Leo Sayer

With his sky-high tenor and knack for unerring pop hooks, Leo Sayer became a sensation in the ’70s. Born Gerard Sayer in Sussex, England, in 1948, he released his first album, Silverbird, in 1973. The single “The Show Must Go On” hit big in his homeland, but in the U.S. it was Three Dog Night’s 1974 cover of the tune that exploded on the charts. Sayer’s Elton John-ish brand of pop/rock was in tune with the times, and he connected on both sides of the Atlantic months later with “Long Tall Glasses,” thereafter maintaining a more consistent chart presence on the U.K. side. When the world went disco, Sayer was prepared; his club-ready single “You Make Me Feel Like Dancing” became an international smash, followed closely by the tender ballad “When I Need You.” His last huge international single came in 1980 with “More Than I Can Say,” but in 2006, Sayer made a surprise return to the top of the British charts in collaboration with EDM artist Meck with the dance tune “Thunder in My Heart Again.”