More About Gill Sharman

I come from a family of music lovers. Both my parents played piano. My father always played to me when I was going to sleep at night as a small child, and my mother constantly sang to me when I was a baby in my pram.

It was not surprising then, that I soon began to imitate them. According to my mum, I could sing before I could fully talk. I gave my first public performance - A rendition of  ‘Around The World In 80 Days’ which was in the charts at that time, around the dining room of a guest house in Blackpool at the age of just 12 months . Every word was remembered and clearly sung!!  

At the age of 6, I gave a impromptu performance of ‘Happy Birthday’, standing on a chair ( I still need that!) at the wedding of my cousin. It was also my birthday at the time.

I was raised on the music of Glen Miller, country music and The Beatles, but through those early years I developed a love for music of all kinds. I began learning the piano at 6 years old, and the violin at 12, though the family lost several neighbours during the few years I attempted to master that complex instrument !!

My enthusiasm for music grew during my high school years, and I joined choirs and recorder groups (both regular and treble recorder). I also sang in the local church choir. With the school choir I made several appearances on T.V. programs such as “Stars On Sunday”.

In 1970, at just 13 years of age, I auditioned for and was accepted along with my sister, into The Wakefield Amateur Operatic Society (W.A.O.S.) and in later years took leading roles in such productions as “South Pacific” and “Quaker Girl” as well as in several “Songs from the shows” including extracts from “Starlight Express”, “Phantom Of The Opera”, “My Fair Lady” and many more.

The photo’s on the left show me in Quaker Girl (top), South Pacific

performing the ‘Happy Talk’ scene (middle.) ‘Show Time ~ Songs From the shows’. (Bottom three photo’s.)

My interest in John Denver and his music began in 1986 following a televised concert by him at the Birmingham N.E.C. His music just bowled me over.

I became actively involved in the environmental and conservation work John supported so passionately, joining  ’Friends Of The Earth’, and John Denver’s own project, ’The Windstar Foundation’, attending the annual symposium hosted by John in his home town of Aspen, Colorado in 1995.