 Michael Cox attended Wellingborough Grammar School (now known as Wrenn School), later graduating from St. Catharine's College, Cambridge in 1971.He studied English and had intended to be an academic, but he instead signed a contract with the record-publishing group EMI, making two albums and several singles early in the decade under the pseudonym Matthew Ellis on the Regal Zonophone label.He also subsequently recorded an album for DJM and singles for various labels as Obie Clayton.