Dragon - A Collection

 

Dragon is a New Zealand rock band which was formed in Auckland in January 1972, and, from 1975, based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The band was originally fronted by singer Graeme Collins, but rose to fame with singer Marc Hunter and is currently led by his brother, bass player and co-founder Todd Hunter. The group performed, and released material, under the name Hunter in Europe and the United States during 1987.

The name "Dragon" came from a consultation of I Ching cards by founder vocalist Graeme Collins.

Keyboard player Paul Hewson wrote or co-wrote most of the group's 1970's hits: "April Sun in Cuba" peaked at No. 9 in New Zealand and No. 2 in Australia; "Are You Old Enough?" reached No. 6 in New Zealand and No. 1 in Australia in 1978; and "Still in Love With You" reached No. 35 and No. 27 in each country respectively that same year. Later hits, from when the band re-grouped in the 1980's, were written by other band members, often working with outside associates: The Hunter brothers, with Todd's partner, Johanna Pigott, wrote "Rain", a No. 2 hit in 1983, while other, more minor hits were written by the Hunters and/or Alan Mansfield, frequently in collaboration with any combination of Pigott, Mansfield's partner Sharon O'Neill, Marc Hunter's partner Wendy Hunter, or producers Todd Rundgren and David Hirschfelder.

Dragon were a premiere live act in their heyday, and released a stack of classic singles. As Australian rock historian Ian McFarlane writes, ‘Dragon were one of the most popular and notorious acts on the Australian scene … the band earned a reputation for fierce live shows, arrogant behaviour and a decadent lifestyle.’

Universal Radio -1974

Scented Gardens For the Blind - 1975

Sunshine - 1977

Running Free - 1977

O Zambezi - 1978

Greatest Hits Vol.1 - 1979

    

                                      Power Play - 1979                                         

Body and The Beat - 1984

Live One - 1985

Dreams Of Ordinary Men - 1986

Bondi Road - 1989

Cuts From the Tough Times - 1990

Incarnations - 1995

Sunshine To Rain - 2006

The Essential - 2007

Remembers - 2009

It's All Too Beautiful - 2011

Jo Jo Zep and The Falcons - A Collection

 

One of the more popular Australian bands of their day, Jo Jo Zep and the Falcons was primarily a vehicle for frontman Joe Camilleri, who assembled the group in Melbourne in 1976. The band's lineup fluctuated regularly over the years; in addition to Camilleri, the nucleus consisted of guitarists Jeff Burstin and Tony Faehse, bassist John Power, saxophonist Wilbur Wilde and drummer Gary Young. 

At the outset, the Falcons were a gritty, sax-powered R&B unit -- a sound dominant on their 1976 debut LP Don't Waste It -- but they remained wildly unpredictable in the years to follow, moving from genre to genre with ease. Whip It Out appeared in 1977; in 1979 the Falcons moved to the Mushroom label, soon issuing the LP Screaming Targets. However, after 1980's Hats Off Step Lively fared poorly, the band kept a low profile for several years before announcing their retirement in 1983. 

They reunited in 2003 for the album "Ricochet".

Don't Waste It (1976)

Whip It Out (1977)

Live, Loud and Clear (1978 Live EP)

So Young (1978)

Jo Jo Zep and The Falcons (UK compilation)

Screaming Targets (1979 w/bonus live EP)

Hats Off Step Lively (1980)

Dexterity (1981 mini LP)

Cha (1982)

The Sound Of..Jo Jo Zep and The Falcons (1983)

Ricochet (2003)

I'm In A Dancing Mood..The Best Of Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons (2007)

Screaming Targets (expanded edition 2014)

The Sports - A Collection

 

The Sports were an Australian rock group which performed and recorded between 1976 and 1981. Mainstay members were Stephen Cummings on lead vocals and Robert Glover on bass guitar, with long-term members such as Paul Hitchins on drums, Andrew Pendlebury on lead guitar and vocals, and Martin Armiger on guitar. Their style was similar to both 1970s British pub rock bands (such as Brinsley Schwarz) and British new wave (such as Elvis Costello). 

The Sports' top forty singles are "Who Listens to the Radio", "Don't Throw Stones", "Strangers on a Train" and "How Come" . Their top 20 releases on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart are Don't Throw Stones (February 1979), Suddenly (March 1980) and Sondra (May 1981).

In October 2010 Don't Throw Stones was listed in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums.

Fair Game EP (1977)

Reckless (1978)

Don't Throw Stones (1979)

O.K. U.K.! EP (1979)

Poor Mouth (single, 1980)

Suddenly (1980)

Sondra (1981)

The Sports Play Dylan (and Donovan) (1981 EP)

All Sports (1982, Compilation)

This Is Really Something (1997, Compilation)

Skyhooks - A Collection

 

Skyhooks were an Australian rock band formed in Melbourne in 1973. Their classic lineup (1974–1977) comprised Graeme "Shirley" Strachan (vocals), Greg Macainsh (bass and backing vocals), Red Symons (guitar, vocals, keyboards), Bob "Bongo" Starkie (guitar and backing vocals), and Imants "Freddie" Strauks (drums).

Known for their flamboyant costumes and makeup, their music addressed a variety of issues including drugs, sex, and the gay scene while frequently referencing Australian places and culture. Evolving from a series of groups with Macainsh and Strauks in the late 1960s and early 1970s, they rose to national prominence when their debut album Living in the 70's (1974), which was initially a moderate success upon release, gained unprecedented popularity the following year, aided by the nascent ABC music show Countdown; the album topped the Australian Kent Music Report chart for a record-breaking 16 weeks and sold over 200,000 copies, becoming the best-selling Australian album at the time. Their second album Ego Is Not a Dirty Word (1975) topped the Kent Music Report for 11 weeks.

Symons and Strachan left in 1977 and 1978 respectively and became media personalities; Symons was replaced with Bob Spencer and Strachan was replaced with Tony Williams, before they disbanded in 1980. The classic lineup reunited four times in the ensuing years, with reunions in 1990 and 1994 producing new material, including the number-one song "Jukebox in Siberia" in 1990. Strachan died in a helicopter crash in 2001; original lead singer Steve Hill, who left and was replaced by Strachan, died in 2005, and original guitarist Peter Starkie died in 2020.

Music historian Ian McFarlane stated that the band "made an enormous impact on Australian social life". In 1992, the group was inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame. In 2011, the Skyhooks album Living in the 70's was added to the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia's Sounds of Australia registry.

Living In The 70's (1974)

Ego Is Not A Dirty Word (1975)

Straight In a Gay Gay World (1976)

The Skyhooks Tapes (1977)

Guilty Until Proven Insane (1978)

Live! Be In It (1978)

The Best of Skyhooks (1979)

Hot For the Orient (1980)

Live In The 80's (1983)

Living In The 70's (1984 reissue)

Red Symons - The Big Time (1987 single)

Skyhooks Flexidisc (1988)

The Latest and Greatest (1990)

Happy Hippy Hut / Ballad Of Oz (1994 single)

Skyhooks/Daddy Cool

Singles And B Sides (1994)

The Collection (1999)

Don't You Believe What You've Seen Or You've Heard (2015)

Hits'N'Riffs (2015)