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greatest australian singers... - CRAZY-HORSE - 02-07-2013
number 30: GOTYE
![[Image: 509933-gotye.jpg]](http://resources1.news.com.au/images/2013/02/11/1226575/509933-gotye.jpg)
Wouter "Wally" De Backer (born 21 May 1980), better known as Gotye (pronounced /ˈɡɔːti.eɪ/, or goh-tee-YAY), is a Belgian-Australian[SUP][2][/SUP] multi-instrumental musician and singer-songwriter. The name "Gotye" is a pronunciation respelling of "Gauthier", the French equivalent of the Flemish given name "Wouter".
Gotye has released three studio albums independently and one album featuring remixes of tracks from his first two albums. He is a member of the Melbourne indie-pop trio The Basics, who have independently released three studio albums and numerous other titles since 2002. His voice has been compared to those of Peter Gabriel and Sting.[SUP][3][/SUP][SUP][4][/SUP][SUP][5][/SUP] Gotye's 2011 single "Somebody That I Used to Know" reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, making him the fifth Australian-based artist to do so and the second Belgian (after The Singing Nun in 1963).[SUP][6][/SUP] He has won five ARIA Awards and received a nomination for an MTV EMA for Best Asia and Pacific Act. On 10 February 2013, he won three Grammy Awards at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards Show: Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Somebody That I Used to Know" and Best Alternative Music Album for Making Mirrors. Gotye has said he sometimes feels "less of a musician, more of a tinkerer."[SUP][7][/SUP]
Gotye is bilingual, speaking both Dutch and English,[SUP][8][/SUP] and also speaks some Japanese,[SUP][9][/SUP] which he studied at University.
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The Basics were formed after Kris met Wally at the March 2002 "going away party" in Melbourne of now LA-based engineer/producer Chris "Tek" O'Ryan.[SUP][3][/SUP] The event was to see off the young aspiring producer, who was about to depart for Los Angeles, and together with a number of musician friends, the two jammed on some blues-rock standards. Later that night, they bonded over a mutual love of The Beatles, 70s and 80s cartoon theme songs and old Sierra adventure games.
Initially, they played around Melbourne as an acoustic guitar/drums combo, starting at The Opposition in Frankston and the House of Fools in Footscray, where in late 2002 they met Michael Hubbard and later invited him to join them on electric guitar.[SUP][4][/SUP] Though lacking any real experience with the instrument, Kris willingly purchased his first bass guitar, and the trio was born. During this time, the group start performing songs with more complicated three-part harmony.
During late 2002 and early 2003, The Basics recorded and released an album called Get Back through MGM Distribution. They began what was to become regular tours of the East and West coasts of Australia.
[video=youtube;8UVNT4wvIGY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UVNT4wvIGY[/video][/SUP]
greatest australian singers... - CRAZY-HORSE - 02-07-2013
my thoughts on Gotye....
i have all the studio albums by The Basics and Gotye as a solo artist...
not sure why he would really classed as a top singer, because he is not....he is very average IMO, but he sings songs that compliment his vocal style...
most of his material is firmly entrenched in 1960s pop, his albums are good but not great, just consistant, and you cant really expect any more than than from anyone, anything extra is an addd bonus IMO...
greatest australian singers... - Music Head - 02-07-2013
hey, I've heard of him
greatest australian singers... - SteveO - 02-07-2013
I like this guy !...thanks Crazy mate !
CRAZY-HORSE Wrote:my opinion....
very talented guy IMO....
has written some memorable pop/top40 songs...
sounds like Van Morrison for the most part both musically and vocally...
"greatest hits" package would be well worth it if you want to get into his music as a starting point
greatest australian singers... - SteveO - 02-07-2013
I love this guy ! Haven't heard anything from him lately and that's good...no use in pumping out crap...take your time and release a good album !
CRAZY-HORSE Wrote:number 30: GOTYE
Wouter "Wally" De Backer (born 21 May 1980), better known as Gotye (pronounced /ˈɡɔːti.eɪ/, or goh-tee-YAY), is a Belgian-Australian[SUP][2][/SUP] multi-instrumental musician and singer-songwriter. The name "Gotye" is a pronunciation respelling of "Gauthier", the French equivalent of the Flemish given name "Wouter".
Gotye has released three studio albums independently and one album featuring remixes of tracks from his first two albums. He is a member of the Melbourne indie-pop trio The Basics, who have independently released three studio albums and numerous other titles since 2002. His voice has been compared to those of Peter Gabriel and Sting.[SUP][3][/SUP][SUP][4][/SUP][SUP][5][/SUP] Gotye's 2011 single "Somebody That I Used to Know" reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, making him the fifth Australian-based artist to do so and the second Belgian (after The Singing Nun in 1963).[SUP][6][/SUP] He has won five ARIA Awards and received a nomination for an MTV EMA for Best Asia and Pacific Act. On 10 February 2013, he won three Grammy Awards at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards Show: Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Somebody That I Used to Know" and Best Alternative Music Album for Making Mirrors. Gotye has said he sometimes feels "less of a musician, more of a tinkerer."[SUP][7][/SUP]
Gotye is bilingual, speaking both Dutch and English,[SUP][8][/SUP] and also speaks some Japanese,[SUP][9][/SUP] which he studied at University.
[SUP]
The Basics were formed after Kris met Wally at the March 2002 "going away party" in Melbourne of now LA-based engineer/producer Chris "Tek" O'Ryan.[SUP][3][/SUP] The event was to see off the young aspiring producer, who was about to depart for Los Angeles, and together with a number of musician friends, the two jammed on some blues-rock standards. Later that night, they bonded over a mutual love of The Beatles, 70s and 80s cartoon theme songs and old Sierra adventure games.
Initially, they played around Melbourne as an acoustic guitar/drums combo, starting at The Opposition in Frankston and the House of Fools in Footscray, where in late 2002 they met Michael Hubbard and later invited him to join them on electric guitar.[SUP][4][/SUP] Though lacking any real experience with the instrument, Kris willingly purchased his first bass guitar, and the trio was born. During this time, the group start performing songs with more complicated three-part harmony.
During late 2002 and early 2003, The Basics recorded and released an album called Get Back through MGM Distribution. They began what was to become regular tours of the East and West coasts of Australia.
[video=youtube;8UVNT4wvIGY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UVNT4wvIGY[/video][/SUP]
greatest australian singers... - SteveO - 02-07-2013
It's probably due to his fresh sound and very good melodies CH !
CRAZY-HORSE Wrote:my thoughts on Gotye....
i have all the studio albums by The Basics and Gotye as a solo artist...
not sure why he would really classed as a top singer, because he is not....he is very average IMO, but he sings songs that compliment his vocal style...
most of his material is firmly entrenched in 1960s pop, his albums are good but not great, just consistant, and you cant really expect any more than than from anyone, anything extra is an addd bonus IMO...
greatest australian singers... - CRAZY-HORSE - 03-07-2013
number 29: COLIN HAY
![[Image: 353955-top-singers-of-all-time.jpg]](http://resources3.news.com.au/images/2013/04/01/1226610/353955-top-singers-of-all-time.jpg)
Colin James Hay[SUP][1][/SUP][SUP][2][/SUP] (born 29 June 1953) is a Scottish musician and actor who made his mark during the 1980s as lead vocalist of the Australian band Men at Work, and later as a solo artist. Regarding his solo career, Hay stated, in 2011: "I feel like it's been building for the last fifteen or so years that I’ve been touring. It's slow and steady. It's been word-of-mouth. People see the show, like it, and tell their friends. It feels very organic."[SUP][3][/SUP]
Hay's music has been frequently used by actor and director Zach Braff in his work, subsequently leading to a career rebirth in the mid-2000s.
Men at Work was an Australian rock band who achieved international success in the 1980s. They are the only Australian artist to have a simultaneous No. 1 album and No. 1 single in the United States (Business as Usual and "Down Under" respectively).[SUP][1][/SUP] They achieved the same distinction of a simultaneous No. 1 album and No. 1 single in the United Kingdom. The group won the 1983 Grammy Award for Best New Artist,[SUP][2][/SUP] and have sold over 30 million albums worldwide.
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In 1981, Columbia Records signed Men at Work. The band's second single, "Who Can It Be Now?", was released in June 1981 and reached No. 1 on the Australian singles chart in August that year. It rose from No. 3 to No. 1 in the week of 17 August on the Australian singles chart. It was No. 1 for two consecutive weeks.[SUP][7][/SUP] A subsequent single (a re-worked version of "Down Under") and their first album (Business as Usual) went to No. 1.[SUP][8][/SUP] The album also debuted at No. 1 in New Zealand.
Despite its strong Australian showing, and having an American producer (Peter McIan), Business as Usual was twice rejected by Columbia's parent company in the United States. Thanks to the persistence of the band's management, the album was eventually released in the US and the UK six months after its Australian release. Men at Work toured Canada and the US to promote the album, supporting Fleetwood Mac.
The band initially broke through to North American audiences in the western provinces of Canada, with lead single "Who Can It Be Now?" hitting top 10 on radio stations in Winnipeg as early as May 1982. The band became a top act across Canada in the following months, and Men At Work started receiving top 40 US airplay by August. In October 1982, "Who Can It Be Now?" hit No. 1 in the US, while Canada was one single ahead with "Down Under", a Men At Work number that topped the Canadian charts that same month. Then, in November of that year, Business as Usual began a 15-week run at No. 1 on the US album chart.
While "Who Can It Be Now?" was still in the top ten in the US, the second single, "Down Under" was finally released stateside. It entered the charts at No. 79; ten weeks later, it was No. 1. By January 1983, Men at Work had the top album and single in both the US and the UK - a feat never achieved previously by an Australian act. "Be Good Johnny" also received moderate airplay, particularly in the US.
Men at Work won a Grammy Award, winning Best New Artist for 1983 ahead of Asia, Jennifer Holliday, The Human League and Stray Cats. This was the first for an Australian recording act.
That same year, Canada awarded them a Juno Award for "International LP of the Year".
The band soon released their second album Cargo. It had been finished in the summer of 1982, but held for release due to the phenomenal success of the band's debut. The new album went to No. 1. The international market, where Business as Usual was still riding high, kept the album at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The album produced three chart singles in the US: "Overkill" [No. 3], "It's a Mistake" [No. 6], and "Dr. Heckyll and Mr. Jive" [No. 28]. The band toured the world extensively in 1983.
In February 2010, Larrikin Music Publishing won a case against the group arising from the uncredited appropriation of "Kookaburra", originally written in 1934 by Marion Sinclair and for which they owned the publishing rights, as the flute line in the song "Down Under".[SUP][13][/SUP] The Australian music-themed TV quiz Spicks and Specks had suggested that "Down Under" contained "Kookaburra".[SUP][14][/SUP] Larrikin, headed by Norman Lurie (now retired), then filed suit after Larrikin was sold to another company and had demanded between 40% and 60% of the previous six years of earnings from the song.[SUP][15][/SUP] In February 2010, the Australian judge ruled that "Down Under" did contain a flute riff based on "Kookaburra" but stipulated that neither was it necessarily the hook nor a substantial part of the hit song (Colin Hay wrote the song years before the flute riff was added by a later member of the band).[SUP][16][/SUP] In July 2010 a judge ruled that Larrikin should be paid 5% of past (since 2002) and future profits.[SUP][17][/SUP] After the death of band member Greg Ham on 19 April 2012, many stories reported his disappointment at the ruling and "suggesting that this particular case and the ruling completely destroyed his life".[SUP][[SIZE=4][/SIZE]
[video=youtube;XfR9iY5y94s]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfR9iY5y94s[/video][/SUP]
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greatest australian singers... - CRAZY-HORSE - 03-07-2013
my thoughts on Colin Hay/Men At Work:
i like these guys, i like their quirky little tunes and Colin Hay's delivery and phrasing of his lyrics/vocals...
i dont rate "down Under" as a great track,thoought they made better singles like "who can it be now", but thems the breaks...
i cant for the life of me hear the similarities between "down under" and the song they were sued over the old childrens nursey rhyme in "kookaburra sits in the old gum tree"...i'll link that one below to see if you can hear it???
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxzH8x-FDH0 video
greatest australian singers... - SteveO - 03-07-2013
for me and many over here CH, Down Under was a giant ! and I can't detect the similarity from the song and the nursery rhyme ,,,lol
greatest australian singers... - CRAZY-HORSE - 04-07-2013
was a mega hit here for obvious reasons...the song actually went back to #1 a couple of years after it originally did as it was the unofficial theme song for the America's Cup yacht race in 83 or 84(i think?)...when the Alan bond/Jon Bertram "australia II" boat claimed victory over the americans, that was it, straight in at #1 again...
personally, i find "down under" to be very immature, but millions love it so who am i to disagree