Olivia Newton-John

Olivia Newton-John's wholesome image, airy soprano, and artistic range formed the basis for a decades-long career. After some youthful TV appearances in her native Australia and moderately successful pop singles in the U.K. in the 1960s, she crossed over into country music and had her first U.S. chart success. In an unexpected career move she then appeared in the 1978 movie version of the musical GREASE, which resulted in mega-stardom. Newton-John followed this with the pivotal 1981 disco-pop album PHYSICAL, which ushered in the age of spandex. Her music career took a back seat in the '90s as she focussed on her clothing business and successfully battled with cancer, she has since re-emerged into the public eye as a spokeswoman for breast cancer awareness, and occasionally records and performs to adoring audiences.

• pop
• australian
• 1970s
• 1980s
• 2000s