Элки Брукс: Британдық блюз королевасының өмірі мен мансабы

English singer

| occupation = Singer
| years active = 1960–present
| associated acts =
| label = Island, A&M
| website =

Elkie Brooks (born Elaine Bookbinder; 25 February 1945) is an English rock, blues and jazz singer. She was a vocalist with the bands Dada and Vinegar Joe, and later became a solo artist. She gained her biggest success in the late 1970s and 1980s, releasing 13 UK Top 75 singles, and reached the top ten with "Pearl's a Singer", "Sunshine After the Rain" (both 1977) and "No More the Fool" (1986). She has been nominated twice for the Brit Awards. Brooks is a Gold Badge Award of Merit winner from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA) (now The Ivors Academy) and is generally referred to as the "British Queen of Blues".

Brooks was born Elaine Bookbinder in Salford, to a Jewish family. Her father's grandparents emigrated to Britain from Poland at the start of the 20th century to escape the pogroms. Her older brothers are Raymond Bookbinder and Anthony Bookbinder (Tony Mansfield of The Dakotas). Whilst still a child, Brooks began singing at barmitzvahs and weddings; according to Brooks, her unofficial debut was a gig at a club called the Laronde on Cheetham Hill Road, Manchester, when she was 13 years old. Aged 15, she won a talent contest in Manchester, leading to her taking part in a pop package tour which was promoted by Don Arden. In the mid 1960s, she supported the Beatles in their Christmas show in London, then, as an established act, helped the Small Faces in their early career by introducing them at several venues. She went on to tour the United States with several bands, including the Animals. She also toured the then communist Poland with Jon Lord's the Artwoods. In the 1960s, Brooks had begun singing jazz with Humphrey Lyttelton's band, but subsequently changed direction musically. After three albums, Vinegar Joe split up in 1974, and Brooks and Palmer pursued separate solo careers. After a time as backing singer with the American southern boogie band Wet Willie, she returned to England.

Brooks' first solo album, released on A & M Records, was Rich Man's Woman (1975). It was released to critical acclaim, but the album's cover shot of a naked Brooks with a feather boa was considered outrageous for the time. This came before a run of 16 albums in 20 years, starting with Two Days Away (1977), produced by the songwriting duo Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who had previously worked with Elvis Presley; Brooks also wrote tracks with Leiber and Stoller. The hits "Pearl's a Singer" (reaching No. 8 in the UK Singles Chart) and "Sunshine After the Rain" (which reached No. 10) came from this album. 1977 also saw Brooks duet with Cat Stevens on the song "Remember the Days of the Old Schoolyard" which reached No.33 on the Billboard charts and No.44 in UK. The albums Shooting Star (1978) and Live and Learn (1979) also saw success, along with the singles "Lilac Wine" produced and arranged by Mike Batt and "Don't Cry Out Loud". Her polished, powerful cover of Gallagher and Lyle's "The Runaway" saw the Scottish singer songwriters appear with Brooks on Top of the Pops to provide backing vocals. In 1980, Brooks performed at the Knebworth Festival with The Beach Boys, Santana and Mike Oldfield. The Pearls album, released in 1981, was the biggest commercial success of her career, charting for 79 weeks and reaching No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart. The album was still in the charts a year later, when Pearls ll (1982) reached No. 5, spending 26 weeks on the charts. The Gus Dudgeon produced "Fool If You Think It's Over (1981)", written by Chris Rea, was a major hit single for Brooks. Other chart singles followed, with "Our Love", "Nights in White Satin" and "Gasoline Alley", all produced by Dudgeon. The 1984 albums Minutes and Screen Gems were both chart hits in the same year. More chart success ensued with the albums The Very Best of Elkie Brooks (1986), Bookbinder's Kid (1988), Inspiration (1989), Round Midnight (1993), Nothin' but the Blues (1994), Amazing (1996) and The Very Best of Elkie Brooks (1997). In 2012, Brooks released her autobiography Finding My Voice, published by The Robson Press. In it, she detailed her life and career, focusing on her love of performing live and the downsides of the recording business, which she says has often left her financially no better off. In July 2017, after Brooks signed to Virgin EMI, the album Pearls The Very Best Of, was released. It charted at No. 14, and included two new singles: "Love Ain't Something that You Can Get for Free" and the Bryan Adams penned "Forgive and Forget." Later in the year, a remix of the 1979 album track "The Rising Cost of Love" was also released as a single. All three singles made it onto the Radio 2 'A' playlist, with "Forgive and Forget" being the network's "Record of the Week." Brooks promoted the album with several appearances on Radio 2 programmes, including the Aled Jones Show, and The One Show on BBC One. On 19 September that year, Brooks appeared at the London Palladium to mark 40 years since her first sell out week at the venue in 1977. The show also celebrated her 40 years of success since the release of the single "Pearl's a Singer." The same year, Brooks recorded the closing theme song for the 2017 film Finding Your Feet, which starred Imelda Staunton, Timothy Spall, Celia Imrie and Joanna Lumley. The track, "Running to the Future," was released as a download only single, and included on the soundtrack album. Brooks' self penned song "Just An Excuse" has been remixed several times, most notably appearing on the Bonobo album Migration in 2017. She has performed live since 1960; her 2021 tour, delayed from the previous year due to the COVID 19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, was billed as her 60th Year Anniversary Tour. She is still touring, with concerts scheduled through 2023 and 2024.

In the early to mid 1970s, Brooks was married to guitarist Pete Gage. On 1 March 1978, she married her sound engineer, Trevor Jordan, who had worked with Diana Ross, Rolling Stones, Luciano Pavarotti, Sarah Vaughan and many others. They live in Devon and have two sons, Jermaine (born 22 December 1979) and Joseph (born 31 December 1986). In 2000, Brooks' management and tour promotion was taken over by her son, Jermaine, and his wife, Joanna.