Penny McLean | |
|---|---|
 Penny McLean, in 2010. | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Gertrude Wirschinger |
| Also known as | Barbra Münzer |
| Born | (1948-11-04)4 November 1948 (age 76) Klagenfurt,Austria |
| Genres | Soul,pop,disco |
| Occupation(s) | singer, author |
| Years active | 1965–1985 |
| Labels | Ariola, Jupiter |
Gertrude Wirschinger (born 4 November 1948), better known asPenny McLean, is an Austrian vocalist who initially gained acclaim with the disco music actSilver Convention, but also had exposure as a single recording artist. As a solo singer, she is most remembered for her million seller "Lady Bump". She is also an author.
Gertrude Wirschinger was born inKlagenfurt.[1]
In the early 1970s, under the name Barbra Münzer, she was part of the duo Barbra & Helmut. They released "Hideaway" bw "Stop" on theTelefunken label in 1972.[2] Late she was a member of the trio Tony & Liza & Penny. In 1973, they released a single on the Ariola label, "Öffne Die Tür" ("Open The Door") bw "Der Fremde" ("The Stranger").[3]By the mid-70s, she was a member of Silver Convention, a group that also included Linda G. Thompson andRamona Wulf.[4][5] They had hits with "Save me" and "Fly, Robin, Fly".[6]Around mid 1977, McLean left Silver Convention. She was replaced by Zenda Jacks.[7]In October 1976, her single "Devil Eyes" was released on theAriola label.[8] Around July 1978, her albumThe Best of Penny McLean was released onJupiter Records.[9] In 1979, she released the single, "Tut-Ench-Amun" which was written byBernd Meinunger, Horst Hornung andChristian Dornaus. Backed with "Child of Egypt", it was released on Jupiter 100 698.[10] By late 1980, she was on theTeldec label roster.[11]
Her hit "Lady Bump" sold in the millions. She also had hits with "1-2-3-4-Fire", "Dance, Bunny, Honey, Dance" and more.[12]
By November 1975, the track bw "The Lady Bumps On" was rated # 14 in the New York discos.[13] In January 1976, it was #8 on the Cash box pop singles charts.[14] In July 1976, "Lady Bump" #7 in Australia's 2S Music Survey.[15] The single itself sold 3 million copies.[16]
As a popular author, she has written on spiritual and numerology matters.[17][18] Some of the books she has written areLass los, was dich festhält. Von der Kunst, du selbst zu sein,Numerologie und Schicksal. Ihr Leben ist berechenbar andSchattenspringer - Ein Jacobsweg der Seele.[19]
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [20] | CAN [21] | SWE [22] | US R&B [23] | ||
| Lady Bump | 12 | 47 | 3 | 59 | |
| Penny |
| — | — | 22 | — |
| Midnight Explosion |
| — | — | — | — |
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NOR [24] | SWE [22] | |||
| Success |
| 11 | 16 | |
| The Best of Penny McLean |
| — | — | |
| Star Discothek |
| — | — | |
| Profile |
| — | — | |
| Lady Bump |
| — | — | |
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS [20] | AUT [26] | BEL [27] | CAN [28] | GER [29] | NET [30] | SWE [22] | SWI [31] | US [32] | US Dan. [23] | US R&B [23] | |||||||||
| 1972 | "Acapulcobanjopolka" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| 1974 | "A Letter from Miami" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| 1975 | "Lady Bump" | 9 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 48 | 2 | 90 | Lady Bump | ||||||
| "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 108 | — | — | ||||||||
| 1976 | "1-2-3-4... Fire!" | — | 11 | 11 | — | 3 | 20 | 9 | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| "Devil Eyes" | — | — | — | — | 21 | — | 17 | — | — | — | — | ||||||||
| "Nobody's Child" | — | — | — | — | 49 | — | 15 | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| 1977 | "Zwischen Zwei Gefühlen" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| "Dance, Bunny Honey, Dance" | — | — | — | — | 26 | — | 17 | — | — | — | — | Penny | |||||||
| "Mambo Mama" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||
| 1978 | "Wild One" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | The Best of Penny McLean | ||||||
| "Midnight Explosion" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Midnight Explosion | |||||||
| 1979 | "Tut-Ench-Amun" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| 1980 | "Love Is Love" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Profile | ||||||
| 1982 | "Words" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| "Wenn Die Träume Flügel Kriegen" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||
| 1985 | "Don’t Ever Leave Me Now" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||
| "—" denotes the single failed to chart or was not released. | |||||||||||||||||||
| Title | Role | Director | Year | Notes # |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Das Wunder [de] | Woman of cards | Eckhart Schmidt | 1985 | Actress[33][34] |
| Lieder gehen um die Welt[35] | Singer | Dieter Pröttel | 1982 | Made for television |
| Bistro | Otto Draeger | 1973 | Television series[36] |
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