"No. 1 singles in the US within a year and a half, equalling the Beatles and surpassed only by Whitney Houston. In January 1979, the Bee Gees performed ""Too Much Heaven"" as their contribution to the Music for UNICEF Concert at the United Nations General Assembly, a benefit organised by the Bee Gees, Robert Stigwood, and David Frost for UNICEF that was broadcast worldwide. The brothers donated the royalties from the song to the charity. Up to 2007, this song has earned over $11 million for UNICEF. During the summer of 1979, the Bee Gees embarked on their largest concert"
"Robert Stigwood Robert Colin Stigwood (16 April 1934 – 4 January 2016) was an Australian-born British-resident music entrepreneur, film producer and impresario, best known for managing Cream and the Bee Gees, theatrical productions like ""Hair"" and ""Jesus Christ Superstar"", and film productions including the extremely successful ""Grease"" and ""Saturday Night Fever"". Stigwood was born in 1934 in Port Pirie, South Australia, the son of Gwendolyn (Burrows) and Gordon Stigwood, an electrical engineer. He was educated at Sacred Heart College in Adelaide. He began his working life as a copywriter for a local advertising agency, before emigrating to England in 1955."
"owned by pop entrepreneur Ivan Dayman. Some early releases were produced by Nat Kipner (father of musician Steve Kipner), who went on to briefly manage and produce The Bee Gees before they left Australia, but most of the Kommotion Records releases were produced by Pat Aulton. The label folded in 1967 when Dayman's Sunshine promotions and recording company went broke, around the same time that the TV show was cancelled. Although the device of miming to overseas releases proved popular and highly cost-effective, it was in fact this very practice that brought about the demise of ""Kommotion""—the series was cancelled"
"musicians such as Don Rendel, Bill Le Sage and Joe Harriott. He migrated to Australia with his family in December 1966 and in the following year joined the experimental electronic music group Teletopa and also AZ Music, which performed the works of John Cage, Steve Reich and others. Frampton toured overseas with Teletopa in 1972, playing in London at the International Carnival of Experimental Sound, at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and in Munich, Manila, Tokyo, Amsterdam and Cambridge. On returning to Australia, he formed a trio, the Jazz Co/op, along with Sydney drummer Phil Treloar and bassist Jack Thorncraft. In"
"Peter Gormley Peter Gormley (c. 1920 – 8 May 1998) was an Australian born artist manager who guided the early careers of many recording artists, including Frank Ifield, Cliff Richard, The Shadows, Marvin Welch & Farrar, Labi Siffre and Olivia Newton-John. During the early 1970s the British Music press (NME ""et al."") sarcastically coined the phrase ""The Gum Leaf Mafia"" to describe Australian clients of Peter Gormley who arrived en masse in London in the late 1960s e.g. Olivia Newton-John, The Seekers, The New Seekers, Kevin Peek, Terry Britten, Alan Tarney, Trevor Spencer, John Farrar, Barrie Guard, etc. In Australia"
"Pat Aulton William Patrick Aulton (c. 1938 - 13 February, 2009) was an Irish Australian record producer, musician, arranger and songwriter. He is best known for the successful pop and rock singles and albums he produced for Australian and New Zealand artists in the 1960s and early 1970s on the Sunshine and Spin Records labels and as lead vocalist of The Clefs. He also became a successful composer of commercial jingles and TV themes, and was a vocal coach. He created many jingles that we still use today, such as ""Oh what a feeling, Toyota"" and ""Aussie kids are Weetbix"
"Peter Frampton Peter Kenneth Frampton (born 22 April 1950) is an English-American rock musician, singer, songwriter, producer, and guitarist. He was previously associated with the bands Humble Pie and The Herd. After the end of his 'group' career, as a solo artist, Frampton released several albums including his international breakthrough album, the live release ""Frampton Comes Alive!"". The album sold more than 8 million copies in the United States and spawned several hit singles. Since then he has released several major albums. He has also worked with David Bowie and both Matt Cameron and Mike McCready from Pearl Jam, among"
"notable that several other Australian performers had scored local hits with songs written by the Gibb brothers during the same period.) Hugh Gibb also raised questions about the legality of the boys' contract—they were all under 18 when they signed with Leedon—but Festival managing director Fred Marks negotiated a compromise, agreeing to release the trio from their Leedon contract on condition that they transfer to the Spin label. It was at this point that Nat Kipner briefly took over from Hugh Gibb as the Bee gees' manager, until they moved back to the UK at the start of 1967, when"
"and produced such bands as Cog & Juice. He has recently (late 2011) begun managing Melbourne artist Ezekiel Ox, taking the reins for his myriad of creative projects. In 2012 Ted began managing Nathan Cavaleri and Col Hatchman 's Stomp Blues Rock band, Nat Col and the Kings Ted Gardner Ted Gardner is an Australian-born artist manager, entrepreneur and company owner. Gardner began his career in Melbourne in 1977, then relocated to Sydney in 1980 and on to United States from 1982. There he managed Jane's Addiction from 1989 and was co-founder of the original Lollapalooza festival in 1991 with"
"after his connection with NEMS began. Teenage vocal group the Bee Gees had just returned to the UK, after many years in Australia, with hopes of a career in the UK. Unknown to them, Ronald Rennie had already heard their only Australian hit, ""Spicks and Specks"", thanks to the band's publisher, so Rennie had made arrangements with their Australian label, Festival, to release it in the UK. When Barry Gibb appeared at Polydor's offices in London, Rennie immediately contacted Stigwood, whom he thought would be ideal to sign the group to Polydor and manage them. Stigwood had just begun his"
"Barry Gibb Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb, (born 1 September 1946) is a British singer, songwriter, musician and record producer who rose to worldwide fame as a co-founder of the group the Bee Gees, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed groups in the history of popular music. With his brothers, Robin and Maurice Gibb, he formed a songwriting partnership beginning in 1966. Born in Douglas on the Isle of Man, he was raised in Manchester where he became involved in the skiffle craze, forming his first band, the Rattlesnakes, which evolved into the Bee Gees in 1960"
"Barry Gibb Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb, (born 1 September 1946) is a British singer, songwriter, musician and record producer who rose to worldwide fame as a co-founder of the group the Bee Gees, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed groups in the history of popular music. With his brothers, Robin and Maurice Gibb, he formed a songwriting partnership beginning in 1966. Born in Douglas on the Isle of Man, he was raised in Manchester where he became involved in the skiffle craze, forming his first band, the Rattlesnakes, which evolved into the Bee Gees in 1960"
"young British-born vocal trio, The Bee Gees, who recorded numerous singles and one LP for the label. Although they penned several local hits for other performers, none of their own Leedon recordings were commercially successful, and by 1966 Festival was on the verge of dropping them. However their manager at that time, Nat Kipner had just been appointed to head new Sydney label Spin Records and he was able to negotiate the group's move from Leedon to Spin, in exchange for Festival being granted the Australian distribution rights to their subsequent recordings, a lucrative deal that continued for several years"
"Ivan Dayman Ivan Howard Dayman (20 July 19201 October 1989) was an Australian music promoter, record producer, label owner and talent manager of the 1960s and 1970s, based first in Adelaide, then Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. Although his career was brief – ca. 1964 to 1968 – he is significant in the history of Australian popular music as the first person to establish an integrated entertainment group that included artist management, a booking agency, a chain of venues in major cities, and a recording label. He is also notable for the many successful artists he managed, including his flagship act,"
"Paul Piticco Paul Piticco (born 7 March 1969) is an Australian music and hospitality entrepreneur. He is notable for managing Australian band Powderfinger and organising Splendour In The Grass. He is also Managing Director of Dew Process, Create-Control and Secret Service Music Company. Piticco was born an only child to Fernando and Carmel Piticco in Brisbane, Australia. His father was an Italian immigrant who had relocated to Australia at a young age and founded a construction business in Brisbane and his mother was employed part-time in nursing and education. Piticco attended Petrie Terrace State School while growing up and later"
"Cream (band) Cream were a British rock power trio formed in 1966 consisting of drummer Ginger Baker, guitarist/singer Eric Clapton and lead singer/bassist Jack Bruce. The group's third album, ""Wheels of Fire"" (1968), is the world's first platinum-selling double album. The band is widely regarded as the world's first successful supergroup. In their career, they sold more than 15 million records worldwide. Their music included songs based on traditional blues such as ""Crossroads"" and ""Spoonful"", and modern blues such as ""Born Under a Bad Sign"", as well as more current material such as ""Strange Brew"", ""Tales of Brave Ulysses"" and"
"and his wife began a management company. The Bee Gees' manager Robert Stigwood said about Petersen: ""Colin is a very level-headed person, despite being a racing car enthusiast. He's a very sophisticated person. He has a good appreciation of good food and wines. He's 100 per cent professional in everything he does and he's an old professional like the Gibbs because he's been in entertainment as a child as they were, too"" Colin Petersen Frederick Colin Petersen (born 24 March 1946) is an Australian drummer, record producer and former child actor. He played as a member of the bands Steve"
"Ted Gardner Ted Gardner is an Australian-born artist manager, entrepreneur and company owner. Gardner began his career in Melbourne in 1977, then relocated to Sydney in 1980 and on to United States from 1982. There he managed Jane's Addiction from 1989 and was co-founder of the original Lollapalooza festival in 1991 with its band members and booking agency. Ted Gardner started as an entrepreneur in 1977 when he partnered with Michael Gudinski and Ray Evans (co-founders of Mushroom Records) to run the Bottom Line club in Richmond, Victoria. In 1980 he moved to Sydney and worked with Chris Plimmer at"
"Alan McGee Alan McGee (born 29 September 1960) is a Scottish businessman and music industry executive. He has been a record label owner, musician, manager, and music blogger for ""The Guardian"". He is best known for co-founding and running the independent Creation Records label from 1983 to 1999, and the Poptones label from 1999 to 2007. He has managed or championed successful acts such as The Jesus and Mary Chain, Primal Scream, My Bloody Valentine, Oasis, and The Libertines. He was also the lead singer and guitarist for the indie pop group Biff Bang Pow!, who were active from 1983-91."
"the American-born songwriter, producer and entrepreneur Nat Kipner, who had just been appointed A&R manager of a new independent label, Spin Records. Kipner briefly took over as the group's manager and successfully negotiated their transfer to Spin in exchange for granting Festival the Australian distribution rights to the group's recordings. Through Kipner the Bee Gees met engineer-producer, Ossie Byrne, who produced (or co-produced with Kipner) many of the earlier Spin recordings, most of which were cut at his own small, self-built St Clair Studio in the Sydney suburb of Hurstville. Byrne gave the Gibb brothers virtually unlimited access to St"
"Jon O'Mahony Jon O'Mahony (born 10 August 1973) is a British music manager and founder of Rebellion Artists, who currently manage Fraser Churchill, Honey Ryder, Dustin Paul, Starlight Theatre and Fat Buddha. Before entering the music industry, O'Mahony had a variety of jobs including working at Drumtech drum school in London, and a stint working as a tennis coach at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy in Florida where he was also a hitting partner to various up and coming juniors, including the then 12-year-old Anna Kournikova in the early 90's. O'Mahony was the drummer in the band Ultra signed to"
"the Gibbs began their return journey to England on 4 January 1967, with Ossie Byrne travelling with them. Colin Petersen, who eventually became the group's drummer, had travelled to Britain in 1966 and made their accommodation arrangements in the London suburb of Hendon. While at sea in January 1967, the Gibbs learned that ""Spicks and Specks"" had been awarded Best Single of the Year by ""Go-Set"", Australia's most popular and influential music newspaper. Before their departure from Australia to England, Hugh Gibb sent demos to Brian Epstein, who managed the Beatles and directed NEMS, a British music store. Epstein passed"
"The Masters Apprentices The Masters Apprentices (or The Masters to fans) were an Australian pop/rock band fronted by Jim Keays on lead vocals, which formed in 1965 in Adelaide, South Australia, relocated to Melbourne in February 1967 and attempted to break into the United Kingdom market from 1970, before disbanding in 1972. Their popular Australian singles are ""Undecided"", ""Living in a Child's Dream"", ""5:10 Man"", ""Think About Tomorrow Today"", ""Turn Up Your Radio"" and ""Because I Love You"". The band launched the career of bass guitarist Glenn Wheatley, later a music industry entrepreneur and an artist talent manager for both"
"the first Australian cast recording to earn a Gold Record award. Through Kipner, Spin was also able to secure the lucrative Australian release rights to the Bee Gees' Polydor recordings from 1967 until the Spin label folded in 1973. The early Spin releases were produced (or co-produced with Ossie Byrne) by Nat Kipner, or by noted producer-arranger Bill Shepherd, who accompanied the Bee Gees to the UK in 1967 as their musical director. From 1967 onwards, following the collapse of Ivan Dayman's Sunshine label, its acquisition by Festival, and his subsequent appointment as a Festival house producer, musician-composer-producer Pat Aulton"
"cleverly promoted by Leyton's manager, expatriate Australian entrepreneur Robert Stigwood. Stigwood was able to gain Leyton a booking to perform the song several times in an episode of ""Harpers West One"", a short-lived ITV soap opera in which he was making a guest appearance. Meek's third UK No.1 and last major success was with the Honeycombs' ""Have I the Right?"" in 1964, which also became a number 5 hit on the American ""Billboard"" pop charts. The success of Leyton's recordings was instrumental in establishing Stigwood and Meek as two of Britain's first independent record producers. When his landlords, who lived"
"Merck Mercuriadis Merck Mercuriadis (born October 2, 1963, in Schefferville, Quebec, Canada) is a Canadian–American music executive and a music manager. He is the current CEO, Founder and managing partner of Hipgnosis Music Ltd., an artist management firm, publisher and record label based in London and Los Angeles. Mercuriadis is also known as the former manager of several notable rock and pop bands and musicians including Guns N' Roses, Iron Maiden, Elton John, Morrissey, Pet Shop Boys, Macy Gray, Mary J. Blige, Joss Stone, Jane's Addiction, Catherine Wheel and Wheatus Mercuriadis is notable for serving from October 1986 to June"
"a few months. Their debut eponymous album appeared in June 1971, which Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, described as ""adventurous, heavy, progressive blues-rock... Melouney's crunching, multi-layered Jimmy Page-styled guitar riffs kept the whole thing together."" Fanny Adams' founder, Vince Melouney had left the Bee Gees when in London, after three-and-a-half years as their guitarist, in 1968. He secured a solo album deal with MCA Records in mid-1970 and wished to form a group to play material similar to Led Zeppelin. He contacted his former Aztec band mate, Toi: the ex-pat New Zealander was in London doing session work. Then he asked"
"more Australian-made hits than any other record producer of his era. Aulton began his career as a singer in the Adelaide band the Clefs, then became an A&R manager for the Sunshine label, where he produced many of that label's releases, including hits by Normie Rowe. When Dayman's mini-empire collapsed in 1966, Aulton discovered that he had unwittingly been named as a partner in the record label and this made him liable for its debts. As a result, he had most of his assets seized by creditors. He was rescued by Festival MD Fred Marks, who offered him a job"
"kids"", he also helped in the writing and producing of ""The Lion King"" themes song, ""Hakuna Matata"". He had 5 kids in the meantime; Kerry, Samantha, Chelsea, Bridget and Alexander, which led onto having 11 grandchildren. Aulton who was born in Ireland in around 1938 and began his career as a vocalist with the Adelaide-based group The Clefs. Around 1963, Aulton began working for rising Adelaide entrepreneur Ivan Dayman and his Sunshine group, which grew to include a management and booking agency, record labels and a string of pop music venues from Adelaide to the north coast of Queensland. Aulton"
"were Sydney band Sherbet, who became the most popular and successful local band of the early Seventies and one of the most successful Australian groups of all time, and singer-songwriter Richard Clapton; both acts were produced by Richard Batchens, who succeeded Pat Aulton as Festival's main house producer. In 1979 Mark Moffatt replaced Batchens as house producer, bringing much of the Mushroom recording in house. Another notable success for Festival in this period was Sister Janet Mead. The Adelaide-based nun was an experienced music teacher who had been using pop music in religious ceremonies to involve young people and had"
"film ""24 Hour Party People"", which dramatized the rise and fall of Factory Records, and by Toby Kebbell in the 2007 film ""Control"", a biopic of Joy Division singer Ian Curtis. Rob Gretton Robert Gretton (15 January 1953 – 15 May 1999), was the manager of Joy Division and New Order. He was partner in and co-director of Factory Records and a founding partner of The Haçienda. In 1977, Gretton became a leading figure in the Manchester punk scene with his involvement with Slaughter & The Dogs. He was DJ in Rafters club and manager of The Panik. Gretton's involvement"
"founder of NEMS, left the band in the care of Robert Stigwood, his successor. But Stigwood had just signed The Bee Gees, fellow Australians, and was preoccupied with making them a success. This brought an end to the management relationship shortly afterwards. After parting company with NEMS, the band kept busy playing in the local London club circuit. At a club in Ilford, east London, the band were seen by Terry Ellis who quickly signed them to his new agency, and renamed the band Clouds. Originally known as the Ellis-Wright agency, the organisation grew and became Chrysalis. Clouds had also"
"Groups that he successfully managed were Lipps Inc., Mel and Kim, Modern Romance and Rikki Peebles. He later went on to manage all girl groups Amazulu and Belle Stars. He currently runs Chubby Lama Management with Sasi Langford representing Indie Rock band Shoot the Preacher who won The Global Song Writing Competition. He has also managed strip clubs. Alan Whitehead (drummer) Alan Whitehead is a British musician and businessman. He started his career in the music industry in 1966 as the drummer for Crispian St. Peters, but is best known as a member of Marmalade, whose most successful single in"