Olivia - definitely not mellow
IT WAS a very delighted Olivia Newton-John who picked up the phone somewhere in California to hear the news about being voted Britain’s top female vocalist not to mention coming third in the international section. “I honestly didn’t think I’d even figure in the running,” Livvy said happily, “and I was flabbergasted when you told me that I’d won!”
Livvy is still working flat out in the States, where she’s been busily touring around doing a fair amount of TV work and is about to start a new round of concerts at colleges and universities around the country.
Even Christmas was spent away from home, but a pleasant stay in Accapulco with the weather around the 80 degrees mark, helped make it bearable.
It was back in 1973 that Olivia received a major Grammy award, The Best Female Country Singer, in the States and it was that award that was basically responsible for taking (and keeping) Livvy in the States. The award was given on the strength of Let Me Be There which was a huge hit in the US, and Livvy became the first British female singer ever to be awarded that particular honour. Last year her single, I Honestly Love You, was the most played single in America, and Livvy is now back in the American award stakes.
“I’ve just heard that I’ve been nominated for three Grammy awards -for the Song Of The Year and the Record Of The Year with I Honestly Love You, and also as the Best Female Rock and Folk Artist. I won’t know the results of the poll for about another month, but it’s a great honour to get the nominations.”
Clearly, our Miss John. is having a very good run as far as polls are concerned!
At the moment there are no definite plans for her to return to this country, as her commitments in the States go through to the end of the year, but it’s hoped that in between some of her dates in America she’ll be able to pop back here for some television work or the odd concert or two.
Record plans aren’t too firm either. When I spoke to her, she’d just finished recording an appearance on the Smothers Brothers TV show, singing her new American release, Have You Never Been Mellow, which is also the title of at least her new album Stateside that is.
“I think my record company in England is going to wait and see how the record does over here before they make any decision about releasing it there, but it’s written and produced by John Farrar, and it’s a gentle type of song almost a message song I suppose.
This is still one of the major differences be tween the way the Americans see Livvy, and the way British audiences react to her. In the States, she is very much the country artist - although her recent nomination shows that this appeal is widening somewhat to include rock and folk audience while here in Britain, most people think of Livvy and the type of songs she sang on the Cliff Richard TV shows. At the moment however, the differing appeals don’t seem to present too much of a problem.
Before we finished talking, and Livvy got ready to dash off to re-join the concert circuit once more, I asked her if there was anything she’d like to say to her obviously large following of fans.
“Well, just a huge thank-you, I guess, to everyone for going out and voting for me really am surprised, and I’m really grateful. And I hope it won’t be too long before I get the chance to come back and say it in person.”
Look forward to seeing you!
BY Sue Byrom