Marc Almond recovering after motorcycle crash

Soft Cell singer Marc Almond is recovering in a London hospital today (Oct. 18) after a serious motorcycle &to=http:// english.pravda.ru/accidents/2002/08/22/34989.html ' target=_blank>crash, police said. The 47-year-old, English-born singer was the passenger on a bike that collided with a car yesterday near St. Paul's Cathedral in central London. The driver of the motorcycle was also hospitalized.

A spokesperson at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel said Almond was recovering in stable condition after &to=http:// english.pravda.ru/main/18/90/360/11846_surgery.html ' target=_blank>surgery, reports Billboard.

British synth-pop pioneers Soft Cell formed in 1980 in Leeds, England, by art students Almond and Dave Ball, who had previously collaborated on music for theatrical productions.

They scored a massive hit in 1981 with their provocative cover of "Tainted Love," and their debut album, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, went on to become a big success. By 1984, however, the short-lived duo had broken up, with Almond immediately plunging into solo work with various electronica projects, wrote Rolling Stones.

According to the ITV News, other hits for the band included Torch, Bedsitter and Say Hello, Wave Goodbye, and they sold 10 million records.

After they split in 1984, Marc went on to have single success with covers of Scott Walker's Jacky, David McWilliams' Days Of Pearly Spencer and Gene Pitney's Something's Gotten Hold Of My Heart, featuring Pitney himself.