Andy Kim
Encyclopedia
Andrew Youakim, performing as Andy Kim, is a Lebanese Canadian pop rock
singer and songwriter. He grew up in Montreal
, Quebec
in Canada. Kim is known for a number of hit singles
that he released in the late 1960s and early 1970s such as "Rock Me Gently", which topped the US singles charts. In 1968, he co-wrote "Sugar, Sugar
" for The Archies
. The song was No. 1 for four weeks and in 1969 was certified "Record of the Year" by the RIAA.
Kim has also recorded under the stage name Baron Longfellow since the mid 1980s.
, United Press International
, and Rolling Stone
, or 5 December 1952 as cited by the Allmusic and Billboard Books. Various published interviews with Kim from the mid-70s support the 1946 dating, while Kim's current biography on his official website offers no specific year of birth.
He is the third of four sons of Lebanese
immigrants
. He moved to New York at age 16 to pursue a career in music.
In 1968 under the new stage name Andy Kim, he released the single
"How'd We Ever Get This Way?" on the Steed
label
. He used the different last name as a way to obscure his Lebanese
ethnic ancestry. "How'd We Ever Get This Way?" just missed the U.S.
Top 20.
Still in 1968, with Jeff Barry
, Kim co-wrote "Sugar, Sugar
" which was a hit single
for The Archies
, reaching No. 1 on the U.S.
Billboard Hot 100
chart
and ultimately becoming the RIAA Record of the Year. Kim/Barry wrote more songs for the Archies, and also for Changes, by The Monkees
in 1970, which Barry produced
.
In 1969, Kim had two hit singles, "Rainbow Ride," which made the US Top 50, and "Baby, I Love You
," which got to #9 and was popular enough in Canada to earn him a Gold Leaf (Juno) Award in 1970 as his country's Best Male Vocalist
. "Baby, I Love You" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
by the R.I.A.A. in October 1969.
Over the next few years, Kim recorded
a few minor hits (such as "Be My Baby
" in late 1970) and toured North America extensively. In the spring of 1974, he released the self-penned "Rock Me Gently", which went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and rose to #2 on the UK Singles Chart
. "Rock Me Gently" sold three million copies globally, earning Kim his second gold disc.
Kim had shied away from touring for years before then, when he was working with the Steed
label
. He has said that he had created a persona in his music in the vein of a white
blond surfer and that fans were shocked to see his dark skin color and appearance. As well, he had altered his voice on his earlier records to sound younger.
By the end of 1976, Kim stopped recording and disappeared from public life. He returned under the stage name 'Baron Longfellow' with a self-titled album Baron Longfellow in 1980 and, also under the same pseudonym, in 1984 released Prisoner by Design. Both of these albums met with moderate success. In 1991, Kim again went by the name 'Longfellow' and recorded the single "Powerdrive", which received radio airplay on several radio stations across Canada.
In 1995, Kim played at the Kumbaya Festival at which the Barenaked Ladies
were also performing. Nearly a decade later, the band's Ed Robertson
convinced Kim to come out of retirement. Robertson co-wrote the song "I Forgot to Mention" with him and offered to produce the track. The single was released on a 5-track EP in 2004 which included a re-recording of "Powerdrive".
In March 2005, Kim received the annual "Indie Award" for Favorite Solo Artist during Canadian Music Week. The music video for "Love Is...", released in the summer of 2005, reached #1 at Bravo.ca. In 2005, he co-wrote "What Ever Happened To Christmas" with Ron Sexsmith
. The same year, he established the Andy Kim Christmas Show – a live concert at the Mod Club in Toronto in which a variety of artists were invited to perform mostly Christmas music. Kim's band acted as house band for the artists, who donated their time for the show. Proceeds were donated to the CHUM/CITY Christmas Wish. The show repeated in 2006, with a similar lineup. Proceeds from the show went to support the Children's Aid Foundation, and the edited show was aired on Mix 99.9 on Christmas Eve and Day.
More recently, Kim's music has again come into the public eye, as "Rock Me Gently" was sped up slightly and used by Jeep
for their Jeep Liberty
commercial ("Pouring In"). His name can be seen on the radio display near the beginning of the commercial.
In 2009 Andy Kim was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
In March 2010, E1 Music Canada released Happen Again, Kim's first album in over 20 years. 'Happen Again' is set for release in the United States on 5 April 2011.
Pop rock
Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...
singer and songwriter. He grew up in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
in Canada. Kim is known for a number of hit singles
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
that he released in the late 1960s and early 1970s such as "Rock Me Gently", which topped the US singles charts. In 1968, he co-wrote "Sugar, Sugar
Sugar, Sugar
"Sugar, Sugar" is a pop song written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim. It was a four-week 1969 number-one hit single by fictional characters The Archies. Produced by Jeff Barry, the song was originally released on the album Everything's Archie. The album is the product of a group of studio musicians...
" for The Archies
The Archies
The Archies are a garage band founded by Archie Andrews, Reggie Mantle, and Jughead Jones, a group of adolescent fictional characters of the Archie universe, in the context of the animated TV series, The Archie Show...
. The song was No. 1 for four weeks and in 1969 was certified "Record of the Year" by the RIAA.
Kim has also recorded under the stage name Baron Longfellow since the mid 1980s.
Life and career
Andy Kim was born in Montreal, Quebec. The date of his birth has been reported variably as either 5 December 1946 as cited by VH1VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
, United Press International
United Press International
United Press International is a once-major international news agency, whose newswires, photo, news film and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines and radio and television stations for most of the twentieth century...
, and Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, or 5 December 1952 as cited by the Allmusic and Billboard Books. Various published interviews with Kim from the mid-70s support the 1946 dating, while Kim's current biography on his official website offers no specific year of birth.
He is the third of four sons of Lebanese
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
immigrants
Immigration to Canada
Immigration to Canada is the process by which people migrate to Canada to reside permanently in the country. The majority of these individuals become Canadian citizens. After 1947, domestic immigration law and policy went through major changes, most notably with the Immigration Act, 1976, and the...
. He moved to New York at age 16 to pursue a career in music.
In 1968 under the new stage name Andy Kim, he released the single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
"How'd We Ever Get This Way?" on the Steed
Steed Records
Steed Records was a record label founded by songwriter-record producer Jeff Barry in 1967 in New York City. The label was active until 1971. It was first distributed by Dot Records, then by Gulf+Western's Famous Music Group after it absorbed Dot....
label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
. He used the different last name as a way to obscure his Lebanese
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
ethnic ancestry. "How'd We Ever Get This Way?" just missed the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Top 20.
Still in 1968, with Jeff Barry
Jeff Barry
Jeff Barry is an American pop music songwriter, singer, and record producer.-Early career:...
, Kim co-wrote "Sugar, Sugar
Sugar, Sugar
"Sugar, Sugar" is a pop song written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim. It was a four-week 1969 number-one hit single by fictional characters The Archies. Produced by Jeff Barry, the song was originally released on the album Everything's Archie. The album is the product of a group of studio musicians...
" which was a hit single
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...
for The Archies
The Archies
The Archies are a garage band founded by Archie Andrews, Reggie Mantle, and Jughead Jones, a group of adolescent fictional characters of the Archie universe, in the context of the animated TV series, The Archie Show...
, reaching No. 1 on the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
and ultimately becoming the RIAA Record of the Year. Kim/Barry wrote more songs for the Archies, and also for Changes, by The Monkees
The Monkees
The Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...
in 1970, which Barry produced
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
.
In 1969, Kim had two hit singles, "Rainbow Ride," which made the US Top 50, and "Baby, I Love You
Baby, I Love You
"Baby, I Love You" is a pop song written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector, produced by Spector, and originally recorded in 1963 by The Ronettes...
," which got to #9 and was popular enough in Canada to earn him a Gold Leaf (Juno) Award in 1970 as his country's Best Male Vocalist
Juno Award for Artist of the Year
The Juno Award for Artist of the Year has been awarded since 2002 as recognition each year for the best artist/musician in Canada. The category was originally divided by sex...
. "Baby, I Love You" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
by the R.I.A.A. in October 1969.
Over the next few years, Kim recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
a few minor hits (such as "Be My Baby
Be My Baby
"Be My Baby" is a 1963 single written by Phil Spector, Jeff Barry, and Ellie Greenwich, performed by The Ronettes and produced by Spector. When released as a single, the song reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard Pop Singles Chart and #4 on the UK's Record Retailer...
" in late 1970) and toured North America extensively. In the spring of 1974, he released the self-penned "Rock Me Gently", which went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and rose to #2 on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
. "Rock Me Gently" sold three million copies globally, earning Kim his second gold disc.
Kim had shied away from touring for years before then, when he was working with the Steed
Steed Records
Steed Records was a record label founded by songwriter-record producer Jeff Barry in 1967 in New York City. The label was active until 1971. It was first distributed by Dot Records, then by Gulf+Western's Famous Music Group after it absorbed Dot....
label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
. He has said that he had created a persona in his music in the vein of a white
White people
White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin...
blond surfer and that fans were shocked to see his dark skin color and appearance. As well, he had altered his voice on his earlier records to sound younger.
By the end of 1976, Kim stopped recording and disappeared from public life. He returned under the stage name 'Baron Longfellow' with a self-titled album Baron Longfellow in 1980 and, also under the same pseudonym, in 1984 released Prisoner by Design. Both of these albums met with moderate success. In 1991, Kim again went by the name 'Longfellow' and recorded the single "Powerdrive", which received radio airplay on several radio stations across Canada.
In 1995, Kim played at the Kumbaya Festival at which the Barenaked Ladies
Barenaked Ladies
Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian alternative rock band. The band is currently composed of Jim Creeggan, Kevin Hearn, Ed Robertson, and Tyler Stewart. Barenaked Ladies formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario, then a suburban municipality outside the City of Toronto...
were also performing. Nearly a decade later, the band's Ed Robertson
Ed Robertson
Lloyd Edward Elwyn Robertson , better known as Ed Robertson, is the Canadian lead singer, as well as a guitarist and songwriter in the band, Barenaked Ladies...
convinced Kim to come out of retirement. Robertson co-wrote the song "I Forgot to Mention" with him and offered to produce the track. The single was released on a 5-track EP in 2004 which included a re-recording of "Powerdrive".
In March 2005, Kim received the annual "Indie Award" for Favorite Solo Artist during Canadian Music Week. The music video for "Love Is...", released in the summer of 2005, reached #1 at Bravo.ca. In 2005, he co-wrote "What Ever Happened To Christmas" with Ron Sexsmith
Ron Sexsmith
Ronald Eldon "Ron" Sexsmith is a Canadian singer-songwriter from St. Catharines, Ontario, currently based in Toronto. He started his own band when he was fourteen years old, and released the first recordings of his own material seven years later, in 1985...
. The same year, he established the Andy Kim Christmas Show – a live concert at the Mod Club in Toronto in which a variety of artists were invited to perform mostly Christmas music. Kim's band acted as house band for the artists, who donated their time for the show. Proceeds were donated to the CHUM/CITY Christmas Wish. The show repeated in 2006, with a similar lineup. Proceeds from the show went to support the Children's Aid Foundation, and the edited show was aired on Mix 99.9 on Christmas Eve and Day.
More recently, Kim's music has again come into the public eye, as "Rock Me Gently" was sped up slightly and used by Jeep
Jeep
Jeep is an automobile marque of Chrysler . The first Willys Jeeps were produced in 1941 with the first civilian models in 1945, making it the oldest off-road vehicle and sport utility vehicle brand. It inspired a number of other light utility vehicles, such as the Land Rover which is the second...
for their Jeep Liberty
Jeep Liberty
Inspired by styling from the Dakar and Jeepster concept cars, the Liberty was intended as a replacement for the discontinued Jeep Cherokee . Three trim levels were initially offered; the top end Limited, a more rugged looking Renegade and the base Sport. All were made available with either 2WD or 4WD...
commercial ("Pouring In"). His name can be seen on the radio display near the beginning of the commercial.
In 2009 Andy Kim was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
In March 2010, E1 Music Canada released Happen Again, Kim's first album in over 20 years. 'Happen Again' is set for release in the United States on 5 April 2011.
Singles
- 1963: "I Loved You Once" United Artists 59
- 1964: "Give Me Your Love" TCF Hall 5
- 1965: "I Here You Say (I Love You Baby)-Red Bird 10-040
- 1968: "Shoot 'Em Up Baby"
- 1968: "That Girl" 20th Century Fox 6709
- 1968: "How'd We Ever Get This Way?"
- 1969: "I Hear You Say" (I Love You Baby) Cottique 174
- 1969: "So Good Together" (US #36, West Germany #37)
- 1969: "Baby, I Love YouBaby, I Love You"Baby, I Love You" is a pop song written by Jeff Barry, Ellie Greenwich, and Phil Spector, produced by Spector, and originally recorded in 1963 by The Ronettes...
" (US #9) - 1970: "Be My BabyBe My Baby"Be My Baby" is a 1963 single written by Phil Spector, Jeff Barry, and Ellie Greenwich, performed by The Ronettes and produced by Spector. When released as a single, the song reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard Pop Singles Chart and #4 on the UK's Record Retailer...
" (US #17, West Germany #24, Australia #36) - 1971: "I Wish I Were" Steed 731
- 1971: "I Been Moved" Steed 734
- 1972: "Oh What A Day" Uni 55356
- 1974: "Rock Me Gently" 1974 (US #1, UK #2, West Germany #33)
- 1974: "Fire, Baby I'm on Fire" Capitol 3962
- 1975: "The Essence of Joan" Capitol 4032
- 1975: *Mary Ann" Capitol 4086
- 1976: "Oh, Pretty Woman" Capitol 4234
- 2004: "I Forgot To Mention" (Canada #10)
- 2010: "Happen Again" (Single released to radio 2 February 2010 in Canada)