Evie (song)

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"Evie"
Single by Stevie Wright
from the album Hard Road
A-side"Evie" (part 1)
B-side"Evie" (part 2 and 3)
Released1974
Recorded1973
GenreHard rock, blues rock (part 1), soft rock (part 2), rock (part 3)
Length11:11
LabelAlbert
Songwriter(s)Harry Vanda, George Young
Producer(s)Harry Vanda, George Young

"Evie" is a rock song performed by Australian singer and former frontman of the Easybeats, Stevie Wright. It was written by Harry Vanda and George Young and released as a single in 1974. It has been suggested that it is the first 11-minute song to chart at #1 anywhere in the world.[1]

The song features three parts—Part 1, "Let your hair hang down"; Part 2, "Evie"; and Part 3, "I'm losing you"[2]—and some critics consider it as one of the most perfect rock n' roll songs ever.[3]

Part One (when they meet) is a guitar driven, hard rocking and bluesy, swaggering and swayful song. Part Two (the marriage) is more piano and string based, a much softer emotional ballad style. Part Three (the death of Evie in childbirth) is more of a disco-rock style, being quicker, relatively urgent and guitar driven track with a strong vocal.

In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the 'most Australian' songs of all time, "Evie" was ranked number 17.[4]

Background[]

In 1973, Vanda & Young returned to Australia from the UK. Stevie Wright had found life difficult since the Easybeats disbanded and had developed a heroin addiction.[5]

"Stevie was still a great performer, still a great singer," George Young says. "So Harry and I got to work to see if we could come up with something that could put him back in the charts."[6]

Vanda and Young signed Stevie Wright and began working on the Hard Road album together.[7]

The song features Malcolm Young of AC/DC on guitar. Young plays the guitar solo in Part One, while the solo in Part Three is played by Harry Vanda.[1]

Charts[]

Year-end charts[]

Chart (1974) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[8] 3

Reception[]

The song was released in April 1974. The single version was divided across the A and B sides and went on it peaked nationally during July.[7] It remained in the charts for 26 weeks, the biggest Australian single of the year and the only pop song over six minutes to reach No 1.[6]

Famous performances[]

In June 1974, Stevie Wright performed the song at Sydney Opera House in front of 2,500 people, with over 10,000 having been turned away.[6] For this performance Wright's band included Harry Vanda, George Young and Malcolm Young. This was the first time that Stevie, George and Harry had appeared together post-Easybeats.[7]

On 4 November 1979, Wright took part in the "Concert of the Decade". He performed the song on the steps of the Opera House in front of 100,000 people.[5]

Wright also performed the song during the 2002 Long Way to the Top tour.

Cover versions[]

Suzi Quatro recorded a cover version of the song that appeared on the European version of her album If You Knew Suzi... in 1978.

Australian supergroup the Wrights recorded a cover version of the song and released it as a single on 28 February 2005.[9] It debuted at its peak of number two on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart in March 2005 and spent 14 weeks in the top 50.[10] It was certified gold by the ARIA and was Australia's 47th-most-successful song of 2005.[11]

Pat Travers Band recorded a shortened version for their 1978 album, "Heat in the Street".

Personnel[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Tait, John (2010). Vanda & Young. University of New South Wales Press. p. 144. ISBN 978-1-74223-217-1.
  2. ^ Evie [music] / Harry Vanda & George Young. National Library of Australia Catalogue. J. Albert & Son. 1974. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  3. ^ "MILESAGO - Groups & Solo Artists - Stevie Wright". Milesago.com. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
  4. ^ "Here Are The Songs That Made Triple M's 'Ozzest 100'". Musicfeeds. 27 January 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "Australian Story - So Much To Say - Transcript". Abc.net.au. 2013-02-18. Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Stevie was still a great performer, still a great singer," Young says. "So Harry and I got to work to see if we could come up with something that could put him back in the charts."
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b c "It's All About The Song ..."Evie" | News | Alberts". Albertmusic.com. 2013-02-01. Retrieved 2016-10-09.
  8. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 426. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. ^ "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 28th February 2005" (PDF). ARIA. 28 February 2005. p. 28. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 February 2008. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  10. ^ "Australian-charts.com – The Wrights – Evie". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  11. ^ "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2005". ARIA. Retrieved 16 April 2021.


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