In 1962, Asher and Waller began working formally as
Peter and Gordon. Their first (and biggest) hit was the 1964
Lennon/McCartney song "
A World Without Love". Asher's sister Jane was, in the mid-1960s, the girlfriend of
Paul McCartney. Through this connection, Asher and Waller were given three unrecorded Lennon/McCartney songs to perform. Asher later read philosophy at
King's College London. In 1965, he was
best man when singer
Marianne Faithfull married
John Dunbar in
Cambridge. The album was not a success, but Asher was so convinced that Taylor held great potential that he resigned his post at Apple to move to the United States and work as Taylor's manager. Asher produced
Paul Jones' rendition of the
Bee Gees' "
And the Sun Will Shine" which was released as a single (only in the UK). He also produced a number of Taylor's recordings from 1970 to 1985, including
Sweet Baby James, Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon, JT and
Flag.
1970s–1980s In the early 1970s, Asher also managed the country rock band, Country, which recorded for
Atlantic Records through its subsidiary Clean Records, featuring Michael Fondiler and
Tom Snow, who has since become a songwriter. For a time, Asher also managed James Taylor's sister
Kate Taylor. When she decided to leave the business, she recommended him to
Linda Ronstadt at which point Asher became Ronstadt's manager. Asher achieved his greatest success producing a long string of multi-platinum albums for James Taylor, including
Sweet Baby James,
JT and
Flag, and for Linda Ronstadt, including
Heart Like a Wheel;
Simple Dreams;
Living in the USA; ''
What's New; Canciones De Mi Padre; and Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind''. By producing records for Ronstadt,
JD Souther,
Andrew Gold and
Bonnie Raitt, Peter Asher played a significant role in shaping the
Californian rock sound during the 1970s. He was also one of the original partners in the
Roxy Theatre in
West Hollywood, which he opened on 23 September 1973 with
Elmer Valentine,
Lou Adler, and original partners
David Geffen and
Elliot Roberts. In 1976, Asher and Waller performed for the annual New York "
Beatlefest" and played a few other dates. In the 1980s, Asher also worked on hit albums for artists as diverse as
Cher and
10,000 Maniacs.
1990–2010 In February 1995, Asher was named Senior Vice-President of
Sony Music Entertainment. At the beginning of 2002, Asher left Sony and returned full-time to the management of artists' careers as co-President of Sanctuary Artist Management. In January 2005 he was named President, the position he held until September 2006, when he resigned. In 2007 Asher joined forces with his friend
Simon Renshaw (who manages the
Dixie Chicks) at the company Simon founded, Strategic Artist Management. Strategic has grown into a dominant force in the entertainment industry, now managing artists in many fields of endeavour beyond just music – one of Asher's clients is
Pamela Anderson. Asher also reunited with James Taylor as the producer of the
Live at the Troubadour reunion album recorded in 2007, with
Carole King and Taylor's original band. During 2005 and 2006, Peter and Gordon reformed for occasional concerts. However, Waller died in 2009 and in its obituary,
The Times observed that "Waller was thought more handsome than the slightly nerdish looking Asher". Asher was quoted as saying actor
Mike Myers patterned his
Austin Powers character after Asher's appearance,
Current In 2011, Asher was the executive producer of the
Listen to Me: Buddy Holly compilation album and also music supervisor, producer, and co-host of the
Buddy Holly: Listen to Me; The Ultimate Buddy Party PBS Pledge Special. Performed and filmed in front of a live audience the
Buddy Holly tribute concert aired as
PBS Pledge Special in December 2011 and May and June 2012. The Special received the highest 2012 Silver Telly Award in the Category of TV Programs, Segments, or Promotional Pieces. Asher was appointed
Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to the British music industry. In May 2017, Asher debuted a weekly, hour-long series on the
Sirius XM Radio station for The Beatles called "From Me To You". He also announced with commentary the Top 100 Beatles countdown "All Together Now" on The Beatles Channel that first aired on Sirius XM Radio on the Labor Day Weekend in 2017, and is frequently replayed. Since 2016, Peter Asher has been playing shows, including one at the
Edmonton Folk Music Festival, as part of a duo with
Albert Lee that showcases songs from both their careers. He currently resides in Venice, California. In 2018, Asher began performing with
Jeremy Clyde of
Chad & Jeremy fame. ==Personal life==