Beeb Birtles
| Beeb Birtles | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Gerard Bertelkamp |
| Born |
28 November 1948 Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Origin | Adelaide, South Australia, Australia |
| Genres | Folk rock, pop rock, soft rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar |
| Years active | 1964–present |
| Labels | Columbia, RCA, EMI, Capitol, MCA, Universal, Sonic Sorbet |
| Associated acts | Zoot, Mississippi, Little River Band, Birtles & Goble, Birtles Shorrock Goble |
| Website | birtles |
| 1966 | Times Unlimited |
|---|---|
| Down The Line | |
| 1967 | Zoot |
| 1971 | Frieze |
| 1972 | Mississippi |
| 1975 |
Little River Band (including Birtles & Goble 1978–1980) |
| 1983 | Beeb Birtles |
| 2002 | Birtles Shorrock Goble |
| 2007 | Beeb Birtles (including reformed Zoot in 2011) |
Beeb Birtles (born Gerard Bertelkamp, 28 November 1948), is a Dutch Australian musician, both a singer-songwriter and guitarist (bass, electric or acoustic). He has been a member of various Australian groups including Zoot (1967–71), Mississippi (1972–74), Little River Band (1975–83), and Birtles Shorrock Goble (2002–07). He has also worked as a solo artist, including releasing an album, Driven by Dreams (2000). In 2004 Birtles and other members of the classic line-up of Little River Band were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.
Beeb Birtles was born on 28 November 1948 as Gerard Bertelkamp in Amsterdam, Netherlands to Gerard Bertelkamp senior (born 30 May 1923), a carpenter and building contractor, and Elisabeth Hendrika (née Deubel on 8 January 1924). He has a younger sister, Elisabeth H (born 17 September 1952). Birtles later recalled seeing his parents singing in an amateur operetta in Amsterdam "I was very young and I went with my grandparents. They took me to the theatre to see my parents, and, er, I was so young that I actually called out my mother's name from the audience!".
The Bertelkamp family emigrated to Australia in September 1959 aboard MS Willem Ruys. The family settled in Adelaide where Birtles attended Netley Primary School – he was held back a year due to his language problems. He discovered a passion for music while attending Plympton High School. His mother taught him to sing "after dinner at night, we would sing together. And she would take the melody and I would take the harmony". While at high school he was nicknamed "B.B. Eyes", after a Dick Tracy character from the associated TV cartoon show, it soon became "BB".
In 1966 after high school Beeb Birtles, initially on lead guitar and harmony vocals, formed his first group, Times Unlimited, with his school mate, John D'Arcy on guitars and vocals; they were joined by Ted Higgins on drums and a bass guitarist. D'Arcy was from Manchester and introduced Birtles to the music of The Hollies. When the bass guitarist left, Birtles took over that instrument and soon they asked Darryl Cotton to join on lead vocals.
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