Daniel Anthony Hutton (born September 10, 1942) is an Irish-American singer, best known as one of the three lead vocalists in the band Three Dog Night. Hutton was a songwriter and singer for Hanna-Barbera Records from 1965 to 1966.[1] Hutton had a modest national hit, "Roses and Rainbows", during his tenure as a recording artist for Hanna-Barbera Records.
Hutton was born in Buncrana, Ireland. When he was 5, his mother, Kathleen,[2] took him and his siblings (Vincent, 16, and Patricia, 10[2]) to Boston, where most of his extended family already lived.[3] His family grew up poor, and Hutton's father "bailed" on him.[3]
Kathleen ran a Victorian rooming house, and young Danny had to answer the public phone on the first floor. At one point, they housed Elmer "Trigger" Burke, who was going under the alias Mr. Mahoney.[2] When Burke attempted to murder Specs O'Keefe after being one of many men to partake in the Great Brink's Robbery, Danny's mother was brought into the local police station to identify the man.[3] Burke escaped after dressing as a woman, and because Hutton's mother was the one to identify her, the family were under police protection 24/7 for the next six months.[2]
Unable to cope with this new life of authority protection and constant paranoia, when Hutton was eleven or twelve, his mother announced the family were moving to Hollywood.[2][3]
Hutton's first car was a 1950 Jaguar convertible, that only cost him $800. After graduating from high school, Hutton took a gap year and travelled to Paris, London, and Liverpool. He then took a ferry to Belfast, and while there, he bought his first guitar, and cycled back to his birth place of Buncrana.[3] Hutton stayed in Ireland for a month.[2] After returning to the US, Hutton worked at Walt Disney Records, unloading records out the back of delivery trucks.[4]
Early career
Hutton was asked to join Hanna Barbera Records, and was asked to write and perform all the vocals and instruments for his self–penned songs for the company, who would then release them under fake names and then hire bands to perform them, pretending to be the "band" on Hutton's works.[4]
"I was hired as the hip, young guy on the street who knows where all of the action is, My job was to find talent and record. I ended up doing a lot of the recording myself. I did this one song, ‘Roses and Rainbows,’ and after I did it, wrote it, recorded it and produced it, they said, ‘You know what? We’re going to send you out as an artist.’ And I had never really performed. I was shocked. They sent me out on tour with Sonny and Cher."[2]
Hutton hit #73 on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Roses and Rainbows" in 1965, during his tenure as a recording artist for Hanna-Barbera Records. Hutton's "Big Bright Eyes" also charted in 1966. Hutton also sang backing vocals on the track "Sweet Sweet Surrender" with the power trio BBA on their eponymous album released by Epic in 1973.
Hutton left Hanna Barbera Records because he got "completely screwed by them", and moved to Brother Records, where he became friends with Brian Wilson.[2]
Three Dog Night was based around the vocal skills of Danny Hutton, Chuck Negron, and Cory Wells. In 1967, Hutton conceived the idea of a three-vocalist group, and he and Wells enlisted mutual friend Negron. Lead vocals on songs were shared between Hutton, Negron, and Wells. Hutton sang lead on the least amount of songs, including "Black and White", "Celebrate" (verse 1 only), "Liar", "One Man Band", "The Family of Man" (verse 1 only), and "Your Song".
The official commentary included in the CD set Celebrate: The Three Dog Night Story, 1965–1975 states that vocalist Hutton's then-girlfriend June Fairchild suggested the name after reading a magazine article about indigenous Australians,[5] in which it was explained that on cold nights they would customarily sleep in a hole in the ground whilst embracing a dingo, a native species of wild dog. On colder nights they would sleep with two dogs and if the night was freezing, it was a "three-dog night".[6] Musician Van Dyke Parks has disputed this claim, and says he came up with the name from the magazine, and not Farichild.
Their first Top Ten hit was "One", in 1969. "Mama Told Me (Not to Come)" reached #1 a year later. "Joy to the World" became the group's biggest hit in 1971. The group's final #1, "Black and White", topped the Hot 100 in 1972. "The Show Must Go On" was their final Top Ten song, in 1974. They had 21 hit singles, including 11 Top Ten hits and 12 consecutive gold albums, from 1969 to 1975. Hutton served as the lead vocalist on "Black and White" as well as the Top Ten hit "Liar".
By 1976 the hits had stopped, there were several member changes (Coming Down Your Way produced only one Top 40 hit and American Pastime failed to produce a charting single), Negron was taking the leads on many of their songs and Hutton left the group; Three Dog Night officially disbanded in 1977. Three Dog Night, an ABC Dunhill Records act, was managed by Reb Foster and Associates of Beverly Hills and the band's concerts were promoted by Concerts West.
The band got back together in the early 1980s, and continued with Hutton and Wells along with founding members Allsup and Greenspoon. Greenspoon died on March 11, 2015, and Wells died on October 20, 2015. Three Dog Night started a tour in August 2021 that did not include Allsup, leaving Danny the sole original member. Hutton continues to lead Three Dog Night, touring regularly throughout the US and Canada.
Hutton and his wife, Laurie, are the father of two sons, Dash Hutton (born February 13, 1995), the former drummer in the American rock band Haim and Timothy V. Hutton (born 1991), a bassist and producer, and another son.[2] Laurie has another son, Ty (born 1985), from another marriage.[2] The sons co-own a recording studio called The Canyon Hut.
Three Dog Night is an American rock band formed in 1967, founded by vocalists Chuck Negron, Cory Wells, and Danny Hutton. This lineup was soon augmented by Jimmy Greenspoon (keyboards), Joe Schermie (bass), Michael Allsup (guitar), and Floyd Sneed (drums). The band had 21 Billboard Top 40 hits between 1969 and 1975, with three hitting number one. Three Dog Night recorded many songs written by outside songwriters, and they helped to introduce mainstream audiences to writers such as Randy Newman, Paul Williams, Laura Nyro and Hoyt Axton.
Three Dog Night is the debut album by American rock band Three Dog Night. The album was originally released by Dunhill Records on October 16, 1968. The album is known for featuring the band's Top 5 hit single, their cover of Harry Nilsson's song "One".
Suitable for Framing is the second studio album by American rock band Three Dog Night. The album was released on the Dunhill record label on June 11, 1969 and was the first of two albums released by the band that year.
Captured Live at the Forum is the third album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1969.
It Ain't Easy is the fourth album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1970.
Naturally is the fifth album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1970. It produced two top ten hits: "Joy to the World" and "Liar" (#7). "One Man Band" reached the top 20 (#19). The only original by the band is the instrumental "Fire Eater".
Golden Bisquits is the sixth album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1971.
Seven Separate Fools is the eighth studio album by American rock band Three Dog Night. Released in 1972, the album reached number six on the US Billboard 200, becoming the band's highest-charting album. The LP version of the album was released with seven large playing cards as an extra bonus.
Around the World with Three Dog Night is a double live album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1973.
Cyan is the tenth studio album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released on October 9, 1973, by Dunhill Records. The album's original title was Seven Ball, Center Pocket, which was changed for unknown reasons.
Hard Labor is the eleventh album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1974. For this album, the band replaced long-time producer Richard Podolor with Jimmy Ienner, who was known for his production work with the Raspberries.
Joy to the World: Their Greatest Hits is the twelfth album by American rock band, Three Dog Night, released in 1974.
American Pastime is the fourteenth and final album by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1976.
It's a Jungle is an EP by American rock band Three Dog Night, released in 1983.
Celebrate: The Three Dog Night Story, 1965–1975 is a two-CD anthology of Three Dog Night recordings released in 1993 which includes some pre-3DN material from co-lead singers Danny Hutton and Cory Wells, as well as an unreleased track "Time to Get Alone", penned and produced by Brian Wilson from the band's brief "Redwood" incarnation. It covers all of the band's singles, as well as some album tracks, in the band's career.
Cory Wells was an American singer, best known as one of the three lead vocalists in the band Three Dog Night.
James Boyd Greenspoon was an American keyboard player and composer, best known as a member of the band Three Dog Night.
Floyd Chester Sneed was a Canadian drummer, best known for his work with the band Three Dog Night.
20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of Three Dog Night is a compilation album of hits released by Universal Music as part of their 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection series. Released on May 16, 2000, with hits from the 1970s American rock and roll band Three Dog Night with no new material recorded for the compilation. As of August 2013, the album has sold 1,136,000 copies in the US.
The Complete Hit Singles is a compilation album by Three Dog Night. It was released on May 25, 2004 by Geffen Records.
References
Three Dog Nightmare, Chuck Negron. Renaissance Books 1st edition (June 1999); ISBN1-58063-040-5
One Is the Loneliest Number: On the Road and Behind the Scenes With the Legendary Rock Band Three Dog Night, Greenspoon, Jimmy and Bago, Mark. Pharos Books (January 1991); ISBN0-88687-647-8
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