Raymond ‘Froggy’ Froggatt, hit songwriter who later became a country singer – obituary

Raymond “Froggy” Froggatt, who has died aged 81, was a singer and songwriter who produced Top Ten hits for the Dave Clark Five and Cliff Richard; he later reinvented himself as a country singer in Nashville, Tennessee, but retained a popular following in and around his native Birmingham.

One of Froggatt’s earliest singles was Callow-la-vita, a catchy number he wrote inspired by watching children play with balloons in a Parisian park. It failed to have much impact until being covered by the Dave Clark Five as The Red Balloon, reaching No 7 in the UK charts in September 1968. Froggatt’s own version peaked at No 3 in the Netherlands.

Froggatt was asked to write the bright and bouncy Big Ship for the 1969 Eurovision Song Contest, but it was turned down by the British selection panel in favour of Boom Bang-a-Bang, Lulu’s winning entry. Herman’s Hermits made a demo, which was then covered by Cliff Richard, reaching No 8 in May 1969. 

Around the same time Froggatt wrote the foot-tapping Rachel, a sad tale of the trouble a missionary nurse discovers on her travels, which became a hit in Australia for Russell Morris.

Despite Froggatt’s work being covered by many famous names, including Gladys Knight, Elton John and George Hamilton IV, his own recordings were only ever a modest success. “Sometimes I wonder if we will get a hit in our own right,” he told the Birmingham Evening Mail in 1972. “But the main thing … is that we can give people enjoyment.”

Raymond William Froggatt was born in Bordesley Green, Birmingham, on November 13 1941, the son of William Froggatt and his wife Constance (née Smith). His father was killed during the war and Raymond missed much of his schooling to tuberculosis, including five years in hospital between the ages of two and seven.

He was eight when he made his first live performance, singing for a Christmas event in the Dunlop Sports & Social Club, where his stepfather worked. By 17 he was doing odd jobs including pipe lagging, but the tuberculosis returned, costing him a kidney.

While recuperating he began writing poetry and resumed singing. “I’d get up in a pub at the drop of a hat,” he said. In 1962 he placed an advert in the Birmingham Mail that read: “Musicians wanted to back singer.” Before long he had established the Buccaneers, later known as Monopoly, and they were signed by the Polydor label.

In time they became the Raymond Froggatt Band, featuring the guitarist Hartley “H” Cain, who remained with him, the drummer Len Ablethorpe and the bassist Louis Clark, later of the Electric Light Orchestra. Their first album, The Voice and Writing of Raymond Froggatt (1969), was a showcase of all their talents.

Froggatt went on to write Will (1975), a comedy musical based on the life of Shakespeare, though the album was never released. He then made his way into country music, finding a second home in Nashville. “Even the town’s sheriff can play a neat guitar,” he told the Liverpool Echo.

Within six months of arriving in the US he had received a standing ovation from an audience of 28,000 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His first country album was Southern Fried Frog (1978). “It seemed an apt way to describe the music,” he said. He was also the support act for Tammy Wynette’s British concert tour.

“Froggy”, whose fans arrived at shows clutching toy frogs, lived quietly on an old farm. He continued to write songs and tour, telling the Derby Evening Telegraph: “I shall write and sing while ever people want to hear my tunes and until my day is done.”

Froggatt’s wife, Louise, died in a car accident; he had three children.

Raymond Froggatt, born November 13 1941, died July 23 2023