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Born: 4th January, 1959 Died: 15th February 2016 Denise Matthews was born in Niagara Falls, Canada. After years of modelling, beauty pageants and acting (she went by the screen name D.D. Winters for films such as the soft-core porn movie Tanya's Island and horror film Terror Train), she met controversial funk artist Prince. They had an instant bond and started dating. Prince encouraged her to become a singer, as he wanted to start a provocative new girl group called The Hookers. He decided to rename Denise "Vagina", but she decided the name was too controversial and chose Vanity instead. The name of the band was also changed to the less controversial Vanity 6 (the 6 being the number of breasts the three singers possessed)... Vanity 6 was a relative success, and they toured with Prince and performed sexy songs in lingeree. While touring, Prince was also embarking on a film project that eventually became the huge smash Purple Rain. Vanity was to originally star as his love interest, and the character was based on her. Due to money, drugs, infidelity and filming issues, Vanity decided to leave the Prince camp for a solo career, and was replaced in the film and group by Apollonia. As a solo artist, Vanity signed to Motown and was a minor success, with two albums and a few R&B hits. She also starred in several films, including Berry Gordy's The Last Dragon, Action Jackson and Never Too Young To Die. During this time she also dated Motley Crue's Nikki Sixx and they were, according to her, engaged to be married. Unfortunately, Vanity was also a drug addict. Her habit became so bad that she almost lost her eyesight and then her life, and had to have a liver transplant. As a result of this trauma, she became a born again Christian and renounced her existence as Vanity, once again calling herself Denise Matthews. She ditched plans to star in the film Lambada and record another album to dedicate her life to God, becoming an evangelist for Pure Heart Ministries. She has been in the process of releasing a book, Blame It On Vanity, for several years, which is said to describe her life before, during and after her existence as "Vanity". Matthews suffered from sclerosing encapsulating peritonitis, a rare complication of peritoneal dialysis, and died in a Fremont, California hospital on February 15, 2016, at the age of 57.
Best remembered in the U.S. for the classic "Hitchin' a Ride," harmony pop ensemble Vanity Fare formed in Kent, England in 1968. Comprising vocalist Trevor Brice, guitarist Tony Goulden, bassist Tony Jarrett, and drummer Dick Allix, the group originally dubbed themselves the Avengers; soon local entrepreneur Roger Easterby signed on as manager, orchestrating a contract with the Page One label and instructing the group to cover the Sunrays' "I Live for the Sun" for their debut single. With their sophisticated harmonies and clean-cut image, the Avengers needed a suitably genteel name, remixing the title of William Makepeace Thackeray's most famous novel to create Vanity Fare; "I Live for the Sun" cracked the U.K. Top 20 in the summer of 1968, although it would take the group a year to return to the charts, with "Early in the Morning" reaching the Top Ten on both sides of the Atlantic. Around this time, Vanity Fare jettisoned its tailored suits for neckerchiefs and fashions direct from Carnaby Street; more importantly, they also added keyboardist Barry Landeman, previously a member of Kippington Lodge, alongside Nick Lowe and Brinsley Schwartz; Landeman would prove the dominant instrumental element in the group's biggest hit, 1969's infectious "Hitchin' a Ride," which sold over a million copies in the U.S. alone. A North American tour was met with little interest, however, and soon after Vanity Fare returned to Britain. Goulden quit, quickly followed by Allix; Candy Choir guitarist Eddie Wheeler and Canterbury Tales' drummer Mark Ellen signed on as their replacements. The new lineup scored a minor hit with 1972's ballad "Better by Far," and concentrated on touring the cabaret circuit, performing as many as 14 dates a week; the grind ultimately forced Jarrett to resign, with former Tranquility bassist Bernard Hagley signing on for "I'm in Love With the World," Vanity Fare's first single for new label Phillips. In the wake of 1974's "Fast Running Out of World" their recording career screeched to a halt, but the group continued touring, including several passes through Scandinavia. During one trek to Denmark, Brice fell in love and quit the group, with singer Phil Kitto taking his place. Kitto also exited a few years later, with vocalist Kevin Thompson installed as frontman by the time Vanity Fare recorded 1986's "Dreamer," its first single in over a decade. With 1993's "Rain," their recording career again went into mothballs, but the band continues touring, with singer Steve Oakman replacing Thompson in early 2002.