The pop business, as we all know, is controlled by several large corporations in cahoots with a compliant media, morally corrupt and largely devoid of talent. Someone needs to take the piss, and Otway has been doing it for years.
His first hit 25 years ago, was secured after millions of viewers watched him throw himself testicles first upon a solid 100 watt amplifier live on TV. Because of this Polydor records rewarded John with a deal worth a million pounds in today´s money.
25 years and 2,500 gigs later, tired of being a one hit wonder and fancying another Hit for his 50th birthday, John met "Deep Thought" an old friend who was now working in the heart of the music business.Deep Thought had become disillusioned with the industry spilled the beans and showed Otway and his army of fans the cracks in a system carefully crafted by the major record companies to control the charts. Otway´s Top Ten Hit. Bunsen Burner brutally exposed some of the dubious practices and resulted in major high Street stores being carpeted on national TV.
This series, is a comical and satirical look at the music business and a guide to pop stardom. We all know that when the judges in Pop Star type programmes, give advice to would-be-stars, they are talking out of their bottoms. We all know that you don´t have to sing or play very well to succeed. We all know that to succeed you need to be heard on the radio and seen in the press and on TV. And we all know that something is not quite right about what we hear on the radio and see in the press and on TV.
Otway will show, in one foul series, how it is possible, with minimal talent to go from selling a few CDs from a suitcase to having a top ten Hit, and go from living in a Ford Transit playing small pubs to chartering one´s own Boeing 767 for a World tour which includes The Carnegie Hall, Caesar´s Palace Las Vegas, The Sydney Opera House and The Royal Albert Hall. He´s done the first and is doing the second.
John Otway´s career started by his discovery that it was possible to get an audience of 100 to watch him drink a whole bottle of ink in the school playground.
He compounded on this success by devising, organising and winning his own talent contest.
He started one of the very first independent record labels in 1976 which had one (at that time unknown) artist on its roster, and then signed himself to the mighty Warner Brother´s simply by pressing his own records with a Warner Brother´s label
During a disastrous patch during his 25 year chart career he capitalised on his lack of success and wrote his autobiography " Cor Baby That´s Really Me, Rock and Roll´s Greatest Failure".
When it was suggested to John that it was not necessarily a good career move to brand oneself as a failure, Otway simply stated that "the label´s hardly going to stick if you´re selling out the Albert Hall and appearing on Top Of the Pop´s". After he had done both of these we discover he was absolutely right, the label has not stuck and the book is now in it´s third edition.
Otway is a minefield of information about the industry. With help from Deep Thought (played by an actor), his band, some very successful people who create the music we hate. And a bunch of Rock Star Wives we will finally discover what it really takes to be a star.
He is currently performing on his Greatest Hits Tour.
Details of the World Tour.