Wendy Anne-Marie Stapleton (born 8 July 1954) is an Australian pop/

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

singer-songwriter,

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

performer and television actress and presenter Stapleton has performed as a

backing singer A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

, session musician and a solo artist; she fronted various

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

-based groups including Wendy Stapleton Band (1976–1978)Spencer et al, (2007
STAPLETON, Wendy BAND
entry. Retrieved 15 January 2010. and Wendy & the Rocketts (1980–1985)Spencer et al, (2007
WENDY AND THE ROCKETTS
entry. Retrieved 15 January 2010. which had a top 30 hit single with "Play the Game" in June 1983. NOTE: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until

ARIA 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 ...

created their own

charts A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tab ...

in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.

Biography

1954–1978: Early years

Wendy Stapleton was born in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. At nine years old, Stapleton appeared in J. C. Williamson’s 1963 production of

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

's '' Sail Away'' at

Her Majesty's Theatre Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who established t ...

which starred

Maggie Fitzgibbon Margaret Helen Fitzgibbon (30 January 1929 – 8 June 2020) was an Australian actress and singer. Coming from a show-business family, she was the older sister of musician Smacka Fitzgibbon. Biography Fitzgibbon was born in Melbourne. She began ...

. In the mid-1960s she regularly performed in further J. C. Williamson productions and made weekly appearances on

GTV-9 GTV is a commercial television station in Melbourne, Australia, owned by the Nine Network. The station is currently based at studios at 717 Bourke Street, Docklands. History GTV-9 was amongst the first television stations to begin regular t ...

's ''

Tarax Show ''The Tarax Show'' was an early Australian children's TV program on GTV-9 in Melbourne running from 1957 to 1969. Synopsis Denzil Howson who was then Assistant Program Manager at GTV9, was asked by Norman Spencer to develop a daily children's p ...

'' on Melbourne television. She attended St. Columba's College, in

Essendon Essendon may refer to: Australia *Electoral district of Essendon *Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington * Essendon, Victoria **Essendon railway station **Essendon Airport * Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League United Ki ...

. From 16 years old, Stapleton was

lead vocal The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

ist for a succession of bands including Keith McKay Trio (1968),Spencer et al, (2007
McKAY, Keith TRIO
entry. Retrieved 16 January 2010. Souled Out (1976–1977),Spencer et al, (2007
SOULED OUT
entry. Retrieved 15 January 2010. Incession (1979),Spencer et al, (2007
INCESSION
entry. Retrieved 15 January 2010. Southern Transit, Bill Livingstone Trio. She also worked as a session

backing vocal A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are used ...

ist and, during 1976–1978, fronted the Wendy Stapleton Band which included

Geoff Cox Geoff Cox (born 13 March 1951) is an Australian musician and media personality. He is often referred to as "Coxy". Cox is most notable for having played drums with Brian Cadd, and with the bands Cycle, The Bootleg Family Band and Avalanche. H ...

(ex-Keith McKay Trio, Bootleg Family Band) on drums and backing vocals who was replaced by Mike Anderson (Traction) on

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

and backing vocals; and Keith McKay (Keith McKay Trio, Cycle) on

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

and backing vocals.

1979–1985: Wendy & the Rocketts

Stapleton signed a solo deal with

Festival Records Festival Records (later known as Festival Mushroom Records) was an Australian recording and publishing company founded in Sydney, Australia, in 1952 and operated until 2005. Festival was a wholly owned subsidiary of News Limited from 1961 to ...

and issued her debut single, " Heart of Stone", a

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

1964 song, in September 1979.Spencer et al, (2007
STAPLETON, Wendy
entry. Retrieved 15 January 2010. Her version did not chart 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 August 1980 Stapleton formed pub rock band, Wendy & the , with Mark Chew on

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

and keyboards (ex-Traction, Southern Transit), Victor Crump on guitar (Bandicoot, Fastbuck), Steve Donald on drums (Fastbuck) and Wayne Sullivan on

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

(Fastbuck). The band signed with

Mushroom Records Mushroom Records was an Australian flagship record label, founded in 1972 in Melbourne. It published and distributed many successful Australian artists and expanded internationally, until it was merged with Festival Records in 1998. Festival Mu ...

and released "Reputation" in June 1981, which peaked at No. 40. "Tonite" followed in September but did not chart. Sullivan was replaced by Joe Imbroll on bass guitar. A new line-up appeared in March 1982 with Donald, and new members: Joey Amenta on lead guitar and backing vocals (Taste, Redhouse, Russell Morris Band, Darryl Cotton Band), Noel Beare on bass guitar (Misfits, Routinos) and Adrian Dessent on rhythm guitar and backing vocals (Scandal, Vixen, Marc Hunter Band). The third single, "Your Place or Mine?" released in March, reached the top 40. A

live recording An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...

, ''Live'', appeared as a six-track EP in September. The band travelled to UK in early 1983 to record their debut

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

, ''Dazed for Days'' it was issued in July and appeared into the top 30 on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart. Lead single, "Play the Game", was released in April and peaked in the top 30, "Have You Been Telling Me Lies" followed in August with "Security" in November. However, by September, the band had left for UK and Europe to tour as support for

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...

and

ZZ Top ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in 1969 in Houston, Texas. For 51 years, they comprised vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard and vocalist-bassist Dusty Hill, until Hill's death in 2021. ZZ Top developed a signature sou ...

. In November 1984, another version of Wendy & the Rocketts toured: John Dallimore replaced Amenta on lead guitar (Redhouse, Dallimore, Jon English & the Foster Brothers), Brian Hamilton replaced Beare on bass guitar, and

Paul McNaughton Paul Peter Patrick McNaughton (18 November 1952 – November 2022) was an Irish rugby union, soccer and GAA player during the 1970s and 1980s. He was also manager of the Irish Rugby Team, a position he held from 2008 to 2011. He played rugby ...

(aka Paul Norton) joined on guitar. No more recordings appeared—the group disbanded in March 1985—and Stapleton returned to session work. Stapleton joined as guest vocalist with

The Incredible Penguins The Incredible Penguins were an Australian supergroup formed in 1985, which reached the top ten on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart with their cover of "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" in December. NOTE: Used for Australian Singles and A ...

in 1985, for a

of "

Happy Xmas (War Is Over) "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" is a Christmas song released in 1971 as a single by John & Yoko/Plastic Ono Band with the Harlem Community Choir. It was the seventh single release by John Lennon outside his work with the Beatles. The song reach ...

", a charity project for research on little penguins, which peaked at No. 10 on the singles chart in December.Spencer et al, (2007
INCREDIBLE PENGUINS
entry. Retrieved 15 January 2010. Incredible Penguins also included Donald from an early Wendy & the Rocketts line-up.

1986–present: Later years

Stapleton's work for the late 1980s includes recording vocals for Dave Evans & Thunder Down Under's releases in 1986, and performing backing vocals for Melbourne band, Wild Turkey, in 1988. She performed in ''

Bad Boy Johnny and the Prophets of Doom ''Bad Boy Johnny and the Prophets of Doom'' is a rock stage musical first performed in Australia in 1989. It is a satire on religion and rock and roll. History 1989_-_Melbourne_bad_boy_johnnie.jpg, 1989 Bad Boy Johnny and the Prophets of Doom Wr ...

'', a 1989 musical theatre project with Daniel Abineri, Nadine Garner and

Brian Mannix Brian Mannix (born 7 October 1961 in Melbourne) is an Australian rock music singer and actor. He is best known as the lead singer of 1980s band Uncanny X-Men. Career Early life Mannix won a 'beauty contest' in his childhood after being entered ...

; a

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

of the same name was released. Also that year she formed The Glee Club with former bandmates Imbroll and Norton, adding Mark Greig on guitar (ex-The Runners with Norton) and Grant Hamston on drums (The Runners). Other musical theatre appearances include: ''The Magic Show'', ''Sentimental Bloke'' and ''What's Goin' On''. By 1990, Stapleton and Norton were married, and Paul Norton Band was formed with Greig, Norton and Stapleton joined by Tim Millikan ( Chantoozies) on bass guitar 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 ...

(Little River Band) on drums to record, ''Under a Southern Sky'' and related singles. Yooralla, a disability support provider, recorded an advertising jingle, "Yooralla People Helping People Achieve" in use during 1993–2007, which featured lead vocals by

Venetta Fields Venetta Lee Fields (born 1941) is an American-born singer, musical theater actress and vocal coach. She was a backing vocalist for American and British rock and pop acts of the 1960s and 1970s, including Ike & Tina Turner, Pink Floyd, Humble Pi ...

and

John Paul Young John Inglis Young, OAM (born 21 June 1950), known professionally as John Paul Young, is a Scottish-born Australian pop singer who had his 1978 worldwide hit with " Love Is in the Air". His career was boosted by regular appearances as a perform ...

with backing vocals by Stapleton and others. In 1994, Greig, Millikan, Norton and Stapleton formed Hillbilly Moon with

Cletis Carr Cletis Carr (born August 4, 1959) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and record producer. Carr was a founder of the Pacific Northwest 1970s new wave music band Sneakers, before embarking on a solo career between forming other bands suc ...

(Big Whiskey) on vocals, guitar and bass guitar; and Peter Wells (

Rose Tattoo Rose Tattoo are an Australian rock and roll band, now led by Angry Anderson, which formed in Sydney in 1976. Their sound is hard rock mixed with blues rock influences, with songs including "Bad Boy for Love", "Rock 'n' Roll Outlaw", "Nice Bo ...

) on vocals, guitar and bass guitar.Spencer et al, (2007
HILLBILLY MOON
entry. Retrieved 17 January 2010. They released an album, ''Volume One'', on Pelican Records. Stapleton returned to musical theatre in May 1995 with the role of UK entertainer

Dusty Springfield Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien (16 April 1939 – 2 March 1999), known professionally as Dusty Springfield, was an English singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano sound, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, Pop music, p ...

in ''I Only Want to Be With You - The Dusty Springfield Story''. ''

Li'l Elvis Jones and the Truckstoppers ''Li'l Elvis and the Truckstoppers'' is an animated musical children's television series and the Australian Children's Television Foundation's (ACTF's) first joint venture under the Distinctly Australian Program introduced by the Australian Pr ...

'' (1997) was a 26-episode children's television cartoon show on

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

(ABC), with Stapleton supplying the singing voice for lead character, 'Li'l Elvis Jones' and voice for 'Mama Rig'. She released ''Li'l Elvis and the TruckStoppers'' soundtrack in 1998 on ABC Records with eleven tracks. She revived her role as Springfield with another season of ''I Only Want to Be With You'' from July 1997, and toured Australia, UK and Europe into early 1998. Stapleton and Norton sang the

theme Theme or themes may refer to: * Theme (arts), the unifying subject or idea of the type of visual work * Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos * Theme (computing), a custom graphical ...

for long running TV series, ''

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...

'' (1985–present) used during 1999–2001 seasons. In 2001, Stapleton,

Debra Byrne Debra Anne Byrne (born 30 March 1957), formerly billed as Debbie Byrne, is an Australian pop singer, variety entertainer, theatre and TV actress and writer, director and choreographer of cabaret. From April 1971 to March 1975 she was a founding ...

and

Lisa Edwards Lisa Anne Edwards (born 25 September 1958) is an Australian solo and session singer and musician. In July 1992 she had a top 5 hit on the ARIA Singles Chart with her cover version of Godley and Creme's "Cry". Edwards is primarily a backin ...

toured with ''Girls, Girls, Girls'' a tribute show of hits by

The Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successf ...

Cilla Black Priscilla Maria Veronica White (27 May 1943 – 1 August 2015), better known as Cilla Black, was an English singer, actress and television presenter. Championed by her friends the Beatles, Black began her career as a singer in 1963. Her ...

, Springfield,

Patsy Cline Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...

and

Lulu Lulu may refer to: Companies * LuLu, an early automobile manufacturer * Lulu.com, an online e-books and print self-publishing platform, distributor, and retailer * Lulu Hypermarket, a retail chain in Asia * Lululemon Athletica or simply Lulu, ...

. Note: Overview n-linehas limited preview available. After one month, Edwards returned to backing vocals for John Farnham on his The Last Time Tour; she was replaced by Nikki Nicholls, ''Girls, Girls, Girls'' continued touring into 2002. Stapleton's television roles include

Trixie Tucker The following is a list of characters that first appeared in the Network Ten soap opera ''Neighbours'' in 2003, by order of first appearance. Ric Pellizzeri took over the role of executive producer from Stanley Walsh, who left the show in Novembe ...

, the mother of

Nina Tucker Nina Tucker is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera ''Neighbours'', played by Delta Goodrem. She made her first screen appearance during the episode broadcast on 11 June 2002. Goodrem was approached by producers after they saw he ...

played by Delta Goodrem, on ''

'' during 2002 and 2003; other TV roles have been on ''

Blue Heelers ''Blue Heelers'' is an Australian Police procedural, police drama series that was produced by Endemol Australia, Southern Star Group and ran for 12 years on the Seven Network, from 1994 to 2006. Although based around the policing of the town, ...

'' (1996, 1999) and ''

Halifax f.p. ''Halifax f.p.'' is an Australian television crime series produced by Nine Network from 1994 to 2002. The series stars Rebecca Gibney as Doctor Jane Halifax, a forensic psychiatrist investigating cases involving the mental state of suspects or ...

'' (1996). Stapleton appeared on film in ''You Don't Have to Say You Love Me'', a

short Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...

by Terrence O'Connell. During June–August 2006, Norton and Stapleton performed in the ''

Countdown Spectacular The ''Countdown Spectacular'' is a series of concerts reviving the nostalgia of the Australian music television series ''Countdown''. Countdown Spectacular The first tour was staged from June to August 2006. It featured mainly Australian artists a ...

'' alongside other 1970s and 1980s acts. As from February 2008, Stapleton hosted ''Wrokdown'', a weekly TV interview show, on Channel 31.

Television, theatre and host roles

Stapleton's television roles include

, the mother of

played by Delta Goodrem, on ''

'' during 2002 and 2003. She reprised the role in 2016. Her musical theatre work includes her performance as United Kingdom singer,

in ''I Only Want to Be with You'' in 1995 and 1997–1998. As from February 2008, Stapleton hosted ''Wrokdown'', a weekly TV music interview show, on Channel 31.

Personal life

By 1990, Stapleton had married fellow Melbourne-based singer-songwriter, Paul Norton (previously Paul McNaughton), and they have a daughter, Alexandra, who performs under the name "Ally Mac". As from March 2008, Stapleton and Norton perform regularly at Hardimans Hotel in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

Discography

''Releases by Wendy & the Rocketts unless otherwise indicated.''

Albums

Singles

Awards and nominations

Countdown Australian Music 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 1974–1987, it presented music awards from 1979–1987, 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. , - , 1982 , herself , Most Popular Female Performer , , -

References

;General * ;Specific

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stapleton, Wendy 1954 births Living people Australian singer-songwriters Singers from Melbourne Australian women singer-songwriters