Olivia Newton-John, The #36 Artist of the Rock Era, Part Two

 

(Continued from Part One)

 Newton-John achieved a record seventh straight #1 with the title song from her album Don't Stop Believin'.

Olivia capped off an amazing year by hosting a U.S. television special, A Special Olivia Newton-John.

 

Farrar wrote this with Don Black, lyricist of several James Bond theme songs such as "Thunderball" and "Diamonds Are Forever", and Hank Marvin, who penned the classic "To Sir With Love" for Lulu.  The single "Sam" from Don't Stop Believin' gave Newton-John 9 #1 songs on the Adult chart in less than six years.

However in 1977, Making a Good Thing Better was the only album which fell short of Gold status since her debut LP, and no singles made the Top 10 on any major format.  

Her Greatest Hits package fared much better, selling over two million copies.

In 1978, Newton-John sued MCA for $10 million and claimed that the label's failure

to adequately promote her product freed

her from her contract.  The court ruled that she could not sign with another label until her contract was up. 

Although she had been one of the top stars on the Adult chart for nearly the entire decade, Olivia needed and wanted a change in direction.  After meeting producer Allan Carr at a dinner party at Helen Reddy's home, that pivot and revitalization fell into her lap when she was invited to play the lead role of Sandy opposite John Travolta in the upcoming movie Grease, adapted from the Broadway musical.  Travolta was coming off his red-hot performance in Saturday Night Fever and scoring that role was a major opportunity.  

Olivia took advantage of the moment and utilized that prime role and began to portray an image not unlike the character she played in that classic movie.  The movie's script recast the Sandy character to an Australian who had just moved to the states.  

After filming the movie and recording songs from the soundtrack, Newton-John starred in her second television special with guests ABBA and Andy Gibb.

 

Both the film and soundtrack became an instant success and both rank among the tops of all-time in their respective mediums.  Grease raked in at the box office, while the soundtrack featuring three Top 5 songs dominated the Album chart with a total of 12 weeks at #1.  "You're The One That I Want", the first of two duets with Travolta, not only reached #1 but was one of the biggest songs of 1978, selling over two million singles.  It spent nine weeks at #1 in the U.K., the #5-selling single ever in Great Britain.

 Newton-John and Travolta teamed up again for "Summer Nights", a #5 hit that sold over one million copies.  In the movie, the pair sings about their summer romance, with each recalling the events completely differently.

 Olivia's solo hit "Hopelessly Devoted To You", written for her by Farrar, shot up to #3 and returned her to the Top 10 on the Adult chart.  The song was also nominated for an Oscar at the Academy Awards for Best Song from a Motion Picture.

When "Hopelessly Devoted" reached the Top 5, she became just the second woman (after Linda Ronstadt the year before) to enjoy two simultaneous Top 5 songs (along with "Summer Nights").  

Olivia was nominated for a People's Choice Award for Favorite Film Actress and she was also nominated for her performance as Best Actress in a Musical at the Golden Globe Awards.   She also won Favorite Album at the American Music Awards and Top Soundtrack at the Billboard Music Awards and was nominated for Album of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance (for "Hopelessly Devoted To You") at the Grammy Awards. 

About Grease, Newton-John says in a 2019 interview with Billboard:

    I think the songs are timeless.  They're fun and have

      great energy.  The '50s-feel music has always been                  popular, and it's nostalgic for my generation, and 

      then the young kids are rediscovering it every 10

      years or so, it seems. People buying the album was

      a way for them to remember those feelings of 

     watching the movie and feelings of that time period. 

     I feel very grateful to be a part of this movie that's still

     loved so much.

 Newton-John released the album Totally Hot later in the year, her first solo Top 10 LP since 1975.  She released the single "A Little More Love", #3 overall and #4 Adult Contemporary in the United States and #2 in Canada and the #7 song of the year in that country.  

 

She scored another hit with "Deeper Than The Night".  

Olivia was nominated for an American Music Award for Favorite Female Artist.   

The title song reflected Olivia's career change to a more aggressive style.

 "Boats Against The Current" is from Eric Carmen's album of the same name.  It is a standout track on Olivia's album as well.

 "Dancin' Round And Round" also appears on the "Xanadu" Soundtrack.

 

In 1979, Olivia and Andy Gibb premiered the song written by Gibb's brothers in the Bee Gees--"Rest Your Love On Me"--at the Music for UNICEF Concert for the United Nations' International Year of the Child.

Olivia received the honor of Officer of the Order of the British Empire and was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador to the United Nations Environment Programme.

 

Newton-John starred in her third television special, Hollywood Nights.  Gibb invited Olivia to sing on his next single, "I Can't Help It", a #8 hit on the AC chart and #12 overall.

Join us for Part Three of Olivia Newton-John, exclusively on Inside The Rock Era!