Linda GeorgeOAM (born 1951) is an Australian pop, jazz fusion and soul singer from the 1970s. In 1973, George performed the role of Acid Queen for the Australian stage performance of The Who's rock opera, Tommy. She won the TV WeekKing of Pop award for "Best New Female Artist". Her cover version of "Neither One of Us", peaked at No. 12 on the Australian Singles Chart and her 1974 single "Mama's Little Girl" reached the TopTen. From 1972 to 1998, George also worked as a session singer and later became a music teacher. Her last CD recorded in the late 1990s would be available in 2012.
Linda George was born in 1951 in England. She emigrated with her family to Australia in 1964, where they settled in Adelaide, South Australia in the satellite town of Elizabeth.[1] By 1968, George had already worked professionally in a duo and moved to Melbourne to find more musical experience.
She joined her first band, Nova Express, a jazz fusion group similar in repertoire to United States acts Chicago and Blood Sweat and Tears.[2] With George as lead singer, the band included Peter Walsh on organ, Craig Forbes on drums, Ian Hellings on trumpet, Dave Clark on saxophone, the legendary jazz bass player Derek Capewell on bass guitar (after they lost their original bass player, Ray Greenhorn to the draft for Vietnam), Ken Schroder on alto and baritone saxophone, Geoff Schroder on tenor saxophone, and Ken White on guitar.[1] A later member was Graham Morgan on drums.
Early in 1969, the band's first and only single, a cover version of "Take Another Little Piece of My Heart" (originally recorded by Erma Franklin, then Janis Joplin), was released on the EMI label imprint Columbia, the B side featured a Ken White original 'Around the block' which reached No.28 in Melbourne.[3] They won the Victorian state final of the 1970 Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds ahead of Zoot, though they finished behind The Flying Circus, Zoot and Autumn at the national finals in August.[4] George left Nova Express later that year for a solo career, including performing with The Marlboro Big Band, The Barry Veith Big Band, Opus Big Band, and Brian May and the ABC Show Band on a tour of Vietnam, which included Derek Capewell on bass, Garry Hyde on drums and Melbourne musical stalwarts.[1]
In 1971, George teamed again with Ken Schroder in his band called 'Plant'. This band featured Schroder on saxes and Steve Miller on trombone along with David Alardyce on piano and Colin Deluka on bass plus the Tasmanian drummer Eric Johnson. She worked with that band until 1973 when Ken Schroder left to travel abroad, and she joined Image Records as a solo artist.[5]
The raised exposure helped promote her second single in July, her cover version of the Gladys Knight & the Pips US hit "Neither One of Us", arranged by the Australian music writer and pianist Peter Jones, which peaked at No.12 on Go-Set's National Top40 singles chart.[6] George's follow up single, a remake of Ruby and the Romantics 1963 hit "Our Day Will Come" with a co-production between Peter Jones music arranger and Image records, reached the Top40 in February 1974.[6]
Her debut LP album, Linda, appeared in August on Image Records. Session musicians were used and US record producer Jack Richardson (Alice Cooper, The Guess Who, Poco and Bob Seger) was brought to Australia by label boss, John McDonald,[2] The first single from Linda was her biggest hit and became her signature song, "Mama's Little Girl" (previously by Dusty Springfield), which went to No.8 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart.[7] The second single, "Give It Love", did not reach the top40.[7]Linda peaked at No.32 on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart and stayed in the top 100 for five months.[7] George won awards for "Best Female Vocalist" and "Best Female Single".[2]
She appeared both in the 1973 and at the 1975 Sunbury Pop Festival in January.[2] Richardson also produced her second album, Step by Step, which was released in December. It featured a tougher rock sound compared to the previous album's soul and pop sound. After the first album Linda she parted ways with her management company. To promote it she formed the Linda George Band which performed throughout 1976 to positive reviews.[2] The album's first single "Shoo Be Doo Be Doo Dah Day" charted reasonably well in former hometown Adelaide, but public reaction in the rest of Australia was lukewarm.[2] The album peaked in the Top40.[7] A third single, the title track, was released in May 1976 but failed to make the charts.[7] George then released a non-album single "Sitting in Limbo" in November 1978, a cover of the Jimmy Cliff song, it also did not chart.
George left Image to continue working as a session singer and raise her children.[2] Throughout this time George continued to be in demand for live television performances throughout Australia, and occasional solo performance shows. Peter Faiman produced an iconic segment with George in the "Paul Hogan" show and she featured regularly on the 'Naked Vicar show', and Don Lane and Bert Newton shows.
During 1979, George performed backing vocals on Mike Brady's album Invisible Man. Brady had just had a No.1 hit with "Up There Cazaly" and set up his own label, Full Moon Records. George signed to his label and returned to the studio with new material.[1] Her first single in four years was a duet with Melbourne singer Paul McKay, "Love Is Enough", released in April 1980, which reached No. 23 locally.[8] Her next single was the up-tempo, "Telephone Lines", in 1981, but it was not a chart success.[7] While resuming her session work, George also spent much of the 1980s singing with her own ensemble, the Linda George Band. The line-up often included David Allardice on piano, which was an early alliance revisited. Later in 1982, she joined with Jeremy Alsop, David Jones and Mark Chew in the band Voice, and worked locally. During that time she represented Australia at the Yamaha music festival in Tokyo.
By 1986, George was a featured member of WJAZ, the Melbourne-based band which featured three singers: herself, Penny Dyer and Lindsay Field, with Alex Pertout on percussion, Colin Hopkins on keyboards, Peter Blick on drums, Ron Pierce on guitar and Steve Hadley on bass. They performed regularly at the Limerick Arms to an enthusiastic fan base. WJAZ continued through to 1993 in various line ups. A later line-up of WJAZ was George, Dyer and Pertout, with Craig Newman and Colin Hopkins.
During the early 1990s, George toured to Russia with two of her seven brothers, in an ensemble that included Colin Hopkins from Melbourne and George Grifsas from Adelaide, working for the Freedom from Hunger campaign. Back in Melbourne, she created a venue, "Music on Q", for local original artists. She recorded an album, Circle Dance, with Hopkins and Pertout, which was released in 1996 as a limited edition CD.[9] Whilst raising three daughters she continued to teach at various schools and colleges throughout Melbourne and also ran a private practice. Her focus was and is on encouraging the individuals voice to emerge, to promote healthy voice habits, and to cultivate the love of originality, improvising and composition in her students.
George became a full-time teacher, after gaining a B.A. and a Dip. Ed., and taught voice for the Victorian College of the Arts and other schools and institutions as a sessional teacher. In 2001, she published, with Steve Vertigan, The Greatest Ever Improve Your Singing Book for Contemporary Vocalists, which included two CDs with practice tracks.[10] and is a basic book for singers of all levels.
George continued to sing occasionally with her own trio but went on to teach in schools full-time both private and public, and recently retired from full-time teaching in schools. She retired as the head of music at Pascoe Vale Girls College in 2012, and now teaches voice and music in state schools and private schools in Melbourne.[5]
Bibliography
George, Linda; Vertigan, Steve (2001). The Greatest Ever Improve Your Singing Book for Contemporary Vocalists. Fitzroy, Vic: Encore Music Distributors (Australia). Note: Includes a score and two sound discs, which contain practice tracks.[10]
Susan Kay Quatro is an American singer, bass guitarist, songwriter and actor. In the 1970s, she scored a string of singles that found success in Europe and Australia, with both "Can the Can" (1973) and "Devil Gate Drive" (1974) reaching No. 1 in several countries.
John Peter Farnham AO is a British-born Australian singer. Farnham was a teen pop idol from 1967 until 1979, billed until then as Johnny Farnham. He has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer. His career has mostly been as a solo artist, although he replaced Glenn Shorrock as lead singer of Little River Band from 1982 to 1985.
Sweet are a British glam rock band who rose to prominence in the 1970s. Their best-known line-up consisted of lead vocalist Brian Connolly, bassist Steve Priest, guitarist Andy Scott and drummer Mick Tucker.
Renée Rebecca Geyer was an Australian singer who was one of that country's finest jazz, soul and R&B musicians. She released 15 studio albums with Moving Along (1977) and Tenderland (2003) both reaching number 11 on the Australian charts. Geyer's singles success as a solo artist in Australia were with "It's a Man's Man's World", "Heading in the Right Direction" and "Stares and Whispers" in the 1970s and "Say I Love You" in the 1980s. The latter also reached number one in New Zealand. The singer was an internationally respected and sought-after backing vocalist, whose session credits include work with Sting, Chaka Khan, Toni Childs, Joe Cocker, Neil Diamond, Men at Work and Trouble Funk.
Deborah Ann Conway is an Australian rock singer-songwriter and guitarist, and had a career as a model and actress. She was a founding member of the 1980s rock band Do-Ré-Mi with their top-5 hit "Man Overboard".
Trevor George Lucas was an Australian folk singer, a member of Fairport Convention and one of the founders of Fotheringay. He mainly worked as a singer-songwriter and guitarist but also produced many albums and composed for the film industry toward the end of his career. He married three times, his first wife was Cheryl, his second wife was fellow folk musician Sandy Denny (1973–1978), and his third wife was Elizabeth Hurtt (1979–1989). Lucas died on 4 February 1989 of a heart attack in his sleep, in Sydney, aged 45. He was survived by Elizabeth Hurtt, his daughter, Georgia Rose Lucas, and his son, Daniel 'Clancy' Lucas. According to Australian rock music historian Ian McFarlane, Lucas "was one of the most acclaimed singer-songwriters Australia ever produced and although he was held in high regard in UK folk rock circles, he remained virtually unknown in his homeland".
Venetta Lee Fields is an American-born Australian singer and musical theater actress, and vocal coach.
William Richard Thorpe AM was an English-born Australian singer-songwriter, and record producer. As lead singer of his band Billy Thorpe & the Aztecs, he had success in the 1960s with "Blue Day", "Poison Ivy", "Over the Rainbow", "Sick and Tired", "Baby, Hold Me Close" and "Mashed Potato"; and in the 1970s with "Most People I Know Think That I'm Crazy". Featuring in concerts at Sunbury Pop Festivals and Myer Music Bowl in the early 1970s, the Aztecs also developed the pub rock scene and were one of the loudest groups in Australia.
Colleen Hewett is an Australian singer and actress.
Irwin Thomas is an American-born Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist. He performs professionally using the stage name Jack Jones from when he was the lead vocalist-guitarist in the band Southern Sons (1990–1996).
Get Closer is the eleventh studio album by singer Linda Ronstadt, released in 1982.
Douglas John Parkinson was an Australian pop and rock singer. He led the bands Strings and Things/A Sound (1965), the Questions (1966–1968), Doug Parkinson in Focus, Fanny Adams (1970–1971), the Life Organisation (1973), Southern Star Band (1978–1980) and Doug Parkinson Band (1981–1983). Doug Parkinson in Focus's cover version of the Beatles' track "Dear Prudence" peaked at No. 5 on the Go-Set National Top 40. The follow-up single, "Without You" / "Hair" (October), also reached No. 5. Parkinson released solo material and performed in musical theatre productions.
Do-Ré-Mi was an Australian pop rock band formed in Sydney in 1981 by Deborah Conway, Dorland Bray, Helen Carter and Stephen Philip (guitar). They were one of Australia's most respected and successful post-punk groups. Do-Ré-Mi recorded self-titled EP and The Waiting Room for independent label Green Records before signing to Virgin Records and recording their first LP, Domestic Harmony in 1985 with Gavin MacKillop producing. Domestic Harmony achieved gold sales and contained their most played song, "Man Overboard", which was a top 5 hit single in 1985. This song was notable for its lyrical references to penis envy and pubic hair. Do-Ré-Mi's follow-up singles Idiot Grin and Warnings Moving Clockwise reached the Top 100.
What's New is an album of traditional pop standards released by American singer/songwriter/producer Linda Ronstadt in 1983. It represents the first in a trilogy of 1980s albums Ronstadt recorded with bandleader/arranger Nelson Riddle. John Kosh designed the album covers for all three albums.
Jesus Christ Superstar or Jesus Christ Superstar – Original Australian Cast Recording is an album released in late 1972 on MCA Records. Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera created by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1970. The earliest Australian version was staged from May 1972 to February 1974. This album features Trevor White, Jon English and Michele Fawdon. Together with other cast members, they performed vocals for a studio recording. It was produced by Patrick Flynn, the show's musical director and a conductor for Opera Australia. The album peaked at No. 17 on the Go-Set Albums Chart in June 1973, while it reached No. 13 on the Kent Music Report and remained on its charts for 54 weeks. It appeared in the top 100 on the 1974 End of Year Albums Chart. In May 1973, the album was awarded a gold record for sales of 50,000 albums.
Daddy Cool is an Australian rock band formed in Melbourne, Victoria, in 1970 with the original line-up of Wayne Duncan, Ross Hannaford, Ross Wilson and Gary Young. Their debut single "Eagle Rock" was released in May 1971 and stayed at number 1 on the Australian singles chart for ten weeks. Their debut, July 1971's LP Daddy Who? Daddy Cool, also reached number 1 and became the first Australian album to sell more than 100,000 copies. The group's name came from the 1957 song "Daddy Cool" by US rock group The Rays. Daddy Cool included their version of this song on Daddy Who? Daddy Cool.
Wendy June Saddington, also known as Gandharvika Dasi, was an Australian blues, soul and jazz singer, and was in the bands Chain, Copperwine and the Wendy Saddington Band. She wrote for teen pop newspaper Go-Set from September 1969 to September 1970 as an agony aunt in her weekly "Takes Care of Business" column, and as a feature writer. Saddington had Top 30 chart success with her 1972 solo single "Looking Through a Window", which was written and produced by Billy Thorpe and Warren Morgan of the Aztecs. After adopting Krishna Consciousness in the 1970s she took the name Gandharvika Dasi. In March 2013 she was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer and died in June, aged 63.
Russell James Dunlop was an Australian musician, singer-songwriter and record producer-engineer. From the late 1970s he collaborated with Bruce Brown in a production company for albums and singles by Australian performers including Mental As Anything, The Reels and Machinations. As a musician he was a member of various groups such as Aesop's Fables (1968–70), Levi Smith's Clefs (1971), Southern Contemporary Rock Assembly (SCRA) (1971–72) and Ayers Rock (1976).
The Masters Apprentices are an Australian rock band fronted by Jim Keays on lead vocals, which originally formed as The Mustangs in 1964 in Adelaide, South Australia, relocated to Melbourne, Victoria, in February 1967 and attempted to break into the United Kingdom market from 1970 before disbanding in 1972. Their popular Australian singles are "Undecided", "Living in a Child's Dream", "5:10 Man", "Think About Tomorrow Today", "Turn Up Your Radio" and "Because I Love You". The band launched the career of bass guitarist Glenn Wheatley, who later became a music industry entrepreneur and an artist talent manager for both Little River Band and John Farnham.
Wendy Anne-Marie Stapleton is an Australian pop/rock singer-songwriter, musical theatre performer and television actress and presenter Stapleton has performed as a backing singer, session musician and a solo artist; she fronted various Melbourne-based groups including Wendy Stapleton Band (1976–1978) and Wendy & the Rocketts [sic] (1980–1985) which had a top 30 hit single with "Play the Game" in June 1983.
Spencer, Chris; Zbig Nowara, Paul McHenry with notes by Ed Nimmervoll (2002) [1987]. The Who's Who of Australian Rock. Noble Park, Vic: Five Mile Press. ISBN1-86503-891-1.[12] Note: [on-line] version of The Who's Who of Australian Rock was established at White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd in 2007 and was expanded from the 2002 edition. As from, September 2010 the [on-line] version shows an 'Internal Service Error' and was no longer available.
↑ Stacey, Terence J. (2002). Kimball, Duncan (ed.). "Hoadley's National Battle of the Sounds". Milesago: Australasian Music and Popular Culture 1964–1975. Ice Productions. Archived from the original on 31 August 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
