Jez Bird, 50, was the lead singer of 80s mod band and Lewes legends the Lambrettas.

The band notched a top ten hit and a loyal fanbase which still exists almost 30 years after they split.

Jez, a former Priory School pupil who lived in Lewes for nearly 40 years, continued to perform in pubs and weddings all over the county and his family said he will be remembered by many as a 'great entertainer'.

Fiona, Jez's wife of 20 years, said: 'He loved music and he knew how to get everyone dancing.

'He was hilariously funny and knew exactly how to get a crowd going, he was a great entertainer.'

Fiona was his girlfriend in the early days of his career and remebered how the Lambrettas were formed in 1979.

She said: ''It was an absolute scream and I think it was the best time of his life.'

'He and his friend Doug Sanders decided they were going to get a band together and get on Top of the Pops and then three months later they were!'

The band's instant success was achieved by a combination of some successful gigs in London and the efforts of Peter Haines, their manager who they met at early gig at Hastings Pier, who helped the band to secure a record deal with Elton John's record label Rocket Records.

Fiona said: 'One of the first times they were in a recording studio was in Tooting.

'I remember a chap rolled up in a car and a scruffy suit, and it was Pete Waterman!

'He suggested they did Poison Ivy.

'They recorded it and within a few weeks it was on the radio.'

Pop guru Waterman's choice of single proved to be a good one and the band's cover of 1950s Leiber and Stoller tune reached number seven in the national chart and sold more than 250,000 copies.

They received a lot of attention at the time but Fiona said Jez was very level-headed about it despite often being recognised on the street and appearing on TV.

The Lambrettas recorded two albums and another top twenty hit Da-a-a-nce and toured Europe with Madness before disbanding in 1983.

Doug Sanders, a Priory School friend who formed the Lambrettas with Jez and now lives in Cooksbridge, said: 'Musically I'll remember him as a perfectionist, and a very good songwriter and performer.

'We spent a lot of time together, for four years or so I spent most of my time with him in hotel rooms. venues or recording studios.

'He was a real laugh and an honest fella who everyone liked.'

Jez continued to write songs and play in pubs and was a very popular performer at weddings.

He died on August 27 after a battle with cancer and is survived by Fiona and children Henry, 18 and Charlie, 12.

A funeral service takes place on Tuesday (September 9) at 1.30pm in St John the Baptist Church, Southover High Street, and everyone is welcome.

Family members are providing flowers and friends can make a donation to St Peter and St James Hospice via funeral directors Cooper and Son.