Mick Hucknall

British musician, lead singer and songwriter, with the soul-pop group "Simply Red." Hucknall was a pop star for the people and has been described as "the most proficient white funk-soul vocalist in the world." His career spans two decades. Mick "Red" Hucknall was born Michael James Hucknall. His mother left when he was only three, and his father, a barber, raised him. It wasn’t until a picture of his mother was printed in a newspaper that he saw her face, and she promptly announced that she wanted to meet her millionaire son. He denied the request, stating, "I delved deep into my soul. But I had such a happy childhood, and I had to think who was there for me when it counted." In 1984 he formed Simply Red, and Elektra Records signed them. "Picture Book" was released in October 1985, and "Holding Back the Years," a Hucknall original, topped the U.S. charts, causing the album to go platinum. Their third album, "A New Flame," February 1989, went gold, and "If You Don’t Know Me By Now" hit number one. Their fourth album, "Stars," 1991, was the best-selling album in the U.K. although it didn’t receive the same acclaim in the U.S. Familiar with fame and conscious of its frailty, he changed with the times, and according to some, mellowed. Not one to display false modesty, the formerly dreadlocked Hucknall feels he belongs in the category of legendary British solo singers, such as George Michael and Tom Jones. Now a multimillionaire, the man described as an "authentic working-class hero," owns homes around the world, says he’s a "man of conscience" and toys with the idea of entering politics. He has been linked to various women, from Steffi Graf to Brigitte Nielsen. Link to Wikipedia biography