Hyfi
08-25-2008, 09:08 AM
I did not see anyone post about this or I missed it. Below is from wikipedia.
Robert Hazard (born Robert Rimato,[1] (August 21, 1948 – August 5, 2008)[2], was a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, musician, probably best known for composing and recording the song "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", which Cyndi Lauper covered, turning the song into a best-selling hit.[3] He also composed the 1980s New Wave and MTV hits, "Escalator of Life" and "Change Reaction", which he performed with his band, Robert Hazard and the Heroes, which was popular in the Philadelphia club scene during the 1980s.[4] These songs appeared on the five song EP Robert Hazard, released in 1982.[5] Hazard's first major label album, Wing of Fire, was released by RCA Records in January 1984.[6][7]
Hazard was son of an opera singer.[1] He was profiled in a 1981 Rolling Stone article by Kurt Loder. In the piece, Loder describes Hazard's musical history as a musician "... who started out as a Dylan-era folkie, then spent eight years singing country & western. 'I just love country music,' he explains — which of course explains nothing, least of all the two years he subsequently spent with a reggae band ... or his current electro-pop approach, which owes little to any of the above".[8]
His final recordings were country albums, beginning with The Seventh Lake (2003) and continuing with Blue Mountain (2004). In 2007, Rykodisc signed Hazard and released his album, Troubador.[2]
Hazard died August 5, 2008 after surgery for pancreatic cancer at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He was living with his wife and two sons near Old Forge, New York, at the time of his death. He also is survived by an older daughter.
Robert Hazard (born Robert Rimato,[1] (August 21, 1948 – August 5, 2008)[2], was a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, musician, probably best known for composing and recording the song "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", which Cyndi Lauper covered, turning the song into a best-selling hit.[3] He also composed the 1980s New Wave and MTV hits, "Escalator of Life" and "Change Reaction", which he performed with his band, Robert Hazard and the Heroes, which was popular in the Philadelphia club scene during the 1980s.[4] These songs appeared on the five song EP Robert Hazard, released in 1982.[5] Hazard's first major label album, Wing of Fire, was released by RCA Records in January 1984.[6][7]
Hazard was son of an opera singer.[1] He was profiled in a 1981 Rolling Stone article by Kurt Loder. In the piece, Loder describes Hazard's musical history as a musician "... who started out as a Dylan-era folkie, then spent eight years singing country & western. 'I just love country music,' he explains — which of course explains nothing, least of all the two years he subsequently spent with a reggae band ... or his current electro-pop approach, which owes little to any of the above".[8]
His final recordings were country albums, beginning with The Seventh Lake (2003) and continuing with Blue Mountain (2004). In 2007, Rykodisc signed Hazard and released his album, Troubador.[2]
Hazard died August 5, 2008 after surgery for pancreatic cancer at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He was living with his wife and two sons near Old Forge, New York, at the time of his death. He also is survived by an older daughter.