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Johnny O'Keefe

John Michael O'Keefe (19 January 1935 – 6 October 1978) was an Australian rock and roll singer whose career began in the early 1950s. A pioneer of Rock music in Australia, his hits include "Wild One" (1958), "Shout!" and "She's My Baby". In his twenty-year career, O'Keefe released over fifty singles, 50 EPs and 100 albums. O'Keefe was also a radio and television entertainer and presenter.

Often referred to by his initials "J.O.K." or by his nickname "The Wild One", O'Keefe was the first Australian rock n' roll performer to tour the United States, and the first Australian artist to make the local Top 40 charts. He had twenty-nine Top 40 hits in Australia between 1958 and 1973.

O'Keefe was the younger brother of Australian jurist Barry O'Keefe (a former head of the New South Wales ICAC). His father, Alderman Ray O'Keefe, was Mayor of Waverley Council in the early 1960s. Through Barry, O'Keefe was the uncle of Australian television personality Andrew O'Keefe.

O'Keefe died in 1978 from a drug overdose.

Birth and Death Data: Born January 19, 1935 (Bondi Junction), Died October 6, 1978 (St Vincent's Hospital)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1958

Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, piano

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Decca 104779 4/17/1958 Shake baby shake Johnny O'Keefe vocalist, instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 104780 4/17/1958 Real wild child Johnny O'Keefe vocalist, instrumentalist, piano  

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "O'Keefe, Johnny," accessed April 29, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/108004.

O'Keefe, Johnny. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved April 29, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/108004.

"O'Keefe, Johnny." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 29 April 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/108004

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