Peter Doyle (singer)
Encyclopedia
Peter John Doyle was an Australia
n pop
singer who had success with a number of Top 40 hits in Australia in the 1960s, then success internationally as a member of the New Seekers in the early 1970s, before resuming a solo career in 1973.
's Sunshine label (whose roster included top singers such as Normie Rowe
and Tony Worsley). This led to regular appearances on Melbourne’s teen TV show, "The GO Show".
's Speechless (The Pick Up), and a rousing version of Solomon Burke
's Stupidity. He was backed by Melbourne band The Phantoms on all these recordings. He then recorded two singles with the band Grandmas Tonic as lead vocalist. His last two singles, once again under his own name, were for the Astor label although he was still backed on them by Grandma's Tonic,(ex-members of Tony Worsley's backing band 'The Fabulous Blue Jays').
May 1968 saw him join the vocal trio 'The Virgil Brothers', Australia's answer to The Walker Brothers. The Virgil Brothers released two singles in Australia in 1968, "The Temptations 'Bout to Get Me" (a Top 5 hit) and "Here I Am". They then relocated to the UK where they recorded their third single, When You Walk Away with producer David McKay. He then quit the trio which broke up soon after.
. Recommended by melbourne radio DJ Stan Rolfe. This line-up was their most successful and enduring and during his time with them they had a string of international hits, such as Melanie Safka
's "What Have They Done To My Song Ma", Delaney & Bonnie's "Never Ending Song of Love" and "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing".
In 1972 The New Seekers came second representing the UK, in the Eurovision Song Contest
with the song "Beg, Steal or Borrow
", on which he co-vocalled with Lyn Paul
. As well as sharing vocals in The New Seekers he was a talented songwriter and contributed many songs to their albums which included ballads such as "I Can Say You're Beautiful" and "Lay Me Down" and more uptempo numbers like "Boom Town" and "Cincinnati".
. He continued working in the UK until 1981, during which period he issued five solo singles, including a cover of The Easybeats
"Friday On My Mind
", and one album, Skin Deep. During this time in the UK he also recorded advertising jingles for Ribena
and Sugar Puffs
, provided the vocal for a children's single, "Jungle Ted and the Laceybuttonpoppers" and did backing vocals on Lyn Paul
's solo single, "It Oughta Sell A Million". It did not. In 1975 he was offered and declined the job as Little River Band
's lead vocalist.
Glen Wheatley asked Peter to join the Little River Band but at this stage, Peter wanted to make his way as a solo performer. By 1976, with the backing of David Mackay, Peter had secured a recording with RCA and his first single, released on 13 August 1976 was an incredible version of the Easybeats' Friday on My Mind. Inexplicably this failed to chart, as did his follow up single, Skin Deep. His album, also entitled Skin Deep , released in 1977, included a variety of musical styles and six songs penned by Peter, but even this failed to give him the solo success he so greatly deserved. It was around this time that Peter met the love of his life, Jane Garner, who later became his wife.
He returned to Australia in 1981 to work with a band called Standing Room Only. In 1982, ex-Wings
drummer, Steve Holly invited him to join the group Regis in the US, where he worked for the next five years.
Returning to Australia in 1987, he regularly performed on the club circuit. In 1991 to 1992 he joined the Ram Band in Melbourne on vocals, played bass and keyboards, Colin Cook vocals, guitar and saxophone, Tony Faehse guitar and vocal, Marty Stone guitar, John van Boxtel vocals and drums.
This was curtailed when he suffered ill-health in the 1990s.
, on 13 October 2001. He is buried at Muckleford Cemetery.
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...
n pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
singer who had success with a number of Top 40 hits in Australia in the 1960s, then success internationally as a member of the New Seekers in the early 1970s, before resuming a solo career in 1973.
Early career
He started his career at the age of 9 appearing on a children's television talent show called Swallow's Juniors and appeared as a regular on that show for the next five years. At the age 10 he made his first recording on a 78rpm acetate, "Lucky Devil"/"If Irish Eyes Were Shining". He was performing in Sunday afternoon pop shows at Melbourne's Festival Hall at the age of 14 and at 16 he was signed to a record contract with Ivan DaymanIvan Dayman
Ivan Dayman was an Australian record producer and band manager of the 1960s and 1970s, based first in Adelaide, and then in Brisbane.In 1963, musician-producer-arranger-songwriter Pat Aulton began working for rising Adelaide entrepreneur Ivan Dayman and his Sunshine group...
's Sunshine label (whose roster included top singers such as Normie Rowe
Normie Rowe
Norman John "Normie" Rowe AM was a major male solo performer of Australian pop music in the 1960s. Known for his bright and edgy tenor voice and dynamic stage presence, many of Rowe's most successful recordings were produced by Pat Aulton, house producer for the Sunshine Records, Spin Records and...
and Tony Worsley). This led to regular appearances on Melbourne’s teen TV show, "The GO Show".
Australian pop star
From 1965 to 1967 he released ten 45 records in Australia, of which seven made the Top 40, the most successful of which were a cover of Conway TwittyConway Twitty
Conway Twitty , born Harold Lloyd Jenkins, was an American country music artist. He also had success in early rock and roll, R&B, and pop music. He held the record for the most number one singles of any act with 55 No. 1 Billboard country hits until George Strait broke the record in 2006...
's Speechless (The Pick Up), and a rousing version of Solomon Burke
Solomon Burke
Solomon Burke was an American singer-songwriter, entrepreneur, mortician, and an archbishop of the United House of Prayer For All People. Burke was known as "King Solomon", the "King of Rock 'n' Soul", and as the "Bishop of Soul", and described as "the Muhammad Ali of soul", and as "the most...
's Stupidity. He was backed by Melbourne band The Phantoms on all these recordings. He then recorded two singles with the band Grandmas Tonic as lead vocalist. His last two singles, once again under his own name, were for the Astor label although he was still backed on them by Grandma's Tonic,(ex-members of Tony Worsley's backing band 'The Fabulous Blue Jays').
May 1968 saw him join the vocal trio 'The Virgil Brothers', Australia's answer to The Walker Brothers. The Virgil Brothers released two singles in Australia in 1968, "The Temptations 'Bout to Get Me" (a Top 5 hit) and "Here I Am". They then relocated to the UK where they recorded their third single, When You Walk Away with producer David McKay. He then quit the trio which broke up soon after.
With The New Seekers
In 1970, not long after the Virgil Bros had dissolved, he joined the second lineup of The New SeekersThe New Seekers
The New Seekers are a British-based pop group, formed in 1969 by Keith Potger after the break-up of his group, The Seekers. The idea was that the New Seekers would appeal to the same market as the original Seekers, but their music had rock as well as folk influences...
. Recommended by melbourne radio DJ Stan Rolfe. This line-up was their most successful and enduring and during his time with them they had a string of international hits, such as Melanie Safka
Melanie Safka
Melanie Anne Safka-Schekeryk is an American singer-songwriter. Known professionally as simply Melanie, she is best known for her hits "Brand New Key", "Ruby Tuesday" and "Lay Down ".-Early career:...
's "What Have They Done To My Song Ma", Delaney & Bonnie's "Never Ending Song of Love" and "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing".
In 1972 The New Seekers came second representing the UK, in the Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...
with the song "Beg, Steal or Borrow
Beg, Steal or Borrow
"Beg, Steal or Borrow" was the British entry in the Eurovision Song Contest 1972, performed in English by The New Seekers.The song was composed and written by Tony Cole, Steve Wolfe and Graeme Hall. In the night of the contest, the song was directed by David Mackay.The song is directed to a...
", on which he co-vocalled with Lyn Paul
Lyn Paul
Lyn Paul is an English pop singer and actress. She came to fame as a member of the international chart-topping pop group The New Seekers in the early 1970s...
. As well as sharing vocals in The New Seekers he was a talented songwriter and contributed many songs to their albums which included ballads such as "I Can Say You're Beautiful" and "Lay Me Down" and more uptempo numbers like "Boom Town" and "Cincinnati".
Later career and life
He quit The New Seekers, apparently disillusioned with lack of monetary rewards, in 1973 and resumed his solo career, as a singer-songwriterSinger-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
. He continued working in the UK until 1981, during which period he issued five solo singles, including a cover of The Easybeats
The Easybeats
The Easybeats were an Australian rock and roll band. They formed in Sydney in late 1964 and broke up at the end of 1969. They are regarded as the greatest Australian pop band of the 1960s, and were the first Australian rock and roll act to score an international pop hit with their 1966 single...
"Friday On My Mind
Friday on My Mind
"Friday on My Mind" is a 1966 song by Australian rock group The Easybeats. Written by band members George Young and Harry Vanda, the track became a worldwide hit, reaching #16 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1967 in the US, #1 in Australia and #6 in the UK, as well as charting in several...
", and one album, Skin Deep. During this time in the UK he also recorded advertising jingles for Ribena
Ribena
Ribena is a British brand of fruit-based uncarbonated soft drink, carbonated soft drink and fruit drink concentrate produced by GlaxoSmithKline. The original and most common variety contains real blackcurrant juice.- History :...
and Sugar Puffs
Sugar Puffs
Sugar Puffs are a honey-flavoured breakfast cereal made from sugar-coated wheat sold in the United Kingdom. For many years it was made by the Quaker Oats Company but in 2006 it was sold to Big Bear t/a Honey Monster Foods, based in Leicester...
, provided the vocal for a children's single, "Jungle Ted and the Laceybuttonpoppers" and did backing vocals on Lyn Paul
Lyn Paul
Lyn Paul is an English pop singer and actress. She came to fame as a member of the international chart-topping pop group The New Seekers in the early 1970s...
's solo single, "It Oughta Sell A Million". It did not. In 1975 he was offered and declined the job as Little River Band
Little River Band
Little River Band is an Australian rock band, formed in Melbourne in early 1975.The group chose the name after passing a road sign leading to the Victorian township of Little River, near Geelong, on the way to a performance. Little River Band enjoyed sustained commercial success in not only...
's lead vocalist.
Glen Wheatley asked Peter to join the Little River Band but at this stage, Peter wanted to make his way as a solo performer. By 1976, with the backing of David Mackay, Peter had secured a recording with RCA and his first single, released on 13 August 1976 was an incredible version of the Easybeats' Friday on My Mind. Inexplicably this failed to chart, as did his follow up single, Skin Deep. His album, also entitled Skin Deep , released in 1977, included a variety of musical styles and six songs penned by Peter, but even this failed to give him the solo success he so greatly deserved. It was around this time that Peter met the love of his life, Jane Garner, who later became his wife.
He returned to Australia in 1981 to work with a band called Standing Room Only. In 1982, ex-Wings
Wings (band)
Wings were a British-American rock group formed in 1971 by Paul McCartney, Denny Laine and Linda McCartney that remained active until 1981....
drummer, Steve Holly invited him to join the group Regis in the US, where he worked for the next five years.
Returning to Australia in 1987, he regularly performed on the club circuit. In 1991 to 1992 he joined the Ram Band in Melbourne on vocals, played bass and keyboards, Colin Cook vocals, guitar and saxophone, Tony Faehse guitar and vocal, Marty Stone guitar, John van Boxtel vocals and drums.
This was curtailed when he suffered ill-health in the 1990s.
Death
He died in Castlemaine, Victoria, of throat cancerHead and neck cancer
Head and neck cancer refers to a group of biologically similar cancers that start in the upper aerodigestive tract, including the lip, oral cavity , nasal cavity , paranasal sinuses, pharynx, and larynx. 90% of head and neck cancers are squamous cell carcinomas , originating from the mucosal lining...
, on 13 October 2001. He is buried at Muckleford Cemetery.
Peter Doyle - solo
- "Stupidity" / "Heigh Ho" 1965 (#6 Melbourne)
- "Speechless (The Pick up)" / "Like I Love You" 1965 (#8 Melbourne)
- "Watcha Gonna Do About It" / "Do It Zula Style" 1965 (#27 Melbourne)
- "Stupidity & Speechless" (EP) – 1965 – Heigh-Ho / Stupidity / Like I Love You / Speechless
- "The Great Pretender" / "Everybody Loves a Lover" 1966 (#11 Melbourne, #28 Brisbane)
- "Something You Got Baby" / "Go Away" 1966
- "Mr Good Time" / "Tweedle Dee" 1966
- "The Great PretenderThe Great Pretender"The Great Pretender" is a popular song recorded by The Platters, with Tony Williams on lead vocals, and released as a single on November 3, 1955. The words and music were created by Buck Ram, the Platters' manager and producer who was a successful songwriter before moving into producing and...
" (EP) -1966 – The Great Pretender/ Something About You/ Everybody Loves A Lover/ Is This The Dream ? - "If You Can Put That in a BottleIf You Can Put That in a Bottle"If You Can Put That in a Bottle" is a 1967 song by Wilbur Meshel performed by Peter Doyle.Swedish singer Lill Lindfors released a Swedish version, "En man i byrån", with lyrics by Peter Himmelstrand in 1969....
" / "I'm not the Boy You're After" 1967 - "Plastic Dreams Toy Balloons" 1967-68 (#23 Melbourne)
- "Rusty Hands of Time" / "And So in Life" 1973
- "Friday On My Mind" / "We Believe in Lovin'" 1976
- "Skin Deep" / "We Believe in Lovin'" 1977
- "Do You Wanna Make Love" / "Wake up With Me" 1980
- "This and That" / "It's all Over" 1980
Grandma's Tonic
Peter Doyle (lead vocalist)- Hi Hi Hazel/Johnny The Hummer 1967 (#36 Brisbane)
- Lost Girl/ I Know 1967 (#38 Brisbane)
The Virgil Brothers
- Temptation 'Bout To Get Me/I See Her Face -1968 (#6 Brisbane, #13 Melbourne)
- Temptation 'Bout To Get Me/Look Away/When You Walk Away/Good Love (EP)
- Here I Am/Shake Me Wake Me – 1968
- Temptation 'Bout To Get Me/Look Away - 1969
- When You Walk Away/Good Love - 1969
Peter Doyle - solo
- Peter's First Album - 1966
- Skin Deep - 1977
- Festival Files: Speechless Vol.16 - 1989
- Rarities - 2004
Appearances on compilation albums
- The Bowl Show - 1965-66 - includes two tracks - Heigh Ho/Stupidity
- The Big Four - 1965-66 - includes four tracks - Speechless/ Stupidity/Like I Love/Heigh-Ho
- Sunshine All Star Spectacular - 1967 - two tracks - High Time Baby/Lovey Dovey
- Festivals 10 Years of Hits - 1968 - one track - The Great Pretender
- The Big Parade 1967 - one track - Stupidity
- Ugly Things Vol.2 - 1983 - two tracks - Grandmas Tonic - Lost Girl
- Sixties Downunder Vol.3 - 1998 - one track - Stupidity
- Hot Generation - 2002 - one track - High Time Baby
- Devil's Children Vol.3 - one track - Tweedlee Dee