Evelyn Thomas has died aged 70, confirmed producer Ian Levine, who first worked with her in 1975. Together they made history for creating ‘High Energy’, a pioneering production of the electronic dance music style known as hi-NRG, which has since had such an influence on artists such as Madonna and Dua Lipa.
‘High Energy’, which sounded like Robyn and Róisín Murphy when it was released in 1984, was a hit in clubs across Europe, reaching number one as far away as Spain, as well as in West Germany, where it topped the singles chart for four weeks. ‘High Energy’ also reached number five in the UK Singles Chart and number one in the US Dance Chart. In total, sales are estimated at around 7 million copies.
Thomas rose to prominence in 1976 singing soul on her first commercial hit, ‘Weak Spot’ and ‘Doomsday’. Levine says that Thomas’ career took off at the same time as that of another unknown African-American singer from Chicago, LJ Johnson: both scored their first hits in the same week and performed for the first time on the same episode of Top of the Pops. According to Levine, the industry was “bewildered” by this coincidence. Later, thanks to hits like ‘Masquerade’ and ‘Heartless’, Thomas would become the disco diva we know today, especially thanks to the unforgettable ‘High Energy’.
