Huey Lewis

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Biography

Singer-songwriter, rock musician

  • Aliases
  • Hugh Anthony Cregg III·Hugh Anthony Cregg·Hugh Cregg
  • Primary profession
  • Soundtrack·actor·composer
  • Country
  • United States
  • Nationality
  • American
  • Gender
  • Male
  • Birth date
  • 05 July 1950
  • Place of birth
  • New York City
  • Education
  • Cornell University

Music

Lyrics

Movies

Books

Trivia

He is the leader of Huey Lewis & The News.

Attended Monte Vista High School in Danville, CA.

Has two children, son Austin and daughter Kelly.

Scored a perfect 800 on his math SATs.

In 1967 he graduated from Lawrenceville Prep at the age of 16 in Lawrenceville, New Jersey.

His parents divorced when he was 13.

He has a brother named Jeff.

Huey dropped out of Cornell University to spend a year living in Europe playing the harp.

Attended Cornell University, majoring in engineering, but dropped out after his junior year, because he was in a band called Clover and they were preparing for rock stardom. Clover (minus Huey Lewis) provided the instrumentals for Elvis Costello s debut album, "My Aim Is True".

When the band "Clover" broke up, he formed Huey Lewis & The News , the so-called 80s Band.

Huey Lewis successfully sued Ray Parker Jr. for plagiarizing the medley to his song "I Want A New Drug". They settled out of court and agreed not to talk about the case in public. In 2001, Lewis talked about the case in public when he revealed that Parker paid to settle the suit on an episode of VH1s "Behind the Music" . Parker then sued Lewis for violating the terms of their agreement.

Enjoys playing golf.

On the song "Hip to be Square", from the album "Fore!", the backup singers at the end of the song include San Fransisco 49er stars Dwight Clark , Ronnie Lott and Joe Montana.

The original name of his band was "Huey Lewis and the American Express". It was later changed to Huey Lewis & The News , due to legal reasons.

Huey Lewis & The News won the British Phonographic Industry Award for International Group in 1986.

Contrary to popular belief, Lewis did not forbid "Hip To Be Square" from being included on the CD soundtrack release of the movie American Psycho . He licensed the song for use in the film, but the producers failed to secure the appropriate rights to put it on the soundtrack, forcing it to be recalled and the song removed (though early pressings had already been shipped to stores and sold).

During an interview, he said that he learned how to play the harmonica while hitchhiking across Europe.

According to a "Behind the Music" interview, his favorite album he ever recorded was "Small World" , which was a commercial failure.

Played in a band called Clover prior to forming the News.

Played as a backing harmonica musician for Thin Lizzy , and for their vocalist, Phil Lynott , on Phils solo recordings. Lewis is the harmonica player on the now-legendary Thin Lizzy live album, "Live and Dangerous".

Tattoo (Givin It All Up For Love), on the Picture This album (Hueys second album), is a cover of a Phil Lynott song (whom he had played with prior to forming the News).

Has a small cameo in Back to the Future , a film for which he also contributed two songs.

His father, Hugh Anthony Cregg Jr., was an American of Irish ancestry, and his mother, Maria Magdalena, was from Warsaw, Poland.

"The Power of Love" from Back to the Future earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.

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