Ross Ryan
Encyclopedia
Ross Ryan is an Australian singer-songwriter
and producer
who is best known for his signature tune "I Am Pegasus" .
, Kansas
, USA. The family moved to Albany, Western Australia
in 1959. Ryan Was involved with music at his high school, Albany High, playing the lead in the musical, The Music Man
and producing a radio program for the local station 6VA entitled "High School Half Hour." He also joined a number of local bands starting with The Sett and ending with Saffron.
Ryan moved to Perth
and undertook an electronics course. This led to a job as an audio operator at television station STW 9. Using the facilities at the station, Ryan recorded his first album "Homemovies." The local Perth
radio station 6PM began to play tracks from the album.
and Maricic got Ryan on the bill for the Perth
concert for Roy Orbison
. Ryan performed to 4,000 Roy Orbison fans, soliciting so much praise that the promoter booked him for the remainder of the tour.
Noted EMI
producer, Peter Dawkins
took a strong interest after reading concert reviews, especially in Sydney
. Ryan consequently signed with EMI
and commenced work on the first album which was released in 1973. "A Poem You Can Keep" was produced by Peter Dawkins
, arranged by Peter Martin and engineered by Martin Benge. The album was released on Capital Records in America
as part of a promotion for EMI
. The single, "I Don't Want To Know About It" won Record of the Year at the Australian Record Federation Awards for 1973. Ryan was also awarded Best New Talent.
Ryan continued to perform live with campus tours, performances at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl
, with the Hector Crawford Orchestra, the Sydney Opera House
and the Sunbury Pop Festival. He also toured as the support act for international acts such as The Hollies
, Helen Reddy
, Roberta Flack
, Michael Franks, Roger Miller
and Dr. Hook.
In November, 1973 a new single from Ryan's forthcoming album was released. "I Am Pegasus," which became his biggest selling single, reached No. 9 nationally, staying in the charts well into 1974. Over a period of six months, the single reached No. 1 in almost every state, but not at the same time. "My Name Means Horse
" was released in February 1974 and was Ryan's most successful album going triple gold and reaching No. 3 nationally. The album won Most Popular Australian Album at the 1974 TV Week Awards. The Prime Minister of Australia, Gough Whitlam
, presented Ryan's first gold record to him. Ryan represented Australia
at Expo '74 in Spokane
, Washington, USA, with Judy Stone
and Rolf Harris
.
Over the next few years, Ryan made guest appearances on television shows from The Paul Hogan Show
to Hey Hey It's Saturday
. He hosted his own television program entitled "Rock Show" and continued to release singles and albums including 'After The Applause' 1975 and 'Smiling For The Camera' 1976. Towards the end of 1977, EMI
released a 'best of' album; 'I Thought This Might Happen 1973 - 77.' This marked the end of Ryan's collaboration with EMI
. In 1978, Ryan, with Mike Meade, hosted, wrote and acted in twenty half-hour comedy shows for the ABC
series entitled 'Give 'Em Heaps.'
who recorded 'I Must Stay.' Slim Dusty
recorded 'Isa' which was also used in the film 'Slim Dusty: The Movie.' In 1990, Ryan wrote a very successful review 'Les Boys' with comedians Rod Quantock
, Lynda Gibson and Geoff Brooks.
Establishing G.I. Recorders with Broc O' Conner in the early 1990s, Ryan began producing material for both new and established acts in a range of musical styles including blues with Spectrum
, country with Paul Wookey, traditional Irish with The Wren Boys and the award winning country album, 'Only Burning Me' by Dale Jurner. EMI
, through its budget label, Axis Records
released a CD entitled 'The Greats of Ross 1973 - 1990,' which included recent unreleased material and old favorites.
during her Australian tour and under the touring name of 'Idol and Idle' played a number of gigs with Australian Idol
judge, Mark Holden
. "I Am Pegasus' was deemed a national anthem by ABC TV's 2003 series 'Love Is In The Air.
In 2006, Aztec Music released for the first time on CD the 'My Name Means Horse' album. Plans for future releases include CD versions of the EMI
albums, 'A Poem You Can Keep,' 'After The Applause' and 'Smiling For the Camera.'
The Difficult Third Compilation, a Best of CD, was released in 2008. Distributed through Aztec Music, the CD also includes a couple of new tracks.
Singer-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...
and producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
who is best known for his signature tune "I Am Pegasus" .
Early years
Ross Ryan was born December 13, 1950 in Fort LeavenworthFort Leavenworth
Fort Leavenworth is a United States Army facility located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, immediately north of the city of Leavenworth in the upper northeast portion of the state. It is the oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C. and has been in operation for over 180 years...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, USA. The family moved to Albany, Western Australia
Albany, Western Australia
Albany is a port city in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, some 418 km SE of Perth, the state capital. As of 2009, Albany's population was estimated at 33,600, making it the 6th-largest city in the state....
in 1959. Ryan Was involved with music at his high school, Albany High, playing the lead in the musical, The Music Man
The Music Man
The Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...
and producing a radio program for the local station 6VA entitled "High School Half Hour." He also joined a number of local bands starting with The Sett and ending with Saffron.
Ryan moved to Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
and undertook an electronics course. This led to a job as an audio operator at television station STW 9. Using the facilities at the station, Ryan recorded his first album "Homemovies." The local Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
radio station 6PM began to play tracks from the album.
1970s
After seeing one of Ryan's performances in 1972, Al Maricic, a freelance advertising agent approached him to discuss the possibility of managing him. Maricic got him regular gigs at Gramps Wine Bar and at university and college campuses. Ryan got his break when the proposed support act, comedian Joe Martin, pulled out of the tour in DarwinDarwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
and Maricic got Ryan on the bill for the Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
concert for Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
. Ryan performed to 4,000 Roy Orbison fans, soliciting so much praise that the promoter booked him for the remainder of the tour.
Noted EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
producer, Peter Dawkins
Peter Dawkins
Peter Dawkins may refer to:*Pete Dawkins, Vice Chairman of the CitiGroup Private Bank and former Chairman/CEO of Primerica Financial Services, Inc.*Peter Dawkins , English founder of the Francis Bacon Research Trust...
took a strong interest after reading concert reviews, especially in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. Ryan consequently signed with EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
and commenced work on the first album which was released in 1973. "A Poem You Can Keep" was produced by Peter Dawkins
Peter Dawkins
Peter Dawkins may refer to:*Pete Dawkins, Vice Chairman of the CitiGroup Private Bank and former Chairman/CEO of Primerica Financial Services, Inc.*Peter Dawkins , English founder of the Francis Bacon Research Trust...
, arranged by Peter Martin and engineered by Martin Benge. The album was released on Capital Records in America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
as part of a promotion for EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
. The single, "I Don't Want To Know About It" won Record of the Year at the Australian Record Federation Awards for 1973. Ryan was also awarded Best New Talent.
Ryan continued to perform live with campus tours, performances at the 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...
, with the Hector Crawford Orchestra, 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...
and the Sunbury Pop Festival. He also toured as the support act for international acts such as The Hollies
The Hollies
The Hollies are an English pop and rock group, formed in Manchester in the early 1960s, though most of the band members are from throughout East Lancashire. Known for their distinctive vocal harmony style, they became one of the leading British groups of the 1960s and 1970s...
, Helen Reddy
Helen Reddy
Helen Reddy , often referred to as "The Queen of 70s Pop", is an Australian-American singer and actress. In the 1970s, she enjoyed international success, especially in the United States, where she placed fifteen singles in the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. Six of those 15 songs made the Top 10...
, Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music...
, Michael Franks, Roger Miller
Roger Miller
Roger Dean Miller was an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor, best known for his honky tonk-influenced novelty songs...
and Dr. Hook.
In November, 1973 a new single from Ryan's forthcoming album was released. "I Am Pegasus," which became his biggest selling single, reached No. 9 nationally, staying in the charts well into 1974. Over a period of six months, the single reached No. 1 in almost every state, but not at the same time. "My Name Means Horse
My Name Means Horse
My name Means Horse was the second album to be released by Western Australian singer Ross Ryan. The title was a reference to a line in the hit single I am Pegasus, which featured on the disc. The album was Ryan's most successful LP. The album won Most Popular Australian Album at the 1974 TV Week...
" was released in February 1974 and was Ryan's most successful album going triple gold and reaching No. 3 nationally. The album won Most Popular Australian Album at the 1974 TV Week Awards. The Prime Minister of Australia, Gough Whitlam
Gough Whitlam
Edward Gough Whitlam, AC, QC , known as Gough Whitlam , served as the 21st Prime Minister of Australia. Whitlam led the Australian Labor Party to power at the 1972 election and retained government at the 1974 election, before being dismissed by Governor-General Sir John Kerr at the climax of the...
, presented Ryan's first gold record to him. Ryan represented 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...
at Expo '74 in Spokane
Spokane
Spokane is a city in the U.S. state of Washington.Spokane may also refer to:*Spokane *Spokane River*Spokane, Missouri*Spokane Valley, Washington*Spokane County, Washington*Spokane-Coeur d'Alene-Paloos War*Spokane * USS Spokane...
, Washington, USA, with Judy Stone
Judy Stone
Judy Stone is an Australian pop singer from Sydney, who came to national prominence in the early 1960s through her regular TV appearances on the Australian pop music show Brian Henderson's Bandstand and her many hit records...
and Rolf Harris
Rolf Harris
Rolf Harris, CBE, AM is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, composer, painter and television personality.Born in Perth, Western Australia, Harris was a champion swimmer before studying art. He moved to England in 1952, where he started to appear on television programmes on which he drew the...
.
Over the next few years, Ryan made guest appearances on television shows from The Paul Hogan Show
The Paul Hogan Show
The Paul Hogan Show was a popular Australian comedy show which aired on Australian television from 1973 until 1984. It made a star of Paul Hogan who later appeared in Crocodile Dundee. Hogan's friend also appeared in the show, playing Hogan's dim flatmate Strop...
to Hey Hey It's Saturday
Hey Hey It's Saturday
Hey Hey It's Saturday was a long-running variety television program on Australian television. It initially ran for 27 years , debuting on the Nine Network on 9 October 1971 and broadcasting its last episode on 20 November 1999. Its host throughout its entire run was Daryl Somers, who would later...
. He hosted his own television program entitled "Rock Show" and continued to release singles and albums including 'After The Applause' 1975 and 'Smiling For The Camera' 1976. Towards the end of 1977, EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
released a 'best of' album; 'I Thought This Might Happen 1973 - 77.' This marked the end of Ryan's collaboration with EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
. In 1978, Ryan, with Mike Meade, hosted, wrote and acted in twenty half-hour comedy shows for the ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
series entitled 'Give 'Em Heaps.'
1980-1990s
Ryan continued to write and release a number of independent singles and a number of his songs were covered by artists such as John FarnhamJohn Farnham
John Peter Farnham, AO, formerly billed as Johnny Farnham , is an English-born Australian pop singer. He was a teen pop idol from 1964 to 1979, and has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer. His career has mostly been as a solo artist although he briefly replaced Glenn Shorrock as...
who recorded 'I Must Stay.' Slim Dusty
Slim Dusty
David Gordon "Slim Dusty " Kirkpatrick AO, MBE was an Australian country music singer-songwriter and producer, with a career spanning nearly eight decades. He was known to record songs in the legacy of Australian poets Henry Lawson and Banjo Patterson that represented the Australian Bush...
recorded 'Isa' which was also used in the film 'Slim Dusty: The Movie.' In 1990, Ryan wrote a very successful review 'Les Boys' with comedians Rod Quantock
Rod Quantock
Rod Quantock is an Australian stand-up comedian and writer. He is known for his peculiar style of stand-up comedy, which is often politically driven, as well as being the face of bed retailer Capt'n Snooze for many years...
, Lynda Gibson and Geoff Brooks.
Establishing G.I. Recorders with Broc O' Conner in the early 1990s, Ryan began producing material for both new and established acts in a range of musical styles including blues with Spectrum
Spectrum
A spectrum is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary infinitely within a continuum. The word saw its first scientific use within the field of optics to describe the rainbow of colors in visible light when separated using a prism; it has since been applied by...
, country with Paul Wookey, traditional Irish with The Wren Boys and the award winning country album, 'Only Burning Me' by Dale Jurner. EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
, through its budget label, Axis Records
Axis Records
Axis Records may refer to:* A record label which is operated by Jeff Mills which releases most of his work* The former name of 4AD, a record label which was started in 1979 as Axis Records by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent, but quickly renamed when it was discovered that Axis Records already...
released a CD entitled 'The Greats of Ross 1973 - 1990,' which included recent unreleased material and old favorites.
2000 and beyond
A new album, 'One Person Queue' was released in October, 2003. In addition to his own solo shows across Australia, Ryan supported Carole KingCarole King
Carole King is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. King and her former husband Gerry Goffin wrote more than two dozen chart hits for numerous artists during the 1960s, many of which have become standards. As a singer, King had an album, Tapestry, top the U.S...
during her Australian tour and under the touring name of 'Idol and Idle' played a number of gigs with Australian Idol
Australian Idol
Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...
judge, Mark Holden
Mark Holden
Mark Holden is an Australian singer, television personality and barrister. He was one of a panel of three judges on the television series Australian Idol.-Acting career:...
. "I Am Pegasus' was deemed a national anthem by ABC TV's 2003 series 'Love Is In The Air.
In 2006, Aztec Music released for the first time on CD the 'My Name Means Horse' album. Plans for future releases include CD versions of the EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
albums, 'A Poem You Can Keep,' 'After The Applause' and 'Smiling For the Camera.'
The Difficult Third Compilation, a Best of CD, was released in 2008. Distributed through Aztec Music, the CD also includes a couple of new tracks.
Albums
- Christine (1968)
- Homemovies (1971)
- A Poem You Can Keep (1973)
- My Name Means HorseMy Name Means HorseMy name Means Horse was the second album to be released by Western Australian singer Ross Ryan. The title was a reference to a line in the hit single I am Pegasus, which featured on the disc. The album was Ryan's most successful LP. The album won Most Popular Australian Album at the 1974 TV Week...
(1974) - After The Applause (1975)
- Smiling For The Camera (1977)
- I Thought This Might Happen 1973 - 77 (1977)
- The Greats of Ross 1973 - 90 (1990)
- One Person Queue (2003)
- My Name Mean Horse - CD Release (2007)
- The Difficult Third Compilation (2008)