Peter Taylor: Singer, actor and musician
1948-2014
PETER Taylor, who has died in Britain at the age of 66, was a supremely talented entertainer — musician, singer, actor, comedian — who appeared in many of the biggest hits in South Africa for more than 30 years.
In the ’70s he came to South Africa from England, where he had performed with bands and been on radio and television.
He was a larger-than-life figure, charming, vibrant, talented, entertaining and very funny on stage.
He had one of the best voices South Africa had heard. His onstage persona was thrillingly dynamic. He could read an audience in seconds, charm them, turn them on, hold them in the palm of his hand, do anything he liked with them. Within seconds he knew what would work with them and what would not.
He was married for 10 years to cabaret artist and director BarbaraAnne Puren, who employed him for another five years after their divorce. She wrote shows for him, which they put on at several Johannesburg theatres she owned or managed, including The Stage Door and The Mixer in Melville and The Blueberry Hill in Honeydew.
Their biggest hits included Feelin’ Groovy, Stage Fright and Men are from Bars and Women are Teasers .
Feelin’ Groovy, which started in the mid-’90s and ran through to 1999, was the most famous of them. Taylor starred as Wolfman Jack, based on a real-life DJ who was anti-establishment and spoke out where others did not dare to, a character very close to Taylor’s heart.
Men are from Bars and Women are Teasers was the biggest money spinner. Starring Puren and Taylor, it ran for five years. Puren wrote most of her shows around him as the star.
Among many other hits in which he starred were The Piano Man and The Rocky Horror Show.
Taylor struggled to learn a script and so in shows written around him he was generally given the freedom to be who he was. Mostly he adlibbed, which was frustrating for other cast members but brilliant for the audience.
He met Puren when they were cast in the rock opera Shock Rock at the Thunderdome in Johannesburg in 1989, he as Jack the Ripper and she as Little Goodie Two-Shoes. It did not last very long, but long enough for them to fall in love and get married.
Taylor came to South Africa in 1974 with the band Copperfield, known for their hit singles Pilot of the Airwaves and Rock ’n’ Roll Singer. He was meant to be here for six months but loved the country and stayed.
Much as Taylor loved theatre and stage shows, nothing for him beat working with bands. From 1966 to 1972 he was side man, with British rock legend Marty Wilde as his drummer. He toured Europe, the Middle East and Far East with different groups.
Taylor was born in Blackburn, Lancashire. He was known at school as Black Jack Taylor because of his swarthy complexion. He was an adopted child and believed that his biological father was an Italian soldier in World War 2.
Taylor always said he would sing until the day he died, but his dream ended when he was diagnosed with throat cancer several years ago after a lifetime of smoking. He died in hospital as his song So You Win Again was being played.
He is survived by four children. — Chris Barron