The musician, songwriter and producer Tom Springfield, who has died aged 88, became massively successful in the 1960s but hated being in the public eye. Best known as the elder brother of Dusty Springfield, the finest and most soulful female British singer to emerge during the decade, he joined her in the Springfields, a trio who enjoyed commercial success in Britain, the US and Australia from 1961 to 1963.
When Dusty left to follow her solo career, Tom began working as a songwriter and producer with an Australian band, the Seekers, who also specialised in pop-folk songs and had a similar lineup, though with added double-bass, and a female lead vocalist, Judith Durham. They too became very successful in Britain, Australia and the US, but broke up in 1968 when Durham left to go solo.
