Biography
British pop singer Sandra Barry first stepped onto stages through appearances in children's talent competitions, after which she enrolled at a theatrical academy. Recording initially as Sandra Alfred, she cut her debut sides in 1957 while sharing the screen on comedian Dave King's television program and also performed on the long-running radio series Educating Archie. Several parts in the "St. Trininans" film comedies paved the way for her return in 1963 under the name Mandy Mason; a short engagement with Parlophone preceded, by one year, her adoption of the stage identity Sandra Barry. Supported by the Boys—singer Reggie King, guitarist Alan King, bassist Mike Evans and drummer Roger Powell, all of whom would subsequently team with guitarist Pete Watson to form the mod cult favorites the Action—she joined the Decca roster for the 1964 single "Really Gonna Shake." Once the Boys struck out independently, Barry worked instead with the Jet Blacks, whose lineup included future Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones. A series of notable Pye releases, among them the 1965 track "We Were Lovers (When the Party Started)" and a version of the Lloyd Price hit "Question," brought no commercial traction, leaving her largely absent from view for the rest of the decade. In 1973 she reappeared under the fresh alias Alice Spring, fronting the pub-rock group Slack Alice.