The Tommy Steele Story

My folks used to have an LP of Tommy Steele songs - I always remember him singing "Little White Bull" but that's about the height of it, so it was quite interesting to discover a little more about the man. He writes his own songs and gets a lucky break playing in a Soho coffee bar where his lively performances start to do decent business. His parents think he's irresponsible but he's determined, and when he's spotted by a talent agent then a record deal beckons. Comparisons were made to Elvis Presley which I'm not sure did either artist any favours. The film does illustrate nicely though the one thing that they did have in common - and that's charisma. Steele had a cheeky smile, a lively on-stage technique and the ability to engage with an audience as he churned out his cheery but simplistic rhymes. He plays himself in this short biopic and comes across as quite an enthusiastically agreeable young man with the world as his oyster. The tail end of the film features a mini-concert with the likes of Humphrey Lyttelton and Nancy Whiskey on stage to remind us, rather nostalgically, of the stuff we listened to in the 1950s. It's not a great piece of cinema, but it has an innocent sense of opportunity to it that I rather liked.

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