The Aussie Music Blog: Blues

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Sunday, May 22, 2016

Chain...Two of A Kind...1973 album

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Thursday, March 31, 2016

Matt Taylor...Straight As A Die...1973 album from Aussie blues legend

Matt Taylor was born in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1948. Taylor began listening to blues records in high school, and taught himself the guitar and harmonica. In February 1966 he joined the Bay City Union, one of Australia’s first electric blues bands. They moved to Melbourne in December 1966 and achieved some success playing in dance halls and clubs. They recorded a single "Mo’reen" and "Mary Mary" released on the Festival label in 1968. Among the other members of this band was Glenn Wheatley, who was also their manager.

The Bay City Union broke up in May 1968. Taylor joined the Wild Cherries in October 1968, but left the following month. During 1969 and 1970, he played with progressive heavy rock / blues bands Horse and Genesis (not the UK prog band of the same name).

From September 1970 to October 1971, Taylor was the front-man for the blues band Chain, which had a hit single ("Black and Blue") and album ("Toward the Blues") during this period. He then quit the music industry and went to live on a commune led by Fred and Mary Robinson at Beechworth.

In 1973 he returned to the music scene as a solo artist, releasing three albums over the next three years, and scoring a major hit with the single "I Remember When I Was Young". He was one of the first artists to record for Mushroom Records, and was managed by Michael Gudinski.

"Straight As A Die" was released in 1973 and features prominent Australian guitarist Phil Manning.

See previous posts: Chain, Towards the Blues / The Wild Cherries, That's Life

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Thursday, December 17, 2015

Renee Geyer...It's A Man's Man's World..1974 album

Renée Geyer is an Australian singer who has long been regarded as one of the finest exponents of jazz, soul and R'n'B idioms. She had commercial success as a solo artist in Australia, with "It's a Man's Man's World", "Heading in the Right Direction" and "Stares and Whispers" in the 1970s and "Say I Love You" in the 1980s. Geyer has also been an internationally respected and sought-after backing vocalist, whose session credits include work with Sting, Chaka Khan, Toni Childs and Joe Cocker.

Rock historian Ian McFarlane described her as having a "rich, soulful, passionate and husky vocal delivery". Geyer's iconic status in the Australian music industry was recognised when she was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame on 14 July 2005, alongside The Easybeats, Hunters & Collectors, Smoky Dawson, Split Enz and Normie Rowe.

"It's A Man's Man's World" was her second album, released in 1974 to critical acclaim.

See also previous post "first album"

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Saturday, April 11, 2015

Isaiah B Brunt new album release "Just the Way It Goes" recorded in New Orleans

Isaiah B Brunt has been a top Aussie production guy, and former studio owner of Darling Harbor studios, who's worked along side some of Australia's top groups including solo projects by Rob Hirst, Midnight Oil, Steve Prestwich, Cold Chisel, Julio Iglesias and his Orchestra, American Idols Randy Jackson and Goo Goo Dolls have rehearsed there during Australian tours. Not only has Isaiah been behind the board for globally upper echelon bands he's been a go-to side man for bands touring down under like the time Keanu Reeves band Dog Star hit Sydney and Isaiah recorded them aiding them on their shows around Sydney.

All the while he was working with other peoples music, Isaiah always knew where his heart lay. The same place it first was when he heard his father strum the ukulele, blow harmonica and unleash the lap steel. Isaiah was the 2010 Sydney Blues Society's Performer of the Year and some of you may have caught him at the 2011 IBC, probably the best dressed cat in Memphis and good enough musically to be one of the very few to be reviewed in The Memphis Daily.

See more on his website HERE

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Chain..Toward the Blues...Classic Album from 1971

Any student of Australian rock music would be hard-pressed to argue against the pure fact that, since its inception in the late sixties, Chain has remained our foremost blues-rock band. In keeping with its hallowed name, there are many links to the Chain story…throughout its six year heyday over the early seventies the band, in its many permutations, commanded an undisputed dominance in the blues idiom. Chain has seen many varied line-ups, no less than 40+ different musicians passing through its ranks. There isn't enough space on this humble little blog to tell the full Chain story, even in a brief form, so I'll just give the starting point and you can go to Milseago for the complete story.

Over the years, Perth has provided the setting for a thriving blues-rock scene, spawning many future stalwarts of the idiom who have gone onto greater national success. The original Chain grew out of this hotbed, forming from the ashes of The Beaten Tracks, who won the Perth heat of the 1967 Hoadley's Battle Of The Sounds. The band at that time comprised Warren Morgan (keys), Dave Hole (guitar), Ace Follington (dr), Murray Wilkins (bs) and Ross Partington (vcls); they moved to Melbourne in early 1968 to avail themselves of their prize, ostensibly recording and touring opportunities in the eastern states.

While in Melbourne, Dave Hole (long recognised as one of Australia's top blues perfprmers) quit The Beaten Tracks, to be replaced by Tasmanian guitarist Phil Manning (formerly of Tony Worsley & the Blue Jays, The Laurie Allen Revue and Bay City Union, among others) and the band returned to Perth, where they lost the services of Partington.

A return to Melbourne in December 1968 saw the group recruit ex-James Taylor Move singer Wendy Saddington, and the first incarnation of (The) Chain was established. Saddington was a blues/soul 'belter' in the vein of Janis Joplin and Aretha Franklin, and it was she who came up with the band's name, derived from Aretha's classic hit, "Chain Of Fools". Sadly, this line-up of Chain never recorded, Saddington having departed by May 1969 to join Copperwine, and later to forge an erratic but compelling solo career.

Chain relocated to Sydney in August and recruited bass player Tim Piper (ex-Chants R&B, Electric Heap, Wild Cherries) and legendary blind keyboardist Claude Papesch (who was also from Electric Heap, and who had been a member of Johnny Devlin & The Devils in New Zealand in the early '60s). This line-up stayed together long enough to record Chain's first single for Festival with house producer Pat Aulton -- "Show Me Home" b/w Morgan's "Mr Time", which was released in September. The single, while not a strong charter, convincingly displayed the group's abilities, and showed the strong and unmistakable influence of The Band -- who profoundly affected so many Aussie acts at the time -- as well as particularly showcasing Manning's fluid guitar style. The single is regarded by many as the earliest example of the "progressive" stance developing rapidly on the OzRock scene around this period.

Follington, Piper and Papesch left Chain late in '69, to form Savage Rose, and each went on to reputable careers in a number of other prominent bands. Chain moved back yet again to Melbourne, where its core hooked up with the ex-Wild Cherries rhythm section of Barry Sullivan (bass) and Barry Harvey (drums). Nick-named, respectively, "Big Goose" and "Little Goose", the two Barrys injected a 'fish-arse-tight' cohesion into the band's sound, and helped unveil what was to become the classic, and best-remembered Chain configuration, gaining considerable notice in the southern capital's burgeoning blues-rock performing circuit in the process. (text courtesy of Milesago)

click here to continue the full Chain story...

Saturday, November 22, 2014

Sid Rumpo....Rhythm and Blues band from Perth...First Offense album from 1974

Sid Rumpo were an Australian R'n'B group which formed in Perth in November 1971. They issued their debut album, First Offense, in April 1974 on Mushroom Records/Festival Records but disbanded by the end of that year. The band were formed by John Hood on lead guitar and harmonica (ex-Jelly Roll Bakers, Juke); Noel Herridge on drums (Adderley Smith Blues Band); Owen Hughes on bass guitar (Jelly Roll Bakers); Robert Searls on lead guitar and vocals; and Ken Wallace on piano. In 1972 they won the Western Australian state final in the Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds.

They appeared at both the 1973 and 1974 Sunbury Pop Festivals. According to Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, "one of the unique features of the band's sound was the use of dual, harmony guitar lines which had the effect of enhancing the natural spaciousness of the music. To top it off, Searls was one of the great gravel-throated blues wailers of the day".

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Wendy Saddington and Copperwine Live 1971..rare release from sensual blues and soul vocalist

Wendy June Saddington also known as Gandharvika Dasi (26 September 1949 – 21 June 2013) was an Australian blues, soul and jazz singer, and was in the bands Chain, Copperwine and the Wendy Saddington Band. She wrote for teen pop newspaper Go-Set from September 1969 to September 1970 as an agony aunt in her weekly "Takes Care of Business" column, and as a feature writer. Saddington had Top 30 chart success with her 1972 solo single "Looking Through a Window", which was written and produced by Billy Thorpe and Warren Morgan of the Aztecs. After adopting Krishna Consciousness in the 1970s she took the name, Gandharvika Dasi. In March 2013 she was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer and died on 21 June 2013, aged 63. An underrated talent and very sad loss.

Wendy Saddington's musical influences included the likes of Bessie Smith, Etta James, Mahalia Jackson, Odetta, Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone, Janis Joplin, and the raw blues from the Mississippi delta, along with the swanky soul coming from the American Stax, Atlantic and Motown labels. There was also something of the vulnerability of Edith Piaf in Wendy's pleading, bleeding vocal entreaties.

Saddington first came to notice in Melbourne psych-soul outfit The Revolution, before swiftly joining Adelaide's psychedelic/classically flavoured James Taylor Move around late 1967. When Wendy joined the emerging blues-rock ensemble Beaten Tracks, which she named (The) Chain, after the song by one of her heroines, Aretha Franklin's soul classic, "Chain Of Fools". Wendy spent around 18 months touring with Chain, and it was during this time that her passionate, earth-mother Joplin/Franklin vocal style came to prominent notice among promoters and punters alike. Also, her 'outlandish' appearance attracted magazines like Go-Set: a sad waif-like face, heavily mascara-ed around the eyes, framed by the hugest of afro 'do' this side of Jimi's Experience! Wendy favoured simple Levi's, with a basic shirt or cheesecloth kaftan top, copiously accessorised with love-beads and bangles.

Saddington's next musical outing was with Jeff St John's highly acclaimed and well-established group, Copperwine, and it's here that we finally have an officially-released recording of her sublime vocal performances! Wendy joined the band in March 1970, just after the release of Copperwine's superb Joint Effort album, and she sang live as co-lead with St John for a concentrated touring regime through to February 1971. In January of that year, with St John temporarily away from the band, Saddington fronted Copperwine for their acclaimed performance at the Wallacia Festival on the central-coast of New South Wales.

A live recording of the event was released on Festival's new progressive subsidiary Infinity during '71, which showcased Copperwine's sympathetic backing sensibilities for Wendy's distinctive vocals. On such cuts as the funky opener, Nina Simone's "Backlash Blues", and her heartfelt reading of Dylan's "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues", Saddington continually astonishes with her sensual soul power. Another notable inclusion is Wendy's introspective and idiosyncratic reading of John Lennon's "Tomorrow Never Knows" (which Wendy introduces as a George Harrison composition!) Other highlights include "Five People Said I Was Crazy " (which, with its wild Ross East guitar solo, Barry Kelly's electric piano flourishes and Wendy's monumental banshee wail, certainly lives up to its title). The closing tour-de-force "Blues In A" completely satisfies the listener as a consummate combination of the music of one of Australia's premier all-purpose prog-blues bands of the time, with definitely one of our most unique and mesmerising blues-soul vocalists.

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Introducing Sydney Blues Artist Gareth Jay

Gareth Jay is an independent Blues/Alternative musician based in Sydney, Australia. You can often find him performing across Sydney with his astonishing live looping, intricate guitar skills, complex vocals and funky harmonica skills known to keep his audiences at the edge of their seat.

Gareth has an intimate passion for blues and acoustic music, which is seen with his latest tracks “Blue, Blue Sky” and “FuhFuhFuh” featuring James Gillard. He derives influences from Albert King, Elliott Smith, Donovan, Carole King, The Beatles, and Dr John.

Previous career highlights include performing in Japan for 4 months, composing and performing for the Adelaide Fringe Festival, featuring on Tall Ships in Sydney Harbour, supporting Deisel at Lizotte's with his trio JayMayJane and travelling along the East Coast of Australia to play shows at various venues including the Tamworth Country Music Festival.

Website: http://www.reverbnation.com/garethjay

Soundcloud: www.soundcloud.com/garethjaymusic
YouTube: www.youtube.com/MrGarethJay

Monday, June 16, 2014

The La De Da's...first 3 albums 1966 - 1969.. New Zealand band who made success across the Tasman

Talented, sexy, sophisticated, adventurous, dynamic, innovative -- just some of the many tags that have been been attached to The La De Das' name. But one word was always associated with them more than any other - the La De Das were cool.

Their career spans the entire '64-'75 period. Formed in New Zealand at the very start of the beat boom, they were already major stars at home when they relocated across the Tasman a couple of years later. They're practically the only major group (on either shore) to emerge from the beat boom of 1964-65 who managed to ride out the massive musical changes of the Sixties and adapt to the new scene in the Seventies, emerging as one of Australia's most popular hard rock groups during the first half of the Seventies.

There are a lot of similarities to their Aussie contemporaries The Masters Apprentices. Both were touted as their country's answer to The Rolling Stones. Both survived for so long in that mercurial era because they had tons of talent, determination and the ability to adapt their sound and look to align with prevailing trends. Both groups went through major personnel changes -- by the time the Masters split, singer Jim Keays was the only remaining original member, and by the time of their final 1973-74 'power trio' incarnation, only guitarist and singer Kevin Borich remained from the original La De Das lineup.

Like the Masters, they started off as blues/R'n'B purists, and their original style leaned heavily on British R'n'B practitioners - The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds and John Mayall's Bluesbreakers - and on the American originals like John Lee Hooker, Elmore James and Muddy Waters. They moved into their 'mod' period - with covers of Ray Charles, Motown and Northern Soul favourites, replete with tartan trousers, satin shirts and buckle shoes. Then they plunged headlong into psychedelia (the obligatory concept album, covers of songs from West Coast outfits like Blues Magoos, paisley shirts, sitars, long hair and moustaches). They almost came unstuck after the inevitable -- and ultimately futile -- attempt to "make it in England". But it's here that the stories diverge -- the Masters fell apart in England in 1972, but the Las De Das survived (just) limped back to Australia, regrouped, and bounced back with a mature and reinvigorated take on their R'n'B roots. Their final incarnation as a hard-rockin', no-frills, blues & boogie band carried them very successfully through to the mid-70s.

Here are there first 3 albums which were all originally released in the sixties.

1964 (formed as The Mergers)

Phil Key (guitar, vocals)

Trevor Wilson (bass)

Kevin Borich (guitar, vocals)

Brett Neilsen (drums, vocals)

1965-67

Phil Key (guitar, vocals)

Trevor Wilson (bass)

Kevin Borich (guitar, vocals)

Brett Neilson (drums, vocals)

Bruce Howard (keyboards)

1968

Phil Key (guitar, vocals)

Trevor Wilson (bass)

Kevin Borich (guitar, vocals)

Bryan Harris (drums)

Bruce Howard (keyboards)

1968-70

Phil Key (guitar, vocals)

Trevor Wilson (bs)

Kevin Borich (guitar, vocals)

Keith Barber (drums)

Bruce Howard (organ)

Friday, May 23, 2014

Renee Geyer..self-titled first album..1973..a hidden gem of blues and soul standards

Renée Rebecca Geyer (born 11 September 1953) has long been regarded as one of the finest exponents of jazz, soul and R'n'B idioms. She had commercial success as a solo artist in Australia, with "It's a Man's Man's World", "Heading in the Right Direction" and "Stares and Whispers" in the 1970's and "Say I Love You" in the 1980s. Geyer has also been an internationally respected and sought-after backing vocalist, whose session credits include work with Sting, Chaka Khan, Toni Childs and Joe Cocker.

In 2000, her autobiography, Confessions of a Difficult Woman, co-written with music journalist Ed Nimmervoll, was published. In her candid book, Geyer detailed her drug addictions, sex life and career in music. She described herself as "a white Hungarian Jew from Australia sounding like a 65-year-old black man from Alabama". She spent more than ten years based in the United States but had little chart success there. Geyer returned to Australia in the mid-1990s and her career has continued into the 21st century with her 2003 album, Tenderland, which peaked at #11 on the ARIA albums charts.

Rock historian Ian McFarlane described her as having a "rich, soulful, passionate and husky vocal delivery". Geyer's iconic status in the Australian music industry was recognised when she was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame on 14 July 2005, alongside The Easybeats, Hunters & Collectors, Smoky Dawson, Split Enz and Normie Rowe. Geyer and fellow 1970's singer, Marcia Hines, are the subjects of Australian academic, Jon Stratton's 2008 Cultural Studies article, "A Jew Singing Like a Black Woman in Australia: Race, Renée Geyer, and Marcia Hines".

Her first album released in 1973 is a collection of blues and soul standards with tracks that were originally done by Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Joe Cocker, Bill Withers and Van Morrison.