Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler, David Knopfler, John Illsley and Pick Withers. They were active from 1977 to 1988 and again from 1990 to 1995.
Air Supply is a soft rock duo formed in Melbourne, Australia, in 1975. It consists of Englishman Graham Russell and Australian Russell Hitchcock (vocals). They had a succession of hits worldwide, including eight top-five hits on the US Billboard Hot 100, "Lost in Love" (1979), "All Out of Love", "Every Woman in the World", "The One That You Love" (number one), "Here I Am", "Sweet Dreams", "Even the Nights Are Better" and "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" (1983). In Australia, they had four top ten placements with "Love and Other Bruises" (1976), "All Out of Love", "Every Woman in the World" and "The One That You Love". Their highest charting studio album, The One That You Love (1981) reached number ten in both Australia and the US. The group, which relocated to Los Angeles in the late 1970s, has included many members, with Hitchcock and Russell at the core. The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) inducted Air Supply into their Hall of Fame on 1 December 2013, at the annual ARIA Awards.
Paul Hamilton Williams Jr. is an American composer, singer, songwriter, and actor. He is known for writing and co-writing popular songs performed by a number of acts in the 1970s, including Three Dog Night's "An Old Fashioned Love Song" and "Out in the Country", Helen Reddy's "You and Me Against the World", Biff Rose's "Fill Your Heart", and the Carpenters' "We've Only Just Begun" and "Rainy Days and Mondays". He also wrote “Cried Like a Baby” for teen idol Bobby Sherman.
William Royce "Boz" Scaggs is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He was an early bandmate of Steve Miller in The Ardells and the Steve Miller Band.
Sharon Lea O'Neill is a New Zealand singer-songwriter and pianist, who had an Australasian hit single in 1983 with "Maxine" which reached No. 16 on both the Australian Kent Music Report and Recording Industry Association of New Zealand charts.
Arrival is the fourth studio album by the Swedish pop group ABBA. It was originally released in Sweden on 11 October 1976 by Polar Records. It became one of ABBA's most successful albums to date, producing three of their biggest hits: "Dancing Queen", "Money, Money, Money" and "Knowing Me, Knowing You". The track "Fernando", which had been recently released as a single in March 1976, was included on the Australian and New Zealand versions of the album. Arrival was the best-selling album of 1977 in the United Kingdom and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Maze, also known as Maze Featuring Frankie Beverly and Frankie Beverly & Maze, is an American soul band founded by Frankie Beverly in Philadelphia in 1970. Under its original name Raw Soul, the band relocated to San Francisco and was introduced to Marvin Gaye. Gaye took the group on the road with him as one of his opening acts, and in 1976, he suggested that they change their name from Raw Soul.
Donald Ray Williams was an American country music singer, songwriter, and 2010 inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame. He began his solo career in 1971, singing popular ballads and amassing seventeen number one country hits. His straightforward yet smooth bass-baritone voice, soft tones, and imposing build earned him the nickname "The Gentle Giant". In 1975, Williams starred in a movie with Burt Reynolds and Jerry Reed called W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings.
The following lists events that happened during 1976 in New Zealand.
"Evergreen" is the theme song from the 1976 film A Star Is Born. It was composed and performed by American singer, songwriter, actress and director Barbra Streisand with lyrics by Paul Williams, and arranged by Ian Freebairn-Smith. The song was released on the soundtrack album to A Star Is Born.
Hayley Nichole Williams is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and businesswoman. She is best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Paramore, which she co-founded in 2004.
Mark Williams is a New Zealand singer with Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ) number one hit singles, "Yesterday Was Just the Beginning of My Life" (1975) and a cover of Buddy Holly's "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" (1977) before he relocated to Australia later that year. His single, "Show No Mercy" (1990) was a top ten hit in both countries. He has undertaken extensive touring in support of numerous Australian bands and worked in television. In 2006 he became the vocalist for the reformed New Zealand band, Dragon.
Mark Williams is the self-titled debut studio album by New Zealand-born singer Mark Williams. It was released in June 1975 a year after being signed to EMI Music by Alan Galbraith. The album peaked at number 2 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart, remaining on the charts for 30 weeks. It was the highest selling album by a New Zealand artist in New Zealand in 1975.
Sweet Trials is the second studio album by New Zealand-born singer Mark Williams. It was released in March 1976. The album peaked at number 14 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart.
Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album released by New Zealand-born singer Mark Williams, released in late 1977 following the expiry of his contract with EMI Music. It includes tracks from his three studio albums to date; Mark Williams, Sweet Trials and Taking It All In Stride.
The Very Best Of is a greatest hits compilation by New Zealand-born singer Mark Williams. The album was released in 1999. The album includes tracks from four of his studio albums; Mark Williams, Sweet Trials, Taking It All In Stride and Mark Williams ZNZ.
"It Doesn't Matter Anymore" is a pop ballad written by Paul Anka and recorded by Buddy Holly in 1958. The song was issued in January 1959, less than a month before Holly's death. "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" reached number 13 as a posthumous hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in early 1959, shortly after Holly was killed in a plane crash on February 3, 1959. The single was a two-sided hit, backed with "Raining in My Heart". "It Doesn't Matter Anymore" was Holly's last US Top 20 hit and featured the orchestral backing of Dick Jacobs. It was also successful in the United Kingdom, where it became the country's first posthumous number 1 hit.
A Star Is Born is the soundtrack album to the 1976 musical film of the same name, performed by its stars Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson. The album was very successful, holding the number-one spot on the US Billboard 200 chart for six weeks and eventually was certified 4× Platinum by the RIAA for more than four million units shipped and has sold a total of eight million copies worldwide.
"A House for Sale" is a song written by Carl Hampton and Homer Banks and recorded by New Zealand-born singer songwriter, Mark Williams. The song was released in August 1977 as the third and final single from his third studio album, Taking It All In Stride (1977). The song peaked at number 13 on the New Zealand charts.
"Taking It All in Stride" is a song written by Tom Snow and recorded by New Zealand-born singer songwriter, Mark Williams. The song was released in November 1976 as the lead single from his third studio album, Taking It All In Stride (1977). The song peaked at number 14 on the New Zealand charts.
