Born in 1940, Monmouth University alumnus Stephen Friedland performs under the name Brute Force. A lifelong singer-songwriter, Friedland began his musical journey a songwriter for Bright Tunes Productions at the behest of doo-wop group The Tokens, who had scored a hit with “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.” Friedland joined the band as their keyboard player. For Bright Tunes, Friedland composed the Chiffons’ 1965 hit “Nobody Knows What’s Goin’ On (in My Mind But Me).” He also composed hit songs for Del Shannon, Peggy March, and The Cyrkle.
In 1968, The Beatles famously invited musicians around the world to submit their work for consideration for release by Apple Records. Friedland answered the call with his original composition “The King of Fuh,” which has emerged as one of the most notorious songs in annals of Apple Records history. Against all odds, John Lennon and George Harrison opted to release the song, which tells the tongue-in-cheek story about a monarch toiling in the land of Fuh. Under Harrison’s supervision, the song was overdubbed with a string arrangement composed by John Barham. Given the song’s irreverent nature, EMI (Apple’s parent company) refused to distribute the single, of which only 1,000 copies were pressed. In 2010, more than four decades after its original rejection by EMI, “The King of Fuh” was released by Apple Records on the Come and Get It compilation. Friedland is currently developing a play titled Color Talk for production.
