Wilde World: Donny Osmond

Kim Wilde’s first records were written and produced by her father and brother, Marty and Ricky. The three of them have had a great influence on the music world, as this regular series ‘Wilde World’ shows.

For the first time in this series we present a song that the Wildes were not directly involved in. It is, however, an interesting one because it brings together some interesting influences. The Wilde family was sometimes compared to the Osmonds for their approach to music: parents and children all involved in the music business. The Osmond Brothers were immensely successful throughout the Sixties and early Seventies, with little Donny Osmond (born December 9, 1957) becoming a child star from 1970 onwards.

Among the many singles he released between 1970 and 1977 was the 1972 release ‘Why’, which was backed with a version of ‘A teenager in love’. In Germany, the sides of this single were flipped, so that ‘A teenager in love’ became the A-side track. Penned by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, you will know this song as one of the signature hits of Marty Wilde, back in 1959. Also in 1972, Ricky Wilde was launched as a child star with his debut single ‘I am an astronaut’. The press often compared him to Donny Osmond – and so you could say that this single is a ‘missing link’ between Marty and Ricky.

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