By Gary Bennett
Air Supply, the sentimental balladeers of ‘80s power love songs, brings all their romantic hits to the Weinberg Center for the Arts on Wednesday, June 3 at 7:30 p.m. The concert promises all their legendary hits plus some original music from their new album.
In the 1980s, there was never any mistaking the iconic music of Air Supply. They were that distinctive and that good.
Their love songs either wallowed in heartache or soared triumphantly in bliss. They perfected their craft so totally that there didn’t have to be anything else. They proudly inherited the reliable love-song hit-maker mantle from the likes of Barry Manilow, Barry White and Al Green from the ‘70s.
As far as best duos ever, they’re easily above Hall and Oates, Loggins and Messina and Seals and Crofts — but perhaps just a notch behind all-time greats Simon and Garfunkel, The Everly Brothers and The Carpenters.
ORIGINS
English singer-songwriter and guitarist Graham Russell and Australian singer Russell Hitchcock comprise Air Supply. They formed the group along with a backing band in Melbourne, Australia in 1975 while singing in the chorus of the Australian production of “Jesus Christ Superstar.”
“We’ve always had a great band with us but, really, it’s just Russell [Hitchcock] and me as Air Supply,” said Graham Russell. “In the very early years, it would just be the two of us playing acoustically. We’d play little clubs after ‘Superstar.’ The two of us became very good at playing together.”
Forming a band in 1975 was a no-brainer, according to Graham Russell.
“We had so much in common when we met — born three days apart, have very similar names, and we both loved the Beatles. We saw them when we were 14. I’ve always been a songwriter and when I heard Russell’s voice I thought, ‘Oh, here we go. This is the voice I need for my songs.’ It just fell into place so naturally. Russell doesn’t write songs. He just wanted to sing. And I just wanted to write songs. So, it was the perfect scenario. I said ‘let’s form a band’ and he said ‘okay, let’s do it.’ It was that simple.”
NAME THAT BAND
Coming up with a name for the band was not so simple, however.
If you thought the name “Air Supply” was a carefully invented phrase designed to connote love being in the air with Graham and Russell supplying it, you would be wrong. That was a popular misconception in the early ‘80s. Instead, Graham recounts how a pressing deadline and a strange dream led to the iconic name.
“Our first record was coming out and we didn’t have a name. The record company said, ‘You’ve got to have a name by the morning because we’re going to press the record.’ Nobody knew who we were, of course. That night I had a dream and saw a big giant billboard with flashing lights all around it. And in the middle were two words in big, black letters — Air Supply. I told Russell the next morning about this weird dream and the two words and he said ‘let’s go with it.’ So, we went with it and it just clicked. It became synonymous with our kind of music. We were never strong planners; we kind of let the universe unfold. We are blessed in this weird way.”
CELEBRATING THE BIG 5-0
Air Supply is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2025 and 2026 with a worldwide tour and new album, “A Matter of Time,” their first album of new music in 15 years.
Graham Russell is proud of the new album. “We both believe it’s the best album we’ve ever made. Whether people hear it or not, I don’t know, but that’s not important to us because we wanted to make one more and this will be the last. It’s a beautiful, beautiful record and we’re very proud of it. We wanted to go out in a really nice way.”
Prolific tourers throughout their career, Graham and Russell will have played sold-out concerts across North America, Australia, Europe, Asia and South America before landing in Frederick on June 3. “Our first show in Buenos Aires in May will make 5,700 shows we’ve played in our career. I think that’s more than any other band in history, but I’m not sure. We simply love to play!” said Graham Russell.
UNMISTAKABLE MUSICAL STYLE
Air Supply caught lightning in a bottle by becoming synonymous with ‘80s love songs. Their reliably romantic hits tugged relentlessly at the heartstrings of fans. They didn’t set out to be that type of band. It just happened, according to Graham Russell.
“We never sat down and said ‘let’s go down this romantic love songs lane.’ That was just the kind of people we were and the songs that I wrote. I’ve always been this way since I was 13. I’ve always written very romantic songs. But consequently, people latched onto it. They’re very passionate and very emotional, bordering on the spiritual. We don’t have to work really hard at it. It’s just there all the time.”
Air Supply’s biggest fans are known as Air Heads. Graham Russell is appreciative of their devotion. “The fans seem to stick with us for years and years. There are millions and millions around the world. It’s become this kind of enterprise of romantic music. It’s quite amazing.”
Graham Russell is the songwriter and guitarist of the two. He is widely respected in songwriting circles for his heartfelt lyrics and tender music. Russell Hitchcock is the lead singer, known for his crisp, soaring and emotional vocals. His sweet and sentimental tenor makes Air Supply instantaneously recognizable and a staple of adult contemporary radio.
FAST FRIENDS
Graham insists he and Russell get along famously, having never argued in their 50-plus-year friendship and partnership. “No, we have never had words. People don’t believe it, but if you think about it, Russell just wants to sing, and I just want to write the songs. I have no desire to be a lead singer. I sing on a lot of things but I’m not the lead singer. So, there’s no competition with us.”
“When we’re ready to make an album, I come along with about 30 songs and we go through them all and we record what we think is right for the moment. Russell always has first go at every song but quite often he’ll say ‘no, you should sing this.’ That was the case with ‘All Out of Love.’ It was supposed to be him singing all of it, but he said, ‘no, you should sing the verse’ and I did and the rest became history.”
Graham has a hard time understanding why some groups don’t get along.
“It’s weird because there were so many artists from our time — Hall and Oates included — that just don’t like each other. Simon and Garfunkel and the Eagles — they can’t stand each other. To us, that’s kind of weird because with our kind of music, which is professing staying together, love and romance, it would be too weird if we were at each other’s throats all the time. We have great respect for each other. I’ve known him for so long. We know each other backwards and forward. So, why argue?”
HIT MAKERS
Air Supply’s discography is beyond impressive.
Their string of consecutive top hits reads like a who’s who of romantic music. First came “Lost in Love” in 1980. The associated album, also called “Lost in Love,” was released in March and contained two other top-five U.S. singles: “Every Woman in the World” and “All Out of Love.”
In July 1981 Air Supply released the album “The One That You Love,” with the title track reaching number one soon after — the group’s only number-one song. The album produced two more U.S. top-five hits: “Here I Am (Just When I Thought I Was Over You)” and “Sweet Dreams.”
The album “Now and Forever” was released in June 1982 and continued the group’s dominance of the U.S. charts with the top-five hit “Even the Nights Are Better” and two top-40 singles, “Young Love” and “Two Less Lonely People in the World.”
In 1983 they released their first compilation album, “Air Supply’s Greatest Hits,” which included a new smash hit single, “Making Love Out of Nothing at All,” that reached number two on the charts. Fans unfamiliar with Air Supply but wishing to sample their one-of-a-kind musical prowess should start there.
In 1985 the band released a self-titled album that included their last top-20 U.S. hit, “Just as I Am.” In 1986 they had their final charting hit, “Lonely Is the Night,” from the album “Hearts in Motion.”
All told, Air Supply racked up total record sales of over 100 million worldwide, including an astounding eight top-five hits in just six years and 11 total top-40 hits during that span.
Among their top honors are the 1982 American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Duo or Group and induction into the Australian Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013. In 2026 they are due to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and a biopic and Broadway musical about their career are in the works.
When asked why their songs are so enduring, Graham Russell paused, searching for an answer, before thoughtfully responding. “I think because they have an emotional element in them that people recognize. The songs are so simple. ‘Lost in Love,’ for instance, has four chords. There’s something in the songs that pulls at the heartstrings. I know what it is but I don’t know how it comes. I just write them that way. I had a very emotional childhood growing up and I think that really washed over me. I love poetry and reading so those elements come into the songs. The very romantic descriptions of things are always there.”
Gary Bennett is a longtime Frederick resident who spends his time hiking, biking, volunteering and providing childcare for grandchildren. He is married and retired from his career as a nonprofit marketing executive.
