Back then western media (music and TV) was prohibited from consuming, being classified as 'capitalist smut' - seriously... - but a brave Radio Station in Berlin called 'DT64' which was aimed at the younger generation was testing the communist gouvernment's limits by airing a complete album of a popular artist each weekend. One of them was Kim Wilde's 'Close'.
Kim Smith, a.k.a, Kim Wilde, daughter of 1950s Rock'n'Roller Reginald Smith, a.k.a. Marty Wilde, and Joyce Baker of The Vernons Girls, is a London girl, being born on 18 Nov 1960 in Chiswick. She attended Oakfield Prep School in Dulwich (woo-hoo, she's a neighbour! :-) before moving with her family to Hertfordshire, and completing a foundation course at St. Albans College of Art & Design in 1980. That year Kim was signed to RAK Records. She burst onto the music scene in 1981 with the New Wave classic 'Kids in America', which her brother, Ricky Smith, a.k.a Ricky Wilde, wrote for her in his bedroom. Kim shot to instant fame, particulary in continental Europe, while success in the US was largely subdued. Several successful single releases followed.
Failure of her 1983 Album Catch As Catch Can led to her leaving RAK Records and her being signed to MCA Records, where her career re-ignited with the 1984 album Teases and Dares.
Kim Wilde holds the record for being the most-charted British solo female act of the 1980s, with seventeen UK Top 40 singles. In France, she was known as the 'Brigitte Bardot of Rock' and her song 'Cambodia' sold over a million copies. A number of artists have performed covers of Kim Wilde songs, ranging from pop and rock to dance and death metal versions.
Having married and giving birth to children, Kim switched down a gear in her life, becoming a reconised Landscape Gardener. While her brother also choe the same route, her sister Roxanne is currently background singer for Kylie Minogue.
In 2010, Kim signed a new record deal with another label called Starwatch who released her eleventh studio album, 'Come Out and Play'.
Kim Wilde - Kids In America (1981)
DK#1, IRL#1, RSA#1, UK#2, SWE#2, FR3, BE#4, DE#5, CH#5, AUS#5, NL#8, NOR#9, AT#12, US#25, CAN#34
Kim Wilde - Chequered Love (1981)
RSA#1, DK#2, DE#2, CH#2, NL#2, BE#2, UK#4, SWE#6, AUS#6, FR#64
Kim Wilde - Cambodia (1981)
DK#1, CH#1, SWE#1, FR#1, DE#2, RSA#2, NOR#3, AT#4, BE#4, NL#5, AUS#7, UK#12, IRL#15
Kim Wilde - View From A Bridge (1982)
IT#1, CH#2, BE#3, SWE#4, DE#6, NL#7, AUS#7, AT#10, FR#15, UK#16, IRL#16
Kim Wilde - Child Come Away (1982)
DK#3, CH#6, SWE#10, BE#21, FR#21, DE#36, UK#43, NL#47, AUS#76
Kim Wilde - The Second Time (in the US released as 'Go For It') (1984)
CH#7, DE#9, DK#9, SWE#11, BE#14, NL#23, UK#29, US#65
Kim Wilde - You Keep Me Hangin' On (1986)
US#1, AUS#1, NOR#1, UK#2, CH#2, IRL#2, DK#3, DE#8, IT#8, BE#13, FR#16, NL#17, AT#20
Kim Wilde - Another Step (1987) - a duet with Junior Giscombe
UK#6, AUS#88, NL#95
Kim Wilde - Hey Mister Heartache (1988) - with vocals of Junior Giscombe
NOR#3, SWE#6, IT#7, DK#12, CH#12, DE#13, IRL#22, UK#31, NL#35, AUS#96
Kim Wilde - You Came (1988)
DK#1, SWE#1, UK#3, CH#3, IRL#3, IT#4, NOR#4, DE#5, FR#5, AT#8, BE#10, NL#11, AUS#34, US#41, CAN#42
Kim Wilde - Never Trust A Stranger (1988)
SWE#1, NL#3, BE#4, CH4, IRL#5, UK#7, AT#7, DK#7, DE#11, FR#18
Kim Wilde - Four Letter Word (1988)
IRL#5, UK#6, NL#9, BE#11, CH#18, AT#23, DE#27, IT#47
Kim Wilde - If I Can't Have You (1993)
DK#3, AUS#3, BE#7, IRL#9, UK#12, IT#13, CH#18, NL#18, SWE#24, AT#29 DE#51, FR#62
Kim Wilde & Nena - Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime (2003)
English adaption of Nena's 1984 track 'Irgendwie Irgendwo Irgendwann'
AT#1, NL#1, BE#2, DE#3, CH#9, DK#19
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