 | Thisbiography of a living personneeds additionalcitations forverification. Please help by addingreliable sources.Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced orpoorly sourcedmust be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentiallylibelous. Find sources: "Gary Osborne" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(December 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Gary Osborne (born 1949 inLondon) is an English singer and songwriter. He chaired The Songwriters Executive of the British Academy Of Songwriters Composers and Authors for 12 years during which time he was also chairman ofThe Ivor Novello Awards.[1]
Born in London in 1949, Osborne is the son of the late musical director Tony Osborne.[2] He was educated inSwitzerland and entered the music industry at the age of 15. As a teenage songwriter Osborne had recordings byTimi Yuro,Nana Mouskouri andVal Doonican and at age 17 had his first US chart entry with "On The Other Side" byThe Seekers, which he wrote withTom Springfield.
Osborne was influenced by lyricist/producerNorman Newell whom he knew via family connections in his youth.[3]
Osborne's early career included presenting the 1960s radio showCool Britania on theBBC World Service and a stint withRCA Records in itsA&R department. In the early 1970s, he was active in televisionjingles, writing and performing hundreds of songs for brands includingPepsi,Ultra Brite,Shredded Wheat andAbbey National.[4]
Osborne and Paul Vigrass recorded two albums, both produced byJeff Wayne. Their first wasQueues, in 1972, containing the hits "Forever Autumn", "Men of Learning" and "Virginia (Be Strong)". Their second and last wasSteppin' Out, with the hit "Gypsy Woman". "Men of Learning" peaked at #84 in Australia in 1972.[5] The duo did release a belated UK single in 1975 (also produced by Wayne) on CBS 3170 with "Take it Away" on the A side and "Hangin' in, Hangin' Out" (co-written by the duo and Wayne) on the B side.
Osborne went on to collaborate withElton John throughout the 1978 albumA Single Man, and on parts of the albums21 at 33,The Fox,Jump Up! andLeather Jackets. The three biggest singles co-written by Elton John and Osborne were "Part-Time Love" from 1978, "Little Jeannie", a U.S. million-seller in 1980, and the worldwide hit "Blue Eyes" from 1982.[4] Osborne was the principal lyricist on the best-sellingconcept albumJeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds which has sold in excess of 15 million albums and performed half a dozen sold-out UK arena tours as well as touring in Europe and Australia.[citation needed]
Osborne's collaboration withRichard Kerr yielded the US hit "I'm Dreaming" forJennifer Warnes and "Making The Best of a Bad Situation" forMillie Jackson'sStill Caught Up album, as well as cuts byJimmy Helms,Cliff Richard,Peter Cetera,The Edwin Hawkins Singers andThe Righteous Brothers. He co-wrote four songs forAlbert Hammond's albumSomewhere in America (1982).[6]
"I Am the Future", written withLalo Schifrin for the soundtrack of the movieClass of 1984, was performed byAlice Cooper. Other films featuring Osborne songs includeMy Own Private Idaho,Stardust,Every Day's a Holiday,Summer Lovers,The Legacy andOh! Heavenly Dog.[citation needed]
Osborne's credits as a backing vocalist include "Sugar Baby Love" byThe Rubettes, "You Can Make Me Dance" byRod Stewart and The Faces, and "Part-Time Love" by Elton John. More recent work includes the 2006 UK top-3 hit "Checkin' It Out" byLil' Chris.[citation needed]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
