Graham Russell & Russell Hitchcock met on May 12, 1975, the first day of rehearsals for “Jesus Christ Superstar” in Sydney, Australia; they became instant friends with their common love for The Beatles, and quickly gained a reputation for their harmonies and for original songs that Graham was constantly writing. They made a demo on a cassette of two songs, “Love and Other Bruises” and “If You Knew Me” and took it to every record company in Sydney. Every company turned it down but one — CBS Records — who admired their unique style.

They made a single in one afternoon and it shot to number one on the national charts. That same year, they opened for Rod Stewart across Australia and then throughout the U.S. and Canada playing all of the famous huge venues before Rod would take the stage. They found new fans, but did not break the U.S. market.

Back in Australia they had to start again and made a record called Life Support. On this record was “Lost in Love,” which went Top 10 in Australia and found its way to music industry executive Clive Davis in New York.

Davis immediately signed Air Supply to Arista Records and in 1980, and “Lost in Love” rose to the top of the charts. The second, “All Out of Love,” sold even faster.

Seven top-five singles later, Air Supply had equaled The Beatles’ run of consecutive top five singles. The albums Lost in Love, The One That You Love, Now & Forever, and The Greatest Hits sold in excess of 20 million copies. “Lost in Love” was named Song of the Year in 1980, and, with the other singles, sold more than 10 million copies.

In 2013, the duo was inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association’s Hall of Fame. Air Supply celebrated their 40th anniversary in 2015 and they continue to delight audiences all over the world.