I don't want to wait until next Monday's Music Moves Me to pay tribute to Olivia Newton-John, who passed away yesterday at the age of 73. She was surrounded by loved ones, including her daughter and husband.
Newton-John won four Grammy's and sold more than 100 million albums during her long musical career. Her life had its share of tragedy, though, including two battles with breast cancer, in 1992 and 2013 (the return of which she kept secret). Her cancer returned in 2017 for the third and final time.
Even in her final years and months, she was raising money for cancer research, calling herself a "cancer thriver" rather than a "cancer survivor". In an interview, she once said "Every day is a blessing".
Besides her music, she was known for her support of environmental causes.
As for her music:
Her cover of "If Not For You" was her first UK hit, in 1971.
"Grease" was the word, and the movie that propelled her to super-stardom. Here is her duet with John Travolta, "You're The One That I Want".
One of my personal favorites was this 1980 hit: "Magic"
From 1981, "Physical" seems tame by today's standards but it was banned by various radio stations.
I will end this tribute with a duet Newton-John recorded in 2021 with her daughter Chloe Lattanzi, called "Window in the Wall". Her daughter, incidentally, launched her own music career at the age of 15, apparently not taking advantage of her mother's fame. She is also an actress.
May Olivia Newton-John forever rest in peace.
...cancer is a terrible thing!
ReplyDeleteAnother sad loss. What a lovely person she was in every sense of the word.
ReplyDeleteShe was amazing. Rest In Peace.
ReplyDeleteI think every guy my age was in love with her when she first hit the scene, and some of us still loved her. A friend and I almost crashed the grand opening of Koala Blue (her clothing store) in Westwood (we were at a restaurant across the street and had had a couple og adult beverages). Sad to hear she's gone...
ReplyDeleteI was so sad to hear this news.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you shared that duet with her daughter; it's lovely. What a loss.
ReplyDeleteNever heard the last song, but ONJ will always bring a smile to my face.
ReplyDeleteI was hoping you 'd do this. Thank you. / Carol C
ReplyDeleteI was in my teens when she was huge and I loved her voice and energy. Still have loads of her music stored!
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