Reddy became one of the world's most successful female singers of the 1970s music scene, scoring many certified gold hit records, including three #1 singles and fifteen Top 40 pop singles on Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and has sold more than 15 million albums and 10 million singles domestically and 25 million albums worldwide.
She also became the first Australian to have a #1 single in the United States, win a Grammy Award, and host her own variety show on United States television. Born and raised in Australia, Reddy became a naturalized United States citizen in 1974. In 2002, she retired from performing concerts and recording and now resides in Sydney, Australia and was inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame in 2006.
Early years
Reddy was born into a well-known Australian show business family in Melbourne, Victoria. Her mother, Stella (née Lamond), was an actress, and her father, Max Reddy, was a writer, producer, and actor.
Her parents performed on the Australian vaudeville circuit. Reddy began performing on stage with her parents at just four years of age. In her late teens, after being briefly married to an older musician, she had a daughter, Traci. In 1968, Helen married longtime friend and soon-to-be producer and manager Jeffrey Wald and in 1974 her then-preteen daughter would record the bookend sequences for another of her mother's top-10 hits titled "You and Me Against the World." The Love Song for Jeffrey album, on which the song appeared, was dedicated to her then-husband, with whom she had a son, Jordan. They divorced in 1983.
After beginning her career in radio and television in Australia, she won a talent contest on the Australian pop music TV show Bandstand, which enabled her to move to the United States in 1966. Settling initially in New York, she met Jeff Wald, then an agent with the William Morris Agency; after living together for only four days, she and Wald married; he subsequently became her manager.
After a stint in Chicago, the family moved to Los Angeles, California, where Reddy tried to establish herself as a recording artist. Twenty-seven labels rejected her before she was finally signed to a contract with Capitol Records in 1970.
After years of trying to get her name out, Helen Reddy's first Top 40 U.S. hit (1971) was a cover of "I Don't Know How To Love Him" (from the first Rice & Webber collaboration Jesus Christ Superstar rock opera). After it reached #13 in mid-1971, the music industry and record buying public began to take notice.
In 1972, Reddy co-wrote, with Australian musician Ray Burton, the song "I Am Woman," which became a worldwide feminist anthem, worldwide hit, and her first U.S #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Reddy has attributed the impetus for writing "I Am Woman" and her early awareness of the women's movement to expatriate Australian rock critic and pioneer feminist Lillian Roxon. Reddy is quoted in Fred Bronson's The Billboard Book of Number One Hits as saying that she was looking for songs to record which reflected the positive self-image she had gained from joining the women's movement, but couldn't find any, so "I realized that the song I was looking for didn't exist, and I was going to have to write it myself." The single actually barely dented the charts on its initial release in the summer of 1972, but it wasn't long before female listeners adopted the song as an anthem and began requesting it from their local radio stations in droves, spurring it on to re-enter the charts in September and become a hit. "I Am Woman" earned a Grammy Award for Female Pop Vocal Performance and at the awards ceremony she concluded her acceptance speech by famously thanking God "because She makes everything possible".
Over the next five years, she had more than a dozen other U.S. Top 40 hits including two more #1 hits. These included the Alex Harvey country ballad "Delta Dawn" (#1, 1973), "Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress)" (#3), "Keep on Singing" (#15, 1974), "You and Me Against the World" (written by Paul Williams and featuring daughter Traci reciting the spoken bookends) (#9), "Emotion" (an English version of the French tune "Amoureuse"), "Peaceful" (#12), "Angie Baby" (#1), "Ain't No Way To Treat A Lady" (#8, 1975), Richard Kerr-Will Jennings-penned "Somewhere in the Night" (#19; later a bigger hit for Barry Manilow), and the Carole King-Gerry Goffin song "I Can't Hear You No More" (1976). Her last Top 20 record was a 1977 revival of Cilla Black's 1964 hit "You're My World", co-produced by Kim Fowley. Reddy's final chart record was "I Can't Say Goodbye To You" in 1981. She was most successful on the Adult Contemporary charts, scoring eight #1 hits there over a three-year span, from "Delta Dawn" to "I Can't Hear You No More."
At the height of her fame in the late 1970s, Helen Reddy was a headliner, with a full chorus of backup singers and dancers to standing-room-only crowds on The Strip in Las Vegas. Reddy's opening acts were the then-up-and-coming Barry Manilow, and Joan Rivers. In 1976, Reddy covered the Beatles song "Fool on the Hill" for the musical documentary All This and World War II.
Reddy was also instrumental in furthering the career of Olivia Newton-John as she encouraged her friend to move from Britain to the United States in the early 1970s. At a subsequent party at Reddy's house after a chance meeting with Allan Carr, the film's producer, Newton-John won the starring role in the hit film version of the musical Grease as result.
Reddy has lent her acting and singing talents to many stage, movie and television productions.
Her film career includes roles in Airport 1975 and Walt Disney's Pete's Dragon (in which she sang "Candle on the Water," which has become one of her best-known songs despite only charting on the A/C charts). For her part in Airport 1975, Roddy was nominated for a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer - Female.
Reddy appeared as a guest on numerous television specials and variety shows, and a guest star on episodes of numerous television series, including Love Boat, Fantasy Island, BeastMaster and others.
Reddy was a host and performer, between 1973 and 1975, on some episodes of the late-night variety television show The Midnight Special. She also hosted her own variety television program, The Helen Reddy Show, in the summer of 1973.
Reddy became a naturalised American citizen in 1974. In 2007, Reddy had a voice cameo as herself in the Family Guy television show's Star Wars parody "Blue Harvest". She played a 'red' themed ('Red'-dy) member of the Red Squadron alongside Red Five (Chris Griffin), Red Buttons, Redd Foxx, Big Red, Red October, Simply Red and others.
Reddy's stage credits include performances in Anything Goes, Call Me Madam, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and works by British playwright Willy Russell. Reddy appeared both on Broadway and in the West End of London in the musical Blood Brothers, and in four productions of Shirley Valentine.
Active in community affairs, Reddy served as the state of California's Parks and Recreation commissioner for three years. In 2002, she retired from performing and moved from Santa Monica, California, to Norfolk Island.
Reddy published an autobiography, The Woman I Am, and appeared on the Today show in 2006. She was also added to the ARIA Hall Of Fame, with a tribute performance by Vanessa Amorosi of "I Am Woman" at the ceremony.
For several years, Reddy maintained that she would not return to the stage. In 2012, Reddy decided to return to performing after being buoyed by the warm reception she received when she sang at her sister's 80th birthday party. On 12 July 2012, Reddy returned to the musical stage at Croce's Jazz Bar in San Diego and for a benefit concert for the arts at St. Genevieve High School in Panorama City, a neighborhood of Los Angeles.
Reddy suffered from Addison's disease, a failure of the adrenal glands, and dementia in her later years.s
We'll Sing In The Sunshine
Helen Reddy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We'll laugh every da-a-y
We'll sing in the sunshine
Then I'll be on my way
I will never love you
The cost of love's too dear
But though I'll never love you
And we can sing in the sunshine
We'll laugh every da-a-y
We'll sing in the sunshine
Then I'll be on my way
I'll sing to you each morning
I'll kiss you every night
But darlin', don't cling to me
I'll soon be out of sight
But we can sing in the sunshine
We'll laugh every da-a-y
We'll sing in the sunshine
Then I'll be on my way
My mama she once told me
Hey, don't you fall for any man
Just take what they may give you
And give but what you can
And you can sing in the sunshine
You'll laugh every da-a-y
You'll sing in the sunshine
Then be on your way
And when our year has ended
And I have gone away
You'll often talk about me
And this is what you'll say:
We sang in the sunshine
You know, we laughed every da-a-y
We sang in the sunshine
Then she went on her way
We'll sing in the sunshine
We'll laugh every da-a-y
We'll sing in the sunshine
Then I'll be on my way
We'll sing in the sunshine
We'll laugh every da-a-y
We'll sing in the sunshine
Then I'll be on my way
Helen Reddy's song "We'll Sing in the Sunshine" follows the story of a woman who is not looking for love, but enjoys the company of a man for a year. The song's upbeat melody contrasts with the lyrics that describe a relationship that is not built to last. The singer repeatedly sings "we'll sing in the sunshine" as a way to emphasize the joy that they are experiencing in the present moment, even though there are no long term plans.
The song's lyrics can be interpreted as a comment on societal expectations surrounding relationships. The pressure to find "true love" and settle down is prevalent in many cultures, and this song suggests that it's okay to enjoy love and laughter for what it is, without the expectation of a lifelong commitment. The singer seems to prioritize her freedom over love and commitment, and the lyrics encourage listeners to embrace their own individuality.
Interestingly, the song's writer, Gale Garnett, also recorded her own version of the song, which became a hit in Canada. Helen Reddy's version was released a year later in 1972 and became an international hit. The song was covered by Johnny Cash, Linda Ronstadt, and others over the years, cementing its place as a classic in the folk-pop genre.
Line by Line Meaning
We'll sing in the sunshine
We will enjoy the good times and make happy memories.
We'll laugh every da-a-y
We will find joy in each other's company every day.
We'll sing in the sunshine
We will keep enjoying life with each other.
Then I'll be on my way
But eventually, I'll have to go my separate way.
I will never love you
I cannot commit to loving you forever.
The cost of love's too dear
Loving someone can bring pain and heartache.
But though I'll never love you
I am willing to stay with you for a while.
I'll stay with you for a year
I can only commit to staying with you for a limited time.
I'll sing to you each morning
I will try to make each day special by singing to you.
I'll kiss you every night
I will show affection to you every night before I go to sleep.
But darlin', don't cling to me
Please don't get too attached to me or see me as a long-term partner.
I'll soon be out of sight
I will be leaving soon and won't be around forever.
My mama she once told me
My mother gave me some advice that has stayed with me.
Hey, don't you fall for any man
Do not get too attached to any man or fall in love easily.
Just take what they may give you
Accept any help or affection that is freely given.
And give but what you can
Give back what you are able to give, but don't feel obligated to give too much.
And when our year has ended
When the time comes for us to part ways.
And I have gone away
Once I have left and moved on from this chapter of my life.
You'll often talk about me
You may remember me and our time together.
And this is what you'll say:
You may have things you'd like to say about me after I'm gone.
You know, we laughed every da-a-y
We found joy and happiness throughout our time together.
Then she went on her way
And I had to leave and continue on with my life.
Contributed by Mila O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.