Judith Anne Stone AM (born 1 January 1942) grew up in the Sydney suburb of Granville. She has two younger sisters, Joyce and Janice. From a young age she sang country music at home and her parents bought her a guitar, which she learned to play. In her early teens Stone entered and won a local talent contest and was noticed by an attendee, Reg Lindsay. By November 1956 she had joined his touring performance troupe, the Reg Lindsay Show, and stayed for 18 months. In July 1957 a reviewer of Lindsay's show in Cabramatta for The Biz wrote that "Little Judy Stone, of Granville, was very pleasing in her turn."
Stone hired Kevin Jacobsen as her talent agent. She described meeting him, "I used to sing, with a heavy guitar, Western style numbers. Once I met Kevin he gave me one instruction: 'Throw that guitar out the window.' Although I did not throw it out any window, I am now singing without any of my own musical accompaniment." Jacobsen's older brother, Col Joye, was an established pop singer and regular performer on Bandstand, a TV music show. Stone supported his group, Col Joye and the Joy Boys, on their tours of South Australia, Victoria and Queensland. Stone, as a young performer, had been billed as "The Cowgirl from Granville" but on her first appearance on Bandstand she was mistakenly announced as "The Callgirl from Granville". By May 1961 she had also appeared on other TV music shows, Teen Time and Six O'Clock Rock and supported Jimmie Rodgers on his tour of Australia in August.
Jacobsen had Stone signed with Festival Records and in June 1961 she issued her debut single, "You're Driving Me Mad" – a cover version of the 1958 song by United States singer, Jo Ann Campbell. For the track she was backed by the Joy Boys. In August she relocated to Melbourne, for three months, to appear on Graham Kennedy's In Melbourne Tonight variety TV show. She expected that "While in Melbourne most of my shows will be adult performances, which will be a change from the present teenagers' shows." She also supported Cliff Richard and The Shadows. Her second single, "I'll Step Down", was released in February 1962 and became a top 10 hit in Sydney and top 20 in Brisbane. The Biz' correspondent compared it to her earlier single, "Although very different to 'You're Driving Me Mad', this still possesses the inimitable style of this great little local star." Also, in that year Stone issued her debut album, 'I'll Step Down', on Festival.
In 1963 she recorded "It Takes a Lot (To Make Me Cry)" on which the Bee Gees (Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb) sing backup vocals; it was released as a single in July and she was a support act for Chubby Checker's tour. Her seventh single, "4,003,221 Tears from Now", was released in April 1964. It was a cover version of the 1963 single by US singer Kerri Downs (aka Mary Lou Kiernan). According to Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, it "became Stone's most popular release of the 1960s. The heart-wrenching ballad peaked at #8 in Sydney and #7 in Melbourne." Aside from her solo releases, Stone was often teamed with Col Joye in duets for singles, extended plays and albums. McFarlane found their work "contained cutesy material like 'Young and Healthy', 'Angry' and 'Side by Side'." In early 1965 Stone with Col Joye and the Joy Boys undertook a tour of Japan for two months. Stone left Festival and joined Col Joye's label ATA and in September 1966 she covered "Born a Woman" by US singer, Sandy Posey. It was a top 10 hit in Sydney.
From the late 1960s and into the early 1970s Stone consolidated on her early pop successes with regular appearances on the club and country music circuits. She supported Johnny Mathis on his tour in 1974. Later singles included, "Mare Mare Mare" (January 1974 #22), "Would You Lay with Me (In a Field of Stone)" which was her biggest hit of the 70s (June 1974 #2), "Silver Wings and Golden Rings" (1975 #39) and "Hasta Mañana" (1976 #40). In January 1992 Stone was diagnosed with throat cancer, which was removed by surgery. In 2007 Stone performed a duet with Scottish singer-songwriter Isla Grant on the track "What's a Girl to Do?" for Grant's album, 'Down Memory Lane'. On the Queen's Birthday Honours List of June 2006, Stone was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia, with the citation, "For service to the community as an entertainer at fundraising events for a range of charitable organisations, and as a singer." In January 2014 she was made Australia Day Ambassador for regional celebrations in Laurieton, Wauchope and Port Macquarie.
Finders Keepers (1962)
01. Judy Stone - Finders Keepers
02. Judy Stone - I'm Confessin' (That I Love You)
03. Judy Stone - I Wanna Love You
04. Judy Stone - Where Are You
Italian Style (1969)
01. Judy Stone - Quelli Erano I Giorni (Those Were The Days)
02. Judy Stone - Gli Occhi Miei (My Eyes)
03. Judy Stone - Dio Come, Ti Amo (Oh How Much I Love You)
04. Judy Stone - Non H'Leta (This Is My Prayer)
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