Andrew Gold is chiefly recalled for the mid-1970s hits “Lonely Boy” and “Thank You for Being a Friend.” The pop singer-songwriter first established himself as one of the most in-demand session players on the West Coast rock circuit. His 1976 follow-up LP What’s Wrong with This Picture? marked his commercial arrival when it yielded the worldwide success “Lonely Boy.” Yet the track that has proved most lasting is the 1978 single “Thank You for Being a Friend,” which later served as the signature song for the popular sitcom The Golden Girls. Throughout the 1980s and afterward Gold kept releasing music, joined forces with former 10cc member Graham Gouldman in the duo Common Knowledge (subsequently renamed Wax UK), supplied the theme for the television series Mad About You, and reunited with his original group Bryndle.
Born in Burbank, California, on August 2, 1951, Gold was the child of composer Ernest Gold, who received an Academy Award for his Exodus film score, and vocalist Marni Nixon, who supplied the singing voice for Natalie Wood in West Side Story and for Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady. He first drew notice as a member of the Los Angeles band Bryndle, whose lineup also included Kenny Edwards, Wendy Waldman, and Karla Bonoff. In 1973 both Gold and Edwards became part of Linda Ronstadt’s band, contributing to the landmark albums Heart Like a Wheel (1974) and Prisoner in Disguise (1975). A gifted multi-instrumentalist and arranger, Gold quickly became one of the most sought-after session musicians on the West Coast, his credits with James Taylor, Carly Simon, Loudon Wainwright III, and J.D. Souther forming a virtual roster of the singer-songwriter era.
Gold issued his self-titled solo debut in 1975. The follow-up, What’s Wrong with This Picture?, brought commercial success through the international hit “Lonely Boy.” From the 1978 album All This and Heaven Too, the single “Never Let Her Slip Away” reached the British Top Five, yet the record’s most enduring cut remained “Thank You for Being a Friend,” the major ballad later adapted as the theme for The Golden Girls. Whirlwind (1980) failed to chart, resulting in the loss of Gold’s Asylum contract. After touring with Ronstadt in the early 1980s, he formed Common Knowledge with 10cc alumnus Graham Gouldman; the pair recorded a self-titled album in 1984. They later rebranded the project Wax UK, scoring a modest hit with “Right Between the Eyes” in 1986. “Bridge to Your Heart” became a British smash in 1987, but after A Hundred Thousand in Fresh Notes (1989) the duo disbanded.
Gold resumed his solo career with 1991’s Where the Heart Is, a collection of jingles originally created for Japanese commercials. He then concentrated on production, working with artists such as Nicolette Larson, Stephen Bishop, and Eikichi Yazawa. In 1995 he rejoined Bonoff, Edwards, and Waldman for a new edition of Bryndle that released an eponymous album before Gold’s relocation to Connecticut prompted his departure. The year 1996 brought both the solo album …Since 1951 and the children’s record Halloween Howls. Leftovers, a set of previously unreleased tracks, appeared in 1998.
After producing Lisa Angelle’s self-titled country debut in 2000, Gold issued his own country collection, The Spence Manor Suite. Wax Bikini (2003) gathered rare Wax material, and Collectors’ Choice Music reissued his first four solo albums with bonus tracks in 2005. The 2008 release Copy Cat consisted largely of covers, especially Lennon/McCartney songs, and was the final solo album issued during his lifetime. Following a battle with cancer, Andrew Gold died in his sleep at his Encino, California, home on June 3, 2011, at age 59.
In the 2010s Gold’s “Spooky Scary Skeletons” gained renewed life as an enduring Internet Halloween meme, leading to a 2019 reissue of Andrew Gold’s Halloween Howls. Omnivore issued Something New: Unreleased Gold, a compilation of demos and alternate versions, in 2020.
