Tony Hazzard
| Tony Hazzard | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Anthony Hazzard |
| Born | 31 October 1943 Liverpool |
| Occupations | Singer, songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1960s - present |
| Website | myspace.com/tonyhazzard |
Tony Hazzard (born Anthony Hazzard,[1] 31 October 1943, Liverpool) is an English singer and songwriter. He has written songs for The Hollies ("Listen to Me"[2]), Manfred Mann ("Ha! Ha! Said The Clown" and "Fox on the Run"), "Me, The Peaceful Heart" for Lulu, The Yardbirds ("Goodnight Sweet Josephine"), Herman's Hermits ("You Won't Be Leaving"), Peter Noone ("(I Think I'm Over) Getting Over You"), The Tremeloes ("Hello World"), Gene Pitney ("Maria Elena"), Richard Barnes ("Take to the Mountains"), Cherry Smash ("Fade Away Maureen") and Andy Williams among others.
[edit] Career
Hazzard picked up the guitar and ukulele at a young age, but managed to miss out on the Merseybeat skiffle scene that engulfed the region in the early 1960s, focusing instead on his education at Durham University.[3] Through a mutual friend he was introduced to BBC story editor Tony Garnett. Garnett persuaded Hazzard to move to London to pursue his songwriting ambitions. He signed with music publisher and Manfred Mann manager Gerry Bron, who put him on a retainer.[3]
In addition, his "The Sound Of The Candyman's Trumpet" was recorded by Cliff Richard and entered into the 1968 Songs for Europe preamble for the Eurovision Song Contest. Simon Dupree and the Big Sound, The Casuals, The Family Dogg, and The Swinging Blue Jeans all turned to Hazzard's effortless pop tunes in the late 1960s.[4] In the midst of all this success as a writer, Hazzard released his first solo album, Tony Hazzard Sings Tony Hazzard, released in 1969. While it was released to little or no fanfare, his sophomore effort Loudwater House helped establish the artist as a potential soft rock superstar.[3] Many of the musicians who played on the record (Chris Spedding, Mike Batt, and B. J. Cole) were touring with Elton John at the time, and Hazzard soon found himself providing backing vocals on John's Tumbleweed Connection and Honky Château.[3]
His third album, the country-tinged Was That Alright Then, arrived in 1973, but failed to generate much public support. In 2005, both Loudwater House and Was That Alright Then, along with some rarities and unissued outtakes, were remastered and compiled on the two-disc Go North: The Bronze Anthology. In 2011, he released a CD of new work, entitled Songs From The Lynher. Hazzard continues to write music at his home in Cornwall.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ Sheetmusicwarehouse.co.uk
- ^ http://www.marmalade-skies.co.uk/hollies.htm The Hollies and psychedelia
- ^ a b c d e Allmusic biography by James Christopher Monger
- ^ Parasol.com
