Sharon O'Neill
| Sharon O'Neill | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Sharon Lea O'Neill |
| Born |
23 November 1952 Nelson, South Island, New Zealand |
| Genres | Rock, pop, new wave |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, musician, songwriter |
| Instruments | vocals, guitar, piano |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Labels | Sony, Polydor |
Sharon Lea O'Neill (born 23 November 1952, Nelson, New Zealand) is a singer-songwriter and pianist from New Zealand, who had an Australasian hit single in 1983 with "Maxine" which reached No. 16 on both the Australian Kent Music Report and Recording Industry Association of New Zealand charts.
Sharon O'Neill is a self taught musician who learned to play guitar by ear and started composing at an early age, by putting chords to her poetry. She began playing the acoustic guitar around Nelson in the 1960s.
O'Neill began recording with Robin Winch and Nancy Richman under the name Suitewater. An entry into the 1970 Mobil Song Quest, saw them make the finals with a song called "Life Upon Life" written by O'Neill. Another of her songs, "Nothing Makes It Easy", got her to the finals of the New Faces television talent show in 1972 In 1972, O'Neill released "Love Song" a Lesley Duncan cover on Ode Records. Between 1972 and 1977 O'Neill joined New Zealand band Chapta, a covers band called Jessica, and a rock-pop band called Shiner. In 1977, encouraged by Shiner guitarist and future husband Brent Thomas, O'Neill began concentrating on song writing. O'Neill was featured on the track "If There's Still a Little Love" on Mark Williams; 1977 album and supported Williams on tour.
In 1978, O'Neill performed a track "Luck's on Your Table" on the New Zealand TV show "The Entertainers", where she finished third. She subsequently signed to CBS Records and released "Luck's on the Table" in September 1978. It reached number 27 on the New Zealand singles chart and was included on her debut albumThis Heart This Song which was released in February 1979. In June 1979, O'Neill released "Don't Say No to Tomorrow" which was featured on a Telethon. It reached number 6 on the charts. That same year she received an APRA Silver Scroll Award for the song "Face in a Rainbow" from her debut album. O'Neill won best female artist at the New Zealand Music Awards in 1978, and 1979. In February 1980, O'Neill released her second studio album titled, "Sharon O'Neill", which peaked at number 3. At the 1980 New Zealand Music Awards, O'Neill won her third Female Artist of the Year as well as her first Album of the Year. The album gained moderate success in Australia with the hit "Words" (AUS #56) and the subsequent singles "Asian Paradise" (AUS #76) and "How Do You Talk to Boys" (AUS #25). O'Neill joined Jon Stevens on a duet called "Don't Let Love Go" which reached number 5 in New Zealand in March 1980.
...
Wikipedia