Phillip Leo

Philip Ernest Pottinger (born 29 April 1967), known professionally as Phillip Leo, is a British reggae singer, songwriter and producer. He is the last of five children from South London who were born to Jamaican parents.

Phillip Leo
Background information
Birth namePhilip Ernest Pottinger
Born (1967-04-29) 29 April 1967
Greenwich, London, UK
OriginPeckham, South London
GenresReggae, soul, R&B, reggae fusion
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter, record producer
Instrument(s)Vocals, keyboards, guitar
Years active1988–present
LabelsFashion, Finestyle, Breakin' Loose, Sharma Productions, EMI, Big Lion Productions
Websitewww.biglionproductions.com

Biography

Born in Greenwich, he played in the Sir Roger Manwood's School's steel band, and learned drums and keyboard.[1] In February 1988 Phillip Leo signed with UK label Fashion Records as a singer/songwriter. By September of that year he had reached No. 6 in the UK Reggae Charts with his first single, "Rocking the Night Away"/"Food of Love".

Leo went on to establish himself as songwriter/producer, with a string of reggae hits by other Fashion acts, including the no. 1 hit single "Two Timing Lover" by Janet Lee Davis,[2] "Crazy Feeling" by Peter Spence, "Lets Show the World" by Nerious Joseph,[1] and producing the lovers duo Zuruchi's first single "Celebrate Our Love", winning Reggae Songwriter of the Year two consecutive years in row in 1989 and 1990. Leo also did sessions on drum programming, keyboards and backing vocals on a string of recordings by artists like Barry Boom, Nerious Joseph, and Cutty Ranks, and also producing two songs for the Sandra Cross album Foundation Of Love.

As an artist in his own right, Leo reached no. 2 with "I Wanna be Loved by You". He then produced the hit singles "Why do Fools Fall in Love", "Good Thing Going",[3] and "Young, Gifted & Black", which were duets with DJ CJ Lewis.[1] His debut album in January 1990, entitled Lover of Music, which included nine of his own original compositions, reached no. 3 in the Reggae Album Chart and featured top ten reggae singles "I'm Missing You", "We Belong Together" (duet with Marie Dawn) and debut single "Rocking The Night Away".

Leo began a writing partnership with bassist/songwriter Steve Bingham and together they wrote over 170 songs. This led to them forming the Breakin’ Loose record label. The first single entitled "Hypnotic Love",[4] which included four entirely different mixes of the song featuring DJ CJ Lewis,[5] and spent seven weeks at no. 1 in the UK Reggae Charts in 1993.[3][6] "Hypnotic Love" remained in the chart for six months. This was followed by the single "Today", which had the same format of four mixes and was also the title track of his second album.[7] "Today" reached no. 5 in the UK Reggae Chart and showcased the different genres Leo had expanded into, side A featured songs in the Soul/R & B genre while side B stayed within the reggae/lovers rock genres which Leo was known for.

After a string of releases, Leo was approached by EMI Records. He then signed as a recording artist. This led to two top 75 UK Singles Chart positions with "Second Chance" (no. 57) and "Thinking About Your Love" (no. 64) which featured the DJ Top Cat on the street versions.[8] Whilst he was with EMI Records, Leo produced CJ Lewis’ album, Dollars, recorded for MCA Records, from which he had a no. 3 with "Sweet's for My Sweets", and another two consecutive releases which reached the UK top twenty in the UK Singles Chart.[9] The album went on to sell over 500,000 copies worldwide. Lewis's second album, Rough & Smooth, again produced by Leo, went platinum in Japan, and had a no.1 single taken from it called "R to the A" in France and sold over 1,000,000 copies worldwide. Leo then got his own record company Sharma Productions back on the road. His next release his third album entitled Just 4 U. The first single from the album, "Angel Heart"/"I Wanna be the One", sparked a lot of interest especially in Japan. This led to being asked to appear alongside other British and Jamaican reggae acts on Japansplash, a yearly event which takes place in different towns across Japan over the course of six weeks.

In 1997, a limited release of Phillip Leo's fifth album Down 2 Earth was circulated, from which the top ten reggae single "Summer Girl" featuring Glamma Kid was taken. Leo also embarked on more music production and remixing for other artists including Louchie Lou & Michie One, Carroll Thompson, Jack Radics, Japanese DJ Nahki, Judy Cheeks, Sean Mcguire, Musical Youth, Charlene Smith, Awesome, and Rick Clarke.

In May 2017, Leo's seventh album, Faithfully was released; the first single off the album was "Feel So Good" and the second was "Your Life". Space Dub 2 is a follow-up to Space Dub originally released in 1996. Just 4 U, Down 2 Earth and Space Dub have been reissued and remastered for digital download.

Discography

Albums

Year Album Record Label
1989 Lover of Music Finestyle
1991 Today Breakin' Loose
1996 Just 4 U Sharma Productions
1996 Space Dub
1997 Love vs. Pain (Germany) G.I.B. Music
1997 Down 2 Earth Sharma Productions
2017 Faithfully Big Lion Productions
2017 Space Dub 2
2017 Just 4 U (digitally remastered)
2017 Down 2 Earth (digitally remastered)
2017 Space Dub (digitally remastered)
2018 The Universe
2018 Space Dub 3
2019 New Horizon
2020 Rolling River
2021 The Best of Phillip Leo

Singles and EPs

Year Single Record Label
1989 "Rocking the Night Away" / "Food of Love" Finestyle
1989 "I Wanna Be Loved By You"
1989 "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (with C.J. Lewis) Fashion Records
1989 "Good Thing Going" / "Stop Fooling Around" (with C.J. Lewis)
1989 "I'm Missing You" / "Come On and Dance" Finestyle
1989 "Run You Could a Run" Fashion Records
1990 "One Night" / "We Belong Together" (with Marie Dawn) Finestyle
1990 "One Life to Live" Gussie P Records
1991 "Girl of My Dreams" / "One Life to Live" Finestyle
1990 "Young Gifted & Black" (with C.J. Lewis) Fashion Records
1991 "Mission Impossible" (with C.J. Lewis and Nerious Joseph)
1991 "Hypnotic Love" (4 mixes) Breakin' Loose
1992 "Today" (4 mixes)
1992 "All Our Fathers Children" (featuring General Levy) Fashion Records
1992 "Let Your Love Run Wild" (featuring C.J. Lewis) Breakin' Loose
1993 "The Vibe Is Right" / "Remote Control" Sharma Productions
1993 "So Alive" (with C.J. Lewis)
1994 "Second Chance" EMI Records
1995 "Thinking About Your Love" (mixes featuring Top Cat)
1996 "Angel Heart" / "I Wanna Be the One" Sharma Productions
1996 "Let Me Hold You" / "I Thank You"
1996 "No Temporary Love" Pacific Sound Records
1997 "Summer Girl" (featuring Glamma Kid) Sharma Productions
1998 "Sexafect"
2017 Your Life (EP) Big Lion Productions
2023 Happy New Year (Auld Lang Syne) with Paul Phillips
2023 2 Sides of the Story (EP)

[1]

Remix releases

Year Release Record Label
2017 Feel So Good (Remixes) Big Lion Productions
2017 On My Own (The Remixes)
2017 The Creators Children (The Remixes)
2017 I Believe in Your Love (The Remixes)
2017 Mellow Soul Moods (The Soul Remixes)
2017 Dancehall Moods (The Dancehall Remixes)
2017 Dance Moods (The Dance Remixes)
2018 The Gift (Remixes)
2018 Hold On (Remixes)
2018 Love Your Life (Remixes)
2018 Don't Judge Me (Remixes)
2018 Escape (Remixes)
2018 A Heart That's Pure (Remixes)
2018 Dancehall Moods Volume 2 (The Dancehall Remixes)
2018 Dance Moods Volume 2 (The Dance Remixes)
2018 Mellow Soul Moods Volume 2 (The Soul Remixes)
2019 Together We'll Abide (Remixes)
2019 Times Will Change (Remixes)
2019 The Border (Remixes)
2019 The Future (Remixes)
2019 Peaceful Party (Remixes)
2019 Violation (Remixes)
2020 Let Love Be Your Guide (Remixes)
2020 Love Grows (Remixes)
2020 Never Lose That Feeling (Remixes)
2020 The Sun Will Shine (Remixes)
2020 Heavens Beauty (Remixes)
2020 A Losing Game (Remixes)
2020 Dancehall Moods Volume 3 (The Dancehall Remixes)
2020 Dance Moods Volume 3 (The Dance Remixes)
2020 Mellow Soul Moods Volume 3 (The Soul Remixes)

References

  1. "Phillip Leo Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  2. Larkin, Colin (2006) "Janet Lee Davis" in The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, OUP USA, ISBN 978-0195313734, K-M, p. 143
  3. Larkin, Colin (2000) The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Music, Virgin Books, ISBN 0-7535-0427-8, p. 232
  4. "The Top 100 Singles Of 1991". zobbel.de. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  5. "Phillip Leo feat. C.J. Lewis: Breakin' Loose BLPTO 14 Hypnotic Love (mixes)", Blues & Soul, Issue 595, 1991, p. 11
  6. "The Top 50 Singles Acts Of 1991". zobbel.de. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  7. "Phillip Leo Today", The Beat, vol. 12, p. 15
  8. "Phillip Leo", Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 October 2017
  9. "C J Lewis", Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 October 2017
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