London Records Press Release Fall 1973

ARTIST INFORMATION:
GILBERT O'SULLIVAN

Cutting right through musical and age boundaries, Gilbert O'Sullivan leaped to the forefront of the singer-songwriter competition in less than a year and a half. Although his very first tour of the states has just been set for this fall, he's already topped the national charts three times, generated innumerable cover versions of his songs, and captivated a huge cross-section of the music listening and buying public -- all in a short period of time with a bare minimum of personal exposure.

Gilbert initially popped into prominence in England and the Continent with a series of #l hits going back almost three year, starting with his first Gordon Mills-produced single "Nothing Rhymed." And, almost predicting what would happen in the U.S., Gilbert's success in Europe was utterly amazing even be-fore he toured. The now 26-year-old singer-songwriter frequently more than doubled the amount of record s-ales needed for a Gold Single, or Album throughout Europe. In Holland, in fact, he was named the biggest record seller in the country’s history.

With all this success, you would have thought you'd find Gilbert out pounding the concert trail, extending, his influence and popularity. But, to the contrary, the young, somewhat shy recording artist told interviewers, "I'm essentially a songwriter who happens to record his own work -- not a pop star." Then last fall Gilbert finally relented and embarked on-his first-ever concert tour, and the results were staggering. Tickets sold out within hours of going on sale and Manager-Producer Gordon Mills was forced to promise an identical follow up tour to satisfy the furor of the thousands of fans who missed the first go-round.

Then the U.S. caught on and all hell cut loose. "Alone Again (Naturally)" topped the national charts for six weeks on its way to being a 3--million seller. "Clair,” a song about manager Hills' daughter, quickly followed its predecessor up the charts, and "Out Of The Question" and "Get Down;” were not long behind. In fact, "Get Down” just may windup as Gilbert's biggest hit ever. Again, all this has been accomplished solely on the music's merit, as there has been little personal public exposure-- more concisely only a handful of interviews and TV appearances.

But, as you must be well aware of, Gilbert is to invade the states this fall. Once he hits the U.S., there's no telling how big-he'll become. For Gilbert to get any bigger, you may surmise, might be difficult, considering he's already walked away with the top selling single of 1972 -- "Alone Again (Naturally)" and the Songwriter of the Year title from the British Songwriters Guild -the Ivor Novello Award -- to go along with his other huge selling single hits and two high chart riding albums, Himself and Back To Front. Yet, Gilbert's an exceptionally captivating performer who can cut down the distance between him and any size audience within moments, and he's sure to elevate his star to an even greater magnitude with the upcoming debut tour of the U.S.

Born in 1946 the son of a Waterford, Ireland butcher, Gilbert (real name Raymond O'Sullivan) developed a love of music after his family moved to England while he was still a schoolboy it was then during the early Beatle era, when Gilbert was going to Art College, that he began to write songs. At the time, however" it seemed no one in the music business was able to recognize the genius of Gilbert's strange, quite complex songs, and it was only thru a home-made tape sent to Gordon Hills that the young singer songwriter got a fair listening. Hills opened the package on a wet Sunday afternoon and played the tape again and again, absolutely fascinated by O'Sullivan's way with a lyric and his catchy little melodies. Mills and O'Sullivan thereafter worked together for a year before it was decided to release "Nothing Rhymed", and Gilbert began his rise to stardom.

The adulation that followed his debut recording has, not too surprisingly, failed to change Gilbert one bit. He's still basically a private person, sticking fairly closely to his Weybridge, England, cottage and his music. He's still about the only contemporary writer listening to and loving Cole Porter and Rodgers and Hart, and he's still producing-gems that garner critical and popular acclaim while generating a massive amount of cover versions. For that matter, don't be too astonished if Gilbert is recognized as Cole Porter/Rodgers and Hart of the Seventies. He's just that good and growing daily.

Andy McKaie

For further information contact Ray Caviano
London Records, Inc., 539 West 25th Street, New York. N.Y. 10001 (212) 675-6060