Ex-Katrina & the Waves ‘Katrina': Then and Now

Her name is Katrina Leskanich. You probably know her simply as Katrina, from Katrina and the Waves. The band's biggest success was for the 1985 top ten hit "Walking On Sunshine." Katrina celebrates her 53rd birthday today, and so with our birthday greetings, here is a closer look at Katrina - and the Waves.

Katrina hails from Topeka, Kansas but has lived in the UK since the 70s,

Like most musicians, her early career was a struggle-first in the cover band Mama's Cooking in 1978 and later forming The Waves. In 1982, after some line up changes, the name of the band was changed to Katrina and the Waves and they were on their way.

In 1985 the song Walking On Sunshine made the top 10 and the band received a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist. Other hits followed including Do  You Want Crying, Que te Quiero, Rock and Roll Girl, and That's The Way,which made it to #16 on the charts in the U.S.

After that the hits stopped, although the band won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1997 with Love Shine A Light. The band dissolved in 1997.

Katrina Leskanich launched a solo career following  the band's break up and has remained busy performing and recording. To celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Walking on Sunshine, she released her first LIVE album in 2010.

In 2012, Katrina formed a new line up of her band and has been touring festivals. And in May, she'll publish her first book - " Peggy Lee Loves London -My London Guide"- a photographic book about London.