Vanda & Young

Last updated

Vanda & Young
The Easybeats 1968 (George Young, Harry Vanda).jpg
Young (left) and Vanda performing with the Easybeats in 1968
Background information
Origin Sydney, Australia
Genres Rock
Years active1964—2005
Labels Albert
Spinoffs Flash and the Pan
Spinoff of The Easybeats
Past members

Vanda & Young were an Australian songwriting and producing duo composed of Harry Vanda [1] and George Young. [2] They performed as members of 1960s Australian rock group the Easybeats where Vanda was their lead guitarist and backing singer and Young was their rhythm guitarist and backing singer. [1] [2] [3] [4] Vanda & Young co-wrote most of the Easybeats' later hits including their international hit "Friday on My Mind" [5] [6] and they were the record producers for the group from 1967. [3] Young was the older brother of Malcolm and Angus Young of the hard rock band AC/DC [7] and also the record producer behind several of the band's biggest albums (such as 1976's Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap ).

Contents

After the Easybeats disbanded in 1969, Vanda & Young were songwriters and producers for their own projects such as the Marcus Hook Roll Band (EMI), Paintbox (Youngblood) and Haffey's Whiskey Sour (Deram), Flash and the Pan, [1] [2] and for other acts including producing early albums for AC/DC; [1] [2] they were staff producers for Albert Productions from 1973. [6] In 1988 the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) acknowledged the iconic status of Vanda & Young when they were inducted into the inaugural Hall of Fame; in 2005 the Easybeats were also inducted into the Hall of Fame. [8] [9] In 2001, the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) surveyed 100 music industry personalities for the APRA Top Ten Best Australian Songs of All Time where "Friday on My Mind" was declared No. 1. [10] Their song for John Paul Young, "Love Is in the Air", was declared the 'Most played Australian song overseas' by APRA following its use on the 1992 film Strictly Ballroom . [10]

1964–1969: The Easybeats

The Vandenbergs and Youngs migrated to Australia in 1963; both families were initially housed at the Villawood Migrant Hostel in Sydney. [3] At the hostel five migrants formed the Easybeats: Stevie Wright (lead vocals), Dick Diamonde (bass), Gordon Fleet (drums), Vanda (lead guitar, backing vocals) and Young (rhythm guitar, backing vocals). [4] Wright was their initial lyricist with Young composing the music as Vanda's grasp of English was insufficient. [3] They were signed by EMI/Parlophone Records with Ted Albert producing their early recordings. [11] By 1966 Vanda & Young had begun their writing partnership; together they penned the Easybeats' late 1960s recordings including "Friday on My Mind" which reached No. 1 on the Australian singles charts in 1966 [12] and "Good Times" (1968). [13] [14] The Easybeats became Australia's most popular and successful 1960s group. [3] They travelled to the UK on 10 July 1966 where "Friday on My Mind" was produced by Shel Talmy in November. [4] [14] They toured Australia in May 1967 and the USA in August to promote their later singles and albums. At this time Vanda & Young were producing their recordings; by late 1969 the group returned to Australia and disbanded. [14]

1970–1973: Based in UK

Vanda & Young returned to the UK and continued their writing and performing partnership. They recorded tracks under various names: Paintbox "Get Ready For Love" (1970), Tramp "Vietnam Rose" (1970) and Eddie Avana "Children" (1970) all on Youngblood Records; [3] [4] [15] Moondance "Lazy River" (1970, A&M Records - which peaked at number 42 in Australia, their only charting single [16] ), Grapefruit "Sha-Sha" (1971, Deram Records), Haffy's Whiskey Sour "Shot in the Head" (1971, Deram) and Band of Hope "Working Class People" (1972, unreleased). [4] [15] Grapefruit had included Young's elder brother Alex Young (aka George Alexander). [3] [15] In 1972 Vanda & Young formed Marcus Hook Roll Band and recorded the singles "Natural Man", "Louisiana Lady" and "Can't Stand the Heat" in London's Abbey Road Studio during 1973 [7] [15] using Ian Campbell on bass, Freddie Smith on drums and Alex Young on saxophone. [4] These tracks would later appear on the album Tales of Old Grand Daddy released in 1974 on EMI. [7] [15]

1973–1978: Return to Australia and AC/DC

Vanda & Young returned to Australia in 1973 and were reunited with Ted Albert, who had established Albert Productions under EMI Records. [3] Recently formed AC/DC's band members, and George Young's brothers, Malcolm and Angus Young joined the Marcus Hook Roll Band project on guitars to complete Tales of Old Grand-Daddy with John Proud on drums. [4] [7] [15] In late 1974 Vanda & Young produced AC/DC's single "Can I Sit Next to You Girl". [4] They also produced early albums for AC/DC including High Voltage and TNT (both 1975), Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (1976), Let There Be Rock (1977), Powerage and If You Want Blood You've Got It (both 1978). [4] As house producers for Albert Productions record label, they also wrote for and/or produced many Australian chart-topping acts including Stevie Wright (ex-the Easybeats) with the no. 1 single "Evie", [10] [12] Ted Mulry, Rose Tattoo, Cheetah, William Shakespeare, Mark Williams, and the Angels. [1] [2] Vanda & Young also wrote and produced several hits for John Paul Young including "Standing in the Rain", "I Hate the Music", "Love Is in the Air" and "Yesterday's Hero", [10] which was also a cover version hit when recorded by Bay City Rollers.

1977–1992: Flash and the Pan

Vanda & Young recorded several Australian hit singles under the studio-only pseudonym of Flash and the Pan, including "Hey St. Peter" (1977) and "Down Among the Dead Men" (1978). [17] They had more success in Europe with hits "Waiting for a Train" (1983), "Midnight Man" (1984), "Early Morning Wake Up Call" (1985), and "Ayla" (1987), from the number 1 albums Headlines (1982), Early Morning Wake Up Call (1985) and Nights in France (1987). Singer-model-actress Grace Jones, in 1981, recorded a cover version of their song "Walking in the Rain".

1992–2005: "Runnin' for the Red Light (I Gotta Life)" and Stiff Upper Lip

Vanda & Young helped compose rock artist Meat Loaf's "Runnin' for the Red Light (I Gotta Life)", which was released in 1995 as the third single from the album Welcome to the Neighborhood . While the single failed to meet expectations, the parent album itself did well, peaking at number 17 on the Billboard 200.

Young produced AC/DC's 2000 album Stiff Upper Lip . [2] Released by East West Records, it proved an international success, being RIAA certified as platinum in the United States.

Vanda left his longtime partnership with Albert Productions in 2005 and started Flashpoint Music as a private recording studio. Young died of unknown causes on 22 October 2017.

Legacy

Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition (2009–present)

In 2009, Australian music publishing company Alberts united with APRA AMCOS to create an international songwriters competition, seeking to acknowledge "great songwriting whilst supporting and raising money for Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Australia (NRMTA)." [18]

Past winners of the Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition have included Megan Washington (2009), Kimbra (2011), Isabella Manfredi of the Preatures (2013), Husky Gawenda (2014), Gretta Ray (2016), Amy Shark (2018), and Matt Corby (2020). [19] [18]

Vanda & Young songs

This is a selected list of songs co-written by Vanda & Young: [19]

Awards and nominations

ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards are an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.

Vanda & Young were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1988. [21]

YearNominee / workAwardResult
1988 Themselves ARIA Hall of Fame Inductee

King of Pop Awards

The King of Pop Awards were voted by the readers of TV Week. The King of Pop award started in 1967 and ran through to 1978. [22]

YearNominee / workAwardResult
1974ThemselvesBest Australian SongwriterWon
1976ThemselvesBest Australian SongwriterWon
1978ThemselvesBest Australian SongwriterWon
ThemselvesBest Australian Record ProducerWon

Countdown Music Awards

Countdown was an Australian pop music TV series on national broadcaster ABC-TV from 1974–1987, it presented music awards from 1979–1987, initially in conjunction with magazine TV Week . The TV Week / Countdown Awards were a combination of popular-voted and peer-voted awards. [23] [24]

YearNominee / workAwardResult
1982ThemselvesBest Australian ProducerNominated

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Easybeats</span> Australian rock band

The Easybeats were an Australian rock band who formed in Sydney in late 1964. They are best known for their 1966 hit single "Friday on My Mind", which is regarded as the first Australian rock song to achieve international success; Rolling Stone described it as "the first international victory for Oz rock". One of the most popular and successful bands in the country, they were one of the few Australian bands of their time to foreground their original material; their first album Easy (1965) was one of the earliest Australian rock albums featuring all original songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Paul Young</span> Australian singer

John Inglis Young, OAM, known professionally as John Paul Young, is an Australian pop singer who had his 1978 worldwide hit with "Love Is in the Air". His career was boosted by regular appearances as a performer and guest host on Countdown, a 1974–1987 TV series for Australia's national broadcaster ABC. Besides "Love Is in the Air", Young had top ten chart success in Germany and the Netherlands with "Standing in the Rain" and four other top ten hits in South Africa, including No. 1 hits with "I Hate the Music" in 1976 and "Yesterday's Hero" in 1975.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Vanda</span> Australian musician

Johannes Hendrikus Jacob van den Berg, better known as his stage name Harry Vanda, is an Australian musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as lead guitarist of the 1960s Australian rock band the Easybeats who with fellow member George Young formed the 1970s and 1980s songwriting and record production duo Vanda & Young.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Young (rock musician)</span> Australian rock musician (1946–2017)

George Redburn Young was an Australian musician, songwriter and record producer. He was a founding member of the bands The Easybeats and Flash and the Pan, and was one-half of the songwriting and production duo Vanda & Young with his long-time musical collaborator Harry Vanda, with whom he co-wrote the international hits "Friday on My Mind" and "Love Is in the Air", the latter recorded by John Paul Young.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stevie Wright</span> Australian singer (1947–2015)

Stephen Carlton Wright was an Australian singer, songwriter, and musician. Called Australia's first international pop star, he is best known for being the lead singer of the Easybeats, who are widely regarded as the greatest Australian pop band of the 1960s.

Flash and the Pan were an Australian new wave musical group formed in 1976 by Harry Vanda and George Young, both former members of the Easybeats, who formed a production and songwriting team known as Vanda & Young. The group's first chart success was their 1976 debut single, "Hey, St. Peter", which reached number five in the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart. The next single, "Down Among the Dead Men", peaked at number four in Australia in 1978. For international release, it was re-titled "And the Band Played On".

<i>Headlines</i> (Flash and the Pan album) 1982 studio album by Flash and the Pan

Headlines is the third album by Australian band Flash and the Pan, released in 1982. It includes the UK hit single "Waiting for a Train" which reached No. 7 in the charts in June 1983. At this time, Stevie Wright was officially a member of Flash and the Pan, making this version of the group close to an Easybeats revival; however, there is some doubt about how much Wright actually contributed to the recordings. He appears in the video to the song 'Where Were You' miming to George Young's voice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Friday on My Mind</span> 1966 single by The Easybeats

"Friday on My Mind" is a 1966 song by Australian rock group The Easybeats. Written by band members George Young and Harry Vanda, the track became a worldwide hit, reaching No.16 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1967 in the US, No.1 on the Dutch Top 40 chart, No.1 in Australia and No.6 in the UK, as well as charting in several other countries. In 2001, it was voted "Best Australian Song" of all time by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as determined by a panel of 100 music industry personalities. In 2007, "Friday on My Mind" was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia registry.

Flashpoint Music is an independent production house and record label based in Australia specialising in rock and pop. Flashpoint Records and Flashpoint Music Publishing are associated companies.

Ray Arnott is an Australian rock drummer, singer-songwriter, he was a member of Spectrum (1970–1973), which had a number one hit with "I'll Be Gone". He also played drums for The Dingoes in the 1970s and Cold Chisel in 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albert Productions</span> Australian rock n roll record label

Albert Productions, a division of music publishing and recording company Albert Music, is one of Australia's longest established independent record labels to specialise in rock and roll music. The label was founded in 1963 by Ted Albert, whose family owned and operated the Sydney music publishing house J. Albert & Son.

<i>Easy</i> (Easybeats album) 1965 studio album by The Easybeats

Easy is the debut studio album by the Australian rock band the Easybeats, released on 23 September 1965.

<i>Its 2 Easy</i> 1966 studio album by The Easybeats

It's 2 Easy is the second studio album by Australian rock band the Easybeats. Released on 24 March 1966, the album featured four hit singles; "Wedding Ring", "Sad and Lonely and Blue", "Women " and "Come And See Her".

<i>Volume 3</i> (Easybeats album) 1966 studio album by The Easybeats

Volume 3 is a studio album by the Australian rock band The Easybeats, released on 3 November 1966. It was the third and final album from the group recorded in Australia before relocating to England.

<i>The Best of The Easybeats + Pretty Girl</i> 1967 greatest hits album by The Easybeats

The Best of The Easybeats + Pretty Girl is the first compilation album by The Easybeats featuring a selection of songs recorded by the group between 1965 and 1966. The album was originally released in Australia and New Zealand under the Parlophone label under the then current licensing arrangement by the band's production company Albert Productions.

<i>Vigil</i> (album) 1968 studio album by The Easybeats

Vigil is the fifth studio album by Australian rock band The Easybeats, released in May 1968. This would be the second and final album by the band released on the United Artists Records label.

<i>Friends</i> (Easybeats album) 1970 studio album by The Easybeats

Friends is the sixth and final studio album by Australian rock band the Easybeats. It was released in early 1970 as part of the group's new recording contract with Polydor Records. It would be the only album Polydor released of the band as they broke up before its release.

<i>Friday on My Mind</i> (album) 1967 studio album by The Easybeats

Friday On My Mind is the first North American album from The Easybeats. The album was released as Good Friday in Europe, in the same month. This version omitted "Hound Dog" and replaced it with "Women" from the Australian It's 2 Easy album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">For My Woman</span> 1965 song by the Easybeats

"For My Woman" is a song by Australian rock band the Easybeats, written by singer Stevie Wright and guitarist George Young. The Easybeats had formed in Sydney in 1964, with a sound inspired by the Pretty Things and the Rolling Stones. After signing with their manager Mike Vaughan, he introduced the band to producer and businessman Ted Albert, who liked them enough to sign with his company Albert Productions in December 1964. The song was recorded in January 1965 at the 2UW Theatre in Sydney as a demo together with three other songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Come and See Her</span> 1966 single by The Easybeats

"Come and See Her" is a song written by Stevie Wright and George Young. It was released as the sixth single for their Australian rock group the Easybeats in April 1966, which reached No. 3 on the Australian charts. It was the group's debut single in the United Kingdom, issued on the United Artists Records in July.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Harry Vanda credits". Allmusic . Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "George Young credits". Allmusic . Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Harry Vanda and George Young". Milesago. 2002. Retrieved 3 June 2008.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Holmgren, Magnus; Kempfer Stocker, Neil. "Vanda and Young". Australian Rock Database. Passagen.se (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 1 June 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  5. ↑ ""Friday on My Mind" at Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA)". APRA . Retrieved 3 June 2008.[ dead link ]
  6. 1 2 "Harry Vanda of The Easybeats". Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). 2001. Archived from the original on 16 August 2008. Retrieved 3 June 2008.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Baker, Glenn A. "Liner notes to the Marcus Hook Roll Band compilation album Full File". stason.com. Retrieved 5 June 2008.
  8. ↑ "ARIA 2008 Hall of Fame inductees listing". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 15 June 2008. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  9. ↑ "Winners by Award: Hall of Fame". Australian Recording Industry Association . Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "2004 Most played song overseas". APRA. Archived from the original on 23 July 2008. Retrieved 5 June 2008.
  11. ↑ "Albert Productions". Milesago. Retrieved 3 June 2008.
  12. 1 2 Kent, David (2005). Australian Chart Book (1940–1969). Turramurra, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book, 2005. ISBN   0-646-44439-5.
  13. ↑ "Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA)". APRA. Archived from the original on 24 January 2008. Retrieved 3 June 2008.
  14. 1 2 3 Jonas Wårstad, ed. (14 November 2007). "The Easybeats discography". discog.info. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Jonas Wårstad, ed. (17 May 2008). "Vanda/Young – Various pseudonym projects and productions". discog.info. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  16. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 319. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  17. ↑ "Flash and the Pan discography". Jonas Wårstad. 20 September 2006. Retrieved 4 June 2008.
  18. 1 2 "Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition – APRA AMCOS". APRA AMCOS. 2021. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  19. 1 2 "2018 Vanda & Young Songwriting Competition winners announced". Australasian Music Publishers Association. 10 May 2018. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  20. ↑ Nimmervoll, Ed (7 August 1971). "National Top 60". Go-Set. Waverley Press. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
  21. ↑ "Winners by Award: Hall of Fame". Australian Recording Industry Association . Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  22. ↑ "Australian Music Awards". Ron Jeff. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
  23. ↑ "Countdown to the Awards" (PDF). Countdown Magazine. March 1987. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
  24. ↑ "Final episode of Countdown". 1970s Countdown. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
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.