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Bev Harrell

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Bev Harrell
OAM
Birth nameBeverley Anne Harrell
Born(1946-10-24)24 October 1946(age 77)
North Adelaide,South Australia
Genrespop,musical theatre
Occupation(s)Singer
InstrumentVocals
Years active1951–present
Labels
Websitewww.bevharrell.auEdit this at Wikidata

Beverley Anne Harrell,OAM(born 24 October 1946) is an Australian pop singer, most famous for her 1966 Australian hit "What Am I Doing Here with You?".

Biography

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Harrell was born on 24 October 1946 inNorth Adelaideto Reg Harrell, a carpenter, and Dot (née Borlace), an amateur musician.[1][2]She sang for the5ADchildren's radio showKangaroos on Paradeat the age of six.[3]She appeared onAustralia's Amateur Hourat the age of nine, coming second. At the age of twelve she came second on the radio/television showSwallow's Juniors;she also toured withthe Mickey Mouse Clubwhen they were in Australia, along withLucky Starr.[2][4]

In 1965, while working as a secretary and studying at night school, she began performing with local bands such as the Harts andthe Vibrants,before briefly joiningthe Clefs;she was managed by her best friendDarryl Sambell(who would later go on to manage a youngJohn Farnham) and later Ron Tremaine. She signed with theEMIrecord label and became a regular performer on television shows such asBandstand,Kommotion,andUptight.[4][5][6]

Her first single, released in late 1966 under EMI'sHMVimprint, "What Am I Doing Here with You?" written byP. F. SloanandSteve Barri,was a cover version ofJohnny Rivers's album track fromIn Action(1964).[5][7]Her version, which was paired with theB-side"You Really Didn't Mean It", peaked at #13 on theGo-SetNational Top 40in 1967 and #1 in her native Adelaide.[5][8]The success of the single led to her winning theMajor Broadcasting Network's 1966 award for Best Female Recording Artist.[3][9]Shortly after the release of the single, she began performing as a support act for such artists asHerb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass,Winifred Atwell,the Rolling Stones,andRoy Orbison,along with appearing in an advertisement forHills Hoistclothes lines.[5]

In 1967 she released anEP,Come On Over To Bev's Place,and an album,This is Bev,which was named Album of the Year at the Major Broadcasting Networks awards. Two of her seven subsequent singles released between 1967 and 1970 for EMI's HMV andColumbiaimprints charted in the top 40 in Australia, and were her last singles to do so: "Come On Over To Our Place" / "You Don't Love Me" (March 1967) and "One in a Million" / "Give Me Time" (February 1968). "Come On Over to Our Place", written byBarry MannandCynthia Weil,was also recorded bythe Drifters,while "One in a Million" was written byJackie TrentandTony Hatch,frequent collaborators withPetula Clark,who subsequently released the song on her albumPetula.[3][5][10]In 1967 and 1970 she went to Vietnam to perform for troops in theVietnam War.[11]She was named three times as the most popular Australian female vocalist in the pop magazineGo-Set,coming 2nd in 1967, 1st in 1968, and 3rd in 1969.[12]She was known for her small stature, being 1.45 metres (4 ft 9 in) tall.[9]

Between 1970 and 1972 she toured around the world, travelling to Europe, Canada, the Caribbean, South Africa, and South East Asia. During this period, she had her own television showTwo Newin Toronto and released two singles. Her first was "Back To The People" / "Travelling Easy" (Bell); the A-side was written byMaurice Gibband Billy Lawrie,Lulu's brother, and the single was produced by Gibb. Representing the United Kingdom, she sang "Bringing Back Those Memories" at the 1971World Popular Song Festival,where she won the awards for Best Performance and Best Composition; it was released as a single in Japan as "Bringing Back Those Memories" / "Sing" (Polydor).[4][5][13][14]In 1972 she returned to Adelaide.. She released three singles withRCAin 1973 and 1974, along with an album,I Believe in Music(1974). In 1989 and 1990 she performed the role ofGrizabellain the musicalCatsin Australia and New Zealand. She has continued to perform on stage and for clubs, corporate functions, and cruiseships into the 21st century.[5][15]She has been married twice, to Brian Braidwood, a talent manager, and Gary Grant, a singer.[2]

At the2006 Australia Day Honours,she received a Medal of theOrder of Australia"For service to the entertainment industry as a singer and to the community in the support of ex-service welfare organisations".[16]In 2014, she was inducted into the South Australian Music Hall Of Fame.[17]

Discography

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Albums

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Title Details
This is Bev
  • Released: 1967
  • Label: His Master's Voice (OCLP-7663)
I Believe in Music
  • Released: 1974
  • Label: RCA (MVPL-0017)

Extended plays

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Title Details
Come on Over to Bev's Place
  • Released: 1966
  • Label: His Master's Voice (7EGO 70078)

Singles

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  • "What Am I Doing Here with You" / "You Really Didn't Mean It" (1966), HMV
  • "Come on Over to Our Place" / "You Don't Love Me No More" (1967), HMV
  • "You Baby" / "You Are the Love of My Life" (1967), HMV
  • "One in a Million" / "Give me Time" (1968), Columbia
  • "Mon Pere" / "At Times Like These, Mama" (1968), Columbia
  • "One Way Ticket" / "I Am the World"(1968), Columbia
  • "Everybody Needs Love"/" My Little One "(1969), Columbia
  • "The Looking Glass" / "Yes I'm Ready"(1970), Columbia
  • "Back to the People" / "Travelling Easy" (1971), Bell
  • "Bringing Back Those Memories" / "Sing" (Polydor, 1971/1972)
  • "It was Easy" / ""The Right Thing to Do"(1973), RCA
  • "Carols By Candlelight" / "You've Got To Save Me" (1973), Columbia
  • "Mon Pere" / "I Believe in Music"(1974), Columbia

Awards and nominations

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Go-Set Pop Poll

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The Go-Set Pop Pollwas coordinated by teen-oriented pop music newspaper,Go-Setand was established in February 1966 and conducted an annual poll during 1966 to 1972 of its readers to determine the most popular personalities.[18]

Year Nominee / work Award Result
1967 herself Female Vocal 2nd
1968 herself Female Vocal 1st
1969 herself Female Vocal 3rd

South Australian Music Awards

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TheSouth Australian Music Awardsis coordinated by Music SA, a non-profit organisation whose aims are to promote, support and develop contemporary music inSouth Australia.[17]

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2014 herself ARIA Hall of Fame inductee

References

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  1. ^"Family notices".The Chronicle.31 October 1946. p. 16.Retrieved2 March2020.
  2. ^abcCornes, Graham(9 June 2017)."Bev Harrell".Conversations with Cornesy.Retrieved2 March2020.
  3. ^abc"Adelaide, Remember When our city birth to all these great music acts?".Adelaide Now.14 February 2014.Retrieved3 March2020.
  4. ^abcBlack, Nick (2016)."The Purple Haze archive presents dynamic Australian singer Bev Harrell on podcast".Purple Haze.88.3 Southern FM.Retrieved3 March2020.
  5. ^abcdefg"Bev Harrell".milesago.Retrieved3 March2020.
  6. ^"This is Bev".State Library of South Australia.Retrieved19 March2020.
  7. ^Nuttall, Lyn."'What Am I Doing Here with You' – Bev Harrell (1967) ".Where Did They Get That Song?.PopArchives.Retrieved5 March2020.
  8. ^Nimmervoll, Ed(8 March 1967)."National Top 40".Go-Set.Waverley Press.Retrieved3 March2020.
  9. ^abLewes, Jackie Lee (12 April 1967)."Won with first disc".The Australian Women's Weekly.Retrieved5 March2020.
  10. ^"Petula – Petula Clark".AllMusic.Retrieved3 March2020.
  11. ^Royal, Simon (24 April 2016)."Anzac Day: South Australian performers and singers recall their wartime stories".ABC News.Retrieved3 March2020.
  12. ^Kent, David Martin (September 2002).The place of Go-Set in rock and pop music culture in Australia, 1966 to 1974(PDF)(MA). Canberra:University of Canberra.pp. 255–264. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 4 September 2015.
  13. ^"Đệ 2 hồi thế giới ca dao tế World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo '71"(in Japanese). Yamaha Music Foundation.Retrieved4 March2020.
  14. ^Bringing back those memories (Music, 1970s).WorldCat.OCLC221592458.Retrieved4 March2020.
  15. ^"Bev Harrell".ACA Entertainment. Archived fromthe originalon 25 May 2003.
  16. ^"Ms Beverley Anne Harrell, OAM".Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.Retrieved5 March2020.
  17. ^abHassan, Darren (26 November 2014)."Adelaide Music Collective's Inauguaral Year A Triumph!".Adelaide Music Collective.Retrieved5 March2020.
  18. ^"Australian Music Awards".Ron Jeff. Archived fromthe originalon 30 June 2012.Retrieved16 December2010.

Further reading

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