Beverley Anne Harrell, (born 24 October 1946) is an Australian pop singer and musical theatre actress, most famous for her 1966 Australian hit "What Am I Doing Here with You?".

Biography

Harrell was born on 24 October 1946 in North Adelaide to Reg Harrell, a carpenter, and Dot (née Borlace), an amateur musician. She sang for the 5AD children's radio show ''Kangaroos on Parade'' at the age of six. She appeared on ''

Australia's Amateur Hour ''Australia's Amateur Hour'' was an important early Australian radio and television program in the form of a talent contest, which was broadcast from 1940 to 1958, which also aired briefly on television from 1957 to 1958. The radio version was ...

'' at the age of nine, coming second. At the age of twelve she came second on the radio/television show ''

Swallow's Juniors ''Swallow's Juniors'' was a popular Australian radio and television series, which aired on 3DB (Melbourne) at 6.30 pm on a Saturday evening, from the 1950s and into the early 1960s. It was telecast from November 1957 to 1970 on Melbourne televis ...

''; she also toured with the Mickey Mouse Club when they were in Australia, along with Lucky Starr. In 1965, while working as a secretary and studying at night school, she began performing with local bands such as the Harts and

the Vibrants The Vibrants were an Australian pop rock group that started as Bobby James and the Vibrants in Adelaide in 1962. James, their lead vocalist, left in 1965 to form the Bobby James Syndicate. As the Vibrants, two of their singles peaked in ''Go-S ...

, before briefly joining the Clefs; she was managed by her best friend Darryl Sambell (who would later go on to manage a young

John Farnham John Peter Farnham Officer of the Order of Australia, AO (born 1 July 1949) is a British born Australian singer. Farnham was a Teen idol, teen pop idol from 1967 until 1979, billed then as Johnny Farnham, but has since forged a career as an Adu ...

and later Ron Tremaine. She signed with the EMI record label and became a regular performer on television shows such as '' Bandstand'', ''

Kommotion ''Kommotion'' was a popular Australian "Top 40" pop music TV show that premiered in December 1964. The program was hosted by popular disc jockey Ken Sparkes, who was one of the main presenters at Melbourne pop radio station 3UZ. In 1965, after ...

'', and '' Uptight''. Her first single, released in late 1966 under EMI's HMV imprint, "What Am I Doing Here with You?" written by

P. F. Sloan Philip Gary "Flip" Sloan (born Philip Gary Schlein; September 18, 1945 – November 15, 2015), known professionally as P. F. Sloan, was an American singer and songwriter. During the mid-1960s, he wrote, performed, and produced many Billboard H ...

and Steve Barri, was a cover version of Johnny Rivers's album track from '' In Action'' (1964). Her version, which was paired with the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

"You Really Didn't Mean It", peaked at #13 on the ''Go-Set'' National Top 40 in 1967 and #1 in her native Adelaide. The success of the single led to her winning the Major Broadcasting Network's 1966 award for Best Female Recording Artist. Shortly after the release of the single, she began performing as a support act for such artists as Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass, Winifred Atwell, the Rolling Stones, and

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. His music was described by critics as ...

, along with appearing in an advertisement for Hills Hoist clothes lines. In 1967 she released an EP, ''Come On Over To Bev's Place'', and an album, ''This is Bev'', which was named Album of the Year at the Major Broadcasting Networks awards. Two of her seven subsequent singles released between 1967 and 1970 for EMI's HMV and

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

imprints charted in the top 40 in Australia, and were her last singles to do so: "Come On Over To Our Place"/"You Don't Love Me" (March 1967) and "One in a Million"/"Give Me Time" (February 1968). "Come On Over to Our Place", written by

Barry Mann Barry Mann (born Barry Imberman; February 9, 1939) is an American songwriter and musician, and part of a successful songwriting partnership with his wife, Cynthia Weil. He has written or co-written 53 hits in the UK and 98 in the US. Early li ...

and

Cynthia Weil Cynthia Weil (born October 18, 1940) is an American songwriter who wrote many songs together with her husband Barry Mann. Life and career Weil was born in New York City, and was raised in a Conservative Jewish family. Her father was Morris Wei ...

, was also recorded by the Drifters, while "One in a Million" was written by Jackie Trent and Tony Hatch, frequent collaborators with Petula Clark, who subsequently released the song on her album '' Petula''. In 1967 and 1970 she went to Vietnam to perform for troops in the Vietnam War. She was named three times as the most popular Australian female vocalist in the pop magazine '' Go-Set'', coming 2nd in 1967, 1st in 1968, and 3rd in 1969. She was known for her small stature, being tall. Between 1970 and 1972 she toured around the world, travelling to Europe, Canada, the Caribbean, South Africa, and South East Asia. During this period, she had her own television show ''Two New'' in Toronto and released two singles. Her first was "Back To The People"/"Travelling Easy" ( Bell); the A-side was written by Maurice Gibb and Billy Lawrie, Lulu's brother, and the single was produced by Gibb. Representing the United Kingdom, she sang "Bringing Back Those Memories" at the 1971 World Popular Song Festival, where she won the awards for Best Performance and Best Composition; it was released as a single in Japan as "Bringing Back Those Memories"/"Sing" ( Polydor). In 1972 she returned to Adelaide. . She released three singles with RCA in 1973 and 1974, along with an album, ''I Believe in Music'' (1974). In 1989 and 1990 she performed the role of Grizabella in the musical ''

Cats The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of t ...

'' in Australia and New Zealand. She has continued to perform on stage and for clubs, corporate functions, and cruiseships into the 21st century. She has been married twice, to Brian Braidwood, a talent manager, and Gary Grant, a singer. At the 2006 Australia Day Honours, she received a Medal of the Order of Australia "For service to the entertainment industry as a singer and to the community in the support of ex-service welfare organisations". In 2014, she was inducted into the South Australian Music Hall Of Fame.

Discography

Albums

Extended plays

Singles

*"What Am I Doing Here with You"/"You Really Didn't Mean It" (1966), HMV *"Come on Over to Our Place"/"You Don't Love Me No More" (1967), HMV *"You Baby"/"You Are the Love of My Life" (1967), HMV *"One in a Million"/"Give me Time" (1968), Columbia *"Mon Pere"/"At Times Like These, Mama" (1968), Columbia *"One Way Ticket"/" I Am the World" (1968), Columbia *" Everybody Needs Love"/"My Little One" (1969), Columbia *"The Looking Glass"/" Yes I'm Ready" (1970), Columbia *"Back to the People"/"Travelling Easy" (1971), Bell *"Bringing Back Those Memories"/"Sing" (Polydor, 1971/1972) *"It was Easy"/""

The Right Thing to Do "The Right Thing to Do" is a song written and performed by Carly Simon that first appeared on her 1972 album '' No Secrets''. The song was recorded at Trident Studios in London's Soho. It was released as the second single to the album, following ...

" (1973), RCA *"Carols By Candlelight"/"You've Got To Save Me" (1973), Columbia *"Mon Pere"/" I Believe in Music" (1974), Columbia

Awards and nominations

Go-Set Pop Poll

The Go-Set Pop Poll was coordinated by teen-oriented pop music newspaper, '' Go-Set'' and was established in February 1966 and conducted an annual poll during 1966 to 1972 of its readers to determine the most popular personalities. , - , 1967 , herself , Female Vocal , style="background:silver;", 2nd , - , 1968 , herself , Female Vocal , style="background:gold;", 1st , - , 1969 , herself , Female Vocal , style="background:tan;", 3rd , -

South Australian Music Awards

The

South Australian Music Awards The South Australian Music Awards, also known as SA Music Awards, commonly SAM Awards, formerly Fowler's Live Music Awards (FLMA), are annual awards that exist to recognise, promote and celebrate excellence in the South Australian contemporary mu ...

is coordinated by Music SA, a non-profit organisation whose aims are to promote, support and develop contemporary music in South Australia. , - , 2014 , herself , ARIA Hall of Fame ,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harrell, Bev Australian women pop singers Australian musical theatre actresses 20th-century Australian women singers 21st-century Australian women singers Musicians from Adelaide Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia 1946 births Living people