Three Dog Night

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Three Dog Night

Background information
Origin	Los Angeles, California
Genre(s)	Rock, Classic rock, Rock and Roll, Soft Rock
Years active	1968 – present
Associated acts	Brian Wilson Cory Wells Blues Band
Members
Danny Hutton Cory Wells Jimmy Greenspoon Michael Allsup Paul Kingery Pat Bautz
Former members
Joe Schermie(deceased) Chuck Negron Floyd Sneed Jack Ryland Skip Konte

Three Dog Night is an American rock and roll band, best known for their work from 1968-1975 but still making live appearances as of 2007. Their hits include "One", "Joy to the World", "Never Been To Spain", "Mama Told Me Not To Come", and many more.

1 The name
2 History
- 2.1 Early years
- 2.2 Reunion
3 Discography
4 Awards and recognition
5 References
6 External links

An official commentary included in the CD set Celebrate: The Three Dog Night Story, 1965-1975 states that vocalist Danny Hutton’s then-girlfriend June Fairchild thought of the name when she read a magazine article about Indigenous Australians, in which it was explained that on cold nights they would customarily sleep in a hole in the ground while embracing a dingo, a native species of wild dog. On colder nights they would sleep with two dogs, and if a night was especially cold, it was a “Three Dog Night.”^[1]

The band started with three lead vocalists — Danny Hutton, Chuck Negron, and Cory Wells — who landed a recording contract with Dunhill Records in Los Angeles. They made some early recordings with Beach Boys producer, composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist Brian Wilson, and initially went by the name Redwood. Shortly after changing the band's name, the vocalists hired a group of backing musicians — Michael Allsup on guitar, Floyd Sneed on drums, (Mickey McMeel on drums from 1973 to 1976), Joe Schermie (from the Cory Wells Blues Band) on bass, and Jimmy Greenspoon on keyboards — and soon became one of the most successful bands of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Three Dog Night earned 14 gold albums and recorded 21 Billboard Top 40 hits, 9 of which went gold. Their first gold record was "One" in 1969, followed by "Easy To Be Hard," from the musical Hair. They had three U.S. number one songs: "Mama Told Me Not to Come" (which was also their only Top 10 hit in the UK), "Joy to the World", and "Black and White". Dunhill Records claimed 40 million units sold by them.

Their use of songs by Randy Newman ("Mama Told Me Not to Come"), Laura Nyro ("Eli's Coming"), Hoyt Axton ("Joy to the World"), Elton John & Bernie Taupin ("Lady Samantha" & "Your Song"), John Hiatt ("Sure As I'm Sittin' Here"), and Leo Sayer ("The Show Must Go On") were the first major hits for songs by these singer/songwriters. According to the commentary in the above-mentioned CD set, Elton John later credited their cover of "Your Song" with being a major factor in catapulting him to stardom. They also popularized songs by Harry Nilsson ("One") and Paul Williams ("An Old Fashioned Love Song").

Joe Schermie quit in 1973 and was replaced by Jack Ryland. The band then became an eight-piece with the induction of another keyboard player, Skip Konte. By 1976, Negron had become the principal vocalist, the streak of hit records had ended and a dissatisfied Hutton left the group. The group disbanded the following year, at least partly due to Negron's drug addiction problem.

In 1983, Three Dog Night reunited to release the ska inspired "It's A Jungle Out There" on an Island Records' EP, garnering notable airplay in the New Wave circuit. By the mid-1980s, the band began appearing again and performed "In My Heart" for Robotech: The Movie in 1986. In 1993, Three Dog Night performed for The Family Channel show Spotlight on Country, filmed in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with sidemen Pat Bautz, Michael Allsup, and bassist Richard Campbell.

As of 2006, they are touring actively. The current lineup features founding members Wells and Hutton on lead vocals, keyboardist Greenspoon and guitarist Allsup, with new members Paul Kingery on bass & vocals and Pat Bautz on drums.

In October of 2006 the new lineup of Three Dog Night played at Walt Disney World as part of Epcot's "Eat to the Beat" series. Wells and Hutton sang some of the songs originally led by Negron ("Joy to the World" and "Easy to Be Hard") as well as their own lead vocal hits (including "Black and White," "Never Been to Spain," and "Shambala").

Original bassist Joe Schermie died on March 26, 2002 of a heart attack. His long-term drug abuse as well as that of various other members of the group were chronicled in harrowing memoirs by Greenspoon (One Is the Loneliest Number) and Negron (Three Dog Nightmare).

Sky Television has launched a new ad campaign (oct 2007) in the UK. The advert, promoting the company's aspirations to be seen as an environmentally friendly company, uses 'Joy To The World' as it's backing track. A new wave of UK interest in the song and the band may be imminent.