Lynne Randell
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| Lynne Randell | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Lynne Randell |
| Born | 1950 Liverpool, England |
| Died | June 8, 2007 Melbourne, Australia |
| Genre(s) | Pop music |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals |
| Years active | 1965–1969 |
| Label(s) | HMV, CBS, Epic, Raven |
Lynne Randell (1950–June 8, 2007) was an Australian singer best known for her 1960s hit "Ciao Baby". She also had hits with "Heart" and "Going Out of My Head". Randell toured the United States with The Monkees and performed with Jimi Hendrix. [1]
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[edit] Early life
Randell was born in Liverpool, England; when she was 5 her family migrated to Australia and settled in the Melbourne suburb of Murrumbeena. She later attended Mordialloc High School and worked with celebrity hairdresser Lillian Frank before becoming a pop singer[2].
[edit] Recording career
Singer Lynne Randell was accidentally discovered whilst working as a 15 year old apprentice hairdresser by the Band "The Flies" Manager Garry Spry who had Publicist Carol West organise for the TV Channels' to film The Flies having their long hair done at a womans hair salon. During the filming Ronnie Burns was singing with his guitar when Lillian Frank suggested her young apprentice should sing with him, which she did. Spry was so impressed by her voice he offered her a job at his club "Pinocchios" at night and through this Carol West later became her Manager.
Randell was signed to EMI in 1965 and her first singles became minor hits in Melbourne. Randell signed a new contract with CBS Records and "Heart" and "Going Out of My Head" both became Top 20 hits in Melbourne. [2]
On the back of her Australian success, Randell went to the UK and the US. She sang at the Cavern Club. While in the US, she met the Monkees and had a brief relationship with Davy Jones.[2]
"Ciao Baby" became a top 10 hit in Australia in 1967 with Epic Records also releasing it in the US. Randell shot a video for "Ciao Baby" in colour and she was the first Australian artist to do so.[2]
Randell toured the US as support act to The Monkees as part of a bill which also featured Jimi Hendrix and Ike & Tina Turner. [3]
Her next single "That's a Hoe Down / I Need You Boy" was another hit in 1967. Randell moved to Los Angeles in 1968. However, she contracted health problems with glandular fever and then peritonitis. [2] She had another single released in 1969 on Capitol Records.
[edit] Marriage
Randell married Abe Hoch, a record company executive in 1969 and worked for Go-Set magazine as their US correspondent. He later became head of Swan Song Records and they moved to London where Randell suffered serious health problems. This caused serious problems for the marriage leading to her divorcing Hoch. [2]
[edit] Later career and death
After the end of her marriage, she worked as a personal assistant to Australian music industry figure Ian Meldrum.[4] Randell later worked with Seymour Stein of Sire Records in the late 1980s. [2]
Randell moved back to Melbourne in the 1990s and made occasional appearances in oldies concerts.
While touring the United States, Randell become addicted to methamphetamine tablets which were sold as slimming pills.[1] She had a long term addiction to "slimming pills" which damaged her brain, nervous system and adrenal glands. [4] Randell went public about her addiction in 2004. [5]
Randell was found dead at home in Toorak, Melbourne on 8 June 2007. Police said that there were "no suspicious circumstances". She left notes and gifts for family and friends. [2]
Her only child, Jamieson Hoch, died of a brain hemorrhage on July 24, 2007.
[edit] References
[edit] Published References
- The Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop - Ian McFarlane - Allen & Unwin, Sydney - 1999
- Noel McGrath's Australian Encyclopedia of Rock & Pop - Rigby Publishers - 1978
- The Who's Who of Australian Rock - Chris Spencer - Moonlight Publishing
