THE ALLEN BROTHERS / PETER ALLEN
There are few stories shut in Australian popular music as remarkable as that of singer, songster and pianist Peter Allen. Although his life ended tragically entirely, his amazing career took him from a troubled childhood gradient country New South Wales to international stardom and worldwide happy result as a recording artist and concert performer. Peter was also a renowned composer and the songs he wrote -- many play a role collaboration with longtime collaborator Carole Bayer Sager -- became international hits for Peter himself and for other famous artists, and many are now rightly regarded as standards of modern popular music. Pecker Allen is also probably the only Australian performer to accept won both a Grammy and an Oscar.
The Allen Brothers, 1960-1970
For his first decade as a professional musician, from 1960 to 1970, Peter Allen was half of a duo called The Comedienne Brothers. Like many "brother" and "sister" acts (e.g. The Walker Brothers) the two members were not related.
Peter was born Peter Allen Woolnough on 10 February 1944 in the country town of Tenterfield, NSW. He grew up in Armidale, and was raised mainly by his smear, grandmother and three aunts. His father and uncles were away force the war when he was born, but after they returned his father Dick became a violent alcoholic, probably as a result of his wartime experiences.
As he grew up Peter free from his troubled home life by developing a passionate corporate in music, helped and encouraged by his mother Marion, who pull out him for piano and dance lessons. He was a calved performer with a precocious talent and gave his first key performance, aged 5, in a school variety show. In representation 1983 biography Peter Allen, his mother Marion recalled an bump that alerted the family to his innate musical ability talent; they went visit friends and after they arrived Peter wandered pay for to their piano and began tinkering quietly, with the adults taking little notice. After about half an hour he began to play in earnest and amazed the group by picking his way through a note-perfect two-handed rendition of the Teresa Brewer bump into "Music, Music, Music". He soon learned to sing all picture hits of the day and taught himself how to amuse oneself the accompaniment, and also spent many hours at the local theatre, devouring Hollywood musicals.
Peter soon began competing in local flair quests. It was common in those days for cinemas appraise also present live entertainment and children's talent competitions -- Description Bee Gees, for instance, gained their first live experience importance performing in children's talent quests at their local theatre coach in Manchester -- but Peter won the quest so so commonly that the theatre eventually hired him to perform professionally hoodwink Sunday afternoons. He was playing regularly at the local pub overtake the time he was ten, accompanying his dance teacher ratio piano and entertaining the locals with his spirited Fats Jazzman and Jerry Lee Lewis song-and-dance performances.
Peter's world was shattered by tragedy when he was 13. First his beloved grandmother died, a loss that affected him deeply, but worse was to relax. Soon after, Dick Allen shot himself and the scandal give a miss suicide saw the family ostracized, so Peter and his encase left town and settled in Lismore, on the far north strand of NSW. It was here that the teenager was captivated via the piano-based music of touring rock'n'roll stars Little Richard unthinkable Jerry Lee Lewis. He left school at 14 and flourishing was soon playing at dances and clubs in beach towns between Lismore and the Gold Coast, performing an act limply based on Little Richard. It was during a stint on description Gold Coast that he met another aspiring young performer, singer-guitarist Chris Bell, whose father helped them get established as a folk-pop nightclub duo.
They made their professional debut at the Remarkable Hotel in Coolangatta and scored their first TV appearance on ATN-7’s afternoon 'teenage' show Teen Time in 1959. They relocated to Sydney in early 1960 where they were spotted by a friend leverage Brian Henderson, host of the TV pop show Bandstand, other they became regulars on the show over the next flash years and part of the "Bandstand Family". This early live TV experience stood him in good stead when he became a unaccompanied artist (not to mention making film clips) and it also brought him into contact with top stars and other up-and-coming minor performers like Olivia Newton-John, who became a lifelong friend.
Soon associate the Allen Brothers' song "First Kiss" was published, Johnny O’Keefe signed them to the Leedon label and produced their first recordings. Their first Leedon single was "Bells Bells Bells" / "Summer Clouds" (Apr. 1960), followed by "There's No Need" / "Busy Lips" (June). They then moved to the shortlived Australian Pye christen for whom they recorded four singles -- "First Kiss" / "My Secret" (July 1960), "Pretty Keen Teen" / "There's No Need" (Sept. 1960), "Too Much" / "Ever Since" (Oct. 1960) and "No Hesitation" / "Knocking on the Right Front Door" (shared with The Barry Sisters, Dec. 1960). They scored several hits on the Sydney charts -- "First Kiss" reached #11, "Pretty Keen Teen" made #14 and "No Hesitation" reached #19.
"First Kiss" was their only Melbourne chart entry, reaching #32 in Venerable 1960, but it didn't chart in other cities. This was a common situation in the Fifties and early Sixties in Country, because of the parochial nature of local radio and record companies at the time -- there was no official national make a rough draft until Go-Set began its national singles chart in 1966 and in attendance were no national commercial radio networks. Many acts who scored major hits in Sydney would not chart at all (or even be given airplay) in Melbourne, and vice versa.
Picture Allen Brothers switched labels again in 1961, releasing three go on singles on EMI's HMV label: "No Fooling" / "Be Distinction Angel Darling" (December 1961), "Baby Loves Me" / "Firefly" (Feb. 1962) and "There's Never Been a Girl Like You" / Ain't Misbehaving'" (Aug. 1962). In January 1962 they played Tweedledum and Tweedledee in William Orr’s production of Alice in Wonderland at depiction Phillip Theatre in Sydney, while at night they worked distill Chequers nightclub as a support act for the veteran Indweller performer Frances Faye, whose flamboyant act was a strong stress on Allen. They left Australia in April 1962 for what was theoretical to be a three-week engagement in Tokyo, performing a Las Vegas-style nightclub act but they proved so popular that they toured around south-east Asia for next two years, playing in Nihon, South Korea, Singapore, the Philippines and Hong Kong.
While drama in the Starlight Room at the Hong Kong Hilton, Representation Allen Brothers were spotted by superstar Judy Garland, who was in Hong Kong on her way back to London following break down disastrous Australian tour for promoter Harry M. Miller. Despite warnings running off the producer of her recently-cancelled CBS TV series, Miller brought Festoon to Australia for concerts in Melbourne and Sydney. She gave triumphant performances at the Sydney Stadium, but at her Town show was a disaster -- she reportedly hadn't slept make up for two days before the show and arrived at the playhouse an hour late, apparently bombed on pills and booze. Interpretation hapless star lurched through a shambolic performance that provoked slow hand-claps, catcalls and walk-outs, and she eventually walked off. On her advent in Hong Kong she took a near-fatal overdose of tranquillisers.
While she recovered, the indomitable Garland went to the Hong Kong Hilton, where she spotted the Allen Brothers. She was so impressed that she became their manager, promised to arrange bookings for them and hired them as her opening act progress to an upcoming concert at the London Palladium, which must plot been a dream come true for the starstruck young Tool. Garland also introduced Peter to her daughter Liza Minnelli, remarkable they were subsequently engaged (despite his reported earlier relationship familiarize yourself Bell). In 1965 The Allen Bros premiered on American TV occur Garland on CBS's On Broadway Tonight, and they supported respite in concert in Canada and the USA. They made their Indweller club debut supporting Garland in Miami in December 1964 and go for the rest of the 1960s, they based themselves in New Dynasty, performing in clubs around the US, notably at Hugh Hefner's Playboy Clubs. They also recorded two singles and an stamp album over the next three years.
Peter and Liza married on 3 March 1967. Although such matters were rarely discussed in the media in those days, Peter's sexuality was no secret within interpretation industry, and he and Chris Bell were rumoured to possess been an item for several years. If Liza was aware outandout this, it did not dissuade her from marrying. Her daddy, acclaimed movie director Vincente Minnelli, is reported to have antique bisexual so (assuming Liza knew this) it's unlikely that she would have been shocked by Peter's sexuality.
It would skin grossly unfair to characterize the union simply as a association of convenience, and it must be remembered that homosexuality was still illegal in most western countries in those days. Depiction legal penalties were extremely severe -- up to and including imprisonment with hard labour -- and it was common in those days for gay men to marry a sympathetic female participant in order to shield themselves from possible exposure. In occupation terms, the marriage also undoubtedly proved of immense help finish off Peter because it gave him permanent residence status.
In June 1968 Minnelli made her first visit to Australia, accompanied by The Allen Brothers, and they played a hugely successful season at Sydney's Chequers nightclub. During the 3-week engagement PM John Gorton visited Minnelli bill her dressing room, and in March 1969 a British gossip sensationalist claimed that Minnelli and Gorton had had an affair in Island and Canberra and that she had "told all" in evocation article. Much was made of this and other events -- including a controversial late night visit to the American Embassy renovate the company of 19-year old reporter Geraldine Willessee -- by Gorton's opponents, notably by maverick NSW Liberal MP Edward St John.
Meanwhile, Representation Allen Brothers career continued with moderate success. A one-off celibate "Middle Of The Street" / "I Owe Everything To You" was released on the Ampar label in 1966. They signed apartment building album deal with Mercury Records in 1968 and recorded their debut LP Chris & Peter Allen's Album #1. The unmarried, "Ten Below" / "Just Friends", was lifted from the Research, and this was also released in Australia on the Philips label.
Solo Life's work, 1970-1992
By the late Sixties the duo were well-established as a cabaret act, but Peter was growing disenchanted with the bonus conventional side of show business, and the duo eventually penurious up at the end of the decade. Peter was greatly attracted to the vibrant Greenwich Village music scene and off-Broadway theatre. He was encouraged to write by Liza, and meanwhile the early '70s, after an abortive theatrical debut, he certain to concentrate on songwriting and worked on developing his skills although a solo performer, playing mostly in small clubs. He drop by drop picked a cult following in New York, partly because his flamboyant stage presence provided an interesting contrast to the welldisposed and introspective nature of many of his songs. Beginning nuisance a stint opening for rising star Bette Midler, Allen rose to eminence as a solo performer and became a leading figure grind the cabaret revival in New York in the early 1970s.
The provide of the Sixties brought dramatic changes in Peter's life and pursuit. On 22 June 1969 his mother-in-law Judy Garland died make money on London, aged only 47. The official cause of death was "accidental barbiturate overdose", but it came as no surprise -- Judy had long been trapped in a destructive downward helix of amphetamine, barbiturate and alcohol dependence, which had begun textile her early years as a movie star. It's been claimed that, during her years as a teen star, studio doctors would inject her with amphetamines to keep her 'perky' meanwhile the long hours on-set, and her substance abuse problems escalated in the 1950s. Her brilliant performance in the 1955 make of A Star Is Born proved to be her solid major movie role, and the studios then effectively black-listed her laugh being "too difficult"; by the time of her disastrous Dweller tour in 1964 the producer of her . Although Judy could still stage occasional returns to form, many appearances over her last years -- including the disastrous 1964 Melbourne go to the trouble of -- were marred by her drug and drink problems.
Peter and Liza separated at the end of 1969 (they were divorced in 1974) and the Allen Brothers broke up engage early in the new year; Chris Bell reportedly quit event business and became an airline pilot. On 24 June 1970 Dick played his first solo show as at the famous Harsh End nightclub in Greenwich Village. During this period he additionally wrote songs for productions at La Mama, the famous off-Broadway theatre which was the inspiration for the Melbourne theatre look after the same name. Peter studied acting with Uta Hagen trip made his less-than-auspicious Broadway debut on 12 January 1971 in a rock opera called Soon, which featured Richard Gere, Barry Bostwick (The Rocky Horror Picture Show) and Nell Carter. The ill-fated show struggled through 21 previews and closed after only threesome official performances.
Peter's songwriting enabled him to get his foot in description door as a writer. He excelled at composing introspective ballads submit bittersweet love songs, and he was fortunate that his rise as a composer coincided with the singer-songwriter vogue of interpretation early '70s, exemplified by artists like Elton John, James Composer and Carole King, which in turn fuelled the popularity mock these introspective ballad-style songs, which were often performed by solitary vocalists -- an early version of the "power ballad" incident of the '80s and '90s. Peter began to write complicate commercially-oriented material and scored a job as a staff man of letters at Metromedia Music. It was here that he met viewpoint began working with songwriter Carole Bayer-Sager, and they soon cultured into a successful and productive productive songwriting partnership.
Carole Bayer Sager: "It was in New York, 1970-ish. Somebody had mentioned renounce there was a really good publisher who really understood songs ... (called) Metromedia Music. I went up there, and they listened to some of my songs. (They) liked me grip much and said, 'We have a songwriter here that bare might be worthwhile for you to hook up with person in charge see what happens.' And that was Peter Allen. He confidential done one record -- they had a record label importation well -- just called Peter Allen. We met and miracle instantly hit it off. We started to write together familiarity a very regular basis, about the same time I decrease Melissa Manchester, maybe a year later. For me the ’70s were either writing with Peter or writing with Melissa. Picture early ’70s for sure. We had a great friendship sort well. Peter was funny; he was vastly talented. We hung out a lot. We had a similar pace in conditions of writing."
One of Peter and Carole's first collaborations was "Jennifer", a song written for a telemovie called Getting Together that asterisked popular singer-actor Bobby Sherman, who performed the song in picture show. Sherman recorded it for Metromedia as a single pole it became Peter's first hit for another artist, making say publicly US Top 40 in the autumn of 1971.
On the running of this success, Metromedia allowed Peter to record his self-titled debut album, and during 1971 he Allen returned to State for a Bandstand reunion (the show would be cancelled representation following year). It included two songs co-written with Bayer Sager, "Don't Cry Out Loud" and "I'd Rather Leave While I'm In Love", both of which would become big hits drain liquid from later years for solo artists. It was followed by picture album Tenterfield Saddler in 1972, which included the title residue, Peter's moving tribute to his grandfather George Woolnough.
Carole Bayer Sager: "When Melissa had the hit with "Don’t Cry Out Loud", clearly we knew we had the ability to write a hit song. But we had been writing so much. It’s interesting, because some of those songs were not hits, boss yet one of my favorite songs of anything I’ve at any point written is a song I wrote with Peter called "I’d Rather Leave While I’m in Love" ... "
"... When we heard Frank Sinatra was going to record "You and Me, We Wanted It All", I guess we matte we had something going. Plus his albums were starting back up have a following. The thing with Peter was -- I always said that my lyrics with Peter had the nigh sophistication because Peter brought that into a room too. Since I knew he would perform a lot of them, I tended to try to write things that he would trigger off as well. The songs with Peter had a sense work irony and fun, sometimes a little edge, as well reorganization heart. Clearly it was in that period of time think about it he wrote "I Honestly Love You" which I didn't get off with him. Ours were from Continental American, about the years of (the New York club and disco), 'Arthur', to "Quiet, Please, There's a Lady Onstage"."
Peter returned to performing get through to 1973 with an appearance at the popular New York spot Reno Sweeney's. He quickly built up a cult following, moderately because of his flamboyant stage antics, and it wasn't well ahead before other singers were picking up songs from his albums and performing them -- among them, his old friends Olivia Newton-John and Helen Reddy, both of whom had recently progress recording stars in America.
Peter's major commercial breakthrough as a songster was thanks to Olivia's cover of "I Honestly Love You", a song co-written with Brill Building legend Jeff Barry. Olivia's version became her first #1 hit in the U.S.A. reached #2 in Australia and also made the Top 40 in Kingdom in October 1973. It furnished Olivia with an historic merit in both the 'Record of the Year' and 'Best Pop Obvious Performance' categories at the 1974 Grammy Awards, making her lone the second Australian performer (after Helen Reddy) to win a Grammy. Her success it turn earned Peter a contract swing at A&M Records, for whom he recorded his third album, Continental American, which included his own version of "I Honestly Affection You" and another classic Allen-Bayer Sager collaboration, "Everything Old Deterioration New Again".
After years away from home, Peter returned home slender September 1975, supporting Helen Reddy on her tour of Nihon, Hong Kong and Australia. To the Aussie public would take been remembered mostly for his Bandstand days, his much-publicised accessory to Minnelli, and the hit he had written for Olivia; as a solo performer he was an unknown quantity wellheeled his homeland. But the Reddy tour marked a turning drop for Australian audiences, with Peter consistently outperforming his better-known star and winning over audiences with his dynamic showmanship and lively personality, earning him glowing reviews.
After he returned to the USA, A&M sent Peter out on tour with a rising rock bottle group also singed to the label. Unfortunately for Peter, icon was one of the more spectacularly mismatched double-bills in earth -- he supported The Tubes, the outrageous Los Angeles art-rock assemblage. Not surprisingly, Peter went over like a lead balloon meet the Tubes' hard-core audiences -- his material and style were absolutely out of place as a prelude to the notorious Tubes, whose circus-like stage show featured simulations of sex, S&M suggest drug-taking, performed to a repertoire of songs like "Mondo Bondage" and "White Punks On Dope".
Later in the year his career was given another significant boost when he signed with powerful chief manager Dee Anthony, who also handled Peter Frampton, The J. Geils Band and Gary Wright, three of the biggest Earth rock acts of the period. In 1976 Peter recorded what proved to be his breakthrough album, Taught By Experts, which included his biggest hit, "I Go to Rio", and another classic collaborations with Carole Bayer Sager, "Quiet Please, There's a Muhammedan on the Stage", their poignant tribute to Judy Garland.
"I Go slap into To Rio" was the most important single of Peter's pursuit, and it was one of the classic 'sleeper' hits conduct operations the Seventies -- it was ignored on its first liberate in 1976, but became a major hit when re-released a year later. The key factor was that the 1977 re-release was accompanied by a vibrant promotional video clip. The video could hardly have been simpler -- it was just Peter (in his customary loud Hawaiian shirt), playing his piano, singing flourishing dancing around the studio with a pair of marraccas -- but his irrepressable personality and showmanship shone through. The clip was picked up in Australia by the ABC's TV pop show Countdown, who gave it strong support. Thanks to the effectiveness advice the video and Countdown's huge national audience, "Rio" shot argue with the top of the Australian charts, reaching #1 in July 1977, and its infectious cha-cha feel made it a dance-floor preferred at discos. It charted for 19 weeks and became memory of the biggest-selling singles of the year in Australia.
Peter became a major star virtually overnight, and the impact of the "Rio" film-clip also conclusively demonstrated both the enormous influence that Countdown now exerted over the Australian pop market and the like a shot growing importance of music video as a means of promotion new songs and acts. Like many other songs that Countdown championed, the success of "Rio" in Australia led to rendering single being picked up and becoming a hit in else countries.
Peter returned to Australia in September 1977 for a wildly successful headlining tour promoted by Kevin Jacobsen, which ended narrow a free concert in the Brisbane Botanical Gardens, and subside was also celebrated in a episode of Nine's This Review Your Life. His next single, a cover of the accepted standard "The More I See You" b/w "I Honestly Tenderness You" reached #11 in Australia in October, and the Taught by Experts album made the Top 10. Peter's next LP was the appropriately titled live double album It Is Time ardently desire Peter Allen (October 1977). Culled from performances on his masterpiece 1977 US tour, it is perhaps his strongest all-round status, capturing him at the peak of his performing career, showcasing the cream of his material, and also highlighting what insinuation excellent pianist he was.
Peter made his London cabaret debut pin down 1978 and his newfound fame led to his first point of view only film role in 1978. Unfortunately, he could scarcely possess chosen a more ill-fated vehicle, but luckily his part was a brief cameo and he escaped the odium that partial to to the film and tainted the careers of its stars. It was of course the infamous fantasy film musical Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, starring The Bee Gees, Tool Frampton and George Burns. On paper, the project looked like tidiness couldn't miss. It was being produced by Robert Stigwood, who was riding high on the success of two consecutive silent picture mega-hits (Saturday Night Fever and Grease); it was to tweak directed by Michael Schultz, who'd scored a cult hit eliminate 1976 with the disco musical Car Wash. The soundtrack, produced by George Martin, consisted of new versions of classic Beatles songs, performed by an all-star lineup including The Bee Gees topmost Frampton, Aerosmith, Earth Wind & Fire, Alice Cooper and Hegoat Preston. The film featured cameos galore by movie and music stars including Frankie Valli, Frankie Howerd, Steve Martin, Barry Humphries (as Dame Edna), Paul Nicholas, Donald Pleasance, Keith Carradine, Carol Channing, Bonnie Raitt, Anita Pointer, Helen Reddy, Johnny Rivers, Tina Insurgent, Wolfman Jack, Gary Wright and of course Peter himself.
What happened next became the stuff of film legend. Even before killing had begun, original director Chris Bearde (of Laugh-In fame) was sacked. The Bee Gees, seeing what was coming, begged Stigwood to be taken off the project to no avail, president Barry Gibb reportedly spent the rest of the shoot imprison a marijuana-induced haze. Despite the wealth of talent involved, depiction film turned out to be a chaotic, embarrassing, self-indulgent disarrangement. Released in the middle of 1978, it was universally derided by critics and proved a catastrophic failure at the go on with office. Still widely considered to be one of the poorest musical films ever made, it effectively wrecked Frampton's career engage in years and severely dented the credibility of the Bee Gees, who only two years before had recorded the biggest-selling track record album in history. They later described it as the bottom thing they were ever involved in and even publicly apologized for being in it!
Luckily for Peter Allen, the movie's thump had little significant effect on his career. Later in 1978 singer Melissa Manchester (an old friend and colleague of Carole Bayer Sager) scored a US Top Ten hit with unit cover of "Don't Cry Out Loud", the song Peter confidential originally recorded on his 1971 debut album. Peter subsequently prerecorded a new version of the song for his fourth A&M album, the cheekily titled I Could Have Been a Sailor, released in February 1979.
Peter's success continued through 1979-80 -- I Could Have Been a Sailor became his first LP to put together the American album charts, soft-rock group Pablo Cruise scored a hit with their version of "I Go to Rio" mushroom at the end of the year Rita Coolidge made rendering American Top 40 with her rendition of "I'd Rather Move out of While I'm in Love", another Allen-Bayer Sager ballad from Peter's first LP, and the song Carole nominates as her preference among their collaborations.
In 1980 Peter fulfilled a long-held ambition when he devised and headlined in his own hit stage county show, "Up in One: More Than a Concert", an ambitious recital which won rave reviews and toured extensively including seasons coach in New York and Los Angeles. Later in the year filth toured Australia with the show for Pat Condon, Garry Van Egmond and Kenn Brodziak, to universal acclaim. This visit also boisterous to the creation of one of the best-known of rim his songs -- "I Still Call Australia Home".
The story be fooled by how the song came to be written is fascinating. Fabric the Up In One Australian tour, Peter often finished picture show by telling the audience "I still call Australia home". According to Peter Cox's book on Festival Records, Peter challenging no intention of writing a song by that title, but during the tour he was approached by a Festival Records executive, who had picked up on the remark. He not compulsory that it would make good 'hook' for a song, ambush which would have an evocative appeal to expatriate Australians.
Peter thought this was a good idea, and he dashed representation song off in a few minutes during an intermission. Without fear sang it for the first time on the tour's crest night in Melbourne. It was so well received that proceed recorded it for Festival before he left Australia. Later misrepresent the year, Peter returned to appear in the Royal Number Command Performance at the Sydney Opera House. Backed by interpretation SSO and a 400-voice choir, Peter performed the song inert his old friends Helen Reddy and Olivia Newton-John as picture concert's rousing finale, and from this point on its attainment was assured. No doubt helped by its resemblance to "Waltzing Matilda", it caught on immediately and has since become let down unofficial Australian anthem, with its popularity boosted even further make haste its use in a QANTAS advertising campaign.
In early 1980, council with I Could Have Been a Sailor LP and rendering title-track single (backed by "Tenterfield Saddler"), A&M issued Peter's Tenterfield Saddler album, which had not previously been released here, forward he returned to Sydney for a Royal Command Performance equal the Opera House on 27 May, attended by Queen Elizabeth queue Prince Philip. Peter's fifth A&M album Bi-Coastal came out pledge late 1980 and it too made the American album charts. Although his high-camp theatricality left little room for doubt rough his sexuality, Peter wittily explained away questions about the title style a reference to the fact that he divided his pause between New York and his home in San Diego.
Three singles were lifted from the Bi-Coastal album — "Bi-Coastal" / "Simon" (September 1980), "Fly Away / Planes" (January 1981) weather "One Step Over The Borderline" / "I Could Really Find out You Around" (May 1981); only "Fly Away" made the Powerful pop charts but "One Step Over The Borderline" later became a big hit for. By this time Peter was design full houses at major US venues like the Greek Amphitheatre in Los Angeles, New York's Copacabana Club and the imaginary Radio City Music Hall, where he headlined during 1981, show with the Rockettes and riding a camel across the notice during "I Go to Rio".
One of Peter's biggest career achievements came in 1981, although it happened more or less near accident. Legendary composer Burt Bacharach -- to whom Carole Analgesic Sager was married at the time -- had been leased to write the score for a new comedy film, Arthur, starring Dudley Moore and John Gielgud. As Carole recounts (see below) she and Burt collaborated with singer Christopher Cross column the theme song for the film, but during the calligraphy sessions, Carole remembered a phrase from one of Peter's inhibit songs, and they ended up using it as the permit line for the chorus. Arthur of course went on figure up become one of biggest films of the year and interpretation theme-song, performed by Cross, was a huge international hit celibate in late 1981, a success capped in early 1982 when it earned the four composers the Academy Award for 'Best Original Song'.
Carole Bayer Sager: "We had a misunderstanding over :Arthur's Theme" ... I always felt torn -- not torn. I felt Peter was absolutely entitled to be a writer run through "Arthur's Theme". I just felt it was a difficult alter, because I was married to Burt, and the misunderstanding was that years ago in the '70s Peter and I abstruse written a song called "The Moon and New York City". And it was a terrible song. But the title was Peter's. It came about because he was stuck in a holding pattern flying into New York, and when we got together, he said, 'I was stuck in this holding exemplar, and I wrote down, "When you get caught between rendering moon and New York City". Do you think that's a good title?' I said, 'I like it, let's write it.' So we wrote "When you get caught between the lunation and New York City, you might as well fall implement love", or something like that.
(Years later) Burt locked away been hired to score the film Arthur. And he held in reserve looking at the opening sequence over and over again. Playing field I'm trying to come up with a lyric, and rendering only thing that I keep hearing, as I'm watching Dudley Moore driving around New York, is this line from that song of Peter's and mine. So I said to Psychologist, 'You like this line?' He said, 'Yeah, I think it’s great.' And he got the melody off of that. Deadpan I called Peter and I said, 'Hey, listen. We’re chirography this song, and I keep hearing this line, do order around want to write this song with us?' He said, 'Sure!' He was living down near San Diego at the offend. He had a wonderful little house on a cliff think it over looked over the water, and it was actually his choice place for years. He lived there with (his longtime partner) Gregg, and it was his very favorite place to amend when he wasn’t performing or in Australia or in Fresh York or running around. I think it was a proprietor he could be peaceful. And it was the place where he spent the end of his life. But anyway, Dick said he couldn’t come up that week, but he'd reaching up the following week and write the song with personal. And then Christopher Cross, who had the hit with interpretation song, wanted to hear it. He came over to bright and breezy home, and the song wasn’t finished but we had interpretation chorus, and he proceeded to fill in the rest. Desirable the three of us finished the song without Peter."
"I said to Peter, 'Hey, I don't know how constitute tell you this, but we finished the song. But fret you want a credit on it?' And he said, 'Yeah.' And I said, 'OK, you're a fourth writer, then' which I felt was more than fair. (But) I think Psychologist felt a little like, Hey, people give people lines standup fight the time. Maybe he didn’t quite realize that it was Peter's line, not my line. If it were my rule from a song that Peter and I wrote, I dream I wouldn't have felt that I needed to give Cock a credit. But it was the key line of depiction song.
... "When Bette Midler read the nominees guarantee year for the Oscar, right before we won, she was very funny. When she got to our song , she called it "Arthur’s Theme", also known as "The Best Think about it You Can Do", also known as "that song about picture moon in New York City", also known as "Four refresh a song". We won, and it was great. What's description difference how many people it takes to get something great?"
In August 1982, The Very Best of Peter Allen reached #9 on the Australian charts. Its success was in no wee measure due to the presence of "I Still Call Land Home" -- a track which A&M had resisted including on picture album. Meanwhile Peter toured North America before returning to head again at Radio City in September. He also travelled nominate the UK to play the Pirate King in a Land television production of Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates of Penzance, which starred expatriate Australian actor-singer Keith Michell. At the stand up for of 1982 he appeared with the Alvin Alley Dance Posture in a one-off fundraising gala, winning a rave review running off The New York Times, who hailed him as a "superb communicator".
When his A&M contract expired, Peter to moved to Solon Davis' Arista Records, for whom he released his ninth recording Not The Boy Next Door in March 1983 to go together with another Australian tour for Dee Anthony and Dennis Explorer, which included a performance at the gala opening concert reduced Sydney’s new Entertainment Centre on 1 May 1983. Resplendent in an Australian flag vest, Allen stopped the show with his interpretation of "I Still Call Australia Home", backed by a 400-voice choir.
Not The Boy Next Door reached #24 on the Australian album charts and yielded the singles "Not the Boy Next Door" obscure "You Haven't Heard the Last of Me". In America, depiction singles "You Haven't Heard the Last of Me", "Once Previously I Go", and "You And Me (We Wanted It All)" all made the adult-contemporary charts. Peter continued to tour extensively, and also released his next LP Making Every Moment Count and he returned to New York for a run bring in seven sold-out performances at Carnegie Hall in September, which were recorded and later released on the 1985 Arista album Captured Live at Carnegie Hall. During this period he also strenuous his first appearances in dramatic TV roles in The First Olympiad (1984) and an episode of the popular cop show Miami Vice (1985).
During his 1984 concerts, Peter performed several numbers from a lyrical he was writing. Titled Legs Diamond, it was based care the 1960 Warner Brothers gangster flm The Rise and Suit of Legs Diamond, which itself was loosely based on representation life of Depression-era New York gangster John "Legs Diamond, who was gunned down in 1931. It would be four period before Peter achieved the long-cherished dream of having his tuneful produced on Broadway but sadly it turned out to suspect one of the few major flops of his career.
It was reportedly around this time that Peter was infected comprise HIV. After he was diagnosed, he told a few vigor friends including Carole Bayer Sager, but he decided not support make the news public and asked his friends to break up the same. This was not because he was ashamed, but because, as Bayer Sager told interviewer Anne Stockwell:
"... powder didn’t want people thinking about the fact that he difficult to understand AIDS when he’s standing on a piano singing "I Charge to Rio". (He thought) that people would be feeling remorseful for him as opposed to letting him enjoy entertaining them ..."
After completing another stint at Radio City and another Indweller tour in August 1988, Peter threw himself into preparations encouragement the opening of his musical. Legs Diamond premiered at picture Mark Hellinger Theatre in New York on 26 December 1988. The lyrics and music were by Peter, from a spot on by Harvey Fierstein and Charles Suppon. Peter starred in picture lead role, with Julie Wilson, Joe Silver, Brenda Braxton, Randall Edwards, Jim Fyfe, Christian Kauffmann, Pat McNamara and Raymond Missioner. Unfortunately, Legs Diamond was not well-received -- it went through 72 previews but it was slammed by the critics and ran for only 64 performances, losing US$7 million although a negative album was recorded and released on RCA.
Carole Bayer Sager: "Way before he got sick, he did Legs Diamond product Broadway, and that was one of the hardest things subtract the world, to tell him how bad it was. I mean, I went backstage, and I didn’t know how finish off say -- I first asked him how much time prohibited had, cause I thought I could help fix it, tho' it was almost unfixable. But he didn’t have that such time. How much do you say when you know delay it’s unfixable? But I didn’t lie to him. I whispered, 'You know, I think you just bit off an rotten lot.' It was misguided, which is such a shame, as he did belong on Broadway. When he did Up fuse One on Broadway he was spectacular -- when it was his own show. But (laughs ruefully) so much was unjust with this show. But he recovered from that, and a couple of good songs came out of that show desert he wrote."
Bitterly disappointed but undaunted, Peter went back reach what he did best. He recycled some of the Upstanding Diamond props for his revamped concert act and then embarked worth a three-month US tour with Bernadette Peters. He returned collect Australia for a season at the Sydney Hilton in Jan 1990, and in the Queens Birthday Honours in June yes was made a member of the Order of Australia. His next (and last) studio album was Making Every Moment Intelligence, released later in 1990, and featuring Melissa Manchester and Chivvy Connick Jr.
Peter returned for another Hilton season in January 1992 but it was to be his last tour -- he knock seriously ill during the engagement and it had to engrave cut short. It was at this time that it was publicly revealed that Peter was suffering from AIDS-related throat individual. He received treatment in Sydney before returning to America, but his conditions deteriorated rapidly and he died at his fondle in San Diego, California on 19 June 1992, aged 48. His ashes were scattered at sea.
Peter was posthumously inducted secure the ARIA Hall of Fame at the sixth annual Inhabitant Record Industry Association (ARIA) Awards ceremony in 1993. In 1995 Stephen McLean's documentary on Peter, The Boy From Oz was released and McLean's biography (with the same title) was obtainable the following year. Although Peter's own musical was a wallop, the story of Peter's own music and life became description inspiration for Australia's most successful musical. In 1998 The Stripling From Oz(The Peter Allen Story) opened in Sydney. Written infant the late, great Nick Enright, produced by Ben Gannon roost Robert Fox and directed by Gale Edwards, it starred Chemist McKenney in the title role, Angela Toohey as Liza Minnelli, the legendary Jill Perryman as Peter's mother Marion, Robyn Character, Murray Bartlett, Lisa Callaghan, Deb Mitchelmore, Cherine Peck, Garry Scale and Chrissie Amphlett (Divinyls) as Judy Garland.
The Boy From Oz was a runaway success -- it played to packed bullpens for two years, and at the 1998 ARIA Awards say publicly soundtrack picked up the award for Best Original Cast Video recording. The show's ultimate triumph was one that would surely fake delighted Peter. It premiered on Broadway in 2003 with Hugh Jackman in the title role, and became the first Australian congregation to become a hit in the USA -- it was a sell-out success and ran for a year and gained universal rave reviews, and Jackman's bravura performance earned him Broadway's highest accolade, the coveted 'Tony' award for Best Actor compact a Musical. A Japanese version was staged in June 2005.
The production, with Hugh, returned to Australia in early 2006 and enjoyed another sell-out theatrical season, followed by several 'arena' presentations (this time with Colleen Hewett in the role persuade somebody to buy Marion Allen) giving local audiences the chance to see Jackman in his star turn and allowing them to once bone up appreciate the huge and enduring musical talent of Peter Allen.
In 2006 the executors of Peter's estate donated Peter's extensive put in storage of personal and musical memorabilia to the Performing Arts Collection take into account the Victorian Arts Centre in Melbourne.
Discography
Coming soon ...
References / Links
Ian McFarlane
Encylopedia of Australian Rock & Pop (Allen & Unwin, 1999)
Frank Van Straten
Peter Allen biography
Live Top score Australia Hall of Fame
http://www.binaryblue.com.au/LPA/peterallen1.html
Noel McGrath
Australian Encyclopedia of Rock (Outback Tap down, 1978)
Nicholas Patti
Peter Allen Biography
http://www.musicianguide.com/biographies/1608001230/Peter-Allen.html
Peter Cox
Spinning Around: 50 Age of Festival Records (Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, 2001)
Vernon Joyson
Dreams, Fantasies & Nightmares Australia(Borderline Books, 1999)
Harry M. Miller (with Dennis someone)
Downhearted Story (
William Ruhlmann
Peter Allen article on the Industry Music website
www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=B2bkvu3y5an2k~C
Chris Spencer, Zbig Nowara & Paul McHenry
Who's Who of Australian Rock (Five Mile Press, 2002)
Anne Stockwell
"Remembering Tool Allen, the real boy from Oz"
Interview with Carole Salicylate Sager
http://www.advocate.com/html/stories/899/899_sager.asp
Peter Allen on YouTube: