|
 Joe
Cocker- one of the truly great rock voices of all time- was
born in Sheffield, England on May 20, 1944, the youngest son
of a civil servant In 1961 Joe became Vance Arnold, by day
working as an apprentice gas fitter and by night-in dark suit
and bow tie-singing with The Avengers in rough Sheffield pubs.
The set included songs by mentor Ray Charles What'd I Say
and Georgia On My Mind - and Vance Arnold and the Avengers
biggest moment came in 1963 when they supported The Rolling
Stones at Sheffield City Hall, and brought the house down.
The following year Joe left the Gas Board and released his
first single, a cover of The Beatles' I'll Cry Instead. His
band was now Joe Cocker's Big Blues built up a large following
in the north of England and ventured to France for a two month
stint, playing on American airbases. The servicemen, many
from the Deep South, loved Joe, while the French called him
'Le Petit Ray Charles. But when he returned home the bottom
had fallen out of the local scene and Joe Cocker Big Blues
folded.
For a year he never did a gig and then along came the man
whom Joe has called the greatest musician in the world - Chris
Stainton - and The Grease Band was formed. Songs were written-and
a demo soon found its way to Denny Cordell, the producer of
The Moody Blues, Georgie Fame, and Procol Harum. Cordell liked
what he heard and Joe moved to London and a residency at The
Marquee. His first single with Cordell-Marjorine- showed promise
and only a few months later, With A Little Help From My Friends
went to number one in the British charts and was a hit all
over Europe. America loved Joe Cocker from his first television
appearance on the Ed Sullivan show in 1969. The Press seized
upon him-The voice of all those blind criers and crazy beggars
and maimed men who summon up a strength we'll never know to
bawl out their souls in the streets said Life magazine.
But Joe wasn't singing in the streets-he was singing at all
the major rock festivals of that summer, culminating in the
filmed triumph of Woodstock before half a million people-a
phenomenal rip-roaring testimony to Joe Cocker in his absolute
prime. Of the ensuing mad Dogs and Englishmen, Joe has said:
My thoughts were off to Venus, heading for Outer Space. Along
with Leon Russell and a menagerie of musicians, managers,
roadies, wives, girlfriends, hangers on, children and a spotted
dog- plus a film crew -Joe played forty-eight cities in fifty-six
days, to rapturous receptions everywhere.
But the tour left him battered and exhausted and, far from
Venus, he ended up, in his own words, in heap in Los Angeles,
very disillusioned with the rock business. That year- 1970
- Joe sold $3 million worth of records in America alone. His
first three albums went Platinum and Playboy voted him number
one vocalist in their annual jazz and rock poll. Yet he kept
on making albums and songs like Guilty, The Moons A Harsh
Mistress and You Are So Beautiful- songs that have become
Cocker classics- all date from the darkest days, back in the
mid 1970's. As the 80's dawned Joe was invited by The Crusaders
to join them on a song they had written specially for him-
I'm So Glad I'm Standing Here Today. The lyrics said it all
and Joe received a standing ovation when he sang the song
at the Grammy Awards. His duet with Jennifer Warnes on Up
Where We Belong - theme from An Officer And A Gentleman- brought
an appearance at the Oscars ceremony and a hit world-wide,
including Joe first ever American number one.
From that point on, Joe has gone from strength to strength,
aided undoubtedly by the love and support of his wife, Pam,
whom he married in 1987. His Capitol albums from Civilized
Man onwards have been tremendously successful. Cocker, Unchain
My Heart, and One Night Of Sin all turned Platinum, the latter
also delivering Joe most recent US Top Ten song When The Night
Comes, written by Bryan Adams. Joe's album Night Calls, the
title single penned by Jeff Lynne- turned Gold and headed
towards Platinum all across Europe within weeks of its release
in Autumn '91.
He has sung theme songs for movies 9 1/2 Weeks, Harry and
The Hendersons, Bull Durham, and An Innocent Man and in 1991
recorded Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word on the Elton John/Bernie
Taupin tribute Two Rooms which has sold over 3 Million world
wide.
Joe has toured extensively and to great acclaim, not least
in Europe where he enjoys a massive following. There have
been awards and accolades galore and among many prestigious
shows, he has played for British royalty at a Princes Trust
Gala, Nelson Mandela's Birthday Concert, the Konzert for Berlin
that celebrated the breaching of the Wall and, in his adopted
homeland of America, the inauguration ceremony for President
George Bush.
Joe Cocker is a survivor- a star -a rock legend. He has had
hit records in the 1960's, 70s, 80, and 90s. Success has brought
with it a grueling schedule of recording and touring but,
after more than twenty-five years on the road he has no plans
to ease up. And the future? "As long as being on stage
is fun," says Joe, "as long as I enjoy that part
and still get a buzz out of performing- then I'll keep going
out there."
|
