Cathy Dennis, '90s pop starlet turned wealthy songwriter, is a lesbian

Last August, she did her first live show in 27 years – she sang her '90s solo hits and the ones she wrote for Kylie ("Can't Get You Out of My Head"), Katy and Britney ("Toxic").

She sounded great! But her wardrobe choice was definitely middle-aged lesbian.

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She had a bunch of hits, some crossover in the early 1990s

90% of Britney's "vocals" on Toxic are lifted from/blended with Cathy's demo.

Oprah sure liked what she saw.

Her video for "Just Another Dream" is the ne plus ultra of '90s dance visuals.

(Vogue moves: Check. Water flowing over muscular half-naked men: Check. Muscular half-naked men doing acrobatics: Check.)

She wrote Can't Get You Out of My Head for Kylie's Fever album, along with Come Into My World, which is much more obscure but just as good.

Classic album, r7

Where are you getting that she's a lesbian since her wiki states she dated some guy and "Toxic" may have been written about him.

I did not know she wrote Can't Get You Out of My Head.

I'm not a huge fan of that genre of dance/pop but there's always been something really fun and smart about Cathy's work and I've enjoyed her music.

I still can't believe Kylie passed on 'Toxic' -- what was she thinking? I'd love to get a new Cathy Dennis song on Kylie's next album!

R5 I love all the audience shots of the 90s gaylings in that vid.

The boyfriends at 1:12 in R5 (who called out sick to attend the show) are especially cute.

She also wrote this little gem which Kylie fans seem to hate...........personally I love it!

Probably the best song from 'Fever's' follow up 'Body Language' after 'Slow'.

*the above information may include inaccuracies*

I attribute much of my personal growth to that song, R14.

Even as a kid, Ryan "droopy face" Gosling enjoyed some Cathy Dennis too.

For the youngsters:

Cathy Dennis wrote a song for Kylie Minogue that swept the global pop charts and is now considered as iconic a piece of dance music as anything by Donna Summer or the Bee Gees.

"There's a dark secret in me ... don't leave me locked in your heart ... set me free ..."

She also wrote the theme music to American Idol, and Pop Idol (UK) which will have earned her a fortune.

Another Cathy classic, clearly written for Mama Cass and Michelle Phillips to harmonise on.

Cathy reportedly wrote Toxic about her relationship with Channel 4's Supervet.

As for Cathy's labia loving lesbianism, her late 90s album was great, kind of Jane Wiedlin/Voice Of The Beehivey guitary wahwah unconventional lyric content, like the title track.

Am I the kind of girl who could be your boyfriend

Am I the kind of Jill who could play with Jack

Am I the kind of girl who could be your boyfriend

The kind of screw your toolbox lacks

Tear up tradition you'll take that dress tonight

Tear up tradition I'll be the groom and honey you be the bride

Cos I'm the kind of girl who could be your boyfriend

And I'm the kind of woman who could be a man

Cathy's labia-loving late-'90s album — in which she decided to turn herself into a member of Elastica, Echobelly or Sleeper, and who could blame her; they were hot — included a great cover of Waterloo Sunset, which turned a bunch of young US indie kids on to the Kinks, even though her version didn't chart.

"Just Another Dream" takes me back to my teenage summers spent driving the tractor and blasting Cathy, Taylor Dayne, and Martika as I gayly plowed the fields.

Another Cathy classic.

When Cathy teamed up with Calvin Harries

Calvin Harris was PISSED that Roisin cut Off and On from Overpowered and gave interviews about it.

She was right, though — it was S Club Juniors level, not even close to the caliber of the other tracks.

So Sophie Ellis-Bextor scooped it up for her album.

Adam Lambert should have recorded Off And On

Back when he was ugly Calvin Harris wasn't happy either about Off And On being shelved

[bold]What's been the biggest disappointment of your year so far?

I did some songs with Cathy Dennis for the Roisin Murphy album but then Roisin decided not to use them because she is a bit mental. She must be crazy because the songs are really good and Cathy Dennis is obviously legendary. That was a disappointment partly it might also have taken some of the Kylie heat off me for a while. That's all got a bit ridiculous.

[bold]It would probably take someone a bit more famous than Roisin Murphy to take 'the Kylie heat' off you.

Really, I'd just like it if people knew that I sometimes work with people who aren't Kylie. I'm not her little production bitch!

[bold]What are you going to do with the Roisin cast-offs?

WELL! I'm not allowed to do anything with them for legal reasons. I now have two backing tracks that are completely wasted. Geez! What else Roisin — are you going pay my bill now, you twat? She fucking cost me all sorts of money and now she's not even using the songs. Honestly, the world of pop music – I don't like it at all.

I remember Calvin's bitchfit — it made quite the stink in the music press at the time.

But Roisin was eminently correct — Off and On was not as good as anything that made it onto Overpowered, much less being another Can't Get You Out of My Head, which is what Cathy was specifically hired to conjure up.

I knew Cathy Dennis' work from her singing career early on. I had no idea she wrote Toxic, I Kissed A Girl, and Can't Get You Out of My Head. Someone revoke my gay card.

But, what a legend. Toxic is Top 5 Britney for me, and same for Kylie's song. And I Kissed a Girl made Katy Perry a star (for better or worse). Damn.

Britney really should have recorded this as a big Fuck You to Justina

Rachel, like Britney, was never the strongest singer, but Cathy's vocals are so prominent she deserves a (featuring) credit.

Despite struggling with celebrity racist Jo O'Meara's harsh vocal performances, this is quite a pleasant song.

I can no longer find the original version of Cathy's "Touch me." The original version is mellower and not as loud as the remix. I had no idea that it was sort of a cover.

This month marks the 30th anniversary of the UK release of Just Another Dream, the follow up to C'Mon & Get My Love.

It made #93 originally, was re-released in November 1990 when it made #95 and then was re-released again after the success of Touch Me and finally became a hit in the UK.

FACT: Cathy's first 4 singles all charted higher in the US than in the UK. I'm sure 4 US top 10 hits from a debut album was some kind of record for a UK female artist at the time.

I don't think I've ever actually heard of her. Back in the day I enjoyed Toxic and especially Can't Get You Out of My Head.

I never heard that she was a lesbian. Source, OP?

Cathy is a amazing!! So glad that she’s back to performing and singing as a solo artist.

75% of the vocals on Britney’s Toxic are Cathy’s. The demo sung by Cathy is on Youtube.

How can you talk about Cathy Dennis with referencing her first hit?

She looks a little “lipstick lesbian” here, no?

I found a 90s dance CD for like a dollar a year ago and TOUCH ME was on it. I immediately loved it. Never heard of her or it. I was 9 years old in 1990 so I assumed she was just some one hit wonder. I had no idea she wrote all these great pop hits from my 20s. She's definitely legendary and I guess British judging from this thread.

Ugh. Her music was so awful and she couldn't sing! Her shit played in grocery stores not on the radio.

I'm #TeamRoisin - Roisin knew what fit and worked best for her and that song sounded tinny and weird as recorded. She was right to pass it up.

The record company tried to force a lot of dance pop stuff on her with Overpowered and it ended up being quite a legendary album, but because it wasn't all prefabricated dance garbage, they dropped her from the label, and she's been doing insanely inventive, wonderful work since.

Her song "Exploitation" resonates even more to me in the context of a response to Calvin Harris. (Look up the lyrics and you'll see what I mean!)

R17, Kylie Minogue SUCKS, her music SUCKS and she can't sing a fraction as good as Donna Summer. And that crappy song is NOT iconic anywhere but in Europe, where the most godawful, dehumanized, rhythmless dance music comes from, mainly because they don't have enough Black people showing them how to make great dance music. In America that song means nothing and, let's face it, America is the only place that matters when it comes to musical success. It's been true since The Beatles.

I wouldn't be as harsh as R42, but it does seem that what passes for a "music queen" in Europe is bubble gum shit like Minogue. There's no real depth to her music, It's cheesy music. Why do you guys over there pretend like it isn't? If you enjoy her music, fine, but don't pretend it has any soul to it.

Minogue is to music what knockoff colognes are to Eastern European shopping malls.

"Anytime Anywhere" by S Club 7 was written by Cathy Dennis.

It is on the January 2003 Gap In-Store Playlist.

I got vibe from her at my senior prom.

I loved Dennis’ music in college (late 80’s) but she just suddenly disappeared

Loved Too Many Walls as a young gay child in love with melodrama. Her other stuff (including the stuff she wrote for others) was catchy but not my jam.

Marc Ronson covered Toxic and it's the best version. Sorry I can't link at the moment.

Cathy's second album Into The Skyline was released a month before Madonna's Erotica.

Both had a majority of tracks co-written and produced by Shep Pettibone and Tony Shimkin but Madonna got all the hits.

The best song on the album wasn't a Shep contribution but one with Terry Britten of What's Love Got To Do With It and We Don't Need Another Hero fame. She sings about "fate" bringing Cathy her love and then taking them away - she gives fate a male pronoun.

LOVE Irresistible off that album, R50. Should've been a bigger hit. Perfect summer jam.

I would love to hear Kylie's version of Toxic, probably not as good though, as she passed on it.

Instead here's another Cathy Dennis creation from Dannii.

Helping out PM Dawn on backing vocals

I despised Kylie Minogue until Fever.The entire album is a cohesive, bouncy , FUN group of hits, and it holds up twenty years later. It was just what we needed during a depressing time in history. I learned after the fact Cathy Dennis had a large imprint on the album.

I love that PM Dawn song. I had no idea she was on backing vocals.

R42 needs a nap and a nappy change.

'MOMENTS OF LOVE"... song always brings a tear to my eye.. perfect melancholy movingly beautiful, and love the horns that add a bacharach/hal david touch to it.

Wasn't she dating Rick Astley way back in the day?

Rick Rolled her?

[quote] Both had a majority of tracks co-written and produced by Shep Pettibone and Tony Shimkin but Madonna got all the hits.

What hits?

Another classic.

Another.

R37, see R4.

She writes so many hits, it is unbelievable. She did an interview with Terry Gross; I never knew who she was but by the interview was done I was pretty impressed by her.

Well that's odd - I posted two things about her working with Bacharach for a Will Young song and Diana Vickers' Once hit in the last hour, but both posts have disappeared.

I believe her family were musicians but don’t quote me in that. She’s unbelievably humble on social media and can’t believe how kind people are to her. The woman has fuck you money and people begging her to write them a song and she’s not a cunt. People who have done less in their careers are unbelievably nasty. Cathy is a class act all the way.

STILL love this song

^ good song Impressed by her and all the trivia

Wasn't there a rumor about her getting it on with Samantha Fox?

R69 Why don't we have a list of who hasn't gotten with Sam Fox? That girl is the world's bicycle at this point.

I have no idea whether she is, but she's in every urban legend from the '80s. If it were today, she'd be like WTC: everyone claims to have been there, known someone who died or was somehow affected - even if they weren't.

Imagine Cathy and Smamfa making sweet lady love

Cathy: hold me baby, drive me crazy, touch me all night long Smamfa: touch me, touch me, I wanna feel your body Cathy: no you touch me Smamfa: no you touch me Cathy: I said it first Smamfa: No I recorded mine first

etc etc

Who decided to bring up talentless whore Samantha Fox?

Touch me!

All night long

Like a tramp in the night I was begging for you

Roisin was right to cut Off and On from Overpowered.

The whole album was very electronic but also very warm and intimate — like a dance album designed to be sung in a cabaret room — which is the opposite of Off and On.

The woman is a magician, in my opinion.

And Roisin can sing the hell out of any great dance tune on a street corner.