Glenn Shorrock
Glenn Shorrock | |
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Website | glennshorrock.com |
Glenn Barrie Shorrock
The Twilights had eight consecutive national hit singles including "Needle in a Haystack" and "What's Wrong with the Way I Live". Axiom's top 10 hits were "Arkansas Grass", "Little Ray of Sunshine" and "My Baby's Gone". Little River Band had national and international chart success, including the Shorrock-penned "Emma", "Help Is on Its Way" and "Cool Change".
Shorrock was inducted into the
Early years
Glenn Barrie Shorrock was born on 30 June 1944 in
Shorrock's first public performance took place in 1958 at St Peter's
In 1962, Shorrock formed his first band, the Checkmates, with Clem McCartney, Mike Sykes and Billy Volraat.
The Twilights
1962 | The Checkmates |
---|---|
1964 |
The Twilights |
1969 |
Axiom |
1971 | Glenn Shorrock |
1972 | Esperanto |
1974 | Glenn Shorrock |
1975 | Little River Band |
1982 | Glenn Shorrock |
1988 | Little River Band |
1996 | Glenn Shorrock |
2002 | Birtles Shorrock Goble |
2007 | Glenn Shorrock |
In 1964 Shorrock, with McCartney as co-lead vocalist, formed
Axiom
In May 1969 in Melbourne, Shorrock formed an early Australian "supergroup",
Shorrock remained in the UK to pursue his solo career; he signed with MAM Records and released the self-penned "Let's Get the Band Together" single in October 1971.[9] This was followed by a cover of "Rock and Roll Lullaby" in March 1972.[9] As Andre L'Escargot and His Society Syncopaters, he released "Purple Umbrella" with his backing band being Quartet members Britten, Kevin Peek, Trevor Spencer and Alan Tarney.[9] He joined the multinational progressive rock band Esperanto, which released their debut album, Esperanto Rock Orchestra, in 1973 with the Shorrock-written track "Statue of Liberty".[9] He left Esperanto before their third album was released in 1974 and performed backing vocals for Cliff Richard.[4][9]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/58/Glenn_Shorrock_%281979%29.jpg)
Little River Band
Mississippi was an Australian rock band which was working in the UK, with Beeb Birtles on vocals and guitar, Graham Goble (later Graeham Goble) on guitar and vocals and Derek Pellicci on drums. They contacted Glenn Wheatley (former bass guitarist for the Masters Apprentices) to become their manager. Birtles, previously in Adelaide band Zoot, called Shorrock to take part in the line up. Shorrock returned to Australia in October 1974 and joined Mississippi in January 1975 in Melbourne.[16] They were soon renamed as Little River Band with the original line up of Birtles, Goble, Pellicci, Shorrock and lead guitarist Ric Formosa and bassist Roger McLachlan.[5] The group went on to become one of the most successful bands ever to come out of Australia and the first to achieve major commercial success in the United States.[6] For Little River Band, Shorrock wrote the hits "Emma", "Help Is on Its Way" (Australian No. 1) and "Cool Change".[9]
While still a member of Little River Band, Shorrock released a solo single, a cover of
Later solo career
In 1982, Shorrock released the solo album Villain of the Peace and a single, "Rock and Roll Soldier", on Capitol Records recorded in Los Angeles with John Boylan (Charlie Daniels, Little River Band) producing. "Rock and Roll Soldier" reached the Australian top 40 in November but he did not achieve the international success attained with Little River Band. Late in 1982 he toured Australia and then teamed with Renée Geyer to release a duet, "Goin' Back", on Mushroom Records in February 1983. One of his backing singers was Wendy Matthews who had been a session singer in Los Angeles.[19] "We're Coming to Get You", which peaked at No. 6 in October, was recorded with folk group, the Bushwackers. It was the theme for the film We're Coming to Get You. He released "Don't Girls Get Lonely?" in November. In 1984, he recorded "Restless" for the documentary World Safari II: The Final Adventure.[9]
In 1985, Shorrock released The First Twenty Years, which was a double-
On 25 March 1991, Shorrock was inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame, alongside contemporary rocker Billy Thorpe, bass-baritone Peter Dawson and jazz musician Don Burrows.[23] In 1993, he re-joined with Axiom bandmate Brian Cadd to record Blazing Salads and three singles for Blue Martin Records as well as a subsequent two-year tour.[24] On tour Shorrock played his hit songs, along with those of Axiom accompanied by Cadd and a backing band of Rex Goh on guitar (ex-Air Supply), Kirk Lorange on guitar (Richard Clapton Band) and Mark Kennedy on drums (Spectrum, Ayers Rock, Marcia Hines Band).[9][24]
Long Way to the Top was a 2001 ABC TV six-part documentary on the history of Australian rock and roll from 1956 to the modern era.[25] Shorrock provided some interviews, "In Awe of The Beatles", "Being Pop Stars" and "Coming from the UK", about his early years with the Twilights.[26] A Long Way to the Top Tour followed in August–September 2002 with Shorrock appearing with the Twilights in the first set performing "What's Wrong with the Way I Live?" and "Needle in a Haystack"; he returned in the second set with Axiom to perform "Arkansas Grass" and "Little Ray of Sunshine".[21][27]
In 2002, Shorrock reunited with other Little River Band founders Beeb Birtles and Graeham Goble to form Birtles Shorrock Goble.[21] On 17 October 2004, the 1970s members of Little River Band: Birtles, David Briggs, Goble, George McArdle, Derek Pellicci and Shorrock, were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.[28] The later members, including fellow Australian John Farnham and US-based musicians, were not included in this induction.[28] Due to a 2002 legal ruling on their right to use the band's name, they performed "Help Is on the Way" as the "classic lineup" of Little River Band.[28] Birtles Shorrock Goble recorded a successful DVD and CD, Full Circle (2005), and toured until 2007. In August–September, the trio played a medley of Little River Band hits at the Countdown Spectacular two concert series.
In 2005, Shorrock also undertook his career-spanning "The Reminiscing Tour – Glenn Shorrock & Friends" with invited guest singers including
In 2008, Shorrock toured with the musical Shout! The Legend of the Wild One based on the life of Australian rocker Johnny O'Keefe.[30][31] In July 2010, Shorrock performed a retrospective of his 45 years in the music industry.[5][10] Currently Shorrock continues to tour Australia performing for public and private events in Australia and promotes new local music artists. In early 2013 he and his band were headlining performers in Macau, New York and London for the media launch of the Titanic II project. This was at the personal invitation of Australian entrepreneur Clive Palmer.[32]
In October 2014, Shorrock was inducted into the South Australian Music Hall of Fame alongside Bon Scott's former band Fraternity, Chris Finnen and David "Daisy" Day.[33]
Shorrock released his autobiography, Now, Where Was I?, in June 2018.[34]
Shorrock was appointed an honorary member of the Order of Australia (AM) on 26 January 2020, awarded for significant service to the performing arts as a singer, songwriter and entertainer.[35]
In 2021, Shorrock appeared in the Australian film A Stitch in Time.[36]
Personal life
Shorrock met his first wife, Sue Doran, a Melbourne nurse, in 1966.[37] The couple married in 1967[38] but divorced in 1971.[39] In 1975, Shorrock met Jo Swan, a video producer nine years his junior, who worked in the same building (Armstrong Studios) where Little River band was recording its first album.[40][41] They married in 1980,[42][40] separated in 2019 and divorced in 2020.[43] Shorrock married Irene Rose, a teacher, on 21 December 2021.[44] He has at times had arthritis, anxiety and stage fright.[45]
Discography
Studio albums
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
---|---|---|
Australia[17] | ||
Villain of the Peace |
|
32 |
Spin Me 'Round |
|
- |
Meanwhile... Acoustically |
|
- |
The Story of Sharky & The Caddman (with Brian Cadd) |
|
- |
Rise Again |
|
- |
Glenn Shorrock Sings Little River Band |
|
- |
Live albums
Title | Album details |
---|---|
45 Years of Song |
|
Compilation albums
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
---|---|---|
Australia | ||
Beginnings (Before Little River Band) (with Graham Goble )
|
|
- |
Beginnings Vol. 2 (Before Little River Band) (with Beeb Birtles & Graham Goble) |
|
- |
The First Twenty Years |
|
63 |
Singles
Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AUS KMR[17] | ||||||||||||||
1971 | "Let's Get the Band Together" | — | Non-album singles | |||||||||||
1972 | "Rock and Roll Lullaby" | — | ||||||||||||
"Purple Umbrella" (released by Andre L'Escargot and His Society Syncopaters) | — | |||||||||||||
1975 | "Daydream Sunday" | — | ||||||||||||
1979 | "Dream Lover" | 8 | ||||||||||||
1982 | "Rock and Roll Soldier" | 39 | Villain of the Peace | |||||||||||
1983 | "Angry Words" | — | ||||||||||||
"Goin' Back" (with Renée Geyer) | — | Non-album single | ||||||||||||
"We're Coming to Get You" (with The Bushwackers) | 6 | Villain of the Peace | ||||||||||||
"Don't Girls Get Lonely" | 75 | |||||||||||||
1985 | "American Flyers" | — | The First Twenty Years | |||||||||||
2000 | "Orchestra of Grunt" | — | Spin Me 'Round | |||||||||||
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. |
Other singles
Year | Title |
---|---|
1977 | " Graeme Strachan )
|
2019 | "Help Is On Its Way"[46] (with Wendy Matthews, The McClymonts, Beccy Cole, Jasmine Rae, Travis Collins, Busby Marou and Fanny Lumsden) |
Awards and nominations
ARIA Music Awards
The
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1991 | himself | ARIA Hall of Fame | inductee | [47] |
2014 | The Story of Sharky and The Caddman (with Brian Cadd) | Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album | Nominated | [48] |
Australian Songwriter's Hall of Fame
The Australian Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 2004 to honour the lifetime achievements of some of Australia's greatest songwriters.[49]
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2006 | himself | Australian Songwriter's Hall of Fame | inducted |
King of Pop Awards
The King of Pop Awards were voted by the readers of TV Week. The awards began in 1967 and ended in 1978.[50]
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1977 | himself | Best Australian Songwriter | Won |
Mo Awards
The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards, commonly known as the Mo Awards, were annual entertainment industry awards held from 1975 to 2016 which recognised achievements in live entertainment in Australia. Shorrock won an award in 2015.[51]
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result (wins only) |
---|---|---|---|
2015 | Glenn Shorrock | Hall of Fame | inducted |
Sources and further reading
- Kimball, Duncan (2002). "Australasian popular music of the 1960s and 1970s – an overview". Milesago: Australasian Music & Popular Culture 1964–1975. Ice Productions. Archived from the original on 31 October 2010. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
- ISBN 1-86508-072-1. Archived from the originalon 5 April 2004. Retrieved 11 July 2010. Note: Archived on-line copy has limited functionality.
- McKenzie, Stephen (11 June 2010). "All you need is Glenn". Melbourne Weekly (The Age). Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 17 July 2010. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
- Spencer, Chris; Zbig Nowara, Paul McHenry with notes by ISBN 1-86503-891-1.[52] Note: online version established at White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltdin 2007 and was expanded from the 2002 edition.
References
- ^ "Glenn Shorrock the Adelaide thread, via Elizabeth, from the Twilights and Axiom to the Little River Band". adelaideaz.com. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
- ^ Sharky and the Caddman share their stories and music
- ^ "RecordSearch". naa.gov.au. Archived from the original on 31 August 2020. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- ^ a b Thompson, Peter (17 May 2010). "Glenn Shorrock transcript". Talking Heads with Peter Thompson. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). Archived from the original on 5 March 2011. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
- ^ a b c d e Dow, Steve (6 June 2010). "Shorrock and awe". The Sun-Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 3 April 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
- ^ a b c d McKenzie
- ^ "Incoming passengers - SS Strathmore @ Tilbury". ancestry.com.au. 2 September 1955. Archived from the original on 21 January 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.(subscription required)
- ^ "Incoming passengers - SS Fairstar @ Melbourne". ancestry.com.au. 10 June 1956. Archived from the original on 21 January 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.(subscription required)
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j McFarlane "'Glenn Shorrock' entry". Archived from the original on 19 April 2004. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Retrieved 11 July 2010. - ^ a b Karlovsky, Brian (9 July 2010). "Reminiscing". Southern Courier. Archived from the original on 3 August 2010. Retrieved 14 July 2010.
- ^ a b Holmgren, Magnus; Warnqvist, Stefan. "Glenn Shorrock". Australian Rock Database. Magnus Holmgren. Archived from the original on 26 September 2010. Retrieved 11 July 2010.
- ^ a b c Nimmervoll, Ed. "The Twilights". Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music. White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd (Ed Nimmervoll). Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Kimball, The Twilights Archived 25 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 11 July 2010.
- Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 11 July 2010. [dead link]
- ^ a b McFarlane, "'Axiom' entry". Archived from the original on 3 August 2004. Retrieved 29 July 2009.. Retrieved 12 July 2010.
- ^ Kimball, Mississippi Archived 7 March 2008 at pandora.nla.gov.au (Error: unknown archive URL). Retrieved 16 July 2010.
- ^ ISBN 0-646-11917-6. NOTE: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until ARIA created their own chartsin mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.
- ^ Kruger, Debbie (2 May 2001). "The songs that resonate through the years" (PDF). Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2008. Retrieved 13 July 2010.
- Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ Holmgren, Magnus; Warnqvist, Stefan. "Glenn Shorrock – The First Twenty Years". Australian Rock Database. Magnus Holmgren. Archived from the original on 26 September 2010. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ a b c d e "Glenn Shorrock". Music Australia. National Library of Australia. 12 October 2005. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ "Glenn Shorrock 'Che' in Evita". 6 May 1989. Archived from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
- ^ "ARIA Awards – History: Winners by Year 1991: 4th Annual ARIA Awards". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Archived from the original on 8 June 2009. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ a b Kimball, Brian Cadd Archived 7 May 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ "Episode 2: Ten Pound Rocker 1963–1968 discography". Long Way to the Top. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 22 November 2002. Archived from the original on 7 April 2010. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ "ABC TV – Long Way to the Top – Video Vault". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 22 November 2002. Archived from the original on 14 August 2010. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ "ABC TV – Long Way to the Top – Concert Rundown". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 22 November 2002. Archived from the original on 21 July 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ a b c Sams, Christine (12 September 2004). "ARIAs reunite Little River Band". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 7 October 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ Australian Associated Press (AAP) (19 June 2006). "Judy Nunn gets the red card". The Age. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 5 November 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ a b "Shout cast – Glenn Shorrock". Archived from the original on 18 July 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2010.
- ^ Lipski, Avi (16 January 2008). "Shout! The Legend of the Wild One". Australian Stage. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 16 July 2010.
- ^ "First Class Entertainment For Macau's Titanic II Dinner". bluestarline.com.au. Archived from the original on 21 January 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- ^ Adelaide Music Collective (10 October 2014). "SA Music Hall of Fame Inductees". South Australian Music Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 24 May 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2016.
- ^ "Now Where Was I?". newhollandpublishers.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
- ^ Thompson-Fuller, Taylor (25 January 2020). "Australian honours roll for the Arts". The Canberra Times. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
- ^ "A Stitch in Time (2021) - The Screen Guide - Screen Australia". www.screenaustralia.gov.au. Archived from the original on 31 January 2022. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
- ISBN 9781921024733.
- ISBN 9781921024733.
- ^ Weekly, Stephen McKenzie of Melbourne (10 June 2010). "All you need is Glenn". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 19 April 2022. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ a b "Steve Dow, Journalist". www.stevedow.com.au. Archived from the original on 16 February 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
- ISBN 9781921024733.
- ^ "Shorrock to marry". The Canberra Times. 16 April 1980. p. 23. Archived from the original on 22 July 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ "Glenn's Shock Break-up". Press Reader. Woman's Day. 11 November 2019. Archived from the original on 19 April 2022. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ "Glenn & Irene - Food Bytes with Sarah Patterson". omny.fm. Archived from the original on 13 May 2024. Retrieved 23 September 2022.
- ^ "Little River Band star recalls shock at being replaced by John Farnham". Starts at 60. 16 March 2019. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
- ^ "Help Is On Its Way (single)". Apple Music. May 2019. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
- ^ "Winners by Award: Hall of Fame". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 2 February 2009. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
- ^ ARIA Award previous winners. "History Best Original Soundtrack, Cast or Show Album". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Archived from the original on 2 February 2012. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- ^ "Hall of Fame". asai. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ "Australian Music Awards". Ron Jeff. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
- ^ "MO Award Winners". Mo Awards. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
- ^ "Who's who of Australian rock / compiled by Chris Spencer, Zbig Nowara & Paul McHenry". catalogue. National Library of Australia. Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 11 July 2010.
External links
- Official website Archived 6 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- Official Facebook page Archived 3 February 2016 at the Wayback Machine
- Shorrock, Birtles, Goble website Archived 9 July 2022 at the Wayback Machine
- Shorrock collection at the National Library of Australia Archived 14 February 2016 at the Wayback Machine
- Shorrock holdings at the National Film and Sound Archive Archived 19 April 2023 at the Wayback Machine
- Interview with Shorrock in 2010 Archived 16 February 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- Shorrock on Talking Heads in 2010
- Shorrock interviewed by Brian Nankervis in 2020 Archived 19 April 2022 at the Wayback Machine (YouTube)
- Shorrock on This Is Your Life in 2005 Archived 8 March 2017 at the Wayback Machine (YouTube)
- Shorrock on The Don Lane Show in 1980 Archived 7 March 2017 at the Wayback Machine (YouTube)