Olivia Newton-John has never been more mellow
Her buoyant voice lets out a short laugh, revealing the Australian accent that first charmed the world nearly a half-century ago.
Olivia Newton-John at 68 still sounds like the blonde, blue-eyed singer in her early 20s when she hit the U.S. musical landscape with hits including Bob Dylan's "If Not For You" and the country-pop crossover "Let Me Be There."
The singer, actress and social activist performs Saturday night at Seminole Casino Immokalee.
“I’ve been doing this 50 years," Newton-John said in a recent telephone interview. "It’s taken a long time. I'm very grateful that I’m still singing and I feel very lucky that I’ve had great music in my career that lasted.”
Her career began at a young age. Born in Cambridge, England, Newton-John's family immigrated to Australia when she was 6. She sang in her first group by age 14, and appeared on Australian television shows. By 1971, she recorded the Dylan standard "If Not For You" that did well, but wasn't as big as "Let Me Be There" in 1973.
That song proved a crossover hit, reaching the American Top 10 for both pop and country. She also won a Grammy as Best Country Female. Newton-John said success with a country-pop hit only helped her career.
“I wasn’t worried about labels," she said. "Back then, it was music and I'm happy performing music.”
More hits followed, including "If You Love Me, Let Me Know" and "I Honestly Love You," which became her first No. 1 and earned her two Grammys, including Record of the Year in 1974. Those songs, along with "Have You Never Been Mellow" and "Please Mr. Please" continued to propel her success in pop and country.
Success at a young age didn't faze her, she said, as she'd been in the limelight since her early teen years.
“You don’t go into this business if you''re not going to be prepared for that," she said. “I’ve always taken it in my stride and being blessed with it all. It wasn’t overnight. I had some experience in singing and traveling around the world so that’s important.”
Her rising star glowed brightest in 1978, when she co-starred opposite John Travolta in the big-screen version of the Broadway musical "Grease." Newton-John's character, Sandy, teams up with John Travolta's character, Danny, in one of the movie's big hits, "You're The One That I Want."
When filming began for "Grease" in 1977, Newton-John was 29.
“It was wonderful,” she said of her "Grease" experience.
Newton-John recalled a young Travolta still co-starring in the hit TV show "Welcome Back Kotter" as the character Vinnie Barbarino. Travolta was 23 when he was filming "Grease."
She recalled thinking, at the end of "Grease," that Travolta was at the start of a successful acting career.
“You just knew what would happen to him there because he was was so amazing in ('Grease')," she said.
A few other hits followed for Newton-John, including "Physical" in 1981.
Newton-John cited her musical influences as Dionne Warwick, Joan Baez and Nina Simone, noting: "I was very conscious of not being influenced," meaning she wanted to develop her own style as a songstress.
In later years, Newton-John survived breast cancer in 1992 and became an advocate in helping fight the disease. She also became an activist for other causes, including animal rights and environmental issues.
She founded the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness and Research Centre in Victoria, Australia.
When asked if she has any regrets, Newton-John fired up her lighthearted laugh.
“Regrets are a waste of time," she said. "You can’t change the past, you can only learn from it.”
She said it's not a regret, but one thing she would've love to have done was tour with Frank Sinatra. She said she was asked to join Old Blue Eyes but she declined because she had just given birth to her daughter.
"I would've loved too have had that experience,” she said.
Newton-John said her proudest moment and greatest honor was performing at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
Her latest tour has been gratifying too, she said, performing for many fans who have followed her career for so many years.
"They've been seeing me since I was young," she said. "I’m very lucky that way, that I’m still going.”
If you go
Olivia Newton-John
Where: Seminole Casino Immokalee, 506 S. 1st Street, Immokalee
When: 8 p.m. Saturday
Cost: $39 general admission (excludes fees)
Information: seminoleimmokaleecasino.com