Imagination -

Imagination was an English funk trio on R&B Records that made the 1981–83 albums Body Talk, In the Heat of the Night, and Scandalous, along with the 1983 remix set Night Dubbing. The group scored UK Top 10 hits with “Body Talk,” “Just an Illusion,” and “Music and Lights.” They concluded with the 1986/87 albums Trilogy and Closer.

Members: Leee John (lead vocals, keyboards), Ashley Ingram (guitar, bass, vocals), Errol Kennedy (drums, percussion)

Background

Imagination formed in 1981 in London when singer-keyboardist Leee John and guitarist-bassist Ashley Ingram developed a studio project with drummer Errol Kennedy. The trio took the name Imagination from the John Lennon song “Imagine.”

John was born June 23, 1957, in Hackney, London, to parents from St. Lucia. His parents separated in childhood, and he moved with his father in 1968 to New York, where he attended St. Francis of Assisi School in Brooklyn. At age eleven, he passed an audition with Worldwide Records, which trained young performers in singing and acting.

John returned to England in 1973 and formed Russ and Leee with schoolmate Russell Fraser, whom he accompanied to soul and funk shows at Crackers in Soho. The pair wrote original songs and approached London record companies with a demo. At EMI, they met Snazz Records manager Roy Fisher, who liked their impromptu a cappella performance in the reception area. Fisher took on the duo, whose name prompted John to add a third “e” to Leee to distinguish Russ and Leee from the folk duo Peters & Lee. They cut an unreleased single for Snazz, produced by Del Newman with musical backing by Gonzalez.

Ingram was born Nov. 27, 1960, in Northampton to Jamaican parents. His father bought him a drum kit around age five and subsequently arranged piano lessons. Ingram later took up guitar and played all three instruments at the gospel church his family attended in Bedford. He attended Northampton Trinity Grammar School, where he formed several groups, then pursued professional auditions after leaving school. An audition connected with The Velvelettes introduced Ingram to John.

John and Ingram subsequently worked within the same circuit of British musicians backing visiting American soul acts. John sang backing vocals for The Velvelettes, Chairmen of the Board, The Elgins, and The Delfonics, while Ingram worked as a guitarist and bassist. The pair formed a songwriting partnership and joined the short-lived Fizzz.

Kennedy was born June 9, 1953, in Montego Bay, Jamaica. He encountered percussion through Jamaican carnival and marching-band traditions, then developed as a drummer in Britain with the Boys’ Brigade and Air Training Corps. Kennedy joined TFB in the mid-1970s alongside musicians who subsequently formed Central Line. He then played with Midnight Express, which supported saxophonist Ronnie Laws on a UK tour.

John and Ingram continued to cross paths on the London audition circuit and worked together in the short-lived group Fizzz. Their professional circle also brought them into contact with Kennedy. Morgan Khan recruited John for R&B Records around 1980 and connected him with Red Bus composers and producers Tony Swain and Steve Jolley.

Swain gave John a cassette containing a musical sketch, and John developed the lyric and vocal line for “Body Talk.” John called Ingram to record the song, while Khan coordinated the project with Swain and Jolley. Kennedy joined John and Ingram as the project developed into Imagination.

R&B Records pressed “Body Talk” as a white-label twelve-inch and promoted the record through the British jazz-funk club circuit. Club response led Capital Radio presenter Peter Young to give the record daytime airplay. The single entered the UK chart in spring 1981, reached No. 4, and brought Imagination to Top of the Pops. Demand for “Body Talk” established the trio with R&B Records and led to further sessions with Swain and Jolley for the debut album Body Talk.

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