The Lucky Australian Lass Who Got A Helping Hand From DAVY JONES!
HI! My name is Lynne Randell, and I guess I’m just about one of the luckiest girls in the whole world. You see, I am only 17, I’ve had a hit record back in my homeland (Australia), I’ve just signed an American recording contract with Epic Records, and on my very first trip to the States I met Davy Jones and Gloria Stavers, the editor of 16 Magazine! Here’s how it all happened:
After making several recordings in Melbourne, I finally clicked with a hit that went all the way to number one on the Australian charts. Well, I guess somebody at Epic Records heard it and liked it, because I was offered a recording contract with that label.
For me, coming to America was like having a dream come true. I guess every singer, no matter what country he or she is from, longs to come to America and cut records. Anyway, that’s exactly what I did—and the first night I was in the States, the most fantastic thing of all happened to me.
One of the Epic people had arranged to take me and my manager, Carol West, to see Dusty Springfield at New York’s famous Basin Street East night club. After we sat down, I looked around—and guess who I saw sitting a table away? My favorite Monkee—Davy Jones! For a long time I sat there trying not to stare at Davy—who, incidentally, is even better looking in person than he is on the TV show. Before the evening was over, one of the recording people introduced everybody at our table to everybody at Davy’s table, and as we were the two youngest people in the group it was only natural that Davy and I started chatting with each other.
First off, let me tell you this: there is no nicer, friendlier or more down-to-earth person in the whole world than Davy Jones. For instance, he asked me about myself and when he found that I had just come to America to cut records and that I knew no one, he set about trying to help me. “I will introduce you to Gloria Stavers of 16 Magazine,” Davy told me, “and I am sure she can help you. I will also introduce you to Don Kirschner [sic], President of Screen Gems. I’m sure he will have some songs for you”.
Davy talked on for a quite a while (I could hardly believe my ears) and he did every single thing he said he was going to do in spite of the fact that he and David Pearl were only in New York for the weekend and they had a thousand important things to do! I would like to add that everywhere Davy goes, young people spot him—and no matter how big a hurry he is in, or what is on his mind, he stops everything to spend time listening to, talking with and autographing pictures for his fans.
Before I left New York—because of meeting Davy—I met many other wonderful and helpful Americans. I met the Rascals, Paul Simon, hit songwriters Barry and Cynthia Mann, folksinger-composer Phil Ochs, Mr. Kirschner [sic], Miss Stavers and (surprise!) Mark Lindsay, who happened to be in New York doing a special photo layout for 16 Magazine. I also recorded my first bands for Epic Records—Patty Cake, Stranger In My Arms, I Need You Boy and Ciao Baby. At this moment, I don’t know which will be released as a single record, but I hope it will be Ciao Baby. And I hope you dig it—so that I can give you wonderful Americans something in return for all you have done for me, become your friend, and maybe even come and live here for a while one day.
Lynne with Davy at 16’s New York offices.
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Lynne Randell, 17, was born in Liverpool, England, but her family moved to Melbourne, Australia, when she was four. Lynne has had four top-ten and one number-one hit records, and she was recently voted Australia’s Most Popular Girl Singer. She is 5'3" tall, has blonde hair and blue-green eyes. You can write to Lynne at: Epic Records, 51 West 52nd Street, New York, N.Y
