1. Yvonne Marianne Elliman was born on December 29,1951 and is an American singer, songwriter, and actress who performed for four years in the first cast of the stage musical Jesus Christ Superstar.
16 Facts About Yvonne Elliman
1. 2.
Yvonne Elliman scored a number of hits in the 1970s and achieved a US No 1 hit with "If I Can't Have You".
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Yvonne Elliman's cover of Barbara Lewis's "Hello Stranger" went to No 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and "Love Me" was No 5; at the time she had 3 top 10 singles.
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Yvonne Elliman's mother was of Japanese and Chinese ancestries and her father, a salesman for Best Foods, was of Irish descent.
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Yvonne Elliman showed interest in music from an early age, playing the ukulele by age four and taking piano lessons at age seven.
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Yvonne Elliman encouraged 17-year-old Elliman to relocate to London and pursue a musical career, which she did shortly after graduating.
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Yvonne Elliman's singing career began in 1969 in London, performing in bars and clubs.
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Yvonne Elliman had her first Billboard Hot 100 hit single in 1971 with the ballad "I Don't Know How to Love Him" from Jesus Christ Superstar.
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In 1971, aged 19, Yvonne Elliman moved to New York City for the Broadway production of Jesus Christ, Superstar, where she met her first husband, Bill Oakes, who was president of Robert Stigwood's RSO Records.
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Yvonne Elliman was asked to sing backing vocals on Eric Clapton's version of the Bob Marley song "I Shot the Sheriff" in 1974.
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Yvonne Elliman then went on tour as part of Clapton's band, and soon afterwards got her own recording contract with RSO Records.
12.
Yvonne Elliman appeared in Hawaii Five-O in a two-part episode as an aspiring singer, performing the song "I Can't Get You Outa My Mind" with fellow guest performer James Darren.
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In 2004, Yvonne Elliman released the album Simple Needs, for which she wrote all the songs.
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Yvonne Elliman has continued performing at music festivals, benefits, and concerts.
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Yvonne Elliman is featured on the 2014 Neeley EP Rock Opera performing a duet with him on "Up Where We Belong".
16.
Yvonne Elliman was married to RSO Records executive Bill Oakes from 1972 to 1980.