STACK #216 October 2022

MUSIC FEATURE

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OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN GREATEST HITS (40th ANNIVERSARY DELUXE EDITION) In AlbumTales, Bryget Chrisfield hits you with some juicy nuggets of wisdom surrounding classic icons and their records. This month it’s the newly-remastered collection of hits from the late jewel of Oz, Olivia Newton-John.

Year 1977

Entertainers (or ACE). Led by George Jones and Tammy Wynette (who were married at the time), the association sought to “preserve the identity of country music as a separate and distinct form of entertainment,” and mostly consisted of Grand Ole Opry members. But Dolly had Livvy’s back Olivia later claimed she was unaware of this CMA backlash at the time: “I was travelling and touring, and I heard about it after,” she said. “[I] heard that Dolly [Parton] and Loretta [Lynn] had backed me up, so I had great support.” ONJ insisted on a screen test for Grease Olivia was offered the role of Sandy in Grease after

Lovely Livvy lights up our small screens As a teenager, Olivia was asked to fill in for The Tarax Show regular Lovely Anne over the Christmas hols while she took a break to go get married, which is how ‘Lovely Livvy’ got her start in TV. She had to drop out of high school in order to accept this gig on the popular children’s show, hosted by Happy Hammond. Becoming an international chart-topping crossover artist After she was championed by Sir Cliff Richard in the UK – as a regular guest on the variety show he hosted – Olivia cracked the US market thanks to her cover of Bob

If you haven’t already revisited Dame Olivia Newton-John’s sublime back catalogue in light of her recent passing, we recommend you do so sharpish. ONJ’s captivating smile, radiant beauty and girl-next-door charm perfectly matched the sound of her pure, angelic voice. Aside from setting impossibly high beauty standards for the rest of us, Livvy captured our hearts and cracked the global market, winning four Grammys and selling 100 million albums worldwide. Let’s face it: we all wanted to either date or be ONJ at some point. Australia’s sweetheart (who was actually born in Britain, her family relocating here when she was five), Olivia is most often remembered for her good-girl-gone-kinda-bad transformation while starring as Sandy in Grease . But I’m sure we can all agree that Olivia was a beacon of goodness. “I feel grateful

Olivia Newton-John and JohnTravolta in Grease (1978)

producer Allan Carr was charmed by her during a dinner party at Helen Reddy’s house. Apart from the fact that she would be a 29-year-old playing a 17-year-old, ONJ wanted a chemistry test with co star John Travolta before committing to the project ( Saturday Night Fever wasn’t out yet, so she only knew his work from Welcome Back, Kotter ). And there was sizzling on-screen chemistry, alright! So Olivia negotiated equal billing with John, and a percentage of Grease ’s royalties. Win! Dem iconic disco pants, though… In 2019, Olivia sold her most iconic look – Sandy’s black leather jacket and disco pants, worn during Grease ’s show-stopping finale – at auction, to raise funds for the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness & Research Centre. And the founder of Spanx, Sara Blakely, bought the pants...

Dylan’s If Not for You , which topped the country chart and also hit number six on the pop chart. Recorded at Abbey Road Studios, ONJ’s take on If Not for You is closer to George Harrison’s rendition than Dylan’s.

that I’ve been able to use my success to help create things that were meaningful,” she said during an interview with Karl Stefanovic. A cultural icon and fearless

Some of Nashville’s biggest names resented Olivia After Olivia won ‘Female Vocalist of the Year’ at the Country Music

Association (CMA) Awards, Nashville veterans – who regarded ONJ as a pop performer – were incensed enough to break

advocate for cancer patients, ONJ always navigated life’s challenges with dignity and grace.

away from the CMA and instead form the Association of Country

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14 OCTOBER 2022

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