NORMIE ROWE

Norman John "Normie" Rowe AM (born 1 February 1947) was a major male solo performer of Australian pop music in the 1960s. After leaving high school at the end of 1962, Rowe had joined the Postmaster-General's Department (PMG) on 14 January 1963 (later split in 1975 into Telecom Australia and Australia Post). He worked as a trainee technician, but in late 1964 his long hair became an issue with his employers and, in the face of a "cut it or quit" ultimatum, he left the PMG to become a professional entertainer. Working on the Melbourne dance circuit, he became a popular attraction, and it was not long before he was picked to become a regular on Melbourne pop TV shows like Teen Scene and The Go!! Show. According to music historian Ed Nimmervoll, EMI apparently had the chance to sign him but turned him down, claiming that he could not sing. He was signed to a recording deal with the independent label Sunshine which included a management deal with the Ivan Dayman organisation.

Rowe's first single, released in April 1965, was a brooding beat arrangement of George Gershwin's "It Ain't Necessarily So" (from Porgy & Bess) a choice suggested by Stan Rofe. It was a Top Ten hit in most capitals (#6 in Sydney, #1 in Melbourne, #3 in Brisbane, #5 in Adelaide), even though Sydney pop station 2SM (then owned by the Catholic Church) banned it because of its supposedly sacrilegious lyrics. Rowe's first LP was released in July 1965. His second single (also apparently discovered while trawling through Rofe's vast record collection), released in August, was a cover of Ben E. King's "I (Who Have Nothing)". It became his second Top 10 hit (#10 in Sydney, #4 in Melbourne, #23 in Brisbane and #6 in Adelaide).

Although Rowe's third single, "I Confess / Everything's Alright", was apparently withdrawn before or soon after release, the next single became the biggest hit of his career. The A-side was a cover of "Que Sera Sera" (best known from the Doris Day original), which was given a Merseybeat treatment (in the manner of The Beatles' "Twist & Shout"). Paired with a powerful version of the Johnny Kidd & The Pirates' classic "Shakin' All Over", the single became a double-sided #1 hit in most capitals (#1 Sydney, #1 Melbourne, #1 Brisbane, #1 Adelaide) in September, charting for 28 weeks and selling in unprecedented numbers—rock historian Ian McFarlane reports sales of 80,000 copies while 1970s encyclopedist Noel McGrath claimed sales of 100,000, and it is reputed to be the biggest-selling Australian single of the 1960s. Normie scored another first in October by having three hit singles in the Melbourne Top 40 simultaneously.

Rowe's success continued through late 1965 and into the first half of 1966, during which time he scored another three consecutive Top Ten singles. "Tell Him I'm Not Home" (Nov. 1965) -- a cover of a song originally recorded by Chuck Jackson in 1963—was a Top 5 hit in most mainland capitals, reaching #4 in Sydney, #2 in Melbourne, #1 in Brisbane and #2 in Adelaide. It was followed by his version of Bacharach & David's "The Breaking Point / Ya Ya", Feb. '66) which became his second double-sided hit, making the Top Ten in all mainland capitals, peaking at #8 in Sydney, #2 in Melbourne, #1 in Brisbane, #9 in Adelaide and #2 in Perth.

"Pride & Joy" (June 1966) was also Top Ten in most state capitals. This single is also notable for its B-side, a cover of "The Stones That I Throw", written by Robbie Robertson, a song originally recorded in 1965 by Levon & the Hawks, later known as The Band. He appeared in the 1966 musical comedy film Don't Let It Get You. Mid-year he joined The Easybeats, Bobby & Laurie and MPD Ltd on "The Big Four" national tour that played to huge crowds around the country. 

Rowe was by this time the most popular solo performer in Australia, so in August 1966 he left to try his luck in the UK. In preparation he revamped the Playboys lineup. Several members opted to stay in Australia for family reasons, so Rowe replaced them with bassist Brian Peacock and guitarist Rod Stone, both from the ex-New Zealand band The Librettos, which had recently split. Arriving in London ahead of his band, Rowe engaged Ritchie Yorke as his London agent, and began to record with producers Trevor Kennedy and John Carter, using the cream of London's session musos, including Big Jim Sullivan, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, famed drummer Clem Cattini and vocal group The Breakaways. The sessions produced several strong new recordings including "Ooh La La", "It's Not Easy", "Mary Mary", "Turn On The Love Light" and "Can't Do Without Your Love". Despite his absence in London, Rowe's run of chart success in Australia continued—his next single, "Ooh La La" / "Ain't Nobody Home" (Nov. 1966) was another double-sided Top 5 hit in most capitals, reaching #2 in Sydney, #1 in Melbourne and Brisbane and #4 in Adelaide.

While "Ooh La La" was at #1 in Australia, Rowe's next single, the ballad "It's Not Easy" was also climbing the chart. It debuted at #17 in the Go-Set chart in the last week of December 1966 and reached the Top 10 in the second week of January. Through the end of January and into February, Rowe achieved a 'first' for an Australian popular recording artist by having two of the top three singles simultaneously for three consecutive weeks. Rowe worked in England for ten months and toured with acts including Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger & The Trinity, The Spencer Davis Group, Kiki Dee, Gene Pitney and The Troggs. High hopes were held for a British breakthrough, and in the early months of 1967 the pages of Go-Set featured predictions of his imminent UK stardom, but it never materialised.

The new Playboys lineup arrived in London in December; Normie flew home for Christmas, which coincided with the release of "It's Not Easy / Mary Mary", and he returned to England in January. In March 1967 the group embarked on a tour of the UK supporting The Troggs, Gene Pitney and Sounds Incorporated. The same month, Phil Blackmore left the group for family reasons and returned to Australia; he was replaced by English organist Trevor Griffin. Rod Stone left in mid-1967 (returning to Australia, after which he joined The Groove) and he was replaced by former Adam Faith sideman Mick Rogers. At the end of 1966, Normie Rowe was voted Australia's best male singer in the inaugural Go-Set Pop Poll.

Rowe had more national chart success in late 1967 with the Graham Gouldman song "Going Home" assumed to be about the Vietnam War, but really about a migrant's return to Australia from Britain which debuted at #22 in the Go-Set chart in late April and stayed in the national Top Ten until the end of May, peaking at #7 in the second week of May. "Sunshine Secret" / "But I Know", and another single, "Turn Down Day" charted in Melbourne. But in September 1967 any questions about his career future were dramatically stalled when he received his call-up notice for national service.

Rowe was conscripted into the army in February 1968, although he continued to perform part-time (albeit with a regulation short-back-and-sides army haircut). At least one TV appearance has survived of Normie with the army "do", performing "It's Not Easy" and "Penelope" on the 19/10/68 edition of Uptight. He also began working with a new backing band, Nature's Own, who also regularly backed Johnny Farnham and other members of the Sunshine roster. His only charting record during this period was the ballad "Penelope", written by former Playboys member Brian Peacock.

Every move of Rowe's basic training at Puckapunyal took place in the full glare of the media spotlight. He was shipped off to Vietnam in January 1969, and he served his tour of duty there with distinction, rising to the rank of Corporal and was Crew Commander of his own armoured personnel carrier. He was discharged from the army in February 1970. His Vietnam experiences left a deep impression on him, and since that time he has worked extensively on behalf of other Vietnam veterans.

Rowe had one last minor hit in May 1970 with the song "Hello", written by Johnny Young, and he released an album of the same name. (It was revealed many years later that Young's song "Smiley", a major hit for Ronnie Burns in 1969, was written about Normie). The 'Hello' album marked the end of his Sunshine contract, although the label had been taken over by Festival several years earlier after it got into financial problems. Normie signed to Festival in 1971, for whom he cut three singles. "Que Sera Sera" was re-released in January 1971 and on 6 March he married his girlfriend Sue Powlesland.

Unfortunately, his national service stint had effectively ended his pop career, and Normie was never able to recover the momentum and mass popularity he lost because of being enlisted. In his absence, Ronnie Burns and Johnny Farnham had taken over and Farnham was now the new King of Pop. Although his pop career was now effectively over, Rowe was able to fall back on the training from his dance hall days and he began to concentrate on the club and hotel circuit as well as TV performances, where he became a popular attraction on variety programs like The Don Lane Show and The Mike Walsh Show. He continued to record through the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. He switched to the Astor Records label in 1975 and had considerable success with the single "Elizabeth", which won the Best Song category at that year's Tokyo Music Festival.

In the 1980s Rowe began to expand his career into acting and musical theatre. He studied at the Sydney's famous Ensemble Theatre and took roles on stage and TV, including an extended role in the TV soapie Sons & Daughters. In 1987 he won great acclaim in his central role of Jean Valjean in Cameron Mackintosh's Sydney production of the musical Les Misérables. Rowe remained a popular attraction at clubs, corporate functions and on the "rock-&-roll revival" circuit in the 1990s.  In 2002, Rowe received national acclaim for his performances in the successful "Long Way To The Top" concert tour. Rowe's most recent album, 'Missing In Action', includes his own version of "Smiley".

In October 2010, Rowe's 1965 album, 'Ain't Necessarily So', was listed in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums. Normie Rowe was one of the lead acts in the 'Go Show' concerts held in Melbourne and Adelaide during Feb 2011. The Go Show was a 1960s version of Countdown. In 2011 (2 April) Rowe was a guest on episode 115 of SBS show RocKwiz where he performed ''Shakin' All Over'' and a duet with Georgia Fields of The Beatles song ''All I've Got to Do''.

SINGLES

''It Ain't Necessarily So (#5) / Gonna Leave This Town'' [with The Playboys] 1965 Sunshine
''I (Who Have Nothing) (#9) / I Just Don't Understand'' 1965 Sunshine
''Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) (#1) / Shakin' All Over'' (#1) [with The Playboys] 1965 Sunshine
'' Call On Me / Tell Him I'm Not Home'' (#3) 1965 Sunshine
''The Breaking Point (#5) / Ya Ya'' 1966 Sunshine
''Pride And Joy (#8) / The Stones I Throw'' [with The Playboys] 1966 Sunshine
''Ooh La La (#1) / Ain't Nobody Home'' 1966 Sunshine
''It's Not Easy (#3) / Mary, Mary'' 1966 Sunshine
'' Turn Down Day (#46) / Stop To Think It Over'' 1967 Sunshine
''Going Home (#11) / I Don't Care'' 1967 Sunshine
'' I Live In The Sunshine / Far Beyond The Call Of Duty'' 1967 Sunshine
''But I Know (#17) / Sunshine Secret'' 1967 Sunshine
'' Penelope (#30) / Lucinda'' 1968 Sunshine
''Born To Be By Your Side (#41) / Break Out'' 1968 Sunshine
''Just To Satisfy You / Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee'' 1969 Sunshine
''You Got Style / Don't Say Nothin' Bad (About My Baby)'' 1969 Sunshine
''Hello (#48) / Home To Stay'' 1970 Festival
''Border Song / Come Hear My Song'' 1971 Festival
''Glory Road / Over You Now'' 1973 Festival
''Rings (#52) / Come Hear My Song'' 1973 Festival
''Higher And Higher (#93) / Willie And Laura Mae Jones'' 1974 Festival
''It's Not Easy / See My Fingers Fly'' 1974 Festival
''Harbour For My Soul / That's The Way I Am'' 1975 Astor
''Good Morning, Good Morning / If You See Her'' 1975 Astor
''Elizabeth (#57) / Little Ray Of Sunshine'' 1976 Astor
''Mother's Boy / Can I Get A Witness'' 1976 Rainbird
''Maybe Tomorrow (#56) / Help Yourselves To Each Other'' 1981 Avenue
''You've Got A Right / For Love'' 1982 Avenue
''Rock And Roll You're Beautiful (#50) / Does She Have A Friend'' 1984 Avenue
''Don't Talk / I Need To Fall In Love Again'' 1984 Avenue
''Somewhere Tonight / Help Yourselves To Each Other'' 1987
''Bring Him Home / Do You Hear The People Sing?'' 1987 Festival

EPs

'It Ain't Necessarily Rowe' [with The Playboys] 1965 Sunshine
'Normie Rowe Sings "I" 1965 Sunshine
'Que Sera, Sera' 1966 Sunshine
'Shakin' All Over' 1966 Sunshine
'Tell Him I'm Not Home' 1966 Sunshine
'Call On Me' 1966 Sunshine
'Pride And Joy' 1966 Sunshine
'The Stones I Throw' 1966 Sunshine
'Ooh La La! It's Not Easy!' 1967 Sunshine
'Going Home' 1967 Sunshine
'Normie's New Four' 1967 Sunshine
'Penelope' 1968 Sunshine

ALBUMS
'It Ain't Necessarily So, But It Is Normie Rowe' 1965 Sunshine
'So Much Love From Normie Rowe' 1966 Sunshine
'Normie Rowe a Go Go' 1965 Sunshine
'A Wonderful Feeling' 1965 Sunshine
'Normie's Hit Happenings' 1966 Sunshine
'So Much Love From Normie Rowe' 1966 Sunshine
'Hello' 1973 Sunshine
'Out of the Norm' 1974
'Come Hear My Song' 1974 Summit
'Out Of The Blu 1984 Avenue
'Piano Man' 1985 Hammard
'Count Your Blessings' 1991 J&B
'Missing In Action' 2007
Straight To The Heart' 2018 Beatroot

References

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normie_Rowe

http://top100singles.blogspot.com.au/