Gary O'Connor, better known as Gary O', is a Canadian rock singer and songwriter.
at

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's Pop Music Encyclopedia. He is best known for the singles "Pay You Back with Interest" and "All the Young Heroes", which were popular in the early 1980s, and for receiving a

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

nomination for Most Promising Male Vocalist at the

Juno Awards of 1982 Juno commonly refers to: *Juno (mythology), the Roman goddess of marriage and queen of the gods * ''Juno'' (film), the 2007 film Juno may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional characters *Juno, a character in the book ''Juno of ...

. He wrote the

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song, "Back Where You Belong", which reached number 20 on the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), ...

charts in 1983.

Biography

The son of jazz musician Billy O'Connor, he was a member of the bands The Synics and The Spasstiks in the 1960s before the latter band changed its name to Cat in 1968. Cat had a popular Canadian hit in 1970 called "We're In This Together", but broke up by 1972 due to creative differences. O'Connor then performed with a

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

tribute band called Liverpool; the band soon released two singles of original material, garnering some radio airplay with "Dolly". Following a name change to Aerial, they released the album ''In the Middle of the Night'' in 1978. O'Connor wrote the single "Easy Love", which reached #92 on the Canadian charts. O'Connor left Aerial after their first album. He subsequently formed the short-lived band Kid Rainbow and became a member of the board of directors of the Toronto Musicians Association. After folding the band, O'Connor adopted the stage name Gary O' and continued as a solo artist. His self-titled debut album was released in 1981 on Capitol Records. The remake of

The Hollies The Hollies are an English rock and pop band formed in Manchester 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. Singer Allan Clarke and ...

' song "Pay You Back With Interest" reached the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Charts, where it peaked at # 70. Also, the singles "I Believe in You" and "All the Young Heroes" would receive a great deal of airplay on both sides of the border. In 1984, he released his follow-up album ''Strange Behavior''."Pop: Strange Behavior, Gary O'". ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'', September 6, 1984. The first single "Shades of '45", a song about the

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bombing the Japanese, became a popular hit in Canada, and the follow-up "Get it While You Can" also became a modest hit. O'Connor has also had some success in writing songs for other artists, including

Terri Crawford Terri Crawford, formerly billed as Terry Crawford, is a Canadian musician, most noted as a two-time Juno Award nominee for Most Promising Female Vocalist at the Juno Awards of 1982 and the Juno Awards of 1983. Background Originally from Montrea ...

("Back Where You Belong", "One Time For Old Times"),

Molly Hatchet Molly Hatchet is an American rock band formed by guitarist Dave Hlubek in Jacksonville, Florida in 1971. They experienced popularity and commercial success during the late 1970s and early to mid-1980s amongst southern rock and hard rock commun ...

("What's It Gonna Take"),

Eddie Money Edward Joseph Money ( Mahoney; March 21, 1949September 13, 2019) was an American singer and songwriter who, in the 1970s and 1980s, had eleven Top 40 songs, including " Baby Hold On", " Two Tickets to Paradise", " Think I'm in Love", " Shakin' ...

("Maybe Tomorrow"),

Kim Stockwood Kim Stockwood (born 11 November 1965) is a Canadian pop musician, singer and composer originally from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. She has recorded as a solo artist and also as a member of Atlanti ...

Billy Newton-Davis Billy Newton-Davis (born April 26, 1951) is an American-Canadian R&B, jazz and gospel singer and songwriter. Life and career Newton-Davis grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland. He was one of two lead singers in a local soul ba ...

and

Beverley Mahood Beverley Mahood (born 2 November 1974) is an Irish born Canadian country music singer-songwriter and television host based in Ontario, Canada. Mahood emigrated from Belfast to Canada as a child. She is also formerly part of the all-female trio ...

Discography

Aerial

* 1978 - ''In the Middle of the Night'' * 1980 - ''Maneuvres''

Gary O'

* 1981 - ''Gary O * 1984 - ''Strange Behavior''

References

External links

Article at canadianbands.com
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gary O Canadian rock singers Canadian male singers Canadian male songwriters Canadian people of Irish descent Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people)