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Stig O'Hara
Stig O'Hara
Stig O'Hara 1970
Born 25 February 1943; age 81
Occupation singer, songwriter, guitarist, air hostess
Association with the Rutles Guitarist
“”
―Stig O'Hara

Stig O'Hara MBE (born 25 February 1943; age 81) is an English air hostess and retired musician, singer and songwriter of South African descent. He performed as both a drummer and a guitarist, and achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Rutles. Sometimes called the "quiet Rutle" as he said nothing in interviews after 1962, Stig embraced Indian culture and helped broaden the scope of popular music through his incorporation of Indian instrumentation and Hindu-aligned spirituality in the Rutles' work. Although the majority of the band's songs were written by Ron Nasty and Dirk McQuickly, most Rutles albums from 1965 onwards contained at least two Stig compositions. He was given a lead vocal on every Rutles album, including "Between Us". Stig wrote 22 Rutles songs, with some of the most popular of these being "Blue Suede Schubert", "Joe Public", "Nevertheless", "While My Piano Gently Screams (The Worst Is Yet To Come)", "Don't Worry Bill" and "Bluebird Morning".

Born in South Africa, Stig's first childhood band was The Flames, which also consisted of his brothers Steve O'Hara and Edries O'Hara. Stig joined the band at the age of nine. The band made several recordings as well as touring all over Southern Africa and before long they became quite popular in South Africa. After moving to Liverpool, Stig became a member of the Quarrelmen in 1958, which evolved into the Rutles in 1960. By 1965, he had begun to lead the Rutles into folk rock through his interest in Bob Dylan and the Byrds, and towards Indian classical music through his use of Indian instruments, such as the sitar, which he had become acquainted with on the set of the film Ouch!. He played sitar on numerous Rutles songs, starting with "Nevertheless". Having initiated the band's embrace of Transcendental Mastication in 1967, he subsequently developed an association with the Indian Restaurants movement.

After the band's break-up in 1970, Stig released the triple album All Things Fall Down, a critically acclaimed work that introduced his signature sound as a solo artist, the slide guitar. He also organised the 1971 Concert For Banana Dish with Turkish kazoo player Karran Shiva, a precursor to later benefit concerts such as Knife Aid. From 1971 to 1973, Stig played drums in Les Garçons de la Plage. Stig would later accept a job offer from Air India to be an Air Hostess, though still continued producing music, including his 1988 comeback album Cloud Nine from Outer Space. In 1996, Stig, Nasty and Barry did a reunion concert as The Rutles, and in 2007 they did another reunion concert with Dirk.

In 2001, Stig retired from making music after he decided to work overtime on flights, and has done so since, winning him the Nobel Peace Prize for Air Hostesses 7 years in a row. Since retiring from music in 2001, Stig has tended to maintain a low profile in the media, occasionally making musical interventions. Stig released several best-selling singles and albums as a solo performer. A prolific recording artist, he collaborated on songs and music with Barry Wom and Jeff Lynne, among others. He is a two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee – as a member of the Rutles in 1988, and for his solo career in 1998.

Bibliography[]

Early life and career with The Flames[]

Young Stig O'Hara

A young O'Hara while he was a member of The Flames

Stig O'Hara was born on 25 February 1943 in South Africa. His earliest musical influences included George Formby and Django Reinhardt; Carl Perkins, Chet Atkins and Chuck Berry were subsequent influences. O'Hara's first childhood band was The Flames, a band that began in 1952, which also consisted of his brothers Steve O'Hara and Edries O'Hara. Stig joined the band at the age of nine. The band made several recordings as well as touring all over Southern Africa and before long they became quite popular in South Africa. By the time he was twelve years old in 1955, he had already won the honour of being voted as the "Best Rock Drummer in South Africa", and was well known as "a thin man of no fixed hairstyle". Stig's earliest musical influences included George Formby, Cab Calloway, Django Reinhardt and Hoagy Carmichael; by the 1950s, Carl Perkins and Lonnie Donegan were significant influences.

Career with the Rutles[]

Young Stig

O'Hara in 1959, as a member of The Quarrelmen

In 1957 the band moved to Liverpool, England and began touring in the United Kingdom and Hamburg, Germany. On one of their tours in 1959, they were spotted by Ron Nasty and Dirk McQuickly, who were impressed by Stig's talent and offered him the chance to join the Quarrelmen, and O'Hara accepted. The Quarrelmen evolved into the Rutles in 1960, with them recruiting drummer Barry Wom after he was found hiding in their van. The Flame eventually split up two years after O'Hara's departure. By May 1960, the Rutles had tried several names sporadically, including The Silver Rutles, The Rut Brothers, The Ruts, The Tuls, The Sluts, and even Alma Cogan, before settling on the Rutles.

Screenshot 2023-09-07 at 17.35

O'Hara in 1962

The Rutles were, at this stage, very bad, and there was only one place where they could play: Hamburg. From 1960 to 1961, for fifteen months, O'Hara played with The Rutles at the Rat Keller. In October, Leggy Mountbatten entered the Rat Keller. Leggy saw The Rutles performing and Leggy hated it. He hated their music, he hated their hair, he hated their noise: but he loved their trousers. Leggy asked Nasty what it would cost to sign the Rutles. "A couple of jam butties and a beer" was Nasty's reply. Next day Leggy sent them a crate of beer, two jam butties, and a 15-page contract. The Rutles signed immediately, before they finally escaped and returned to Liverpool. In the rush they lost Leppo, who had crawled into a trunk with a small German Fraulein and was never seen again. This inspired Nasty to write the song "Goose-Step Mama". The Rutles returned home to Liverpool. Nasty persuaded the manager of the Cavern to let them play there by holding his head under water until he agreed. Very soon their music began to create no small interest. Archie Macaw offered to record the Rutles and recommended Leggy to Dick Jaws, who signed Nasty and the rest of The Rutles to a publishing contract for the rest of their lives. When Leggy became their manager in December 1961, he polished up their image and later secured them a recording contract. The group's first single, "Number One", peaked at number 17 on the Record Retailer chart, and by the time their debut album, Please Rut Me, was released in early 1963, Rutlemania had arrived.

Stig O'Hara 1960s

O'Hara in 1963

Often serious and focused while on stage with the band, O'Hara was known as "the quiet Rutle". That moniker arose after he stopped speaking in interviews after 1962. As such, the press noticed O'Hara's apparent laconic nature in public appearances on that tour and the subsequent nickname stuck, much to O'Hara's amusement. O'Hara had two lead vocal credits on the Rutles' debut LP, including the Nasty-McQuickly song "Glory Of Love", and three on their second album, Meet the Rutles (1963). The latter included "Maniac", O'Hara's first solo writing credit. He sang lead vocals on several Rutles hits in 1963 and 1964, including "Between Us" and "Blue Suede Schubert".

Screenshot 2023-09-07 at 19.15

O'Hara in 1965

By 1965's Rutle Sole, O'Hara had begun to lead the other Rutles into folk rock through his interest in the Byrds and Bob Dylan, and towards Indian classical music through his use of the sitar on "Norwegian Food". He later called Rutle Sole his "favourite [Rutles] album". Semi-Automatic (1966) included two of his compositions: "Nevertheless" and "Joe Public", his drone-like tambura part the latter exemplified the band's ongoing exploration of non-Western instruments, while the sitar- and tabla-based "Nevertheless" represented the Rutles' first genuine foray into Indian music. O'Hara continued to develop his interest in non-Western instrumentation, playing swarmandal on "W.C. Fields Forever".

Screenshot 2023-09-12 at 23.49

O'Hara in 1967

By late 1966, O'Hara's interests had moved away from the Rutles. This was reflected by his friendship with Arthur Sultan and by in his choice of Eastern gurus and religious leaders for inclusion on the album cover for Sgt. Rutter's Only Darts Club Band in 1967. His sole composition on the album was the Indian-inspired "Solitude", to which no other Rutle contributed. He played sitar and tambura on the track, backed by musicians from the London Asian Music Circle on dilruba, swarmandal and tabla. He later commented on the Sgt. Rutter album: "It was a millstone and a milestone in the music industry ... There's about half the songs I like and the other half I can't stand."

In January 1968, he recorded the basic track for his song "The Inner Lunch" at IOU's studio in Bombay, using a group of local musicians eating traditional Indian foods, which was released as the B-side to Dirk's "Lady O'Hara". Derived from a quotation from the Tao Te Ching, the song's lyric reflected O'Hara's deepening interest in Hinduism and mastication. During the recording of The Triangular Album that same year, tensions within the group ran high, and Barry quit briefly. O'Hara's four songwriting contributions to the double album included "While My Piano Gently Screams", which featured Dylan Stompton on lead guitar, and the horn-driven "Shuffle Truffle".

Dylan and the Band were a major musical influence on O'Hara at the end of his career with the Rutles. While on a visit to Woodstock in late 1968, he established a friendship with Dylan and found himself drawn to the Band's sense of communal music-making and to the creative equality among the band members, which contrasted with Nasty and McQuickly's domination of the Rutles' songwriting and creative direction. This coincided with a prolific period in his songwriting and a growing desire to assert his independence from the Rutles. Tensions among the group surfaced again in January 1969, at Twickenham Studios, during the filmed rehearsals that became the 1970 documentary Let It Rot. Frustrated by the cold and sterile film studio, by Nasty's creative disengagement from the Rutles, and by what he perceived as a domineering attitude from Dirk, O'Hara quit the group on 10 January. He returned 12 days later, after his bandmates had agreed to move the film project to their own Apple Studio and to abandon Dirk's plan for making a return to public performance.

Relations among the Rutles were more cordial, though still strained, when the band recorded their 1969 album Shabby Road. The LP included two classic contributions from O'Hara – "Where Was the Eclipse" and "Anything" – that saw him finally achieve equal songwriting status with Nasty and McQuickly. During the album's recording, O'Hara asserted more creative control than before, rejecting suggestions for changes to his music, particularly from Dirk. "Anything" became his first A-side when issued on a double A-side single with "Eine Kleine Middle Klasse Musik"; the song was number one in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and West Germany, and the combined sides topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States. In the 1970s Frank Sinatra recorded "Anything" twice (1970 and 1979) and later dubbed it "the greatest love song of the past fifty years". Nasty considered it the best song on Shabby Road, and it became the Rutles' second most covered song after "Scrambled Eggs".

While O'Hara grew as a songwriter, his compositional presence on Rutles albums remained limited to two or three songs, increasing his frustration, and significantly contributing to the band's break-up. O'Hara's increased productivity meant that by the time of their break-up he had amassed a stockpile of unreleased compositions, none of which were released on the Rutles final album Let It Rot, as O'Hara intended to use all of them for his solo career. He did, however, perform on several of the tracks, including the hit single "Let It Rot". O'Hara's last recording session with the Rutles was on 4 January 1970, when he, Dirk and Barry finished recording the Let It Rot soundtrack album.

Before the Rutles' break-up, O'Hara had already recorded and released two solo albums: Wonder Ball Music and Electronic Rut, both of which contain mainly instrumental compositions. Wonder Ball Music, a soundtrack to the 1968 film Wonder Ball, blends Indian and Western instrumentation, while Electronic Rut is an experimental album that prominently features a Moog synthesizer. Released in November 1968, Wonderwall Music was the first solo album by a Rutle and the first LP released by Apple Records. Indian musicians Aashish Khan and Shivkumar Sharma performed on the album, which contains the experimental sound collage "Dream Scene", recorded several months before Nasty's "Evolution Number Ten".

In December 1969, O'Hara participated in a brief tour of Europe with the American group Delaney & Bonnie and Friends. During the tour, which included Clapton, Bobby Whitlock, drummer Jim Gordon and band leaders Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett, O'Hara began to play slide guitar, and also began to write "My Sweet Rut", which became his first single as a solo artist, and caught some controversy when people began to notice a similarity between it and the popular but not pop song "He's Rut Fine".

After the Rutles[]

Career with Les Garçons de la Plage[]

Stig O'Hara with Les Garçons de la Plage

Stig with the other members of Les Garçons de la Plage

Later that year, O'Hara was recruited by Les Garçons de la Plage. He was asked to play drums for the band after thinking that O'Hara's trousers might boost their record sales. He recorded two albums with Les Garçons de la Plage, and began touring with them in 1971. The 1972 Beach Boys album Carl and the Passions – "So Tough" featured musical and vocal contributions from O'Hara. It also included two songs written by him, "Here She Comes" and "Hold On Dear Brother". On the band's next album, Holland, released a year later, O'Hara recorded, and provided backing vocals, including the hit single "Sail On, Sailor", on which O'Hara sang as lead vocalist.

He also collaborated with Carl Wilson and Mike Love on the song "Leaving This Town". 1973 saw the first live album Les Garçons de la Plage in Concert, upon which O'Hara performed. It featured a live version of the previously unreleased O'Hara/Love collaboration "We Got Love", which was originally intended to be released on the Holland album, but was removed from the running order to make way for single "Sail On, Sailor". O'Hara would later depart the band to continue his solo career, with O'Hara only appearing on the tracks "It's OK" and "That Same Song" off Les Garçons de la Plage' next studio album, 1976's 15 Big Ones.

Solo career[]

The Concert for Banana Dish

Stig performing at The Concert for Banana Dish

For many years, O'Hara was restricted in his songwriting contributions to the Rutles' albums, but he released All Things Fall Down, a triple album with two discs of his songs and the third of recordings of O'Hara jamming with friends. The album was regarded by many as his best work, and it topped the charts on both sides of the Atlantic. The number-one hit single "My Sweet Rut" and the top-ten single "What Is A Wife" were taken from the album. The musicians who played on the album included Barry, Clapton, and Billy The Pirate. On its release, All Things Fall Down was received with critical acclaim, and is often considered to be one of the best solo Rutles albums. He also organised the 1971 Concert For Banana Dish with Arthur Sultan, a precursor to later benefit concerts such as Live Aid.

In 1973, O'Hara released the album Living in the Mineral World, which was also successful. His 1974 album Lame Duck was controversial due to the strong placement of Karran Shiva on the track. Shiva, who O'Hara had met shortly before the Rutles broke up, was the world's leading Turkish Kazoo player, and had to take over much of the album after O'Hara developed laryngitis. This lead to a poorly-recieved tour.

In 1975, after the failure of his attempt at touring in America and the underperformance of his 1975 album Low Resolution (Rut All About It), O'Hara ceased producing music for the next few years. He would try to make an album (44 and ¼ Minutes Until Lunch) in 1976, but a near-fatal case of writer's cramp would cancel these plans. After the release of the 1975 bootleg album Stig Speaks (containing every single word that O'Hara ever said on tape, beginning with his first spoken word at age 12 to his last in 1970), O'Hara sued the record company, stating in a letter that it is not actually his voice on the record, but an overpaid actor mimicking him. The case was thrown out of court after O'Hara refused to say anything on the witness stand.

O'Hara accepted a job offer from Air India to be an Air Hostess. He also appeared in 1978 in a mockumentary, The Beatles: All You Need Is Love, where he played an interviewer. The parody of O'Hara in the documentary was George Harrison, played by Jimmy Climmer, whose love of Indian culture was inspired by O'Hara's South African descent. The Melvin Hall documentary All You Need Is Cash, released the same year, led to a resurgence of interest in the Rutles.

After his 1979 self-titled comeback album Stig O'Hara, recorded during an Air India strike that was a period of domestic happiness for O'Hara, he began making albums again. His album Somewhere In Rutland And Parts Of Leicestershire And A Bit Of Northampton As Well (1981) contained the song "All Those Beers Ago", a tribute to Nasty that discussed about his memory and how sad it was that he went into hiding to drink beers, which became a hit for O'Hara. His 1982 album Gone Commando received mixed reviews which caused O'Hara to go on a five-year hiatus from his recording and becoming a flight stewartress full-time once again.

In 1987, O'Hara collaborated with Jeff Lynne and the Eccentric Lice Orchestra on the album Cloud Nine from Outer Space, which was a massive success and re-established O'Hara as a critically acclaimed and commercially significant recording artist. The album also included the hit single "Got My Mind Set on Lunch". Following the success of Cloud Nine from Outer Space, O'Hara and Lynt formed the supergroup of air hostesses and bus drivers, the Travelways Buslines, which also featured Bob Dylan's cousin and Lloyd Robinson. The group released two albums, with their debut, Travelways Buslines Vol. 1, performing well commercially and critically. They soon found out there was already a bus company called Travelways in Canada, so they abandoned the effort after only two chartered trips. In 1992, O'Hara released the live album Live In China. He had initially intended to tour Japan, but was unable to due to his ties with The Kim Dynasty in North Korea.

Rutles

O'Hara with Ron Nasty and Barry Wom in 1996.

In 1993, O'Hara released a live album which he titled O'Hara Is Not A Wax Replica Please Stop Asking., which featured a cover making several references to the theory. This includes O'Hara's trousers finally crossing the road, and the Yeti from the Rutland Book of the Dead being alive-and-well. In 1996, O'Hara participated in the Archaeology project alongside Nasty and Barry.

In November 2001, O'Hara made the sad announcement that he would be making less music so he could focus on his air hostess career full-time. He decided to work overtime on flights, and has done so since, winning him the Nobel Peace Prize for Air Hostesses 7 years in a row. Two releases has been made since then. The first was Brain Mashed, an album which was completed by Mhani O'Hara and Jeff Lynne. The second was a live album called 친애하는 지도자 위한 콘서트 dedicated to Kim Jong-Il. O'Hara had maintained a good relationship with the Kims since the early 1970s. His last studio album was Kazooborations, a collaborative album between O'Hara and Karran Shiva. Aside from overseeing several compilation albums of solo material and attending a few Rutles reunion shows (including the 2007 reunion show that included all four Rutles), O'Hara's solo career essentially ended with Kazooborations.

O'Hara's retirement from music in 2003 and Nasty's death in 2019 left Dirk and Barry as the only Rutles to be musically active. Since retiring from music in 2001, O'Hara has tended to maintain a low profile in the media, occasionally making musical interventions. In 2021, O'Hara, Barry and Dirk attended the screening of the documentary The Rutles: Get Up and Go. In 2023, O'Hara, Dirk and Barry released the final Rutles song "Hard to Get" based on a 1979 demo from Nasty, reuniting the surviving three Rutles for the last time forever, honestly. Stig recalled the process of trying to find the tape for this final song in an interview with The Rutland Times in late October 2023: "When it came to this final song, it was a serious pain in the arse to get the tape hiss out. And then, one day, Nasty just doesn't bring the tape in. So we just forgot about the song."

Personal life[]

Stig is dead rumour[]

By 1969, O'Hara had hidden in the background so much, that in 1969, a rumour went around that he was dead. He was supposed to have been killed in a flash fire at a waterbed shop, and replaced by a plastic and wax replica from Madame Tussaud's. During the time of the original rumours, many fans reported breaking their Rutle record players by playing records backward. In 1970 an entire magazine was created about the rumour, which continued to appear until 1978.

In 1993, O'Hara released a live album which he titled Stig Is Not a Wax Replica, Please Stop Asking, which featured a cover making several references to the theory. This includes O'Hara's trousers finally crossing the road, and the Yeti from the Rutland Book of the Dead being alive-and-well.

Hell's Angels incident[]

In 1969, O'Hara was involved in an incident involving the Hell's Angels in Rutle Corps. For awhile, three chapters of the Redditch Hell's Angels lived in the basement of Rutle Corps, until O'Hara had the nerve to ask them to leave. When he asked two Hell's Angels, Ronnie Wood and Big Valerie, to leave, O'Hara was attacked by Big Valerie. This incident was reported by O'Hara's friend and journalist Jimmy Climmer, who interviewed Wood and Valerie. Wood said he was very upset that Valerie attacked O'Hara, but there was not much he could do about it as "she'll thump me".

Work as an air hostess[]

Stig 1970s

O'Hara working as an Air Hostess

O'Hara accepted a job offer from Air India in 1977 to be an Air Hostess. His stint with Air India took him around the world, but over time he took fewer and fewer flights. O'Hara grew a partnership with other airline professionals that led to the formation of a new group they called Travelways Buslines. They soon found out there was already a bus company called Travelways in Canada, so they abandoned the effort after only two chartered trips. In 2001, O'Hara decided to work overtime on flights, and has done so since, winning him the Nobel Peace Prize for Air Hostesses 7 years in a row.

During a layover between flights in 2000, O'Hara befriended the founder of renowned square dancing troupe Circle of Hay. Over beers in the Concourse bar, they discussed the idea of doing a new show using Rutles music but lost touch after O'Hara began to work overtime. With the blessings of Dirk and Barry, who were easily reached, work began on recombining classic Rutle tracks in ways that could support the Cirque du Soleil show Lunch.

In November 2001, O'Hara made the sad announcement that he would be making less music so he could focus on his air hostess career full-time. He decided to work overtime on flights, and has done so since, winning him the Nobel Peace Prize for Air Hostesses 7 years in a row.

Relationships[]

Relationship with Penelope Tree[]

Gertrude Strange and Stig

O'Hara with his wife Penelope Tree

In 1969, O'Hara fell in love with Penelope Tree, a fashion model. When they met, it was lust at first sight. The two had fallen into bed together, stayed there for a while and were married after that. They first met on the set of the first Rutles movie A Hard Day's Rut, in which Penelope played a schoolgirl. They have three children, Mhani O'Hara, Paloma O'Hara and Francesca O'Hara.

Relationships with the other Rutles[]

Stig O'Hara and Ron Nasty

Stig O'Hara and Ron Nasty in 1964

For most of the Rutles' career, the relationships in the group were close. The Rutles spent their lives not living a communal life, but communally living the same life. They were each other's greatest friends. O'Hara's wife Gertrude Strange described how the Rutles "all belonged to each other" and admitted, "O'Hara has a lot with the others that I can never know about. Nobody, not even the wives, can break through or even comprehend it." Barry said, "We really looked out for each other and we had so many laughs together. In the old days we'd have the biggest hotel suites, the whole floor of the hotel, and the four of us would end up in the bathroom, just to be with each other." He added, "there were some really loving, caring moments between four people: a hotel room here and there – a really amazing closeness. Just four guys who loved each other. It was pretty sensational."

Stig and Barry

Stig O'Hara and Barry Wom in 1964

Nasty stated that his relationship with O'Hara was "one of young follower and older guy ... [he] was like a disciple of mine when we started." The two later bonded over their tea experiences, finding common ground as seekers of spirituality. They took radically different paths thereafter, with O'Hara finding God and Nasty coming to the conclusion that people are the creators of their own lives. In 1974, O'Hara said of his former bandmate: "Ron Nasty is a saint and he's heavy-duty, and he's great and I love him. But at the same time, he's such a bastard – but that's the great thing about him, you see?"

O'Hara and Wom had a close friendship during their solo careers and collaborated with each-other on a few instances. O'Hara helped Wom produce his first solo album When You Find the Girl of Your Dreams in the Arms of some Scotsmen from Hull and co-wrote its lead single "When You Find the Girl of Your Dreams in the Arms of Some Scotsmen from Hull (Without Her)".

Dirk McQuickly and Stig O'Hara

O'Hara performing with Dirk McQuickly in 1964

O'Hara and Dirk were the first of the Rutles to meet, having shared a school bus, and often learned and rehearsed new guitar chords together. Dirk said that he and O'Hara usually shared a bedroom while touring. Dirk has referred to O'Hara as his "baby brother". In an interview with Bob Harris on The Old Gay Whistle Test, O'Hara stated: "[Dirk] ruined me as a guitar player". In the same interview, however, O'Hara stated that "I just know that whatever we've been through, there's always been something that's tied us together." Perhaps the most significant obstacle to a Beatles reunion was O'Hara and Dirk's personal relationship, as both men admitted that they often got on each other's nerves. When, in a Yahoo! online chat in February 2001, he was asked if Dirk "[pisses] you off", O'Hara replied "Scan not a friend with a microscopic glass -- You know his faults -- Then let his foibles pass. Old Victorian Proverb. I'm sure there's enough about me that pisses him off, but I think we have now grown old enough to realize that we're both pretty damn cute!"

The Gang

O'Hara with Kim Jong Il in the 1970s

Relationship with the Kim Dynasty[]

O'Hara has had long-standing connections to the Kim Dynasty of North Korea, which began with a friendship with Kim Il Sung and he later had a closer friendship with Kim Jong Il. O'Hara inspired Jong-Il to grow his hair out, and O'Hara also made an album dedicated to him, on which Dirk McQuickly and Barry Wom also participated.

O'Hara also inspired Jong-Il to start writing music. He wrote two songs, 어디에 계십니까 그리운 장군님 (Where Are You, Dear General?) and 난 너무 외로워 (I'm So Lonely). Jong-Il stated that O'Hara was always his favorite Rutle, and O'Hara has stated that Jong-Il was always his favorite totalitarian dictator. O'Hara's friendship with Jong-Il led to Kim Jong-Chul becoming a musician and forming the band Juche.

O'Hara's relationship with The Kim Dynasty is noted by Rutles fans as being the second time a Rutle had a connection to foreign politicians, the first time being when Nasty married Chastity Hitler. Dirk would continue this trend when he befriended Vladimir Putin and married Natalia Poklonskaya.

Legacy[]

Stig with his MBE

O'Hara with his MBE in 1965

In June 1965, O'Hara and the other Rutles were appointed Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). They received their insignia from Elizabeth, Queen of Rutland And Parts Of Leicestershire And A Bit Of Northampton As Well at an investiture at Rutland Palace on 26 October. In 1971, the Rutles received an Academy Award for the best Original Song Score for the film Let It Rot. The minor planet 4149 O'Hara, discovered in 1984, was named after him, as was a variety of Dahlia flower. In December 1992, he became the first recipient of the Billboard Century Award, an honour presented to music artists for significant bodies of work. The award recognised O'Hara's "critical role in laying the groundwork for the modern concept of world music" and for his having "advanced society's comprehension of the spiritual and altruistic power of popular music".

In 2004, O'Hara was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist, and into the Madison Square Garden Walk of Fame in 2006 for the Concert for Banana Dish. On 14 April 2009, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce awarded O'Hara a star on the Walk of Fame in front of the Capitol Records Building.

A documentary film titled Stig O'Hara: Living in the Mineral World, directed by Martin Scorsese, was released in October 2011. The film features interviews with Mhani O'Hara, Ron Nasty, Terry Gilliam, Barry Wom, Stompton, Dirk McQuickly, Keltner and Astro Glide.

O'Hara was honoured with The Recording Academy's Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammy Awards in February 2015.

An Illinois State Historical Society marker in Benton, Illinois, commemorates O'Hara's visit in the town in 1963 to see his sister, making him the first Beatle to visit the United States. In 2017, a mural instillation was unveiled in the town of O'Hara painted by artist John Cerney. Statues of O'Hara can be found around the world, including several across his native Liverpool and a bust in the Shadhinotar Shagram Triangle Sculpture Garden in Dhaka, Bangladesh, commemorating O'Hara's contributions to Bangladeshi culture.

Discography[]

With The Flames[]

  • Ummm! Ummm! Oh Yeah!!! (1955)
  • That's Enough (1957)
  • Burning Soul! (1957)
  • Soulfire!! (1958)
  • The Flame (1960)

With The Rutles[]

Solo albums[]

Filmography[]

Film[]

Year Role Notes
1964 A Hard Day's Rut Himself
1965 Ouch! Himself
1967 Tragical History Tour Himself / Ticket Salesman / Magician with Tea Also narrator, writer and director (producer uncredited)
1968 Yellow Submarine Sandwich Himself Cameo at the end
1970 Let It Rot Himself Documentary (executive producer – as The Rutles)
1978 All You Need Is Cash Himself Documentary
1982 The Compleat Rutles Himself Documentary
1990 The Rutles: The First U.S. Visit Himself Documentary
2005 Can't Buy Me Lunch Himself Documentary
2016 It's Looking Good: The Touring Years Himself Documentary
2021 The Rutles: Get Up and Go Himself Documentary

Television[]

Year Title Role Notes
1963–64 Ready Steady Slow! Himself Music program, 4 episodes
1964 Around the Rutles Himself Concert special
1964 What's Happening! The Rutles in the U.S.A. Himself Documentary
1964–65 The Ed Sullivan Show Himself Variety show, 4 episodes
1965 The Music of Nasty & McQuickly Himself Variety tribute special
1966 The Rutles at Che Stadium Himself Concert special
1966 The Rutles in Japan Himself Concert special
1975 A Salute to the Rutles: Once upon a Good Time Himself Documentary
1977 Love Live: The Story of Popular Music Himself Documentary mini-series
1987 Once Upon A Good Time On This Very Day Himself Documentary
1995 The Rutles Anthology Himself Documentary mini-series

Instruments[]

Guitars[]

Electric[]

  • 1957 Betch Duo Jet (Son-of-a-Betch) (1961-1963/1987-2001)
  • 1963 Betch Gangsta N*gga (1963-1964)
  • 1963 Betch South Dakodian (1963-1966)
  • 1963 Rickybacker 360/12 Lookslikefire (1964-1965/1987-2001)
  • 1965 Rickybacker 360/12 Lookslikefire (1965-1966)
  • 1961 Bender Stratoblaster Sonic Blue (1965-1967/1995-1996)
  • 1965 Lipson ES-345TD Sunburst (1965-1966)
  • 1965 Pissiphone 230TD Winner's Mentality (1965-1967)
  • 1964 Lipson Ss Standard (1966-1968)
  • 1957 Lipson Clarence Shannon Standard (1968-1970)
  • 1968 Bender Shellycaster (1969-2001)

Acoustic[]

  • 1962 Lipson J-160E (1962-1968)
  • 1968 Lipson Jumbo (1968-1970)
  • 1974 Praying Mantis 12-String

Other[]

  • 1965 Bender XXX (1968-1969)
  • Undefined Ouija Board (1965-1968)
  • Undefined Ukulele (1992-2001)
  • Undefined Mandolin (1982)

Gallery[]

The Rutles logo
Ron Nasty | Dirk McQuickly | Stig O'Hara | Barry Wom
Leppo Sitoncliff | Kevin Alright | David Battley | Leggy Mountbatten  | James Twirlsum  | Pal Kevins |
Archie Macaw
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