Feeling mellow
Newton-John blends music with hope
Pop music singers often appear on the scene for only for a fleeting moment, recording solitary hit songs that ride high on the charts for a time. But almost invariably the listening public falls for someone new and different, and fame is left abandoned by the wayside. Such is the fickleness of music lovers around the globe.
But there are some whose popularity transcends that fickleness into a career of hit songs. performances and albums, and whose lifetime achievements endear them to fans for reasons beyond the music.
Olivia Newton-John, one such star with an enduring mix of beauty, intelligence and compassion, will appear with the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra on Sunday at the Times Union Center for the Performing Arts. Jacksonville is one of 23 stops on her “Heartstrings Tour 2002.” She is scheduled to perform popular titles such as “Honestly Love You.” “Magic,” “If You Love Me Let Mr Know” and “You’re The One That I Want”, among others. Also on the list is “Sand and Water” by Beth Neilson Chapman, a tribute to victims and families of Sept. 11.
Newton-John’s career, which began in the late 1970s in England, is entering its fourth decade. A native of Australia, Newton-John has stormed the globe carving a niche in the pop music market that began with an extended visit to England in 1965 with her mother. From there, she enjoyed success in the United States throughout the late 1970s, including the movie “Grease” in 1978, which produced a soundtrack that would outpace all others.
She met her future husband on the set of her next movie, “Xanadu,” and in 1986 she gave birth to her daughter, Chloe. Soon after, she tried her hand in the business world with an idea for a fashion chain known as “Koala Blue,” which filed Chapter 13 in the late 1980s.
Newton-John returned to her music, but she received the news on July 2, 1992, that she had breast cancer. Fortunately, after the ensuing surgery and chemotherapy, her doctors pronounced her cured in February the following year, and she became a member of a class with fellow high-profile cancer beaters such as Lance Armstrong and Scott Hamilton.
Today, Newton-John stands as a symbol of hope for millions of women worldwide coping with the effects of breast cancer. And Sunday’s performance is being sponsored by St. Vincent’s hospital, a leader in the field of breast cancer treatment. In addition to the fight for a cure for cancer, she is a life-long proponent of animal welfare and co-founder of the Children’s Environmental Coalition, and she has served as Goodwill Ambassador to the United Nations Environmental Program. In 1999, she was named the American Red Cross’ Woman of the Year.
Amid the attention brought by the recent celebration of the 20th anniversary of “Grease” in movie theaters, Newton-John continues to treat her fans to that familiar soft, silky smooth voice asking the question “Have You Never Been Mellow?”
Who: Olivia Newton-John with the Jacksonville Symphony with Rick King as guest conductor
When: 7:30 pm. Sunday
Where: The Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts.
Ticket Information: Tickets are $25, $35, $55 and $65 To charge tickets, call Jacksonville Symphony patron services, 10am-5 p.m. Monday through Friday at (904) 354-5547 or toll-free at 1-877-662-6731. Tickets are also available online at www.jaxsymphony.org
By Barbara Fox, Arts and Entertainment Correspondent
More from Olivia’s Heartstrings Tour.