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.
O'Neill began her solo career in the early 1970s in her home country after a short stint with kiwi band Chapta, then gained moderate success in Australia with the hit "Words" (AUS #56) and the subsequent singles "How Do You Talk to Boys?" (AUS No. 25, 1980), "Maybe" (AUS No. 38, 1981), "Losing You" (AUS No. 26, 1983), and "Power" (AUS No. 36, 1984).
The early 1980s proved her most commercially successful period, composing and performing the soundtrack to the 1981 film Smash Palace, and with the Foreign Affairs album in 1983 spawning her biggest hit "Maxine" (AUS No. 16, 1983) a song which chronicled the life of a Kings Cross prostitute. A legal battle with her then record company Sony caused a delay in her career. During the enforced hiatus, O'Neill wrote songs for ABC TV series Sweet and Sour (1984) including the title song performed by Deborah Conway (later recorded by O'Neill as "In Control") and "Glam to Wham". O'Neill met American keyboardist and songwriter, Alan Mansfield on Dragon's Body and the Beat Tour of New Zealand in 1984—they later became domestic and professional partners.
In 1987 O'Neill returned with her album Danced in the Fire on Polygram which featured some biographical songs about the legal wrangles with Sony.
O'Neill's last album of new material, Edge of Winter, was released in 1990. A mature work, two singles were taken from this album, "Satin Sheets" and "Poster Girl", both of which failed to find chart success.
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