Golden Hits Radio and GHR-2.......your 24 hour Oldies news team!
- If you're Wayne Newton, where do you keep your private jet parked?
- For those who find it impossible to believe Bob Marley's kids would be in possession of anything illegal....hope you're sitting down
- Will The Rolling Stones do one last tour in 2011? One member drops a hint!
- Meanwhile, a Stone's ex-girlfriend tells us all what we pretty much already knew
Where In The World Is......Yvonne Elliman?
Yvonne Elliman first made a name for herself in the music world as a member of the traveling cast of Jesus Christ Superstar. Before she ever broke through as a solo act, she had received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy for her role as Mary Magdalene. By 1974, she had scored her first solo hit with "I Don't Know How To Love Him" (which later became a bigger hit for Helen Reddy) and provided background vocals for an even bigger hit, Eric Clapton's #1 cover of Bob Marley's "I Shot The Sheriff". This led to a tour with Clapton and a solo recording contract on his label at the time, RSO Records. In his autobiography, Clapton hints at a relationship with Elliman during that era.
Her first two albums for RSO produced two Top 20 hits, "Love Me" (written by Bee Gees Barry and Robin Gibb) and a cover of Barbara Lewis's "Hello Stranger". Her association with The Bee Gees and RSO Records would soon put her in pop music's upper echelon two years later.
The Bee Gees had Yvonne Elliman in mind as they were working on the soundtrack to the movie Saturday Night Fever, but the megahit she eventually had from that album was not the song originally written for her. The Gibb brothers initially wanted her to record "How Deep Is Your Love", but RSO label president Robert Stigwood had other ideas. He told The Bee Gees to keep that song for themselves and give Yvonne Elliman another song. It really didn't matter, as both became #1 smashes in the U.S.! "If I Can't Have You" was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, hitting #4 in the UK. A cover version by Kim Wilde made the song a hit again in the UK in 1993.
After a few more minor hits and some acting gigs to capitalize on the mania surrounding Saturday Night Fever (including a guest shot on Hawaii Five-O), Yvonne Elliman escaped the entertainment business completely. Married to Bill Oakes, who worked with music and movie magnate Robert Stigwood, she devoted herself to her children full time and was rarely heard from other than radio airplay for "If I Can't Have You" as Disco began to re-emerge in the mid-90's.
After that self-imposed exile of 25 years, Yvonne Elliman re-emerged on the music scene in 2004 with a new album entitled "Simple Needs". She has remained busy ever since, continuing to tour the world with music festivals and concerts. You can find out more at her official website by clicking here.
If we can't have Yvonne Elliman at Everything Oldies RIGHT NOW, we don't want nobody, baby. We're even willing to overlook her use of incorrect English in the song with a double negative :-) From a very rare live (no lip syncing) performance on Top of the Pops in Britain circa 1978.....
Golden Hits Radio and GHR-2's Burning Question of the Day
"Martha" in The Beatles' song "Martha My Dear" is named after what (or whom)?
Check back @ Everything Oldies tomorrow for the answer, and leave a Comment here with your best guess!
Yesterday's Burning Question (and Answer) of the Day
In what can be considered a very early music video, Bob Dylan carries a total of 64 cue cards in the clip for "Subterranean Homesick Blues". What word would you find on the very first one?
Answer: Basement
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