Billy Steinberg
Encyclopedia
William Endfield "Billy" Steinberg (born February 26, 1950) is an American
songwriter
. He has achieved most of his success as part of a song writing team, most notably with Tom Kelly
. He has also co-written several hit songs with Rick Nowels
.
and worked with his father's table grape
operation. He attended Cate School
in California, and Bard College
in New York. In his mid-20s he formed the group Billy Thermal
which was eventually signed to Richard Perry
's Planet Records label.
Their breakthrough occurred in 1980 when Linda Ronstadt
heard their album and decided to record their song "How Do I Make You?" for her 1980 Mad Love
album. The album hit the top three of the charts and went platinum. Ronstadt's version of their song reached the American top ten.
In 1981, Steinberg wrote "Precious Time", the title track for Pat Benatar
's Precious Time
album; he also penned "I'm Gonna Follow You", which appeared on her second album Crimes of Passion
the previous year. His band Billy Thermal
included "I'm Gonna Follow You" as well as "How Do I Make You?" on their EP released by Planet Records in 1979. Also that year, Steinberg began writing with Tom Kelly, who had written another song ("Fire and Ice") on the album for Benatar.
Further success followed with the song "Like a Virgin
", when it was played for Warner Bros.
executives who thought it would be perfect for Madonna
. Steinberg later recalled writing the lyric in 1983 following a failed relationship, stating that he had genuinely felt that he'd "made it through the wilderness" and that he was "beat, incomplete". Madonna's version of the song spent six weeks at number one in the United States in 1985, and became a worldwide hit. It was also the title track for her number one album.
The success of the partnership continued with more number one singles "True Colors" (recorded by Cyndi Lauper
and later by Phil Collins
), "So Emotional" (by Whitney Houston
), "Eternal Flame
" (by The Bangles
) and "Alone
" (by Heart
).
Their other hits include "In Your Room
" (The Bangles), "I Drove All Night
" (recorded by Cyndi Lauper, Roy Orbison
and Celine Dion), "I Touch Myself
" (Divinyls
), "Sex as a Weapon" (by Pat Benatar), and "Look Me in the Heart" (by Tina Turner
). They also wrote several songs with Chrissie Hynde
of The Pretenders
, including the top-ten single "I'll Stand By You". Artists such as REO Speedwagon
, Cheap Trick
, Bette Midler
, and Belinda Carlisle
have also recorded their songs.
In the mid 1990s Steinberg began writing with Rick Nowels, who had previously established himself as a songwriter for such artists as Stevie Nicks
and Belinda Carlisle
. Their greatest success of the period was the Céline Dion
recording of "Falling Into You" for which they won Grammy Award
s. Their songs have been recorded by artists such as Kylie Minogue
, k.d. lang
, Melanie C.
, The Corrs
, Robert Miles
, Amber
, Enrique Iglesias
, Chynna Phillips
, Ace of Base
, Edyta Górniak
, Vitamin C
, and Lisa Loeb
.
Steinberg continues to write songs. In 2005, he collaborated with producer Josh Alexander and Jessica and Lisa Origliasso of The Veronicas
to write several tracks for The Veronicas' debut release, The Secret Life Of...
, including the third single, "When It All Falls Apart
". Steinberg and Alexander also wrote "All About Us
", a hit for the Russian pop duo t.A.T.u.
. Steinberg and Alexander's recent work includes JoJo's 2006 single "Too Little Too Late
" and Leigh Nash's "Nervous in the Light of Dawn", "My Idea Of Heaven" and Katharine McPhee
's "Over It
" in 2007. In 2008 he wrote "Fly on the Wall" for t.A.T.u.'s 3rd international album Happy Smiles with Josh Alexander. He will write songs with Josh Alexander on JoJo's new album All I Want Is Everything
. He worked with the American pop singer
Ashley Tisdale
in her album Guilty Pleasure. In 2010, he wrote a song with Josh Alexander titled, "What Happened to Us" for Australian singer, Jessica Mauboy
for her album, Get 'Em Girls. In 2011, he still continued his work. He had co-written "Don't Hold Your Breath
" for Nicole Scherzinger
and "High Maintenance
" by Miranda Cosgrove
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
. He has achieved most of his success as part of a song writing team, most notably with Tom Kelly
Tom Kelly (musician)
Thomas F. Kelly is an American musician, best known for his songwriting partnership with Billy Steinberg. Steinberg and Kelly co-wrote numerous hit songs for popular music artists, including five number-one singles on the Billboard Top 100 chart in the 1980s....
. He has also co-written several hit songs with Rick Nowels
Rick Nowels
Richard Wright Nowels Jr. is a Grammy / Ivor Novello award-winning songwriter/producer who has worked with many of the most vibrant artists in contemporary music...
.
Biography
Steinberg grew up in Palm Springs, CaliforniaPalm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...
and worked with his father's table grape
Table grape
Table grapes are grapes intended for consumption while they are fresh, as opposed to grapes grown for wine production, juice production, or for drying into raisins....
operation. He attended Cate School
Cate School
The Cate School, established in 1910 by Curtis Wolsey Cate, is a four-year, coeducational, college-preparatory boarding school in Carpinteria, California, United States....
in California, and Bard College
Bard College
Bard College, founded in 1860 as "St. Stephen's College", is a small four-year liberal arts college located in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.-Location:...
in New York. In his mid-20s he formed the group Billy Thermal
Billy Thermal
Billy Thermal is a band formed by hit songwriter Billy Steinberg in 1979. The name Billy Thermal comes from the vineyards located in Thermal, California where Steinberg's father Lionel Steinberg owned Freedman Farms....
which was eventually signed to Richard Perry
Richard Perry
Richard Perry is an American music producer. Perry began as a performer in his adolescence, but shifted gears after graduating college and rose through the late 1960s and early 1970s to become a highly successful and popular record producer with over a dozen gold records to his credit by 1982...
's Planet Records label.
Their breakthrough occurred in 1980 when Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt
Linda Ronstadt is an American popular music recording artist. She has earned eleven Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, an Emmy Award, an ALMA Award, numerous United States and internationally certified gold, platinum and multiplatinum albums, in addition to Tony Award and Golden...
heard their album and decided to record their song "How Do I Make You?" for her 1980 Mad Love
Mad Love (Linda Ronstadt album)
Mad Love is a Platinum certified, Grammy-nominated 1980 New Wave album by singer/songwriter/producer Linda Ronstadt. The album debuted at #5 on the Billboard album chart — a record at the time and a first for any female artist — and quickly became Ronstadt's seventh consecutive million-selling...
album. The album hit the top three of the charts and went platinum. Ronstadt's version of their song reached the American top ten.
In 1981, Steinberg wrote "Precious Time", the title track for Pat Benatar
Pat Benatar
Pat Benatar is an American singer and four-time Grammy winner. She had considerable commercial success particularly in the United States...
's Precious Time
Precious Time (album)
Precious Time is the third album from Pat Benatar, released in 1981. It peaked at #1 on the Billboard 200 and produced hits like "Fire and Ice", which reached #17 on the U.S. Pop chart and #2 on the U.S. Mainstream Rock chart, and "Promises in the Dark", which reached #38 on the U.S. Pop chart and...
album; he also penned "I'm Gonna Follow You", which appeared on her second album Crimes of Passion
Crimes of Passion (album)
Crimes of Passion is the second album by Pat Benatar, released in 1980.It peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and produced the hits "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" , "You Better Run" , "Treat Me Right" Crimes of Passion is the second album by Pat Benatar, released in 1980.It peaked at No. 2 on the...
the previous year. His band Billy Thermal
Billy Thermal
Billy Thermal is a band formed by hit songwriter Billy Steinberg in 1979. The name Billy Thermal comes from the vineyards located in Thermal, California where Steinberg's father Lionel Steinberg owned Freedman Farms....
included "I'm Gonna Follow You" as well as "How Do I Make You?" on their EP released by Planet Records in 1979. Also that year, Steinberg began writing with Tom Kelly, who had written another song ("Fire and Ice") on the album for Benatar.
Further success followed with the song "Like a Virgin
Like a Virgin (song)
"Like a Virgin" is a song by American singer Madonna from her second album of the same name. It was released on November 6, 1984 by Sire Records, as the first single from the album. The song appears on the greatest hits compilation albums The Immaculate Collection and Celebration...
", when it was played for Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
executives who thought it would be perfect for Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
. Steinberg later recalled writing the lyric in 1983 following a failed relationship, stating that he had genuinely felt that he'd "made it through the wilderness" and that he was "beat, incomplete". Madonna's version of the song spent six weeks at number one in the United States in 1985, and became a worldwide hit. It was also the title track for her number one album.
The success of the partnership continued with more number one singles "True Colors" (recorded by Cyndi Lauper
Cyndi Lauper
Cynthia Ann Stephanie "Cyndi" Lauper is an American singer, songwriter, actress and LGBT rights activist. She achieved success in the mid-1980s with the release of the album She's So Unusual and became the first female singer to have four top-five singles released from one album...
and later by Phil Collins
Phil Collins
Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, LVO is an English singer-songwriter, drummer, pianist and actor best known as a drummer and vocalist for British progressive rock group Genesis and as a solo artist....
), "So Emotional" (by Whitney Houston
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston is an American singer, actress, producer and a former model. Houston is the most awarded female act of all time, according to Guinness World Records, and her list of awards include 1 Emmy Award, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among...
), "Eternal Flame
Eternal Flame (song)
"Eternal Flame" is a song by The Bangles from their 1988 album Everything. It became a hit single, when released in 1989, peaking at number one in the charts in nine countries, including Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It was written by popular songwriters Billy Steinberg and...
" (by The Bangles
The Bangles
The Bangles are an American all-female band that originated in the early 1980s, scoring several hit singles during the decade.-Formation and early years :...
) and "Alone
Alone (Heart song)
-Céline Dion version:Céline Dion covered "Alone" for her 2007 album Taking Chances. It was released as the second single in Europe and North America, and third in the United Kingdom...
" (by Heart
Heart (band)
Heart is an American rock band who first found success in Canada. Throughout several lineup changes, the only two members remaining constant are sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson. The group rose to fame in the 1970s with their music being influenced by hard rock as well as folk music...
).
Their other hits include "In Your Room
In Your Room (The Bangles song)
"In Your Room" is a 1988 song by American rock group The Bangles, written by Susanna Hoffs, Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg. The song was released as the first single from the band's third album, Everything. It reached the top five of the U.S...
" (The Bangles), "I Drove All Night
I Drove All Night
"I Drove All Night" is a song written by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly and made famous by Cyndi Lauper. The song was originally written for Roy Orbison, who recorded it in 1987, but his rendition was not released until 1992, after the song had become a top 10 hit on both sides of the Atlantic for...
" (recorded by Cyndi Lauper, Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
and Celine Dion), "I Touch Myself
I Touch Myself
"I Touch Myself" is a 1990 single by the Australian rock band Divinyls. The song was written by Divinyls bandmembers Christina Amphlett and Mark McEntee and professional songwriters Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg for the band's self-titled album...
" (Divinyls
Divinyls
Divinyls were an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1980 and featuring vocalist Christina Amphlett and guitarist Mark McEntee. As the focal point, Amphlett performed on stage wearing a school uniform and fishnet stockings, often using an illuminated neon tube as a prop and displaying...
), "Sex as a Weapon" (by Pat Benatar), and "Look Me in the Heart" (by Tina Turner
Tina Turner
Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...
). They also wrote several songs with Chrissie Hynde
Chrissie Hynde
Christine Ellen "Chrissie" Hynde is an US musician best known as the leader of the rock/new wave band the Pretenders. She is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist, and has been the only constant member of the band throughout its history.-Early life and career:Hynde is the daughter of a part-time...
of The Pretenders
The Pretenders
The Pretenders are an English rock band formed in Hereford, England in March 1978. The original band consisted of initiator and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde , James Honeyman-Scott , Pete Farndon , and Martin Chambers...
, including the top-ten single "I'll Stand By You". Artists such as REO Speedwagon
REO Speedwagon
REO Speedwagon is an American rock band. Formed in 1967, the band grew in popularity during the 1970s and peaked in the early 1980s. Hi Infidelity is the group's most commercially successful album, selling over ten million copies and charting four Top 40 hits in the US...
, Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E...
, Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...
, and Belinda Carlisle
Belinda Carlisle
Belinda Jo Carlisle is an American singer who gained worldwide fame as the lead vocalist of the Go-Go's, one of the most successful all-female bands and the first such group whose members wrote their own songs and played their own instruments...
have also recorded their songs.
In the mid 1990s Steinberg began writing with Rick Nowels, who had previously established himself as a songwriter for such artists as Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks
Stephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...
and Belinda Carlisle
Belinda Carlisle
Belinda Jo Carlisle is an American singer who gained worldwide fame as the lead vocalist of the Go-Go's, one of the most successful all-female bands and the first such group whose members wrote their own songs and played their own instruments...
. Their greatest success of the period was the Céline Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
recording of "Falling Into You" for which they won Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s. Their songs have been recorded by artists such as Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
, k.d. lang
K.D. Lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang, OC , known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress...
, Melanie C.
Melanie Chisholm
Melanie Jayne Chisholm is an English singer-songwriter, actress and businesswoman professionally known simply as Melanie C . She is best known as one of the five members of the girl group Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed "Sporty Spice"...
, The Corrs
The Corrs
The Corrs are an Irish band which combine pop rock with traditional Celtic folk music. The brother and sisters are from Dundalk, Ireland. The group consists of the Corr siblings: Andrea ; Sharon ; Caroline ; and Jim .The Corrs came to international prominence with their performance at the...
, Robert Miles
Robert Miles
Robert Miles is an Italian record producer, composer, musician and DJ in electronica and alternative music.-Biography:...
, Amber
Amber (performer)
Marie-Claire "Amber" Cremers is a Dutch-German singer, songwriter, label owner and executive producer. She is best known for her hits "This Is Your Night," "If You Could Read My Mind," and "Sexual ."-Career:Amber's music career took off when one of her demos, "This Is Your Night" gained interest...
, Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Iglesias
Enrique Iglesias is a Spanish pop music singer, a son of singer Julio Iglesias.Enrique started his musical career on Mexican label Fonovisa...
, Chynna Phillips
Chynna Phillips
Chynna Phillips is an American singer and actress, known for being a member of Wilson Phillips. She is also known for being the daughter of The Mamas & the Papas band members John and Michelle Phillips and the half-sister of Mackenzie Phillips, Bijou Phillips, Jeffrey Phillips , Tamerlane...
, Ace of Base
Ace of Base
Ace of Base is a pop band based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Its original lineup consisted of Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg, and three siblings, Jonas "Joker" Berggren, Malin "Linn" Berggren and Jenny Berggren...
, Edyta Górniak
Edyta Górniak
Edyta Górniak is one of the most popular female singers from Poland.- Beginnings :At the age of 14 Górniak formed a band and was playing at private parties and evening dances. After taking singing lessons, in 1989, aged 16, she gave her first public appearance on a Polish television talent show...
, Vitamin C
Vitamin C
Vitamin C or L-ascorbic acid or L-ascorbate is an essential nutrient for humans and certain other animal species. In living organisms ascorbate acts as an antioxidant by protecting the body against oxidative stress...
, and Lisa Loeb
Lisa Loeb
Lisa Anne Loeb is an American singer-songwriter and actress. She launched her career in 1994 with the song, "Stay ". She was the first artist to have a number one single in the United States while not signed to a recording contract.Loeb's efforts now include music, film, television, voice-over...
.
Steinberg continues to write songs. In 2005, he collaborated with producer Josh Alexander and Jessica and Lisa Origliasso of The Veronicas
The Veronicas
The Veronicas are an Australian electrorock, pop-punk and rock band. Twin sisters Jessica and Lisa Origliasso formed the band in 1999 in Brisbane. They have their own line of clothing which was released in 2007....
to write several tracks for The Veronicas' debut release, The Secret Life Of...
The Secret Life Of... (album)
The Secret Life of... is the debut studio album by Australian pop rock band The Veronicas, released on 17 October 2005 on Sire Records. It reached #2 in Australia and is certified 4x platinum. The album also reached #5 in New Zealand and #3 in the Billboard Top Heatseekers. The Secret Life of......
, including the third single, "When It All Falls Apart
When It All Falls Apart
"When It All Falls Apart" is the third single released from The Veronicas' debut album The Secret Life of... on 21 March 2006. It has been certified Gold for sales over 35,000 units in Australia. "When It All Falls Apart" charted within the ARIA Top 20 for 14 weeks. It was to be released in the UK...
". Steinberg and Alexander also wrote "All About Us
All About Us
"All About Us" is the first single released from Russian band t.A.T.u.'s second English studio album, Dangerous and Moving, and its Russian counterpart, Lyudi Invalidy ....
", a hit for the Russian pop duo t.A.T.u.
T.A.T.u.
t.A.T.u. was a duo formed in Moscow, Russia in 1999 by Ivan Shapovalov. The group consisted of Lena Katina and Yulia Volkova.Their debut single "Ya Soshla S Uma" was released in December 2000. The single had a huge success in Russia and Eastern Europe...
. Steinberg and Alexander's recent work includes JoJo's 2006 single "Too Little Too Late
Too Little Too Late
"Too Little Too Late" is a song written by Billy Steinberg, Josh Alexander, and Ruth-Anne Cunningham for JoJo's second studio album The High Road. It was co-produced by Alexander, Vincent Herbert, and Billy Steinberg. "Too Little Too Late" was released as the album's first single in North America...
" and Leigh Nash's "Nervous in the Light of Dawn", "My Idea Of Heaven" and Katharine McPhee
Katharine McPhee
Katharine Hope McPhee is an American pop singer, songwriter, actress, model, and television personality. She gained fame as a contestant on the fifth season of the Fox reality show American Idol in 2006, eventually finishing as the runner-up.Her self-titled debut album was released on RCA Records...
's "Over It
Over It (Katharine McPhee song)
"Over It" is the first single released from the eponymous album by Katharine McPhee, the American Idol season five finalist. The song was reportedly described by McPhee as "the only real pop song on the record" and as being "a very sultry song about young love"...
" in 2007. In 2008 he wrote "Fly on the Wall" for t.A.T.u.'s 3rd international album Happy Smiles with Josh Alexander. He will write songs with Josh Alexander on JoJo's new album All I Want Is Everything
All I Want Is Everything (album)
Jumping Trains is the forthcoming third studio album by American recording artist JoJo schelduled to be released through Blackground Records, Interscope Records and Streamline Records in early 2012. The album was announced in 2007, for a 2008 release, but has since been in limbo for years due to...
. He worked with the American pop singer
Pop Singer
"Pop Singer" is the début single from London-based glam rockers Rachel Stamp. It was released in February, 1996 through WEA. The single was released as a 2 track CD Single and limited edition pink 7" vinyl of 1000 copies...
Ashley Tisdale
Ashley Tisdale
Ashley Michelle Tisdale is an American actress and singer who rose to prominence portraying the candy-counter girl Maddie Fitzpatrick in Disney Channel's The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and the female antagonist Sharpay Evans in the High School Musical film series...
in her album Guilty Pleasure. In 2010, he wrote a song with Josh Alexander titled, "What Happened to Us" for Australian singer, Jessica Mauboy
Jessica Mauboy
Jessica Hilda Mauboy , is an Indigenous Australian R&B singer-songwriter and actress. In 2006, Mauboy was the runner-up on the fourth season of Australian Idol, she had auditioned for the talent show in Alice Springs to pursue a recording career...
for her album, Get 'Em Girls. In 2011, he still continued his work. He had co-written "Don't Hold Your Breath
Don't Hold Your Breath
"Don't Hold Your Breath" is a song by American recording artist Nicole Scherzinger, taken from her debut studio album, Killer Love . The empowering mid-tempo pop song was written by Josh Alexander, Billy Steinberg and Toby Gad. The song was released on March 10, 2011, as the album's second single...
" for Nicole Scherzinger
Nicole Scherzinger
Nicole Prescovia Elikolani Valiente Scherzinger is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, record producer, model, and actress. Scherzinger is perhaps best known for being the lead vocalist of the Pussycat Dolls....
and "High Maintenance
High Maintenance
Upon its release, High Maintanence was met with mixed to positive reviews. James Christopher Monger of Allmusic wrote that the extended play had a more adult pop sound, and gave the album a rating of two and a half stars out of five...
" by Miranda Cosgrove
Miranda Cosgrove
Miranda Taylor Cosgrove is an American actress and singer-songwriter. Her career began at the age of three, where she participated in television commercials. Cosgrove's film debut was in 2003, as Summer Hathaway in School of Rock...
.