Mid career her advisers said “you are too wholesome”, you need an “edge” hence, “Lets Get Physical”. She was not a great actor and could not convince me. She just came across as a lovely person and I don’t think it was an act. I am sad at her passing and sorry she had to deal with a 30 year battle like that, but it could have been far worse. My mother was dead less than 1 year after diagnosis.
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Surely 1 of the best duets ever.
Great fun at karaoke, if you can find a willing partner…
Sad news.
Lovely lady.
73 still feels too young.
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Didn’t I hear you sing “Hopelessly devoted to Jobe” one night in a bar at Crown.
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Karaoke? @bltn , either you are a good singer, or maybe you have Dunning Kruger Vocal self belief. I have been to a few karaoke bars, which are popular in Asia, or were, when I visited many Asian countries on business, you tended to hear a lot of very average singers, and every now and then a voice of quality, with great pitch. When that happened, it was like , fantastic, thank christ, relief from torture ! Which brings me to the torture I underwent at school concerts. OK, kids have to start somewhere, before discovering they are not cutting it.
Beautiful,inspiring,nicest lady in show buisness
RIP Olvia
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Not a good singer.
Limited range, better than average Karaoke singer if i select the song wisely…
Soppy 80’s love song = √
Hard Rock = ×
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Everyone is a great singer after many sherberts at a Karoake Bar.
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OK, I thought I could sing Nessun Dorma and could reach B4 about 50% of the time. But that needs to be 100% reliable. In any case I recorded myself in the bathroom 30 years ago and was so appalled , I have never attempted it again.
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Thank you for this, I feel like I’ve finally “made it” on Blitz!
Rule number 1…never listen to a recording of yourself
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Well, you don’t want the song to drag on.
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At a conference in China when foreign officials were alert to being compromised, I followed the lead of a Korean official at a Karaoke function they threw for us. He said his government forbade him from Karaoke singing l
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So, if you get an email like this, you can delete it with confidence:
“Several months ago I gained access to all devices at the Karaoke Club, and I have recorded your disgusting drunken singing activities. I have a your contact list, and unless you put $2400 into my bitcoin wallet, I will send the recording to your employer, all your friends and family…”
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I thought the post was more about Number 2s.
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Thread has taken an interesting turn.
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My own funny and slightly embarrassing Olivia Newton-John story. Years ago when I lived in Melbourne the first time I was playing in a band and we were recording an album at this guy’s house - he lived in South Yarra at the time. We broke and walked down Chapel St. towards one of the music stores to get some cables or guitar strings or something, and walked by a woman sitting at a table drinking coffee/tea with a small dog on a leash talking to a friend. I remember her wearing turquoise cowboy boots, and I think her shirt was the same color. But that wouldn’t have been all that unusual for Chapel St.
Our band leader stopped and struck up a casual conversation, and they chatted for 5-10 minutes while I stood there, patted the dog, maybe mumbled one or two words, and then off we went later. A minute or so later, I said to one of the other guys “hey she seemed like a cool lady”. And he said “you mean who didn’t know who that was?”. I turned around and looked at her for a second, and then realized that it was Olivia. And I went “ohhh, that was her… okay” as if to kind of half-salvage my own embarrassment.
The funny thing is I think I did know but for whatever reason it didn’t register - I’d been playing drums all day and was kinda zoned out, because I often tend to do that… I’m pretty sure I just stood there looking at her and her dog for 10 minutes without fully absorbing everything.
As someone else said - we are pretty far removed from her heydey, but I am old enough to remember when she was pretty much everywhere. When I was just coming into grade school age and becoming fully aware of all the music and pop culture around me was about the time that “Physical” was basically playing on an endless loop, and Grease was still recent enough that you still heard it a lot. She really was a ubiquitous presence in those days.
I’m not really a Grease fan myself, nor most of her music, though I do enjoy the more pop-tinged 80s things.
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Oh God, she was an FC supporter. I withdraw everything I said.
Sheesh
I’m very sad.
Only posting now, despite hearing the news as soon as I woke up this morning.
I was never…a fan as such.
But…she’s always been there, you know?
Grey’s sledge…makes me cross, but I don’t want to give it any more attention than that.
English-born Australian who turned up to television studios as a schoolgirl saying give me a gig…
US country star, somehow.
Gets the role in one of the most quintessential US movie adaptations of a play that was The Opposite of written for her.
And freaking kills it. Can we just appreciate that for a moment?
This was a role written for an American, and she come in and plays herself and absolutely nails it.
Helps Australia be taken seriously as a pop/rock nation, opening pathways for others.
Again, absolutely nails the dawn of MTV with the Physical video.
Top of the Billboard charts for Ten Weeks.
Number One in the US for Ten friggin’ Weeks.
I’m going to say that again, because I don’t think you’re getting it.
She had the number one single in the US.
For ten weeks.
Quite apart from that, she has much better pop songs.
Xanadu, Magic, Twist of Fate, Make A Move On Me.
Her voice was…so friggin’ pure. And she knew her way around a pop song.
Then she did the Koala Blue thing in the mid to late eighties, helping to keep Australia at the forefront of pop culture in the US and again, always creating pathways for others.
And even if she’d done none of that.
She did, but even if she didn’t.
Her work for Australians in health would be worthy of celebration alone.
So, I’m sad.
And ■■■■ you, Grey.
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Also…full disclosure…
My first girlfriend’s song for me was I Honestly Love You.
So…yeah.
A little sad.
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