ROBERT HAZARD

Robert's final album, Troubadour

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The late Robert Hazard was known primarily as the composer of the timeless, worldwide smash, "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" and his own hit renditions of "Escalator Of Life" and "Change Reaction" as a RCA recording artist in the early 80's but he was so much more than that. A master of pop, blues, folk and country he could turn out a memorable song in minutes with a sweeping depth from a variety of musical idioms.



In Robert's own words he recalls, “My older sister Gloria turned me on to Elvis, Gene Vincent, Carl Perkins and other hillbilly cats. The music just knocked me out. At 10, I was playing guitar ‘cause I thought it was cool, but I got sidetracked by writing songs.”



“Rockabilly led me to folk, blues and what we call roots music today. I was playing in coffee houses and writing songs in high school, hanging out in folk clubs and soaking up gigs by Jimmy Webb, Eric Andersen and Jackson Browne. (The fact that Eric Andersen played on the title track of "Troubadour" is a real thrill.) A guy named Jerry Ricks gave me guitar lessons and taught me about the delta blues and Robert Johnson.”



Back when the new wave era hit, Hazard formed Robert Hazard and The Heroes. Having gained a huge following in his hometown of Philadelphia, RCA reissued their self-released EP resulting in MTV hits and tours opening for heavyweights U2 and Bob Dylan.



“The royalties from ‘Girls’ allowed me to survive. In the ‘90s I had a band called The Hombres, but we never recorded.” In 1998 Hazard cut Howl, the project that began to tap into his singer/songwriter soul. He started writing with a newfound conviction and the stories began to just pour out. “I woke up and started writing, going back to the folk and blues that originally inspired me. I decided to go back to what I love to do: me with an acoustic guitar.” In 2004 Hazard hooked up with T-Bone Wolk for his first singer/songwriter album, The Seventh Lake. Later in 2004 he cut Blue Mountain. “I made that for about $1.98,” Hazard jokes. “Everything was one take. The songs were written, I laid ‘em down and it was done.”



With his final release, "Troubadour", Robert Hazard’s adventurous musical journey came full circle --back to his original inspirations. “Songwriting is an emotional process. Getting to the place where the words and music came pouring out honestly is what I call success.”



The RYKO album "Troubadour" released shortly before his passing led the Star Ledger to exclaim, “Hazard’s new music establishes him as a poetic, sometimes autobiographical songwriter and a soulful singer. His music still rocks at times, but his blues and country influences are more obvious.”



This site pays tribute to the musical legacy of Robert's final musical chapter.



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