Col Joye: Difference between revisions

Colin Frederick Jacobsen AM (born 13 April 1937), better known by his stage name Col Joye, is an Australian pioneer rock singer-songwriter, musician and entrepreneur with a career spanning almost sixty-seven years, starting from the late 50s. Joye was the first Australian rock and roll singer to have a number one record Australia-wide, and experienced a string of chart successes in the early Australian rock and roll scene, performing with his then band the Joy Boys (formerly KJ Quintet).

Colin Jacobsen was born in Sydney, New South Wales,^[1] on 13 April 1937.^[2] Graduating school, prior to stardom, he worked as a jewellery salesman.^[3]

Jacobson started performing and recording in the late 1950s with his backing band, originally called the KJ Quintet, the predecessor of what would become the Joy Boys,^[3] which included his brothers Kevin and Keith.^[4]

As Col Joye he enjoyed a string of hits on the local and national singles charts of Australia beginning in 1959. Joye's first single, "Stagger Lee" was a cover of the Lloyd Price US original. However, his third single "Bye Bye Baby" (written by American Frank McNulty^[5]) reached No.3 on the Australian Kent Music Report charts in 1959, followed by "Rockin Rollin Clementine" also peaking at No. 3.^[4] His fifth single, "Oh Yeah Uh Huh",^[1] became his most successful, peaking at No. 1. He also had other charting singles, including "Yes Sir That's My Baby" peaking at No. 5 nationally.

Backing vocals on "Bye Bye Baby" were by male trio The Sapphires.^[6] The Sapphires were Duke Finlay, Tony Garrick and Ned Hussey,^[7] initially starting as a Sydney vocal trio in 1957, Barry Carroll was added in 1960 to round out their sound (much like the Deltones ) and they were used as backing group for many Australian artists on studio recordings in the early 1960s. They also appeared in Lee Gordon concert shows, and wrote some songs.^[8][9][a]

In mid-October 1959, Joye and The Joy Boys, performed in shows titled Lee Gordon's 1959 Rock'n'Roll Spectacular. The concerts at the Sydney Stadium were edited into a film called Rock 'n' Roll which premiered on 30 October. Four of the five songs performed by Joye were included on the album Songs That Rocked the Stadium, released December 1959.^[10] The film, thought lost but rediscovered in 2020, includes rare footage of a 1950s rock and roll concert in Australia.^[11][12]

Joye was an original member of the television program Bandstand, and appeared regularly on the show over a fourteen year period. He toured Australia with fellow acts that where featured on the program, including Judy Stone, the De Kroo Brothers, Sandy Scott and Little Pattie. Joye and the band also entertained troops in Vietnam and Borneo and recorded several songs in Japan in the mid-1960s.^[13][14]

Joye's popularity levelled off after the changes to the music scene associated with the rise of surf music and the British Invasion, and it was not until 1973 that he had another hit record, with the country music song "Heaven Is My Woman's Love", reaching No. 1 on the Go-Set charts that year.^[2][4]

During the period between personal musical successes in the late 50s and early 1960s, Col and Kevin Jacobsen built an influential entertainment management, publishing and recording business, including ATA Studios in Glebe, New South Wales. This business worked with developing and promoting artists including the Bee Gees, and their brother Andy Gibb.^[1] Their promotions company, Jacobsen Entertainment, continued into the 2000s, with the brothers remaining as principal directors.^[15]

In 1990, while pruning a neighbour's tree with a chainsaw as a favour, Joye slipped and fell six metres onto brick paving below, striking his head and falling into a coma, as well as sustaining serious lower back and shoulder injuries. Initially given a poor prognosis, he eventually recovered to start performing and touring again in 1998.^[16]

On 8 June 1981, he was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia for his entertainment and philanthropic work.^[17] In 1988, the ARIA Music Awards in 1988, inducted Joye into the ARIA Hall of Fame.

In 1974, Joye won a CMAA award for "Top Selling Album of the Year".^[18]

Joye won two Mo Awards.^[19]

In 1998, Australia Post issued a special-edition set of twelve stamps celebrating the early years of Australian rock and roll, featuring Australian hit songs from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. One of the stamps commemorated Joye, based on the song "Oh Yeah Uh Huh". Australia Post wrote that "Each of them said something about us, and told the rest of the world this is what popular culture sounds like, and it has an Australian accent".^[20]

In 2010, "Bye Bye Baby" (1959) was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia register.^[6][21] The curator's notes commented that:

There is not a lot to this pop song, written by American Frank McNulty, other than a catchy title hook. The lyrics are about the singer saying goodbye to his girlfriend and how lonely he will be without her until the next time they meet. The original recording was made using a nylon string guitar, bass (wonderfully out of tune in the beginning) and minimalist drums with Col Joye almost whispering the vocals (as he had a cold at the time). This is the released version, with added celeste and 'ooh-ahh' backing vocals from the Sapphires, presumably to give it a little more musical interest.^[5]