Shapiro was born at Bethnal Green Hospital in the East End district of Bethnal Green, London. Her early childhood was spent in a Clapton council house in the London borough of Hackney, where she attended Northwold Primary School and Clapton Park Comprehensive School until Christmas 1961. She is the granddaughter of Russian Jewish immigrants; her parents, who were piece-workers in the garment industry, attended Lea Bridge Road Synagogue. The family moved from Clapton to the Victoria Park area of Hackney, on the Parkside Estate, when she was nine. "It was, and remains, a beautiful place," she said in a 2006 interview.
Although too poor to own a record player, Shapiro's parents encouraged music in their home (she had to borrow a neighbour's player to hear her first single). Shapiro played banjolele as a child and sang with her brother Ron occasionally in his youth club skiffle group. She had a deep timbre to her voice, unusual in a girl not yet in her teens: school friends gave her the nickname "Foghorn".
Aged ten, Shapiro was a singer with "Susie and the Hula Hoops," (with her cousin, 60s singer, Susan Singer) a school band which included Marc Bolan (then using his real name of Mark Feld) as guitarist. At 13 she started singing lessons at The Maurice Burman School of Modern Pop Singing, based in London's Baker Street, after the school produced singing star Alma Cogan. "I had always wanted to be a singer. I had no desire to slavishly follow Alma's style, but chose the school merely because of Alma's success", she said in a 1962 interview. Burman's connections eventually led her to a young Columbia Records A&R man named John Schroeder, who recorded a demo of Shapiro singing "Birth of the Blues".
In 1961, aged fourteen, she had a UK No. 3 hit with her first single, "Don't Treat Me Like a Child" and two number one hits in the UK, "You Don't Know" and "Walkin' Back to Happiness". The latter did not top the UK chart until 19 October 1961, by which time Shapiro had reached 15, on 26 September. She had a No. 2 in 1962 with "Tell Me What He Said", achieving her first four single releases in the top three of the UK Singles Chart. Most of her recording sessions were at EMI's studios at Abbey Road in north west London. Her mature voice made her an overnight sensation, as well as the youngest female chart topper in the UK.
Shapiro's final UK Top Ten hit single was with the ballad "Little Miss Lonely", which peaked at No. 8 for two weeks in 1962. Shapiro's recording manager at the time was Norrie Paramor.
Before she was sixteen years old, Shapiro had been voted Britain's "Top Female Singer". The Beatles first national tour of Britain, in the late winter/early spring of 1963, was as one of her supporting acts. During the course of the tour, the Beatles had their first hit single and John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote the song "Misery" for her, but Shapiro did not record the composition. In 1995, during a This is Your Life highlighting her life and career, Shapiro revealed, "It was actually turned down on my behalf before I ever heard it, actually. I never got to hear it or give an opinion. It's a shame, really." Shapiro lip-synched her then-current single, "Look Who It Is", on the British television programme Ready Steady Go! with three of the Beatles (John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison).
In 1962, Shapiro appeared as herself in the Billy Fury film Play It Cool, and played the lead female role in Richard Lester's movie, It's Trad, Dad!, which co-starred another early 60s hitmaker, Craig Douglas. On 31 December 1969, Shapiro appeared on the BBC/ZDF co-production Pop Go The Sixties, singing "Walkin' Back to Happiness".
By the time she was in her late teens, her career as a pop singer was on the wane. With the new wave of beat music and newer female singers such as Dusty Springfield, Cilla Black, Sandie Shaw and Lulu, Shapiro appeared old-fashioned and emblematic of the pre-Beatles, 50s era. As her pop career declined, Shapiro turned to cabaret appearances, touring the workingmen's clubs of the North East of England. Her final cabaret show took place at Peterlee's Senate Club on 6 May 1972, where she announced she was giving up touring as she was "travel-weary" and had had enough of "living out of a suitcase". Later, after a change of mind, she branched out as a performer in stage musicals, and jazz (being her first love musically).
She played the role of Nancy in Lionel Bart's musical, Oliver! in London's West End and appeared in a British television soap opera, Albion Market, where she played one of the main characters until it was taken off air in August 1986.
Between 1984 and 2001, she toured extensively with legendary British jazz trumpeter Humphrey Lyttelton and his band, whilst still performing her own jazz and pop concerts. Her one-woman show "Simply Shapiro" ran from 1999 to the end of 2002, when she finally bade farewell to show business.
Her autobiography, published in 1993, was entitled Walking Back to Happiness. She appeared as a guest on BBC Radio 4's 'The Reunion' in August 2012. In March 2013 she appeared on BBC Radio 3's 'Good Morning Sunday'
Helen Shapiro has been married since 31 August 1988 to John Judd (real name, John Williams), an actor with numerous roles in British television and cinema.
Beyond the Sea
Helen Shapiro Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Somewhere waiting for me
My lover stand's on golden sands
And watches the ships that go sailing
Somewhere beyond the sea
Somewhere watching for me
If I could fly like birds on high
It's far beyond the stars
It's near beyond the moon
I know beyond a doubt
My heart will lead me there soon
We'll meet beyond the shore
We'll kiss just as before
Happy we'll be, beyond the sea
And never again I'll go sailing
(male) Somewhere...(Helen) Somewhere.
(male) beyond the sea
(Helen)Somewhere...(male)Waiting for me
(Helen) Somewhere.my lover stand's on golden sands
(male) And watches the ships that go sailing
Somewhere beyond the sea
Somewhere watching for me
If I could fly like birds on high
Then straight to his arms I'd go sailing
It's far beyond the stars
It's near beyond the moon
I know, beyond a doubt
My heart will lead me there soon
Will meet beyond the shore
Will kiss, just like before
Happy will be beyond the sea
And never again, I go sailing
The song "Beyond the Sea" by Helen Shapiro is a romantic ballad that speaks of a lover longing to be reunited with their significant other who is waiting for them "somewhere beyond the sea." The lyrics suggest that the two lovers are separated by a great distance, but that distance is no match for their love. The singer describes the location where the lover is waiting as being on "golden sands" where they are watching the ships go sailing. The singer then expresses a desire to be with their lover, stating that they would fly like birds to be in their arms. The singer expresses a certainty that they will be reunited with their lover soon and that they will be happy together beyond the sea.
The lyrics of "Beyond the Sea" are infused with a sense of longing, anticipation, and romance. The imagery used in the song, such as the "golden sands" and the ships sailing, adds to the dream-like quality of the lyrics. The song speaks of a love that transcends time and distance, and the singer's desire to be reunited with their lover is palpable. The sense of anticipation and hopefulness expressed in the lyrics make the song a classic love ballad that has stood the test of time.
Line by Line Meaning
Somewhere beyond the sea
I dream of a place far out in the ocean, beyond the horizon of what I can currently see.
Somewhere waiting for me
I believe that place is waiting for me to find it and explore it, as if it is a treasure hidden in the depths of the sea.
My lover stand's on golden sands
In my mind's eye, I see my beloved standing on the sun-kissed shore of that far-off place, gazing out at the beauty of the sea and sky.
And watches the ships that go sailing
As my lover stands amidst that tranquil scene, he watches the ships that pass by in the distance, perhaps imagining where they are going and who else they might be carrying to that mysterious beyond.
If I could fly like birds on high
Sometimes I imagine what it would be like to soar through the skies, unrestricted by the limits of ordinary travel, able to take flight and explore every inch of that far-away wonderland.
Then straight to his arms I'd go sailing
If only I could fly to that distant love of mine, I would embrace him in my arms and never let go, finally united with the one I cherish the most.
It's far beyond the stars
That magical realm is beyond even the furthest star in the sky, a place so far removed from our everyday world that it seems almost like a fairy tale.
It's near beyond the moon
Yet, at the same time, that mystical place feels tantalizingly close, as if just a hop, skip, and a jump beyond the glowing roundness of the moon.
I know beyond a doubt
Deep down in my heart, I have an unshakable confidence that this place is real, and that I will find it someday, no matter how elusive it may seem.
My heart will lead me there soon
I trust that my heart will guide me to that promised land, perhaps by a secret path only known to me, or by an instinct I cannot yet comprehend.
We'll meet beyond the shore
Together with my beloved, I will somehow make it to the other side of the sea, converging on a coastline beyond anything we have ever seen before.
We'll kiss just as before
And when finally we are reunited, we will share a kiss as sweet and passionate as any before, a testament to the power of true love to conquer all obstacles.
Happy we'll be, beyond the sea
With that wonderful place as our new home, a land beyond the sea, we will find true happiness together, free from any concerns or constraints that have held us back in the past.
And never again I'll go sailing
I will never again have to travel the seas alone, searching for that which I crave the most, for I have found it, in that perfect land beyond the sea.
Writer(s): ALBERT LASRY, JACK LAWRENCE, CHARLES TRENET
Contributed by Tristan R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Fritz Frostick
What sublime vocals. Helen was just 15 years old when she recorded this and her voice absolutely soars.
dean Michael
What a great singer Helen Shapiro is and great songs it's a shame you don't hear Her on dab radio such as Smooth and Magic today they need to let the public hear her songs and great voice cheers Dean M 👍💖.
Jubal Calif
Sheer heaven to listen to !! THANK YOU so much for uploading for us to enjoy !! :-)
Nikolay Nuz
В далеком 1964году впервые услышал эту прекрасную певицу,и хотя прошло 59 лет я не могу забыть la mer в исполнении ее,одного из лучших исполнений этой песни.
Steve McDonald
What a wonderful and enjoyable voice. The original French words to the song, La Mer, were completely different in meaning and this English version was re-written to have a romantic connotation. The French words were about a love of the sea.
Geoffrey Thorne
Superb voice, as ever. An extremely talented singer - plus, of course, a wonderful song
Easton Smith
Absolutely a brilliant singer
craig terry
perfect pitch ,exquisite tone ,this woman could sing a phonebook to me...I would still listen.
Martin Webb
craig terry You are so right ...... I would listen, listen and listen again just magical.
John Hollingsworth
LOL