Air Supply

Air Supply are a soft rock duo formed in Melbourne, Australia, in 1975, consisting of singer-songwriter and guitarist Graham Russell and Australian singer Russell Hitchcock.With record sales of 100 million worldwide, they had a succession of hits worldwide, including eight top-five hits on the US Billboard Hot 100, "Lost in Love" (1979), "All Out of Love", "Every Woman in the World" (both 1980), "The One That You Love", "Here I Am" (both 1981), "Sweet Dreams", "Even the Nights Are Better" (both 1982) and "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" (1983). In Australia, they had four top ten placements with "Love and Other Bruises" (1976), "All Out of Love", "Every Woman in the World" and "The One That You Love". Their highest charting studio album, The One That You Love (1981) reached number ten in both Australia and the US. The group, which relocated to Los Angeles in the late 1970s, has included many members, with Hitchcock and Russell at the core.The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) inducted Air Supply into their Hall of Fame on 1 December 2013, at the annual ARIA Awards.Air Supply's founding members met on 12 May 1975, while rehearsing for the Australian production of the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. Chrissie Hammond portrayed Mary Magdalene, while Russell Hitchcock and Graham Russell were in the chorus. With the show they toured Australia and New Zealand for 18 months. In 1958, as a three-year-old, English-born Hammond had migrated to Melbourne with her family, including older sister Lyndsay Hammond, who also became a rock singer. Russell, also English-born, had been a percussionist in United Kingdom group, Union Blues, in 1965. After arriving in Australia in 1968, Russell performed solo and was later, in 1973, a member of Eli Flash with Hammond, her sister Lyndsay, Brenton White and Sam McNally later of Stylus. “Love and Other Bruises” was originally demoed by Russell, Lyndsay Hammond and Brenton White in 1974. Hitchcock left school in 1965 to work as a salesman, also joining a group, 19th Generation, on drums and vocals.With Hammond and Hitchcock on vocals and Russell on guitar, they formed Air Supply as a harmony vocal group in Melbourne in 1975. When the show's run finished in late 1976, Hammond departed to form a hard rock group, Cheetah, with her sister. Hammond was replaced in the group by Jeremy Paul (ex-Soffrok) who provided bass guitar and backing vocals. Paul had joined the cast of Jesus Christ Superstar when it reached Brisbane and continued with the show to New Zealand. According to Paul, the group's name was "indicative of the sound and feeling forming the relationships within the band". The group's first single, "Love and Other Bruises", was released in October 1976 and peaked at No. 6 on the Australian Kent Music Report singles chart. Russell recalled that they had been unable to promote "Love and Other Bruises" while still performing in Jesus Christ Superstar, due to contractual obligations to the show. It was first aired on weekly teen pop music TV show, Countdown in early December 1976. It remains their highest charting single in Australia.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.