English musician
John Parr |
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 Parr performing in 2011 |
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| Birth name | John Stephen Parr |
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| Born | (1952-11-18) 18 November 1952 (age 71)[1]
Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England |
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| Origin | Sherwood Forest, England |
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| Genres | Rock |
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| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, musician |
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| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar, bass guitar, piano, keyboards |
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| Years active | 1964–present |
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| Website | www.johnparr.net |
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Musical artist
John Stephen Parr (born 18 November 1952) is an English musician, singer, and songwriter, best known for his 1985 single "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)", charting at number one in the US and number six in the UK and for his 1984 US number six rock single "Naughty Naughty".[2] He has written and performed ten major motion-picture theme songs, including the themes for Three Men and a Baby and The Running Man. Parr has sold over 10 million albums and was nominated for a Grammy award for "St. Elmo's Fire" in 1985.[3]
Career
"Naughty Naughty" was Parr's first U.S. top-40 hit record, reaching No. 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985. In 1985, Parr toured with his band "The Business" supporting Toto, his first show with Toto at Carowinds Paladium (Charlotte, North Carolina), and playing 10,000-seat venues across America.[4] By the end of the tour, David Foster asked Parr to record a song for the film St. Elmo's Fire. Parr and Foster wrote "St. Elmo's Fire" in honour of wheelchair athlete and activist Rick Hansen; it became the theme to St. Elmo's Fire[5] (a "Brat Pack" film unrelated to Hansen's life or achievements).[6]
Parr later wrote "Under a Raging Moon" with Julia Downes for Roger Daltrey,[6] a song that paid tribute to Keith Moon and told the story of the Who.
Parr was soon singing with Marilyn Martin on the song "Through the Night", from the Quicksilver soundtrack (1986). Parr wrote and produced further tracks for Martin's debut album, including the hit "Night Moves". A year after, he wrote and sang the title songs "The Minute I Saw You", from Three Men and a Baby soundtrack, and the power ballad "Restless Heart" (a.k.a. "Running Away With You (Restless Heart)"), from The Running Man soundtrack (this song was re-released on the Man with a Vision album). After the success of Meat Loaf's album, Parr contributed to the next album with the hit duet "Rock 'n' Roll Mercenaries".[5]
On 20 July 2007, Parr and his band opened for Bryan Adams at the Keepmoat Stadium in Parr's home town Doncaster.[7]
In 2012, Parr released a revised version of "St. Elmo's Fire" entitled "Tim Tebow's Fire". It included the following lyrics: "'You know I’m out there/Down on one knee/A prisoner/And I’m tryin’ to break free'".[3]
Family life
One of Parr's sons, Ben, is an actor who is best known for the role of Freddie in the soap Hollyoaks. His first appearance was in the episode broadcast on 4 January 2007.[8]
