Olivia Newton-John

Singer

Known for her clear, gentle voice, Olivia Newton-John has achieved stardom in the areas of pop and country music. Several movie and television roles in both singing and non-singing parts have contributed to her list of accomplishments. In the early 1970s Newton-John, with her appealing looks and voice, became a superstar almost overnight with such hits as "Let Me Be There," "Have You Never Been Mellow," and "I Honestly Love You." While many critics called her music superficial and overly sentimental, the number of her fans and record sales grew rapidly. A decade after she first realized success, Newton-John dropped out of the spotlight to raise a family and promote more of her personal social causes, which included environmentalism, recycling and breast cancer awareness.

Although she is widely thought to be Australian, Newton-John was actually born in Cambridge, England, where she was raised until the age of five. After the family moved to Australia, her mother insisted that she keep her British passport, which was to come in handy later. Newton-John told Joe Smith about her early musical influences for his book Off the Record. "My favorites growing up were Dionne Warwick, Ray Charles, Joan Baez, and Nina Simone. More than anybody else, they were the four people I listened most to in Australia. I listened to the radio and I knew every pop song. I sang all the time for family and friends, but if they asked me at school to get up and sing, I was always too shy."

Newton-John first began performing at age 12, when she won a local Haley Mills lookalike contest. A few years later she teamed with three girlfriends in a group called the Sol Four. After that, Newton-John sang on an Australian variety series called The Go Show, where she first met her future producer John Farrar. Winning a trip to England through an Australian talent contest, she and Pat Carroll, another female performer from Australia, formed a moderately successful singing duo that most notably sang back-up on a Cliff Richard B-side. The couple disbanded, though, when Carroll's visa ran out and she had to return to Australia. With her British passport Newton-John was able to continue with her career in England, now as a solo performer, recording her first single for Decca in 1966.

Career Took Off

While in England, Newton-John pursued a series of singing jobs, including joining a curious group called Tomorrow (some sources say Toomorrow), which was supposed to be England's answer to the successful U.S. pop group The Monkees. After recording two singles with the band, for Decca and RCA respectively, she appeared with Tomorrow in an unsuccessful sci-fi film. Returning a little more to the mainstream, Newton-John began appearing on former teen idol Cliff Richard's television series It's Cliff!, which helped promote her sweetly voiced cover of Bob Dylan's "If Not for You." The single, with its country-pop twang, hit number 25 on the U.S. pop charts, but reached number one on the Adult Contemporary Charts. A few more singles brought her acclaim in Great Britain, but it was not until the 1973 release of Let Me Be There that Newton-John became popular in the United States. Once the single began receiving U.S. airplay, she was invited to perform on the Dean Martin Show. Once she arrived, singer Helen Reddy and her husband/manager Jeff Wald advised the hot young singer that if she wanted a big hit in America, that she would have to stay in the country.

Their advice paid off. "Let Me Be There," with its gospel flavored chorus and country-crossover hook, became a number one record. Although she had originally positioned herself as a folk performer, Newton-John's uncomplicated style attracted country programmers all across the nation, and she went on to win a Grammy Award for Best Country Female Performer. However, she inadvertently stirred controversy when the Country Music Association in Nashville named her Female Vocalist of the Year over Donna Fargo, Melba Montgomery, Tammy Wynette, Dolly Parton, and Tanya Tucker. "The backlash from Country music purists was immediate," wrote Barry McCloud in Definitive Country. "Olivia's case was not helped by the fact that she had wanted to meet Hank Williams … he had been dead for over 20 years!"

Despite the controversy, Newton-John continued to benefit from country airplay throughout the decade. In retrospect, "Let Me Be There" and subsequent hits such as "If You Love Me Let Me Know" and "Please Mr. Please" ring truer as country music than many modern recordings in the genre.

The performer also received two Grammy Awards for the 1975 smash "I Honestly Love You." She followed up with the feel-good philosophy of "Have You Never Been Mellow," which both summed up 1970s pop and became a point of ridicule for many of her critics. Artistically, Newton-John was considered superficial, vacuous, and lacking in musical integrity. Some claimed, as Chris Stoehr summarized in the Detroit Free Press, that "her music crosses over into several audiences because it has no style of its own." In that same article, Newton-John defended herself, asking, "Why do people like certain things? I don't know. Neither do the critics, that's for sure. It was not instant, you know, my success. … I was just a performer the audience found pleasant. And after all, the audience's opinion is the only one that counts, isn't it?" By this time, Newton-John had moved to Los Angeles and was busy touring and performing in Las Vegas. Her albums consistently achieved gold and platinum status and her career was set to explode.

For the Record …

Born September 26, 1948, in Cambridge, England; daughter of Bryn (a university president) and Irene (Born) Newton-John; married Matt Lattanzi (an actor), 1984 (divorced 1995); children: Chloe.

Singer with Pat Carroll and Cliff Richard in England; member of pop group Tomorrow (some sources say Toomorrow); recorded hit singles, including "If Not for You" and "Let Me Be There," early 1970s; moved to United States and recorded several successful albums; toured United States and other countries; actress and singer in films Grease, 1978, Xanadu, 1980, and Two of a Kind, 1983; actress in television film A Mom for Christmas, NBC, 1991; appeared on numerous television programs, including The Dean Martin Show, The Midnight Special, Saturday Night Live, and her own network variety and concert specials; owner of "Koala Blue" brand food distributors; marketed breast self-examination kit through Walgreen's drug chain.

Awards: Grammy Award, Best Female Country Vocal Performance, for "Let Me Be There," 1973; Grammy Awards, Record of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, for "I Honestly Love You," 1974; Country Music Association Award, Best Country Female Vocal Performance, 1974, and Best Female Singer, 1976; eight American Music Awards, 1975-76; People's Choice Award, Favorite Motion Picture Actress, 1979; Grammy Award, Video of the Year, for "Physical," 1982; Daytime Emmy (shared with Earl Rose), Outstanding Original Song, for "This is Our Moment," on As the World Turns, 1999; Named officer of the Order of the British Empire, 2002; inducted into Australian Music Hall of Fame, 2002.

Addresses: Management—Fitzgerald Hartley Co., 34 North Palm Ave., Ste. 100, Ventura, CA 93001. Website—Official Artist Website: http://www.olivianewtonjohn.com.

Became "Sandy"

In 1977, at one of Helen Reddy's parties, Newton-John was noticed by movie producer Allan Carr, who cast her in his film version of the popular Broadway musical Grease. A little apprehensive, the performer began preparing for a role she reportedly hoped would make her the Doris Day of the era. Playing the role of Sandy opposite actor John Travolta gave her newfound fame and visibility. The popular movie was accompanied by a successful soundtrack, which launched Newton-John and Travolta's peppy duet single "You're the One That I Want"; the song landed a number one position on the charts.

In the film, Newton-John's character changes from a timid ingenue to a temptress who ultimately outgreases Travolta's 1950s bad boy role. In Newton-John's professional life, it could be said that this same sort of transformation was taking place. Allegedly no longer content to be a sweet, gentle-voiced crooner—nine of her singles hit number one on the Adult Contemporary Charts—Newton-John began to pump up her act. In 1978 she released the provocative recording Totally Hot, followed by the equally sexy Physical in 1981. Physical contributed three hit singles to the U.S. charts, including the title track, which stayed at the number one spot for ten weeks. Playing up the allusion between the song's sexy commands and the fitness craze, Newton-John then went on a successful tour where she danced in tight-fitting workout gear. The switch from innocent to racy occurred, Newton-John admitted in the Detroit Free Press, because "you change over the years; you grow and change. I hope that I wouldn't be the same at 33 that I was at 23. I didn't go out and take lessons in being something else; I've just grown."

Newton-John's career toned down rather quickly from the frenzied peak of the early 1980s. Followups to the enormously successful Grease proved unsuccessful. The roller disco fantasy Xanadu tanked at the box office, even though its soundtrack yielded two solid hit singles, the title song and the number one hit "Magic." Reteamed with Travolta in 1983 for the much hyped Two of a Kind, her hot streak as a performer seemed to end when the movie flopped. After that the singer seemed to be in a kind of semi-retirement. She married longtime companion Matt Lattanzi in 1984 and they had a daughter, Chloe. The couple would divorce in 1995. In 1988 Newton-John released another album, The Rumour, but the actress was mostly attending to her family and charitable concerns. "It sounds kind of boring to say I've been at home," Newton-John told People about her whereabouts from 1983 to 1991, "But that's the truth."

The singer came out of her virtual seclusion to star in a made-for-television film A Mom for Christmas. In the movie she played a mannequin who becomes real in order to take care of a girl without a mother. In 1989 she recorded an album of soothing songs for infants, called Warm and Tender, after realizing that she could find no music with which to comfort her young daughter. In 1992 Newton-John released Back to Basics: The Essential Collection 1971-92, which included four new tunes. That same year, after declaring bankruptcy, the singer announced that she had been diagnosed with an early and treatable form of breast cancer. Once recovered, she began devoting a large portion of her public life to raising breast cancer awareness.

Signaled by her 1994 album Gaia (One Woman's Journey), Newton-John increasingly turned to environmental projects and private business concerns. Enjoying family life, Newton-John admitted in People that "all I need to hear is ‘Good night, Mommy, I love you,’ and there's no question everything is worth it." She made a belated attempt to return to the country charts with the 1998 MCA album Back with a Heart, but her time as a hitmaker was over.

Releasing albums through such independent labels as Hallmark, Festival, and Mushroom into the 2000s, she has continued to express her spiritual and environmental views while singing what she likes, with whom she likes. Now writing more of her own material—she co-wrote the Emmy-winning theme for the daytime drama As the World Turns—the singer often devoted a portion of an album's profits to charity. One such project was 2005's Stronger Than Before, which was inspired by the complex emotions felt by cancer patients and their families.

As an icon of the 1970s she remains in demand as a concert performer and a TV guest star. In 2007 she was paid the ultimate pop culture tribute when she was asked to be a guest on Grease: You're the One That I Want!. The American Idol-type talent show featured performers competing to recreate the roles she and Travolta played in their famous film together.

Selected discography

Singles

"If Not For You," Uni, 1971.

"Let Me Be There," MCA, 1973.

"If You Love Me (Let Me Know)," MCA, 1974.

"I Honestly Love You," MCA, 1974.

"Have You Never Been Mellow," MCA, 1975.

"Please Mr. Please," MCA, 1975.

"Something Better to Do," MCA, 1976.

"Let It Shine/ He Ain't Heavy…He's My Brother," MCA, 1976.

"Come On Over," MCA, 1976.

"Don't Stop Believin'," MCA, 1976.

"Sam," MCA, 1977.

(With John Travolta) "You're the One That I Want," RSO, 1978.

"Hopelessly Devoted to You," RSO, 1978.

(With Travolta) "Summer Nights," RSO, 1978.

"A Little More Love," MCA, 1978.

"Deeper Than the Night," MCA, 1979.

(With Andy Gibb) "I Can't Help It," RSO, 1980.

"Magic," MCA, 1980.

(With Electric Light Orchestra) "Xanadu," MCA, 1980.

(With Cliff Richard) "Suddenly," MCA, 1980.

"Physical," MCA, 1981.

"Make a Move on Me," MCA, 1982.

"Heart Attack," MCA, 1982.

"Tied Up," MCA, 1983.

"Twist of Fate," MCA, 1983.

"Livin' in Desperate Time," MCA, 1984.

"Soul Kiss," MCA, 1985.

"The Grease Megamix," MCA, 1996.

Albums

Let Me Be There, MCA, 1973.

If You Love Me, Let Me Know, MCA, 1974.

Long Live Love, MCA, 1974.

First Impressions, MCA, 1974.

Have You Never Been Mellow, MCA, 1975.

Clearly Love, MCA, 1975.

Come On Over, MCA, 1976.

Don't Stop Believin', MCA, 1976.

Making a Good Thing Better, MCA, 1977.

Olivia Newton-John's Greatest Hits, EMI, 1977.

Grease Soundtrack, RSO, 1978.

Totally Hot, MCA, 1978.

Xanadu Soundtrack, MCA, 1980.

Physical, EMI, 1981.

Greatest Hits, EMI, 1982.

Soul Kiss, MCA, 1985.

The Rumour, MCA, 1988.

Warm and Tender, Geffen, 1989.

Back to Basics: The Essential Collection 1971-92, Geffen, 1992.

Gaia, D-Sharp, 1994; reissued by Hip-O, 2000.

Back with a Heart, MCA, 1998.

Highlights from the Main Event, BMG Australia Limited, 1999.

Tis the Season, Hallmark, 2000.

One Woman's Live Journey, Festival, 2000.

20th Century Masters—The Christmas Collection, Festival, 2000.

The Christmas Collection, Hip-O, 2001.

20th Century Masters—The Millennium Collection: The Best of Olivia Newton-John, Hip-0, 2002.

Olivia on Woman's Live Journey, Mushroom, 2002.

2, Festival/Mushroom, 2002.

Take Me Home, Rajon, 2003.

Indigo: Women of Song, Mushroom, 2004.

Gold, Hip-O, 2005.

Stronger Than Before, Festival, 2006.

Grace and Gratitude, EMI, 2006.

Video/DVD

Olivia in Concert [live], MCA, 1983.

Soul Kiss, MCA, 1985.

Down Under, Polygram, 1987.

Physical, MCA, 1992.

Twist of Fate, MCA, 1992.

20th Century Masters—DVD Collection, Hip-O, 2004.

Video Gold, Vol. 1, Geffen, 2005.

Video Gold, Vol. 2, Geffen, 2005.

Sources

Books

Hyatt, Wesley, The Billboard Book of Adult Contemporary Number One Hits, Billboard Books, 1999.

McCloud, Barry, editor, Definitive Country—The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Country Music and Its Performers, Perigree, 1995.

Pareles, Jon, and Patricia Romanowski, editors, The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll, Rolling Stone Press/Summit Books, 1983.

Rees, Dafydd and Luke Crampton, editors, Vh1 Music First—Rock Stars Encyclopedia, Dorling Kindersley, 1999.

Smith, Joe, Off the Record—An Oral History of Popular Music, Warner Books, 1988.

Periodicals

Detroit Free Press, May 17, 1979; August 22, 1982; July 15, 1992.

Fortune, May 22, 1989.

High Fidelity, July 1989.

New York, December 4, 1989.

New York Daily News, May 1, 1977.

Parade Magazine, July 1, 1979; December 4, 1988.

People, February 24, 1975; July 31, 1978; December 24, 1990; August 19, 1991; June 22, 1992.

Redbook, November 1990.

Online

"Olivia Newton-John," All Music Guide,http://www.allmusic.com/ (March 6, 2007).

"Olivia Newton-John," Internet Movie Database,http://www.imdb.com/ (March 6, 2007).

Olivia Newton-John Official Website,http://www.olivianewton-john.com/ (March 6, 2007).