Born in Jarrow, northeast England, in 1949, John Miles was something of a child prodigy, learning the piano from the age of five. In the early ’60s he persuaded his father to buy him a guitar and by the end of the decade he had joined a semi-professional band, The Influence. The group soon disbanded and by 1969 Miles was recording with his own group, The John Miles Band, releasing a dozen singles in the early ’70s. In 1975 Miles decided to move to London and secured a deal with Decca Records. By October that year, a newly formed band, John Miles and Co, had released their debut single, Highfly, but their greatest hit, which stormed the British charts in March 1976, was Music.