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Jan. 9th, 2012
True confession: I had a teenage crush on Olivia Newton John.
Which isn't very punk-rock, I know.
Then again, ONJ did kind of rock the boat in her own way. A country-crossover hit in the US, she annoyed country-music purists who hated her because she was a foreigner taking American country music awards away from American country music artists. Also, her music was once banned in Utah.
Respect.
Anyway, I grew up with her country-pop on the radio, but I didn't really become a fan until Grease. And of course one of the best things about that (and remember I was 13 when Grease came out) was ONJ transforming from Wholesome Sandy to Leather Sandy.
Even better was the fact that ONJ made the same transformation for real. Before Grease, Olivia Newton-John basically was the modern Sandra Dee. Afterwards, she was a babe with a sex drive.
Well, by 1978 standards, at least. She wasn’t exactly Dirrty or Toxic, but she was looking pretty hot on 45 sleeves.
I should know – I had “A Little More Love” on 45 and I stared at the sleeve an awful lot.
Which looks tame by today's standards, sure. But look, we didn't see a lot of girls in black leather in suburban Nashville in the late 70s. And between her new look and the song itself – which has a sultry late-night hook as Olivia ponders whether she’s giving her guy enough sweet lovin’ to keep him around (if you know what I mean) … well, that makes an impression on a 13-year-old boy.
Ironically, by the time "Physical" came out, I'd lost interest. Teen crushes are fleeting like that. Also, I didn't really like the song all that much. Or the video – partly because it made fun of fat people, and partly because exercise has never really interested me.
Unless we're talking about the 20 Minute Workout show. But that's different.
Totally hot,
This is dF
Which isn't very punk-rock, I know.
Then again, ONJ did kind of rock the boat in her own way. A country-crossover hit in the US, she annoyed country-music purists who hated her because she was a foreigner taking American country music awards away from American country music artists. Also, her music was once banned in Utah.
Respect.
Anyway, I grew up with her country-pop on the radio, but I didn't really become a fan until Grease. And of course one of the best things about that (and remember I was 13 when Grease came out) was ONJ transforming from Wholesome Sandy to Leather Sandy.
Even better was the fact that ONJ made the same transformation for real. Before Grease, Olivia Newton-John basically was the modern Sandra Dee. Afterwards, she was a babe with a sex drive.
Well, by 1978 standards, at least. She wasn’t exactly Dirrty or Toxic, but she was looking pretty hot on 45 sleeves.
I should know – I had “A Little More Love” on 45 and I stared at the sleeve an awful lot.
Which looks tame by today's standards, sure. But look, we didn't see a lot of girls in black leather in suburban Nashville in the late 70s. And between her new look and the song itself – which has a sultry late-night hook as Olivia ponders whether she’s giving her guy enough sweet lovin’ to keep him around (if you know what I mean) … well, that makes an impression on a 13-year-old boy.
Ironically, by the time "Physical" came out, I'd lost interest. Teen crushes are fleeting like that. Also, I didn't really like the song all that much. Or the video – partly because it made fun of fat people, and partly because exercise has never really interested me.
Unless we're talking about the 20 Minute Workout show. But that's different.
Totally hot,
This is dF
