Gay Kayler
Encyclopedia
Gay Kayler is an Australian country music
entertainer and recording artist. Gay used her maiden name in her professional career until 1978, when she changed the spelling to Kayler to maintain a consistency of pronunciation.
In 1942, the Kahler family moved to Sydney where Gay continued this musical tradition when, at the age of two-and-a-half, she captivated commuters on Sydney's trams and buses as she sang for them.
In the early 1950s, Gay sang on one of the first reel-to-reel tape recorders in Australia - as part of its demonstration at the Sydney Royal Easter Show
.
After attaining her certificate for 7th Grade Piano, Theory and Musical Perception, Gay and her family moved to Toowoomba, Queensland
. It was there that Gay made her first professional performance in 1958.
Gay's reputation blossomed when she was chosen to sing the Alexandra Waltz for Princess Alexandra
during her 1959 visit to Australia
. The Fairy Princess wanted to hear more so, by royal command, the teenager sang a selection of songs. Ultimately, this led to Gay being contracted to Brisbane
's Channel 7
for 3 years, where she appeared in shows such as the multi-Logie-Award-winning Theatre Royal with George Wallace Jnr
.
, Johnny O'Keefe
's Sing, Sing, Sing and Graeme Bell
's Trad Jazz. She performed eight times in the main Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House
, including on the first all-Australian Country Music Concert and the first all-Australian Variety Show held in that iconic venue. Gay also featured her Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal Song, Captain Joe Henry's Happy Hand-Clapping, Open Air Rhythm Band, backed by a 300-voice choir and huge Salvation Army band, when she opened and closed a 1976 concert in that venue.
Other notable venues included Melbourne
's Sidney Myer Music Bowl
, Adelaide
's Chrysler Auditorium and the 1,500 strong NSW Registered Club Circuit, said to be the biggest entertainment circuit in the world in its day.
on Australia's Great Barrier Reef
and the female voices on the radio commercial, David Callan At Your Club, which was aired over 31 000 times. She recorded the female sound track on the 1978 Little Boy Lost
movie, which was released worldwide. The Little Boy Lost DVD was re-released in 2007.
. Her last recording in 1995 was Child of Koonapippi, a song of the Aboriginal
Stolen Generation
s, written by Eric Watson (re-released 2001). Gay is best known for her version of The White Magnolia Tree
, which was in EMI and Readers Digest catalogues for over 33 years; also for her work on the heritage LP, The Cross Of The Five Silver Stars–in particular for Matthew, a song of the great navigator, Matthew Flinders
. This album is part of the 2007 Rajon Music Australian historical double CD set, Johnny Ashcroft, Here's To You, Australia! It also features Bettybo and musical director, Shep Davis.
Australian country music
Australian country music is a part of the music of Australia. There is a broad range of styles, from bluegrass, to yodelling to folk to the more popular. The genre has been influenced by Celtic and English folk music, by the traditions of Australian bush balladeers, as well as by popular American...
entertainer and recording artist. Gay used her maiden name in her professional career until 1978, when she changed the spelling to Kayler to maintain a consistency of pronunciation.
A blossoming career
Gay comes from a musical family. Her mother sang and played piano, piano accordion and violin with her siblings in their father's band on the Darling Downs, Queensland, in the 1930s.In 1942, the Kahler family moved to Sydney where Gay continued this musical tradition when, at the age of two-and-a-half, she captivated commuters on Sydney's trams and buses as she sang for them.
In the early 1950s, Gay sang on one of the first reel-to-reel tape recorders in Australia - as part of its demonstration at the Sydney Royal Easter Show
Sydney Royal Easter Show
The Sydney Royal Easter Show, also known as the Royal Easter Show or simply The Show, is an annual show held in Sydney, Australia over two weeks around Easter.It is run by the Royal Agricultural Society of New South Wales and was first held in 1823...
.
After attaining her certificate for 7th Grade Piano, Theory and Musical Perception, Gay and her family moved to Toowoomba, Queensland
Toowoomba, Queensland
Toowoomba is a city in Southern Queensland, Australia. It is located west of Queensland's capital city, Brisbane. With an estimated district population of 128,600, Toowoomba is Australia's second largest inland city and its largest non-capital inland city...
. It was there that Gay made her first professional performance in 1958.
Gay's reputation blossomed when she was chosen to sing the Alexandra Waltz for Princess Alexandra
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy is the youngest granddaughter of King George V of the United Kingdom and Mary of Teck. She is the widow of Sir Angus Ogilvy...
during her 1959 visit to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The Fairy Princess wanted to hear more so, by royal command, the teenager sang a selection of songs. Ultimately, this led to Gay being contracted to Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
's Channel 7
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
for 3 years, where she appeared in shows such as the multi-Logie-Award-winning Theatre Royal with George Wallace Jnr
George Wallace (Australian comedian)
George Wallace , was an Australian comedian, vaudevillian and film star. He was one of the most famous and successful Australian comedians on stage and screen in the twentieth century.-History:...
.
Television and live performances
Now retired, Gay Kayler's 40-year professional showbusiness career included appearances on most national TV shows, e.g. Brian Henderson's Bandstand (Australia)Bandstand (Australia)
Bandstand was an Australian musical/variety television show which screened from November 1958 to 1972. It was produced at the studios of TCN-9 in Sydney and eventually became a national program as Nine Network expanded into other Australian cities in the early 1960s.Bandstand was created by Nine...
, Johnny O'Keefe
Johnny O'Keefe
John Michael O'Keefe, known as Johnny O'Keefe was an Australian rock and roll singer whose career began in the 1950s. Some of his hits include "Wild One" , "Shout!" and "She's My Baby"...
's Sing, Sing, Sing and Graeme Bell
Graeme Bell
Graeme Emerson Bell AO MBE is an Australian Dixieland and classical jazz pianist, composer and band leader...
's Trad Jazz. She performed eight times in the main Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...
, including on the first all-Australian Country Music Concert and the first all-Australian Variety Show held in that iconic venue. Gay also featured her Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal Song, Captain Joe Henry's Happy Hand-Clapping, Open Air Rhythm Band, backed by a 300-voice choir and huge Salvation Army band, when she opened and closed a 1976 concert in that venue.
Other notable venues included Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
's Sidney Myer Music Bowl
Sidney Myer Music Bowl
The Sidney Myer Music Bowl is an outdoor performance venue in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is located in the lawns and gardens of Kings Domain, close to the Arts Centre and the Southbank entertainment precinct...
, Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
's Chrysler Auditorium and the 1,500 strong NSW Registered Club Circuit, said to be the biggest entertainment circuit in the world in its day.
Modelling, commercials and movie sound track
Gay Kayler, a triple beauty quest title holder, was a singer and model who also made commercials, e.g., with Bert NewtonBert Newton
Albert Watson "Bert" Newton, AM, MBE is an Australian television personality, known for hosting television series such as In Melbourne Tonight, Good Morning Australia and 20 to 1. Newton has also hosted the Logie Awards on numerous occasions through his career.-Early life:Newton was born in...
on Australia's Great Barrier Reef
Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
and the female voices on the radio commercial, David Callan At Your Club, which was aired over 31 000 times. She recorded the female sound track on the 1978 Little Boy Lost
Little Boy Lost (1978 film)
Little Boy Lost is a 1978 Australian drama film starring Nathan Dawes as Stephen Walls, John Hargreaves as Jacko Walls, Lorna Lesley as Dorrie Walls, Tony Barry as Constable O'Dea and Steve Dodd as William Stanley, the Aboriginal tracker....
movie, which was released worldwide. The Little Boy Lost DVD was re-released in 2007.
Recordings
Gay's recording career began in 1973 when she recorded the EMI album, Faces Of Love, with Johnny Ashcroft. She had a double charting single in 1975 of Nobody's Child coupled with the first Australian female trucking song, My Home-Coming Trucker's Coming Home, composed by Johnny AshcroftJohnny Ashcroft
Johnny Ashcroft is an Australian country music entertainer, songwriter, recording artist and musician.- Early roots :...
. Her last recording in 1995 was Child of Koonapippi, a song of the Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
Stolen Generation
Stolen Generation
The Stolen Generations were the children of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent who were removed from their families by the Australian Federal and State government agencies and church missions, under acts of their respective parliaments...
s, written by Eric Watson (re-released 2001). Gay is best known for her version of The White Magnolia Tree
Helen Deutsch
Helen Deutsch was an American screenwriter, journalist and songwriter.Deutsch was born in New York City and graduated from Barnard College. She began her career by managing the Provincetown Players...
, which was in EMI and Readers Digest catalogues for over 33 years; also for her work on the heritage LP, The Cross Of The Five Silver Stars–in particular for Matthew, a song of the great navigator, Matthew Flinders
Matthew Flinders
Captain Matthew Flinders RN was one of the most successful navigators and cartographers of his age. In a career that spanned just over twenty years, he sailed with Captain William Bligh, circumnavigated Australia and encouraged the use of that name for the continent, which had previously been...
. This album is part of the 2007 Rajon Music Australian historical double CD set, Johnny Ashcroft, Here's To You, Australia! It also features Bettybo and musical director, Shep Davis.
Production shows
Gay Kayler combined a major part of her career with Australian country music star, Johnny Ashcroft, who she married in 1981. Although they created a reputation as a show-stopping duo, they still retained their individuality by incorporating solo highlights within their performances. In addition to their adult production shows, Gay Kayler and Johnny Ashcroft spent twelve years presenting Australian history to school children with songs, stories and visuals in their NSW Education Department accredited shows.Credits and awards
(Chronological):- Royal Command Performance for Princess Alexandra
- Miss AustraliaMiss AustraliaMiss Australia is the title for the winner of the Miss Australia Quest/Awards, which ran from 1954 until 2000, when the last Miss Australia was named....
Quest's Miss Darling Downs - Sunday Mail's Miss Kirra Sun Girl
- RSL Western Districts Girl In A Million
- Inaugural President of the Toowoomba Bachelor Girls' Service Club
- Salvation ArmySalvation ArmyThe Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
Red Shield Appeal Song (Captain Joe Henry's Happy Hand-Clapping Open Air Rhythm Band) - Inaugural Secretary of the Professional Country Music Association of Australia
- Finalist in Best Female category (Australasian Country Music Awards)
- Finalist in Best Duo - with Johnny Ashcroft (Australasian Country Music Awards)
- National Award for Service to Australia's Country Music (Queensland Country Music Awards)
- Finalist for the Heritage Award with The Cross Of The Five Silver Stars (Australasian Country Music Awards)
- Multiple nominee in the Australian Variety Artists Mo AwardsMo AwardsThe Mo Awards are long running annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia....
- Imprinted in the Australasian Country Music Hands Of Fame–Tamworth, New South WalesTamworth, New South WalesTamworth is a city in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Peel River, Tamworth, which contains an estimated population of 47,595 people, is the major regional centre for southern New England and in the local government area of Tamworth Regional Council. The city...
External links
- Gay Kayler Official Website
- Johnny Ashcroft
- Country Music Hands of Fame
- Queensland Country Music National Female Award
- Gay Kayler recordings in National Film & Sound Archives
- Gay Kahler recordings in National Film & Sound Archives
- 1961 Theatre Royal Cast
- Tamworth Capital News Editorial
- Interview in Joy's Music World
- Oral History in National Film & Sound Archive
- Tim Cox, ABC Hobart, re Johnny Ashcroft & Gay Kayler for Little Boy Lost 50th Anniversary 11 Feb 2010