which had critical acclaim around the globe. Inspired by her friends and fellow musicians to tell her life story, the show was born.

A reviewer in "The Scotsman" said, "The show was the highlight of The Edinburgh Festival."

Answer: True

Members of the band are, Tony Dangerfield, Kev Lomas, Mark Roberts, Anthony Harty, Steve Tombs and Billy Davidson. The band joined Hazel O'Connor in 2004.

Answer: Smile

Hazel O'Connor is still touring extensively, playing music from the past to present. With a career spanning over 28 years and with 19 albums and 27 singles to her credit, there's something for everyone.

I hope you enjoyed this quiz. Thanks for playing.
LD.