Olivia Newton-John
Watch Sleater-Kinney, Courtney Barnett and Fred Armisen Cover Olivia Newton-John’s ‘Physical’
Following the recent death of Grease and music star Olivia Newton-John, Sleater-Kinney and comedian Fred Armisen joined Courtney Barnett on stage Sunday (Aug. 21) for a cover of the icon’s 1981 hit single “Physical.” Sleater-Kinney’s Corin Tucker, Armisen and Barnett donned ’80s neon headbands during the performance at Marymoor Park in Redmond, Wash. Funny guy Armisen did some jumping jacks and jogging-in-place while backing-up Tucker’s vocals. [embedded content][embedded content] Newton-John died on Aug. 8 following a decades-long battle with breast cancer. Numerous artists have covered her songs in the days since, including Coldplay and The Chicks, the latter of whom tackled “Hopelessly Devoted to You.” Barnett is currently on the road with her multi-artist touring fe...
AMC Theatres to Honor Olivia Newton-John by Showing Grease, Donating Money to Breast Cancer Research
It’s got groove, it’s got meaning, and it’s returning to the big screen: This weekend, Grease will play in 135 AMC Theatres locations in honor of the late Olivia Newton-John, with part of the proceeds going to breast cancer research. All tickets to the Grease showings cost $5, and $1 from each sale will be donated through AMC’s charitable fund AMC Cares. Newton-John — who famously played Sandy opposite John Travolta’s Danny in the 1978 classic, passed away on August 8th after a decades-long battle with the disease. Among the many tributes shared at the time of her death was an especially heartwarming post from Travolta, who shared, “My dearest Olivia, you made all of our lives so much better. Your impact was incredible. I love you so much. We will see you down the road and we wil...
Watch The Chicks Cover Olivia Newton-John’s ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You’
The Chicks had a surprise in store for Olivia Newton-John fans at the last stop of their summer tour last night at the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, WA. About midway through their set, the country trio covered the late actress and singer’s Grease classic “Hopelessly Devoted to You.” “We lost a worldwide sweetheart last week, Olivia Newton-John,” The Chicks’ Natalie Maines said to the crowd before adding, “I thought I was Olivia Newton-John from like four until 12. And then I just wished I was Olivia Newton-John. So we worked up today at soundcheck a little Olivia Newton-John song.” Watch fan-shot footage of the cover below. [embedded content][embedded content] Newton-John died on Aug. 8 after a long battle with breast cancer. Her husband John Easterling confirmed that she passed ...
Olivia Newton-John’s Top 20 Biggest Billboard Hits
Pop icon Olivia Newton-John — who died at the age of 73 on Monday (Aug. 8) — logged an incredible catalog of hits on Billboard’s charts. She claimed nearly 40 entries on the Billboard Hot 100 — including five No. 1s. Newton-John’s all-time biggest hit on the Hot 100 is “Physical,” which spent a whopping 10 weeks at No. 1 on the tally in late 1981 and early 1982. It’s not only her biggest hit, but also the No. 1 hit of the entire 1980s decade — it tops Billboard‘s Greatest of All Time Songs of the ’80s chart — and scored the most weeks atop the weekly Hot 100 of any song that decade. The four-time Grammy Award winner made her Hot 100 debut with “If Not for You” in 1971 and was last on the list in 2010, when the Glee Cast took its c...
Olivia Newton-John, ‘Grease’ Star and ‘Physical’ Singer, Dies at 73
Veteran entertainer Olivia Newton-John died this morning (Aug. 8) at 73, following a long battle with breast cancer. A Facebook statement from her husband, John Easterling, added that John passed away surrounded by family and friends at her ranch in southern California. First diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992, John beat the disease on a number of occasions and funneled her energies into the Olivia Newton-John Foundation, an independent charity sponsoring global research into plant medicine for cancer. John is best known for her starring role opposite John Travolta in the 1978 film Grease and her worldwide smash hit single from 1981, “Physical.” She was made a dame by Queen Elizabeth in 2019 for “services to charity, cancer research and entertainment.” The artist was born Sept. 26, 1948,...
