Darryl Cotton

Darryl Cotton
Cotton in 1997
Background information
Birth nameDarryl Grant Cotton
Born(1949-09-04)4 September 1949
Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Died27 July 2012(2012-07-27) (aged 62)
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
GenresRock, pop
Occupations
  • Singer-songwriter
  • actor
  • television presenter
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar
Years active1965–2012
Labels
Formerly of

Darryl Grant Cotton (4 September 1949 – 27 July 2012) was an Australian pop, rock singer-songwriter, television presenter and actor. He was a founding member of Australian rock group Zoot in 1965, with Beeb Birtles, and were later joined by Rick Brewer and Rick Springfield. As a solo artist Cotton released the albums, Best Seat in the House (1980), It's Rock 'n' Good Fun (1984) and Let the Children Sing (1994). In April 1980 his biggest solo hit, "Same Old Girl", which was co-written by Cotton, peaked at No. 6 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart. He acted in the TV soap opera, The Young Doctors (1979), and on stage as Joseph in the theatre production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat (1983).

He presented TV shows, Summer Rock (1979 and 1980) and The Early Bird Show (1985 to 1989). In 1996 he formed Burns Cotton & Morris with fellow 1960s pop singers, Ronnie Burns and Russell Morris. In 2000 Burns retired from the trio and, with Jim Keays, they became Cotton Keays & Morris. In May 2012, Cotton was diagnosed with liver cancer and died on 27 July 2012, aged 62.