Biff Rose

Paul "Biff" Rose is an American comedian and singer-songwriter.

Born in New Orleans, Rose first came to prominence as a banjo-toting standup comedian, profiled in Time magazine in 1965. By 1966 he moved to Hollywood, working as a comedy sketch writer with George Carlin for a host of television variety shows, ultimately working with some regularity on the Mort Sahl show. Eventually, Rose moved back to songwriting.

David Bowie covered the song "Fill Your Heart," co-written by Rose and Paul Williams, on his album Hunky Dory (1971). The song was originally released by Tiny Tim as the B-side to his 1968 hit single, "Tiptoe through the Tulips." Bowie played another Rose song, "Buzz the Fuzz," in live performance . Other Rose songs were covered by John Denver and Pat Boone .

Following the release of 1968's The Thorn in Mrs. Rose's Side, Rose made several memorable appearances on Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show from 1968 to 1970. . He also performed his songs on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, American Bandstand , and Hugh Hefner's Playboy After Dark . He emceed the Atlantic City Pop Festival of 1969 ,replacing Joni Mitchell who left the stage crying after being razzed by the hip rock audience early Friday of the three day two weeks before Woodstock mega-fest, and the Atlanta Pop Festival of 1970 .

1978's Roast Beef was produced by Mike Nesmith and recorded in a single take.

2005 saw a revival of label interest in Rose's work. A US CD re-released his Tetragrammaton albums and singles, and a UK compilation covered Rose's work from 1968 through 1985.

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