# Junior Giscombe

Norman Washington "Junior" Giscombe (born 6 June 1957) is an English singer-songwriter often known as Junior who was one of the first British R&B artists to be successful in the United States. He is best known for his 1982 hit single, "Mama Used to Say".

## Career

Giscombe was born in Wandsworth, London, England, and was a backing vocalist with Linx between 1980 and 1982.
"In the early to mid 70s, Junior collaborated with classmates to establish a record label in Balham, South London. They released a record titled Nice and Slow, which Junior later said it had reached number one in Australia."
"In 1978 or 1979, Get Up And Dance/Hot Up And Heated was recorded and later released in 1980. According to Junior, it reached number one in France as well as number one on the Billboard Breakout Chart."
When turning towards a solo career, he was first billed simply as Junior. He scored a No. 7 hit in the UK Singles Chart in 1982, with "Mama Used to Say Junior has claimed that the song was number one on US Cashbox." His follow-up single, "Too Late" also made the top 20 in the UK. "Mama Used to Say" was also a top 40 Pop and top 5 R&B hit in the United States, earning him a "Best Newcomer" award from Billboard magazine.
"Junior's single Unison was released in 1983 and achieved some commercial success, particularly on the U.S. Dance Charts. While Junior has claimed that the song reached the number one position, official chart records indicate that it peaked at number 16.
Sometime (most likely) around 1984 and 1985, Giscombe recorded (and very possibly co-wrote) an unknown number of songs with Phil Lynott, the former leader, vocalist and bass player of hard rock band Thin Lizzy. Lynott died in January 1986 and the songs were never officially released. Most remain as demos, but one of the songs, "Lady Loves to Dance", was mastered and nearly released before being pulled by the record company. Some of the songs are available on YouTube, including "What's the Matter Baby" (Giscombe provides backing vocals) and "Time (and Again)" and the unreleased track of Breakdown (Giscombe shares vocals with Lynott).
After a period outside the charts, Giscombe made a brief return to the top 10 in 1987 when he sang duet with Kim Wilde on "Another Step (Closer to You)" which peaked at number 6 in the UK Singles Chart and, according to Giscombe, number 3 in the French Charts, as well as an unspecified chart position in Germany. Junior became involved with the formation of Red Wedge in 1986 with Billy Bragg, Jimmy Somerville and Paul Weller, and had been a part of the Council Collective with The Style Council, Jimmy Ruffin and others for the 1984 fundraising single, "Soul Deep". In 1992, Junior appeared on stage at the 1992 Labour rally in Sheffield singing Curtis Mayfield's "Move On Up". Later, Giscombe became better known as a songwriter for artists such as Sheena Easton.
In 2008 Junior Giscombe sang "A Change Is Gonna Come" which was originally sung by Sam Cooke and Junior gave a performance with the Virtual Jazz Band which was later released presumably using the same vocals in 2011.
On 15 April 2010, Giscombe performed his classic hit "Mama Used to Say" with the Virtual Jazz Band at London's Jazz Cafe.
In 2014, Giscombe formed "The British Collective" with fellow British artists Don-E, Noel McKoy and Omar. In 2017, Giscombe appeared on Mike City's album The Feel Good Agenda, Vol. 1 on the song "Sang and Dance".
Sweet Tender Love is a song by Junior Giscombe that peaked at #15 on the UK Heritage Chart. It was released in 2024.

## Personal life

Junior Giscombe was raised as the youngest of eight children.
He met his childhood sweetheart Nardia when he was 19 and she was 17 and remained together until her death. At the age of 24, Nardia was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and died of complications from the condition in 2008 aged 50. Junior and Nardia had two children. Their second child, Jenique, was also diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2008 (six months before her mother's death) and she died in May 2017. Giscombe dedicated his 2020 album "Everyting Set" to his daughter's memory.
Giscombe is the uncle of British comedian Richard Blackwood, who sampled "Mama Used to Say" on his single "Mama – Who Da Man" in June 2000.

## Discography
### Albums

| Year | Album | Label | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions |
| Year | Album | Label | US | US R&B | UK |
| 1982 | Ji | Mercury Records | 71 | 15 | 28 |
| 1983 | Inside Lookin' Out | Mercury Records | 177 | 54 | — |
| 1985 | Acquired Taste | London Records | — | 34 | — |
| 1988 | Sophisticated Street | London Records | — | 56 | — |
| 1990 | Stand Strong | MCA Records | — | — | — |
| 1992 | Renewal | MCA Records | — | — | — |
| 1995 | Honesty | Provocative Records | — | — | — |
| 2005 | Oceans | (N/A) | — | — | — |
| 2011 | Prisoner of Hope | (N/A) | — | — | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. ||||||

### Singles

| Year | Song | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Certifications |
| Year | Song | US | US R&B | US Dance | UK | US Cashbox | FR | AUS | Certifications |
| Early or Mid 70s | "Nice And Slow | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | |
| 1980 | "Get Up And Dance/Hot Up And Heated" (as Norman Giscombe Jr) | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | — | |
| 1981 | "Mama Used to Say" | 30 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 56 | — | BPI: Silver |
| 1982 | "Too Late" | — | 8 | 67 | 20 | — | — | — | |
| 1982 | "I Can't Help It" | — | — | — | 53 | — | — | — | |
| 1982 | "Let Me Know" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1983 | "Communication Breakdown" | — | 40 | — | 57 | — | — | — | |
| 1983 | "Runnin'" | — | — | — | 92 | — | — | — | |
| 1983 | "Baby I Want You Back" | — | 72 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1983 | "Unison (song)" | — | 44 | 16 | — | — | — | — | |
| 1984 | "Somebody" | — | 47 | 28 | 64 | — | — | — | |
| 1985 | "Do You Really (Want My Love)" | — | — | — | 47 | — | — | — | |
| 1985 | "Not Tonight" (1985 reissue) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1985 | "Oh Louise" | — | — | — | 74 | — | — | — | |
| 1986 | "Come on Over" | — | — | — | 87 | — | — | — | |
| 1986 | "Not Tonight" | — | 74 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1986 | "Oh Louise" (1986 reissue) | — | 14 | — | 83 | — | — | — | |
| 1987 | "Yes (If You Want Me)" | — | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1987 | "Another Step (Closer to You)" (with Kim Wilde) | — | — | — | 6 | — | 3 | — | |
| 1988 | "High Life" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1988 | "Say That You Care" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1990 | "Step Off" | — | — | — | 63 | — | — | — | |
| 1991 | "Morning Will Come" | — | — | — | 81 | — | — | — | |
| 1991 | "Better Part of Me" | — | 51 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1992 | "Then Came You" | — | — | — | 32 | — | — | — | |
| 1992 | "All Over the World" | — | — | — | 74 | — | — | — | |
| 1993 | "Lysander's Theme" (with Ruby Turner) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1995 | "I Like It" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 2005 | "Oceans" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 2011 | "Mama Used to Say" (2011 Version) (with Mumzy Stranger) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 2011 | "Prisoner of Hope" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 2021 | "Can You Feel It" (with Sinitta and Kym Mazelle) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 2024 | "Sweet Tender Love" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. |||||||