Beeb Birtles (born Gerard Bertelkamp, 28 November 1948) is an Australian musician, singer, songwriter and guitarist. He has been a member of various Australian groups including
Zoot (1967–71),
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
(1972–74),
Little River Band
Little River Band (LRB) are a rock band originally formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studio albums rea ...
(1975–83) and
Birtles Shorrock Goble
Birtles Shorrock Goble are an Australian pop/rock group composed of the three original singers and songwriters of Little River Band, namely Beeb Birtles, Glenn Shorrock and Graeham Goble. The members are known for their extensive writing and perf ...
(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
In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...
.
Early life
Beeb Birtles was born on 28 November 1948 as Gerard Bertelkamp in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
, Netherlands, to Gerard Bertelkamp, Sr (30 May 1923 – 4 May 2000), a carpenter and building contractor, and Elisabeth Hendrika (née Deubel; 8 January 1924 – 2 December 2015).
He has a younger sister, Elisabeth H (born 17 September 1952).
Birtles later recalled seeing his parents singing in an amateur operetta in Amsterdam, saying that "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
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
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
Plympton is a suburb of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England. It is in origin an ancient stannary town. It was an important trading centre for locally mined tin, and a seaport before the River Plym silted up and trade moved down river to Plym ...
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
''Dick Tracy'' is an American comic strip featuring Dick Tracy (originally Plainclothes Tracy), a tough and intelligent police detective created by Chester Gould. It made its debut on Sunday, October 4, 1931, in the ''Detroit Mirror'', and it ...
'' character from the associated TV cartoon show, it soon became "BB"
and later "Beeb".
Career
1966-1974: Times Unlimited, Zoot, Frieze and Mississippi
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
The Hollies are a British pop rock band, formed in 1962. One of the leading British groups of the 1960s and into the mid-1970s, they are known for their distinctive three-part vocal harmony style. Allan Clarke (singer), Allan Clarke and Graham ...
.
When the bass guitarist left, Birtles took over that instrument and soon they asked
Darryl Cotton
Darryl Grant Cotton (4 September 1949 27 July 2012) was an Australian pop, rock singer-songwriter, television presenter and actor. He was a founding member of Australian rock group Zoot in 1965, with Beeb Birtles, and were later joined by Rick ...
to join on lead vocals.
Times Unlimited changed their name to Down the Line in homage to the Hollies' cover version of
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. His music was described by critics as ...
's "
Go Go Go (Down the Line)
"Go Go Go (Down the Line)" (often credited as "Down the Line") is a song by Roy Orbison, released in 1956. According to the authorised biography of Roy Orbison, this was the B-side to Orbison's first Sun Records release "Ooby Dooby". This was the ...
".
During 1966, Down the Line played regular gigs in their home town, Adelaide, including a Friday night residency at Scot's Church, performing covers of English
Mod
Mod, MOD or mods may refer to:
Places
* Modesto City–County Airport, Stanislaus County, California, US
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Mods (band), a Norwegian rock band
* M.O.D. (Method of Destruction), a band from New York City, US ...
groups: the Hollies,
the Move
The Move were a British rock band of the late 1960s and the early 1970s. They scored nine top 20 UK singles in five years, but were among the most popular British bands not to find any real success in the United States. For most of their caree ...
,
the Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
and
the Small Faces
Small Faces were an English rock band from London, founded in 1965. The group originally consisted of Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones and Jimmy Winston, with Ian McLagan replacing Winston as the band's keyboardist in 1966. The ...
.
By May 1967 they backed English-born singer
Johnny Farnham
John Peter Farnham AO (born 1 July 1949) is a British born Australian singer. Farnham was a teen pop idol from 1967 until 1979, billed then as Johnny Farnham, but has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer.McFarlane (1999). Enc ...
and as session musicians they were used on demos, which secured Farnham's contract with
EMI Records
EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...
.
One of the demos, "In My Room", became the
B-side
The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...
of Farnham's debut single, "
Sadie (The Cleaning Lady)
"Sadie (The Cleaning Lady)" was Australian pop singer Johnny Farnham's first solo single. The novelty song was released in November 1967 and was No. 1 on the ''Go-Set'' National Singles Charts for five weeks in early 1968 NOTE: ''Go-Set'' publis ...
" (November 1967).
By June 1967 the group had changed their name to
Zoot.
They moved to Melbourne by mid-1968, where they recorded their debut single, "You'd Better Get Goin' Now".
At this time Birtles adopted his professional name: Cotton had shortened his nickname to "Beeb", and Birtles anglicised the first two syllables of Bertelkamp.
Birtles and Cotton co-wrote "Little Roland Lost",
which was issued as the B-side of Zoot's June 1969 single, "Monty & Me".
As a member of Zoot, Birtles appeared on all their recorded material including both of their studio albums, ''Just Zoot'' (1970) and ''Zoot Out'' (1971), but they broke up in May 1971.
After Zoot, Birtles and Cotton performed together as an eponymous pop, soft rock duo, Daryl and Beeb, which were renamed as Frieze for their sponsors – a clothing company.
A teenage-themed newspaper, ''
Go-Set
''Go-Set'' was the first Australian pop music newspaper, published weekly from 2 February 1966 to 24 August 1974, and was founded in Melbourne by Phillip Frazer, Peter Raphael and Tony Schauble. NOTE: This PDF is 282 pages. Widely described as ...
'', published its annual reader pop poll in July where Birtles appeared second as Best Bass Guitarist behind
the Masters Apprentices
The Masters Apprentices (or The Masters to fans) were an Australian rock band fronted by Jim Keays on lead vocals, which originally formed as The Mustangs in 1964 in Adelaide, South Australia, relocated to Melbourne, Victoria in February 1967 a ...
member
Glenn Wheatley
Glenn Dawson Wheatley (23 January 1948 – 1 February 2022) was an Australian musician, talent manager and tour promoter.
Career
Wheatley began his career as a musician in Brisbane in the mid-1960s. In the late 1960s he became known national ...
.
The duo issued an album, ''1972 B. C.'', in May 1972, which was produced by
Brian Cadd
Brian George Cadd AM (born 29 November 1946) is an Australian singer-songwriter, keyboardist, producer and record label founder, a staple of Australian entertainment for over 50 years. As well as working internationally throughout Europe and the ...
, but they disbanded in the next month.
In July 1972, Birtles was asked to join a folk rock band,
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
, which like Zoot had moved from Adelaide to Melbourne.
The new line-up with Birtles on vocals and guitar, by October, were three of its founders,
Graham Goble
Graeham George Goble, (born 15 May 1947)Goble, Graeham (2006Graeham Goble: Biography. Retrieved on 14 July 2008. is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter and record producer, best known as a founding member of Australian rock group Little Riv ...
on vocals and guitar; Russ Johnson on vocals and guitar; John Mower on lead vocals (all ex-Allison Gros); and fellow new members Colin DeLuca on bass guitar (ex-Fugitives); and
Derek Pellicci
Derek Allan Pellicci (born 18 February 1953) is an English-born Australian drummer. He is best known as a founding member of Little River Band. Pellicci lives in Melbourne with his wife, Anne and a son.
Early life
In 1960, Pellicci's family, his ...
on drums (ex-Ash).
During 1973 the group issued a single, "Early Morning", which had been co-written by Birtles with Goble and Johnson.
It peaked at No. 56 on the Australian
Kent Music Report
The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July ...
Singles Chart.
In January 1974 Mississippi appeared at the
Sunbury Pop Festival
Sunbury Pop Festival or Sunbury Rock Festival was an annual Australian rock music festival held on a private farm between Sunbury and Diggers Rest, Victoria, which was staged on the Australia Day (26 January) long weekend from 1972 to 1975. It ...
and then released another single, "Will I?", which was co-written by Birtles and former bandmate, Cotton.
It reached No. 26.
They toured the United Kingdom from May that year, where they "made little headway" and various members left the group.
In London they met with fellow Australian musicians
Glenn Shorrock
Glenn Barrie Shorrock (born 30 June 1944) is an English-born Australian singer-songwriter. He was a founding member of rock bands the Twilights, Axiom, Little River Band and post LRB spin-off trio Birtles Shorrock Goble, as well as being a solo ...
(ex-
Twilights) and Wheatley – both expressed a desire to return to Australia and work on a new version of Mississippi.
1975-1984: Little River Band and Birtles & Goble
In early 1975 Mississippi band members Birtles, Goble, and Pellicci, had returned to Australia where they recruited Shorrock on lead vocals and Wheatley as their manager.
They soon changed their name to
Little River Band
Little River Band (LRB) are a rock band originally formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studio albums rea ...
(LRB) and by year's end included
Ric Formosa
Riccardo Formosa (born 1 September 1954) is an Italian-born Australian musician and composer. He was the lead guitarist of the pop band Little River Band from 1975 to 1976 and recorded their first two albums, ''Little River Band'' and '' After Hou ...
on guitar and Roger McLachlan on bass guitar.
This line-up released their debut
self-titled album in November, which was co-produced by Birtles, Goble, Shorrock and Wheatley.
It peaked at No. 12 on the Kent Music Report Albums Chart.
Their lead single, "
Curiosity (Killed the Cat)", which was written by Birtles,
appeared ahead of the album in September and reached No. 15 on the related singles chart.
Soon after LRB moved to the United States and became "the first Australian band of the 1970s to gain significant international success, paving the way for AC/DC, Air Supply, Men at Work and INXS".
From 1978 to 1980 while still with LRB,
Birtles & Goble
Birtles & Goble were an Australian pop music duo composed of Beeb Birtles (born 28 November 1948 in Amsterdam, Netherlands) and Graeham Goble (born 15 May 1947 in Adelaide, Australia). Although they were both full-time members of Little River ...
also performed and recorded together as a duo, they issued three singles "Lonely Lives" (February 1978), "I'm Coming Home" (April 1979) and "How I Feel Tonight" (June 1980).
In 1979 he had married Donna Brucks, the US assistant to LRB's booking agent. In May of the next year Birtles & Goble released an album, ''Last Romance''.
He told Kruger "I never felt 'pressured' to write hit songs because I've always written from my heart. In the early days quite a few of my songs were picked to be the singles and as we started to become more popular in the States,
horrock'sand
oble'ssongs were chosen to be the singles. We always left the choosing of the singles to the record label. As long as I had a few songs on each album, there were no complaints. We were selling millions of albums anyway, so people were still hearing my songs".
After a run of major international chart and critical successes from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, Birtles left LRB in October 1983.
By 1984, Birtles and wife Donna lived in Melbourne: they have two daughters, Hannah and Emmie. He gave his reasons for leaving the group: "I realised I was well and truly burned out from being on the road, travelling the world for eight years straight. It was the right decision at the time for me because my daughters were young and I got to spend their formative years at home with them".
1992-2000: ''Driven by Dreams''
In 1992, Birtles moved to the US with his family. They briefly settled in Donna's hometown of
Jefferson Jefferson may refer to:
Names
* Jefferson (surname)
* Jefferson (given name)
People
* Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States
* Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foo ...
, before moving to
Nashville
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
, where he and his wife still live – both daughters graduated from college in the US.
In 1998, Birtles and Bill Cuomo established Sonic Sorbet, a music production company. Sonic Sorbet has produced albums for a number of recording artists, including Birtles' first solo album, ''Driven by Dreams'', released in 2000.
2001-2007: Birtles Shorrock Goble and ARIA and Australian Songwriter Hall of Fame
In 2001, Birtles rejoined with Shorrock and Goble to form
Birtles Shorrock Goble
Birtles Shorrock Goble are an Australian pop/rock group composed of the three original singers and songwriters of Little River Band, namely Beeb Birtles, Glenn Shorrock and Graeham Goble. The members are known for their extensive writing and perf ...
. Initially they wanted to perform as "The Original Little River Band".
However, they were not entitled to use the name Little River Band as it was legally owned by
Stephen Housden
Stephen Frank Housden (born ) is an English-born Australian musician. He joined the rock group Little River Band (LRB) in 1981 on lead guitar and vocals and ceased performing with them in 2006. Previously, Housden had worked as a session musi ...
, the group's guitarist from August 1981 to 2006, after previous members had been paid out upon leaving.
Kruger described the situation "due to clumsy paper work and general disinterest on the part of original band members as they each left the group in the 1990s".
The group recorded the live album ''Full Circle'', which was released in 2003.
![LRB Aria](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/LRB_Aria.jpg)
At the
ARIA Music Awards of 2004
The 18th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as ARIA Music Awards or simply the ARIAs) were held on 17 October 2004 at the Sydney Superdome within the Sydney Olympic Complex. The ceremony, hosted by Ro ...
, Birtles and other members of the classic line-up of Little River Band were inducted into the
ARIA Hall of Fame
In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...
.
In 2004, Birtles Shorrock Goble won Classic Rock Performers of the Year at the 2004 Mo Awards
and was induction into the Australian Songwriters Association Hall of Fame.
In 2006, Birtles was inducted into the Australian Songwriter's Hall of Fame.
2008-present: Continued performance and autobiography
In 2011 Birtles joined other key members of Zoot for a short performance cruise out from
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
.
Further reunions of Zoot were prevented by the death of Darryl Cotton in July 2012.
Birtles continued to write and produce music in Nashville.
In 2017, Birtles released his autobiography ''Every Day of My Life'', published by Brolga Publishing ().
Beeb was inducted into the South Australian Music Hall Of Fame on 24 November 2017, alongside Zoot bandmate Darryl Cotton and Barry Smith of the Town Criers. The ceremony took place at the German Club, Adelaide.
Discography
Solo studio albums
Compilation albums
See also
*
Zoot (band)
Zoot were a pop rock band formed in Adelaide, South Australia, in 1964 as Down the Line.McFarlane (1999). Encyclopedia entry fo'Zoot' Retrieved 21 January 2010.Spencer et al, (2007ZOOTentry. Retrieved 21 January 2010. They changed their name to ...
*
Mississippi (band)
Mississippi were an Australian soft rock band (1972–1975), which included Graham Goble on lead vocals and guitar, Beeb Birtles on lead vocals and guitar, and Derek Pellicci on drums. The band had started as Allison Gros in Adelaide in 1970 a ...
*
Little River Band
Little River Band (LRB) are a rock band originally formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studio albums rea ...
*
Birtles Shorrock Goble
Birtles Shorrock Goble are an Australian pop/rock group composed of the three original singers and songwriters of Little River Band, namely Beeb Birtles, Glenn Shorrock and Graeham Goble. The members are known for their extensive writing and perf ...
Awards and nominations
Australian Songwriter's Hall of Fame
The Australian Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 2004 to honour the lifetime achievements of some of Australia's greatest songwriters.
, -
, 2006
, himself
, Australian Songwriter's Hall of Fame
,
Go-Set Pop Poll
The Go-Set Pop Poll was coordinated by teen-oriented pop music newspaper, ''
Go-Set
''Go-Set'' was the first Australian pop music newspaper, published weekly from 2 February 1966 to 24 August 1974, and was founded in Melbourne by Phillip Frazer, Peter Raphael and Tony Schauble. NOTE: This PDF is 282 pages. Widely described as ...
'' and was established in February 1966 and conducted an annual poll during 1966 to 1972 of its readers to determine the most popular personalities.
, -
, 1971
, himself
, Best Bass Guitarist
, style="background:silver;", 2nd
, -
King of Pop Awards
The King of Pop Awards were voted by the readers of
TV Week
''TV Week'' is a weekly Australian magazine that provides television program listings information and highlights, as well as television-related news.
Content ranges from previews for upcoming storylines of popular television programs, particu ...
. The King of Pop award started in 1967 and ran through to 1978.
, -
, 1971
, himself
, Best Bass Guitarist
,
, -
Mo Awards
The
Mo Awards
The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards) were an annual Australian entertainment industry award, that where established in 1975, to recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia. They were l ...
, (technically The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards), are annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia.
, -
, 2004
, Birtles Shorrock Goble
, Classical Rock Performers of the Year
,
South Australian Music Awards
The
South Australian Music Awards
The South Australian Music Awards, also known as SA Music Awards, commonly SAM Awards, formerly Fowler's Live Music Awards (FLMA), are annual awards that exist to recognise, promote and celebrate excellence in the South Australian contemporary mu ...
are an annual two-week celebration of live music, celebrating musical achievements of
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
.
, -
, 2017
, himself
, Hall Of Fame
,
TV Week / Countdown Awards
''
Countdown
A countdown is a sequence of backward counting to indicate the time remaining before an event is scheduled to occur. NASA commonly employs the terms "L-minus" and "T-minus" during the preparation for and anticipation of a rocket launch, and eve ...
'' was an Australian pop music TV series on national broadcaster
ABC-TV from 1974 to 1987, it presented music awards from 1979 to 1987, initially in conjunction with magazine ''
TV Week
''TV Week'' is a weekly Australian magazine that provides television program listings information and highlights, as well as television-related news.
Content ranges from previews for upcoming storylines of popular television programs, particu ...
''. The TV Week / Countdown Awards were a combination of popular-voted and peer-voted awards.
, -
, 1979
, "I'm Coming Home" (by Birtles & Goble)
, Best Recorded Songwriter
,
, -
References
;General
* Note: Archived
n-linecopy has limited functionality.
*
Note:
n-lineversion of ''The Who's Who of Australian Rock'' was established at in 2007 and was expanded from the 2002 edition. As from, September 2010 the
n-lineversion shows an 'Internal Service Error' and was no longer available.
;Specific
External links
*
Online MuseumBeeb Birtles holdings at the National Film and Sound ArchiveBeeb Birtles InterviewNAMM Oral History Library (2020)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Birtles, Beeb
1948 births
Living people
Australian guitarists
Australian soft rock musicians
Dutch emigrants to Australia
Little River Band members
Musicians from Amsterdam
Musicians from Adelaide
Australian songwriters
Mississippi (band) members
Zoot (band) members
Birtles Shorrock Goble members