Helen Shapiro facts: Songs, career, marriages, Messianic Judaism, age and retirement

Even before The Beatles and The Rolling Stones upended everything, the charts of the early 1960s still featured a great deal of pop singles from up-and-coming artists who were just beginning to make their mark.

Within this group was Helen Shapiro, who had not one but two chart-topping singles in the United Kingdom a year prior to the publication of ‘Love Me Do’.

With Billy Fury at the top of the list, these are the top 15 teen idols from the 1950s and 1960s: This rock ‘n’ roll pioneer had as many hits as The Beatles had overall.
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She was so successful that the Fab Four even accompanied her on tour at the beginning of 1963, with the Beatles being just halfway down the bill as the then 16-year-old Shapiro headlined 14 shows throughout the course of the tour.

Before the pop revolution shook things up and put an end to her chart-troubling days, Helen had a string of popular singles at the beginning of the decade. However, this was shortly followed by the pop revolution.

It appeared as though she may disappear entirely from public view; yet, she was reincarnated as a prominent figure in the world of musical theater and jazz.

She continues to make music today, encouraged by her Messianic Judaism, despite the fact that she has retired from the entertainment industry. A glance at her incredible life narrative is presented here.The granddaughter of Russian-Jewish immigrants, Helen Kate Shapiro was born on September 28, 1946 in Bethnal Green, London. Her grandparents were immigrants from Russia.

She was born in a council apartment in Clapton, and when she was nine years old, her family relocated to Victoria Park, which is located in Hackney. Clapton Park Comprehensive School was the next school that Helen attended after Northwold Primary School.

She sung in her brother Ron’s skiffle group when she was young and played the banjolele, which is a combination of the banjo and the ukulele. She was unable to afford a record player at the time.