Evelyn grew up on Chicago’s south side, an area rich in musical history. As a teenager she enjoyed music and was particularly inspired by the rising Motown sound and it’s stable of divas and girl groups.
Her first chance at recording came in 1973 when her church choir recorded “Something Special” with Reverend Anne Crockett Ford. A second album “Share The Bread Of Presence” was released in 1974.
In 1975 Ian Levine from England and one of the founders of England’s “Northern soul” explosion and his success at BlackPool Mecca is legendary. His goal was to record American soul singers and lease the masters to major U.S./UK record companies.
She toured the UK in 1977 and Evelyn then moved to England,
The release of “I Wanna Make It On My Own” was a masterpiece of classic disco. Excited by the initial success (from 1975 and 1976, respectively), as well as “Summer On The Beach,” “Love In The First Degree,” and the mostly instrumental “Sleaze.”) Ian and Evelyn would make history and literally turn the club music scene around. During the early 1980’s disco presumably had died and club music had turned to a funkier downbeat sound. Tapping in on a frustrated predominantly gay audience that yearned for up tempo music Ian created “High Energy.” This one song started the Hi-NRG movement and became Evelyn’s biggest, most successful and signature song. The album featured two more up tempo hits, “Masquerade” and “Second Best” as well as the more downbeat “Shy Guy” and “Heartless.” “High Energy” was such an international hit that it has been remixed and re-released several times over the ensuing years. Evelyn has toured Europe, Canada, the entire U.S., Japan, Australia, and even South America based on the success of this one song.
