classic and rare Australian popular music from the 1950's, 1960's. 1970's and beyond..including rock and roll, pop, beat, rock, surf and progressive, plus contemporary artists, new releases, reviews and other fun stuff
This is a double treat for fans of the original Billy Thorpe and The Aztecs. These 2 albums were released at the height of their popularity in the mid 1960's. They show why they became so big, so fast. The tracks on these albums were a combination of beat, pop, rock 'n'roll and rhythm'n'blues, which highlight the versatility and talent within the group. They covered numbers from the likes of The Beatles, Rolling Stones and Ray Charles and capitalised on the beat boom from Great Britain. Listening to these again after nearly 50 years of their original release, you can see what the excitement was all about.
The Merv Benton story is a fascinating chapter of the Beat Boom in Australia. From his base on the Melbourne dance circuit, Merv gained national attention and quickly became one of the most popular male singers in the country. In early 1964 he signed with Melbourne's W&G Records and became one of their most prolific artists, releasing seventeen singles, six EPs, and three LPs between 1964 and 1967, and scoring an impressive run of fifteen Top 40 singles in his hometown (several of which also charted in other cities). But in 1967, at the height of his popularity, Merv was struck down by throat problems that ended his singing career. Merv (real name Mervyn Bonson. b. 12 August 1942) grew up in the Melbourne suburb of Reservoir and went to school at Preston High. Merv's first year as a pop star was frantic -- in just nine months he had released four singles, one EP and one LP By the end of '64, the 19-year-old singer had appeared on appeared on national television shows such as Brian Henderson's Bandstand and Johnny O'Keefe's Sing Sing Sing, and W&G released his debut album, Come On And Get Me, by which time he had become a regular on national and local TV pop shows; and had toured the country supporting Merseybeat star Billy J. Kramer. Merv's look has been described as being in contrast to the new wave of long-haired, Liverpool-sound groups of the era, but this is something of a misnomer. Films and photos of the period will reveal that Merv's style was actually fairly typical of the time -- take a look at an old Aztecs clip, for example -- and with his clean-cut image and matinee-idol good looks, immaculately coiffed hair and sharply tailored clothes. he undoubtedly won the hearts of young fans all over Australia.
Once Upon A Twilight was The Twilights' second and final album, released in 1968. It went largely unnoticed at the time, and was a dramatic change from their previous pop oriented first album and their big hit "Needle In A Haystack".
While showcasing Peter Brideoake's plaintive, cello and horn-embellished "Tomorrow Is Today" and Laurie Pryor's raucously daft comedy turn, "The Cocky Song", the album is essentially Terry Britten's own. As main songwriter he provided lush settings for Glenn (the title track, "Found To Be Thrown Away" and the psychedelic gem "Paternoster Row") and delicate arrangements for Paddy's sweet lilt ("Bessemae"). Terry also made his own mark with lead vocals and almost solo instrumentation on "Mr Nice" and the Eastern-flavoured "Devendra" -- the latter featuring an arrangement of Indian string and percussive sounds similar to George Harrison's "Within You Without You". Embellished by brass, strings, Clapton-esque wah-wah guitar, Keith Moon-ish drum patterns and the latest studio trickery --feedback, reverse-tape effects masking, stereo panning and Leslie'd vocal effects -- the album presented a suite of spirited and captivating psychedelic pop-rock songs that hinted at brilliance.
At the time of its release the album was regarded by some critics as music past its use-by-date! Well, at the time, sure, the considerable time-lapse between the album's conception and its eventual release maybe didn't do the band many favours, but 36 years later this album sounds as fresh and fine and seminal as something like The Small Faces' Ogden's Nut Gone Flake -- an album The Twilights were known to perform in its entirety in concert.
Tony Romeril (vocals) Glenn Beatson (drums) Rick Graham (bass) Steve McMurray (guitar) Greg Jacques (organ) 1969 - Apr 1971 Allan Magsuball (guitar) Apr. 1971- early 1972 Charlie Wright (keyboards) late 1971- early 1972 Like their contemporaries The Executives, The Affair, New Dream and Zoot, Sydney band Autumn has been unfairly labelled as a lightweight pop band, mainly on the basis of their early recordings. They've also been tagged as 'one-hit wonders', although in fact they had four hits. Fronted by grievously underrated lead vocalist Tony Romeril, Autumn was a superb band with a strong following in their home city of Sydney, and they could tackle pop, country-rock and heavy/progressive rock with equal ease. Like their close contemporaries The Flying Circus, Autumn formed at a time when rapid and significant changes were taking place in the music scene and the formerly homogeneous "pop" field was diversifying into several distinct genres. The trends that were drawing 'pop' musicians towards progressive music, "heavy rock" and country rock was counterbalanced by the popularity and commercial success of so-called "bubblegum" pop. This created to a situation where, as Glenn A. Baker has observed, "being identified as a pop band "drew automatic derision and critical dismissal". Autumn's chart success with straight-ahead pop material has obscured the fact that this was a highly competent group, with tastes and abilities which went well beyond the confines of the three-minute formula pop single. Their true talents were not really showcased on record until their last few recordings for the Warner label and, as Glennn Baker notes "... nobody, save those who caught them live, came to realise what a sturdy, musically adept and diverse unit they were." During the second half of 1971 Autumn released an EP, A Patch Of Autumn, followed by their hugely underrated second album Comes Autumn. Although it is dismissed by Vernon Joyson as "unremarkable", it in fact contains some outstanding material. As Aussie music archivist "MidozTouch" has noted, "Autumn's second album is so strikingly different in style and sound from their first LP that one could be forgiven for thinking they were recorded by two different groups". This included re-recordings of some of their Chart material, including Allan Magsuball's riff-tastic psych-prog nugget "Get It Down" (one of several fine tracks he contributed), a re-recorded version of "Lady Anne", and the country-styled hits "Falling" and "Miracles". This excellent LP, which has never been reissued, is one of the genuine lost treasures of early 70s Australian rock. Like all the early '70s Australian Warner recordings, the original LP is now quite rare and has become a sought-after collector's item.
Perth pop group The Valentines were, for a brief period, one of the most popular bands in the country. Although they started out as an energetic soul/R'n'B band, their best known image was associated with the so-called "bubblegum pop" phenomenon of 1968-70. But there was a wild side to the band which was evident in their live performances (and their off-stage carousing). These days, of course, they're best known by reference to the fact that one of the singers ended up in a little band called AC/DC. The Valentines formed in Perth in mid-1966, bringing together members of three leading local beat groups: Scott and Milson were from The Spektors, Lovegrove, Ward and Cooksey from The Winztons, and Findlay from top WA band Ray Hoff & The Off Beats. Playing a mixture of soul, R&B and mod covers, by the start of 1967 they were already Perth's top group. A major draw card was the double-vocal attack of dynamic front men Bon Scott and Vince Lovegrove, and within a few weeks of their live debut they were packing in crowds at their shows at venues like Canterbury Court and the Swanbourne Surf Livesaving Club (known locally as the Swanbourne Stomp). It wasn't long before their local popularity came to the attention of Martin Clarke, who operated Perth's only record label in the 1960's, Clarion. The Valentines signed to Clarion in March 1967 and released their first single in May. The single was a good indication of where their early influences lay - the A-side was a cover of Arthur Alexander's "Every Day I Have To Cry", and backed by a cover of "I Can't Dance With You", an early track by British mod icons The Small Faces. It was a strong beginning, selling well locally and peaking at #5 on the Perth charts. The second single was a Beatlesque Vanda and Young composition, "She Said", released in August '67. It didn't do quite as well but still made the lower reaches of the Perth Top 40. The song came their way because The Valentines had become friends with The Easybeats, whom they supported when they toured Western Australia. Vanda and Young went on to write two more singles especially for them. Bruce Abbott (drums) early 1968 Paddy Beach (drums) May 1969-Aug 1970 John Cooksey (bass) 1968 Warrick Findlay (drums) 1966-July 1968 Doug Lavery (drums) July 1968-69 John Lockery (bass) 1966-68 Vince Lovegrove (vocals) Wyn Milson (lead guitar) Bon Scott (vocals) Ted Ward (Ted Junko) (rhythm guitar)
Popular Melbourne band The Town Criers formed around 1965. Their first single, a cover of The Kinks' "The World Keeps Going Round", was released on the Melbourne independent label Trend but didn't make any impression on the local charts. The B-side, a great 'garage-punk' number called "Big Deal", was included on the bootleg Oz '60s compilation CD It's A Kave-In, which also features another Criers rarity from this period, a version of the blues standard "Mama Keep Your Big Mouth Shut". The Criers gigged consistently around Melbourne over the next two years, and in late 1967 they were signed to the Astor label by A&R manager Ron Tudor. Their second single, released in February 1968 and nominally produced by Geoffrey Edelsten, was a strong version of "Everlasting Love", the much-covered hit originally recorded by American singer Robert Knight in 1967 and also released in 1968 in the UK by The Love Affair. It was an immediate success and became a big hit in Melbourne, reaching #2 and also charted in Sydney (#16) and Adelaide (#33) in April-May 1968, and this success propelled it into the Go-Set Top 20; it peaked at #18 and consistently out-charted the Love Affair version. The song has been covered many times since then, including a 1990s version by U2.
During the latter half of 1968 the Town Criers traveled to South East Asia where they entertained Australian and American troops stationed in Vietnam. This was followed by a trip to the USA, where they appeared on the Bob Hope Christmas Special. In early 1969 founding vocalist Andy Agtoft and John Taylor both left the group. Agtoft was replaced by singer Barry Smith from Adelaide; this raised the band's profile in Adelaide, but it may also have led some fans to think that the band itself was from Adelaide. Taylor subsequently joined the Sydney band Daisy Clover, who released two singles on Festival. Andy Agtoft (vocals) 1967-69 Mark Demajo (bass) Sam Dunnin (guitar) Chris Easterby (drums) George Kurtiss (keyboards) 1967 - May 1968 John Taylor (keyboards) 1968-69 Barry Smith (vocals) 1968-69
Owen Campbell is playing a month long tour in Australia in April May commencing with the Deni Blues Festival along side of Elvis Costello, Doobie Brothers and John Mayer, and finishing at the Broadbeach BluesFestival a month later. He is then going over to the USA to support his debut release there through Reckless Grace Music form Florida. Owen has been playing guitar since he was 9 years old and is one of Australia’s most talented slide guitar players and songwriters. Along with his unflinching ability to sing it sweet and play it dirty, he creates a perfect blend of melody that’s simple but right. In addition to playing all over the world, including Ireland, UK, Denmark, Italy, India, Austria, Germany and Papua New Guinea, Owen has had the privilege of performing at some of the most prestigious Blues festivals in the world: The Himalayan Blues Festival in Katmandu (2008/2010), Nepal, Copenhagen Writers Festival and the Thredbo Blues Festival at home in Australia.
Sunshine Road #1 Australia #1 Greece #1 Sweden #3 Italy #3 Denmark
The Pilgrim #1 Australia #1 New Zealand #1 Canada Album of the Week - ABC Radio Australia (broadcast internationally) ‘Wreckin’ Ball’ most played song on Australian Community Radio
Owen live at Piano Bar LA "Wreckin' Ball"
Owen's official clip for Sunshine Road
“Possibly one of the best performers to come out of Australia for quite sometime, amazing lap steel slide guitar and a song writing ability that belies his years.” Argus News Ireland "This is a seasoned musician." The Sydney Morning Herald
The Avengers were a popular band in New Zealand in the mid to late 1960s. Wellington promoter Ken Cooper formed the band to play at his new club, The Place, and selected the musicians from other active bands - Clive Cockburn (last name pronounced "Co-burn") of The Mustangs, Dave Brown of The Wanderers, Eddie McDonald of The Strangers, all three of which were Wellington bands, and Hank Davis of Napier's The Epics. The band began their career performing Beatles covers, but soon branched out into other territory. They had a string of top ten hits in their homeland; their biggest hit was a cover of Episode Six's "Love Hate Revenge", which charted at number 2 in August 1968. The band failed to achieve prominence overseas, touring only twice outside New Zealand, both times in Australia. On the second tour, they took the name New Zealand Avengers to distinguish themselves from a Brisbane band that shared their name. In July 1969, the group disbanded; Clive Cockburn pursued a career in television while Hank Davis and Eddie McDonald remained active in music, relocating to Perth, Western Australia to be founding members of Bakery. Although The Avengers failed to achieve international fame, they established a lasting legacy in New Zealand, and in 1994, their debut single "Everyone's Gonna Wonder" was covered by The Pop Art Toasters, a supergroup of "Dunedin Sound" artists including Martin Phillipps of The Chills and David Kilgour of The Clean. Formed - June 1966, Wellington, New Zealand; Disbanded - July 1969 Members:Clive Cockburn (lead guitar, organ), Dave Brown (rhythm guitar), Eddie McDonald (bass), Ian "Hank" Davis (drums) Related Artists:Bakery, The Mustangs, The Wanderers, The Epics, The Strangers Also Known As:New Zealand Avengers, NZ Avengers Genres: Psychedelic Pop This 2 in one album combines their self titled "The Avengers" from 1967 and "Medallion" from 1968.
Hello Aussie music lovers. I have had some requests and am currently looking for the following: Singles: The La de da's - "Come Together" / "Here Is Love" (EMI Parlophone 1969) Johnny Young - "Love Song" / "The Trip" (Clarion MCK 3113) 1969 Albums: Mondo Rock - The Modern Bop and anything else by Mondo Rock
Merv Benton
The Valentines
Australian Crawl - Sirocco and Sons of Beaches
Greg Quill and Country Radio - Fleetwood Plain or The Festival File
Healing Force - any tracks If anyone can help with these and would like to share, please send me an email through the contact page. Your contribution would be very much appreciated. Thanks.
These collections from Raven Records have been posted on this blog previously and I wanted to bring them back again to reiterate what a classic collection of tracks they feature and also for anyone who may not have seen the original posts. They are essential for any serious Australian music aficionado. Here they are again:
The Dingoes were a country rock band initially active from 1973 to 1979. Formed in Melbourne they relocated to the United States from 1976. Most stable line-up was John Bois on bass guitar, John Lee on drums, Broderick Smith on vocals and harmonica, Chris Stockley on guitar and Kerryn Tolhurst on guitar. Mal Logan (who provided keyboards on the first LP) on keyboards joined after Stockley left due to illness. The Dingoes debut single, "Way Out West", was released in November 1973, which peaked in the top 40 of the Australian Kent Music Report singles chart. Subsequent singles were "Boy on the Run", "Smooth Sailing" and "Into the Night", which did not reach the top 50. They had three top 40 albums, The Dingoes in 1974, Fives Times the Sun in 1977 and Orphans of the Storm in 1979. On 27 August 2009, The Dingoes were inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame alongside Kev Carmody, Little Pattie, Mental As Anything and John Paul Young. The Dingoes reformed in late 2009 and released a new album "Tracks" in 2010 which was followed by a tour of Australia. A live album 'Live at Last' came out after the tour. Track list
"Come On Down" (Stockley)
"Boy On The Run" (Smith/Stockley)
"The Last Place I Wanna Be" (Tolhurst)
"Way Out West" (Dingoes)
"Pay Day Again" (Tolhurst)
"Goin' Down Again" (Tolhurst)
"Aaron" (Tolhurst)
"My Sometime Lady" (Tolhurst)
"Sydney Ladies" (Smith/Tolhurst)
"Dingoes Lament" (Du Bois)
Produced by The Dingoes & John French
Recorded at TCS Studios Melbourne, January 8-11, 13-23, 1974
click here for more information Line up Ray Arnott (drums, vocals) 1974 John Bois (bass, guitar, keyboards, vocals) 1973-79 Andrew Jeffers-Hardin(g) (guitar) 1979 John Lee (drums, percussion, vocals) 1973-74, 1976-79 Mal Logan (keyboards) 1973 Broderick Smith (vocals, harmonica) 1973-79 Chris Stockley (guitar, vocals) 1973-79 John Strangio (bass) 1973 Kerryn Tolhurst (gtr, mandolin, vcls) 1973-78
The Strangers were a Melbourne based Australian band that existed from 1961 to 1975. The band started out playing instrumental songs in a style similar to The Shadows with influences from Cliff Richard. The original lineup included Peter Robinson (bass), Graeme ('Garth') Thompson (drums), Laurie Arthur (lead guitar) and Fred Weiland (rhythm guitar). Robinson had previously played with The Thunderbirds, and went on to replace Athol Guy in The Seekers from the late 70s. In 1966 The Strangers became the resident backing band on the Melbourne based teenage television pop show The Go!! Show in which they appeared each week from 1964 to 1967. After The Go!! Show ended, they became the resident vocal group on HSV-7's Sunnyside Up program. In all, the band appeared on television at least once a week for nine years straight. At the end of 1962 they signed with Ron Tudor's W&G Records after working as studio band for artists including The Seekers, Frankie Davidson, and Johnny Chester. In 1964 they supported Colin Cook and released an LP called Colin Cook and the Strangers. Charting songs in the Stranger's own name included their first single Cry of the Wild Goose (an instrumental by Terry Gilkyson) / Leavin' Town which was released in January 1963 and reached number 12 on the Melbourne charts. This was followed by three original instrumentals in Torlido / The Outcast and Undertow, which were released in 1963, and two of which reached the Top 40. Other singles included Happy Without You (Kenny Laguna, Shelley Pinz. 1968), Melanie Makes Me Smile (Tony Macaulay, Barry Mason. 1970), Looking Through the Eyes of a Beautiful Girl (1970), If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody (Rudy Clark, 1965) and Western Union (Mike Rabon, Norman Ezell, John Durrill. 1967). During the mid-1960's, the band changed labels from W&G Records to Go Records and then to Philips and finally in 1970 onto Fable.Arthur left the band in early 1964, and was replaced on lead guitar by John Farrar who later married Pat Carroll. Carroll and Olivia Newton-John appeared on The Go!! Show as singers. Farrar later joined British post-Shadows group Marvin, Welch & Farrar and then the re-formed Shadows. Also in 1964, the band supported Roy Orbison and Paul and Paula on an Australian tour which featured The Surfaris and The Beach Boys. These support gigs influenced some early vocal recordings in Poppa Oom Mow Mow, Sunday Kind of Love, If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody and later In My Room, a Beach Boys ballad. They had two singer guitarists around 1968, Bill Pyman and Johnny Cosgrove, before Terry Walker joined. In February 1967 Terry Walker replaced Fred Weiland, who left to join The Mixtures. During 1969 Melanie Makes Me Smile made #16 in Sydney, #9 in Melbourne and #7 in Brisbane. Throughout the band's 14 years, The Strangers underwent numerous membership changes and provided backing for many local and overseas acts. These included: Johnny Farnham, Russell Morris, Johnny Young, Neil Sedaka, Johnny O'Keefe, The Seekers, Merv Benton, Ted Mulry, Lynne Randell, Ross D. Wylie, Yvonne Barrett, Grantley Dee, Pat Carroll, Little Gulliver, Barry Crocker, Buddy England, Ronnie Burns, Town Criers, Masters Apprentices, Axiom, Hans Poulsen and Lionel Rose. The Strangers set an exceptional standard for live sound, using the best and 'cleanest' equipment they could procure: German Dynacord microphones and public address systems, multiple guitar effects units, an exponential horn for the bass guitar, and carefully selected and matching guitars (e.g. Rickenbacker 6 and 12 string, Maton El Toro) and amplifiers. Farrar, who married Pat Carroll and moved to USA, wrote a number of hits including 'Hopelessly devoted to you' sung by Olivia Newton-John. This 2-CD, 50 track compilation contains all their hits plus covers of many other popular songs of their time.
The Groop, Mark I, 1964-66 Peter Bruce (guitar) Peter McKeddie (vocals) Max Ross (bass) Richard Wright (drums, vocals) One of many "two-phase" groups that featured in the Aussie rock scene of the 60s, the first incarnation of The Groop emerged from Melbourne's thriving performing circuit in 1966, with a unique sound which hinged around a mixed repertoire of soul classics, big beat numbers and whimsical originals from all four members. The Groop originated as The Wesley Three, a folk trio formed by school friends from Melbourne's exclusive Wesley College, Peter McKeddie, Max Ross and Richard Wright.The Wesley Three signed with CBS Australia label in 1964 and released a single, an EP and an album. The Wesley Three evolved into The Groop in 1965 with the addition of English-born guitarist Peter Bruce, who was recruited through a 'musicians wanted' ad in a music shop window. The Groop drew on a range of diverse musical influences including jug-band and Cab Calloway-style "jump" music, as well as zany vaudeville/cabaret material. After signing to CBS in 1965 they released their first two singles, "Ol' Hound Dog" and the double-entendre laden "The Best In Africa". Although considered by some as frivolous novelty records, they proved very popular both with radio programmers and the buying public, and both made the Top 20 in Melbourne. Their self-titled debut album (CBS 1965) featured several witty originals, together with covers of staples like Them's "Gloria"; it sold in respectable numbers, particularly in their hometown, where they were feted as a top-drawer live attraction, strongly supported by regular airplay on Melbourne radio stations 3UZ and 3AK, TV appearances and consistently favourable and prominent coverage from the fledgling Go-Set magazine.
The new lineup made its recording debut in late '66 with a storming rendition of Solomon Burke's "Sorry" (b/w Bo Diddley's "Who Do You Love"), scoring a national Top 10 hit. Both live and on record, Ronnie Charles' gritty, soulful voice was the undoubted focus (not to mention his dark, sultry looks that appealed to a growing contingent of young lady followers) but the new Groop proved to be an extremely tight, musically dextrous and creative pop band, each of whose members contributed to the songwriting.
In May 1967 saw the release of the soul-inflected, reverb-drenched "Woman You're Breaking Me" (b/w "Mad Over You", which was written by, and heavily featured drummer Richard Wright, with organist Brian Cadd. This was a major hit -- #6 in Melbourne, #12 in Sydney -- and even charting in some key American centres when it was put out by Columbia Records there. The single was followed by an album of the same name. It was a strong collection of originals and well-chosen covers that were mostly drawn from the band's current popular performing repertoire. It's also notable as one of the first Australian pop LPs to be recorded in stereo.
The peak of The Groop's career came in July, when they took out the grand prize in the Hoadleys' Battle of the Sounds, competition, ahead of other worthy finalists like The Questions, James Taylor Move and Gus & the Nomads. After their tenth single, a fine soul-inflected groover called "You Gotta Live Love" / "Sally's Mine", was ignored, The Groop abruptly broke up mid-year. In late 1969, Don Mudie and Brian Cadd teamed with former Twilight Glenn Shorrock to create one of Australia's first supergroups, Axiom, who achieved considerable success with a batch of strong singles and two superb LPs.
Southern FM is an award-winning community radio, with a rich and diverse selection of shows, broadcasting live 24 hours a day to the southern, south-eastern and bayside suburbs of Melbourne on 88.3FM, and streaming live around the world. For those of you interested in the history of Australian music, Southern FM have a regular broadcast featuring interviews with artists, producers and related personnel plus tribute shows of legendary performers. These are now listed on their site and can be downloaded in podcast form here: http://www.southernfm.com.au/general/the-purple-haze-archive-the-complete-australian-podcast-listings/ Some artists already featured are: Brian Cadd, Chris Stockley, Ross Wilson, Graham Goble, John Paul Young, Darryl Cotton, Nat Kipner, Max Merritt and Ross D.Wylie. Special thanks to Nick for putting these together and making them available to the world. Tune in or log on to listen.
Madder Lake were one of the most original and distinctive of the "new wave" of Australian groups that emerged around 1970. They were also an important and popular part of the of the Melbourne music scene. It's unfortunate that they're only known for their extant recordings -- their two excellent 1970s Albums and one "Best Of.." compilation -- because they are prolific writers, and according to Mick Fettes they have "literally hundreds of songs" stockpiled,waiting to see the light of day.
band members: Andy Cowan (keyboards, vocals) 1973-75 Mick Fettes (vocals) 1971-75, 1978- Ian Holding (bass) 1976-78 Jack Kreemers (drums) 1969-?? Tony Lake (vocals) 1976-78 Brendan Mason (guitar, vocals) Kerry McKenna (bass, vocals) John McKinnon (keyboards, vocals) 1970-73 Colin Setches (vocals) 1976-78 The original lineup — McKenna, Kreemers, McKinnon, Mason and Fettes — all met in 1968, while studying at the Swinburne Institute of Technology, Melbourne's renowned arts and media college. The entry in Noel McGrath's 1978 rock encyclopedia says that Madder Lake was their first band, but in fact all the members had been through the usual round of teenage beat groups before meeting at Swinburne. The band which became Madder Lake evolved from an earlier student band, which included Kerry McKenna and Brendan Mason, who had been playing together since their early teens. By the time they began studying at Swinburne, Kerry and Brendan already had their own established band, San Sebastian, gigging regularly around the Melbourne area. Madder Lake evolved a distinctive sound very early on. According to Mick, the group's sound was very much in place by 1971. And while influences can be identified — English progressive groups like King Crimson, Family, Traffic — one listen to the Stillpoint album should convince you that they were very much their own band. They were as musically dynamic and accomplished as any of the contemporary English groups, like early Genesis, but with none of the latter's fey qualities. A focal point was the energetic,bear-like presence and tough, bluesy voice of Mick Fettes. It's become a convention to compare his singing to Joe Cocker, but it's really only a surface similarity. If you listen with open ears you quickly pretty realise that Mick was (and is) very much his own singer. Another often overlooked feature of the group was their strong harmony singing. Stillpoint, released in 1973, remains one of the classics of progressive Australian music from the 1970's and still sounds fresh today. If you haven't heard hit then have a listen now.
Hello Aussie music lovers. I have had some requests come in and am currently looking for the following albums:
The Dingoes - first album
Madder Lake - Still Point
If you have an MP3 copy of either of these and would like to share it, please drop me a line through the contact page. I will be very happy if you can and I'm sure other Aussie music lovers would be too.
Update 11/03/14 - thank you to those people who responded to this request. I now have these albums.
This is AC/DC's original first album as it was released in Australia. It shows that even from the beginning the band had that sheer energy that propelled them to the international success they are today. AC/DC were formed in November 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young, who have remained constant members. Commonly referred to as a hard rock or blues rock band, they are also considered pioneers of heavy metal and are sometimes classified as such, though they have always dubbed their music as simply "rock and roll". To date they are one of the highest-grossing bands of all time. Malcolm and Angus Young developed the idea for the band's name after their sister, Margaret Young, saw the initials "AC/DC" on a sewing machine. "AC/DC" is an abbreviation meaning "alternating current/direct current" electricity. The brothers felt that this name symbolised the band's raw energy, power-driven performances of their music. "AC/DC" is pronounced one letter at a time, though the band are colloquially known as "Acca Dacca" in Australia. In November 1973 Malcolm and Angus Young formed AC/DC and recruited bassist Larry Van Kriedt, vocalist Dave Evans, and Colin Burgess, ex-Masters Apprentices drummer.Pushing hard for the band's success were Australia's legendary roadie Ray Arnold and his partner Alan Kissack. Gene Pierson booked the band to let the band play at Bondi Lifesaver on New Year's Eve, 1973. By this time, Angus Young had adopted his characteristic school-uniform stage outfit. The idea was his sister Margaret's. Angus had tried other costumes: Spider-Man, Zorro, a gorilla, and a parody of Superman, named Super-Ang. In its early days, most members of the band dressed in some form of glam or satin outfit but this approach was abandoned seeing as Melbourne band Skyhooks had already adopted this approach to their stage presentation.
The Young brothers decided that Evans was not a suitable frontman for the group because they felt he was more of a glam rocker like Gary Glitter. On stage, Evans was occasionally replaced by the band's first manager, Dennis Laughlin, who was the original lead singer with Sherbet prior to Daryl Braithwaite joining the band. Evans did not get along with Laughlin, which also contributed to the band's ill feeling toward Evans. In September 1974 Ronald Belford "Bon" Scott, an experienced vocalist and friend of George Young, replaced Dave Evans after friend Vince Lovegrove recommended him to George Young. Like the Young brothers, Scott had been born in Scotland before emigrating to Australia in his childhood. By October 1974, the Australia-only album High Voltage had been recorded. It took only ten days and was based on instrumental songs written by the Young brothers, with lyrics added by Scott. Within a few months, the band's line-up had stabilised, featuring Scott, the Young brothers, bassist Mark Evans and drummer Phil Rudd. High Voltage was released on 17 February 1975.
