{{Short description|English rock singer and songwriter (born 1944)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}} {{Use British English|date=March 2020}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = Keith West | background = solo_singer | birth_name = Keith Alan Hopkins | alias = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=y|1944|12|6}} | birth_place = Dagenham, Essex, England | instrument = | genre = | occupation = Singer, songwriter | years_active = Mid-1960s–present | label = Parlophone, Kuckuck (FRG) | past_member_of = Tomorrow, The In Crowd, Moonrider }}

'''Keith Hopkins'''<ref>{{cite web |title=Musical Calendar for December 6 |url=http://nfo.net/calendar/dec06.htm |website=Big Bands Database Plus |access-date=10 October 2016 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20051027121229/http://nfo.net/calendar/dec06.htm |archivedate=27 October 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref> (born 6 December 1944, Dagenham, Essex, England),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hawksmoorpublishing.com/keith-west-singer-tomorrow-where-is-he-now|title=Keith West – Lead Singer of Tomorrow – where is he now?|date=January 4, 2022|website=Hawksmoor Publishing}}</ref> known by his stage name '''Keith West''', is a British rock singer, songwriter and music producer. He is best known for his single "Excerpt from A Teenage Opera" ("Grocer Jack"), which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart.

West was also the lead singer of various groups including Tomorrow, a 1960s psychedelic rock band.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Unterberger |first1=Richie |title=Keith West {{!}} Biography & History {{!}} AllMusic |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/keith-west-mn0000084412 |website=AllMusic |access-date=10 October 2016}}</ref> West wrote most of his own songs (credited to Keith Hopkins), often in collaboration with Ken Burgess. Despite critical acclaim and support from BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel, who featured Tomorrow on his ''The Perfumed Garden'' show, the group was not a major commercial success.

==Career== In 1964, West became lead singer of The In Crowd, a band from London, who later changed their name to Tomorrow.<ref name="Larkin60">{{cite book|title=The Virgin Encyclopedia of Sixties Music|editor=Colin Larkin|publisher=Virgin Books|date=1997|edition=First|isbn=0-7535-0149-X|page=469}}</ref> The following year The In Crowd recorded three singles for Parlophone.<ref>{{cite web |title=The In Crowd [UK] Discography |url=http://www.45cat.com/artist/the-in-crowd |website=45cat |access-date=10 October 2016}}</ref> Another member of these groups was guitarist Steve Howe, later of the band Yes.

In 1967, West became acquainted with Mark Wirtz, a record producer who had already created the instrumental title "A Touch of Velvet, a Sting of Brass" (1965). The melody later became the theme music for the German television programmes ''Beat-Club'' and ''Musikladen''. West was also a participant in Wirtz's ''A Teenage Opera'' project: he was the singer of "Excerpt from A Teenage Opera",<ref name="Larkin60"/> also known as "Grocer Jack", which reached number 2 on the UK Singles Chart in 1967.<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums">{{cite book |first=David |last=Roberts |year=2006 |title=British Hit Singles & Albums |edition=19th |publisher=Guinness World Records Limited |location=London |isbn=1-904994-10-5 |page=596}}</ref> He also performed "Sam",<ref name="Larkin60"/> which reached the bottom end of the UK Top 40 the same year.<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums"/>

In August 1967, Tomorrow released a single of a Hopkins/Howe song titled "Revolution". West released the solo single "On a Saturday" on Parlophone in 1968.<ref name="Larkin60"/> Other musicians who appeared on that single were guitarist Howe, bassist Ronnie Wood, and drummer Aynsley Dunbar. It has since been included on the remastered CD version of the ''Tomorrow'' album (1999).

In 1971, West released a solo album, ''Wherever My Love Goes'', on the German progressive rock record label Kuckuck.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/wherever-my-love-goes-mw0003042927|title=Wherever My Love Goes - Keith West &#124; Songs, Reviews, Credits|website=AllMusic|access-date=16 June 2021}}</ref> It featured his songwriting partner Ken Burgess and steel guitarist Glenn Ross Campbell (ex-The Misunderstood). Two tracks on the album were produced by Andrew Loog Oldham.

By the mid-1970s, West was the lead singer of a group called Moonrider,<ref name="Larkin60"/> which also featured John Weider,<ref name="Larkin60"/> Chico Greenwood (later to perform with Murray Head) and Bruce Thomas.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/moonrider-mw0000856651|title=Moonrider - Moonrider &#124; Songs, Reviews, Credits|website=AllMusic|access-date=16 June 2021}}</ref>

Today, West continues to produce and record music, which is used primarily within the advertising industry. He is also associated with Burns Guitars.<ref name="Larkin60"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://guitarz.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/burnshayman-prototype-hybrid-guitar.html |title=Burns/Hayman prototype hybrid guitar |website=Guitarz.blogspot.co.uk|date=13 February 2011 }}</ref>

In 2021, the official biography of Keith West was published in the book ''Thinking About Tomorrow – Excerpts from the life of Keith West''.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Thinking About Tomorrow – Excerpts from the life of Keith West - Book|url=https://hawksmoorpublishing.com/book/thinking-about-tomorrow-excerpts-from-the-life-of-keith-west-book|access-date=2022-02-09|website=Hawksmoor Publishing|language=en-US}}</ref>

==Discography== {{see also|Tomorrow (band)#Discography}} ===Albums=== *''Wherever My Love Goes'' (1971)

===Singles=== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" ! rowspan="2"| Year ! rowspan="2"| Single ! colspan="6"| Chart Positions |-style="font-size:smaller;" ! style="width:4em;"|UK<br /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/13070/keith-west/|title=Keith West |work=The Official Charts Company }}</ref> ! style="width:4em;"|BEL<br /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ultratop.be/nl/song/182ce/Keith-West-Excerpt-From-A-Teenage-Opera |title=Keith West |work=Ultratop}}</ref> ! style="width:4em;"|DE<br /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/titel-details-99022|title=Keith West:Excerpt from A Teenage Opera |work=Offizielle Deutsche Charts }}</ref> ! style="width:4em;"|NLD<br /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.top40.nl/top40-artiesten/keith-west|title=Keith West |work=Top 40 }}</ref> ! style="width:4em;"|NZ<br /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.flavourofnz.co.nz/index.php?qpageID=search%20listener&qartistid=656#n_view_location |title=Keith West |work=Flavour of New Zealand}}</ref> ! style="width:4em;"|US<br /><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TSgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA18 |title=Bubbling Under the Hot 100 |magazine=Billboard |date= 4 November 1967|page=18}}</ref> |- |rowspan="2"|1967 |align="left"|"Excerpt from A Teenage Opera" |2 |2 |2 |1 |10 |109{{efn|name=note1}} |- |align="left"|"Sam" |38 |— |— |<small>''Tip''</small>{{efn|Bubbling Under chart|name=note1}} |— |— |- |1968 |align="left"|"On A Saturday" |— |— |— |— |— |— |- | colspan="9" style="font-size:90%;" | "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released to that territory |}

{{notelist}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Wikiquote}} *{{IMDb name|0922178|Keith West}} * [http://www.alexgitlin.com/npp/moonrider.htm Moonrider]

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{{DEFAULTSORT:West, Keith}} Category:1944 births Category:Living people Category:English pop singers Category:English male singers Category:English session musicians Category:English male songwriters Category:People from Dagenham Category:Parlophone artists Category:Singers from the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Category:Tomorrow (band) members