Tony Worsley - 1966 - Missing You FLAC

Missing You/All Over You/With You By My Side/The Kind



   
English-born singer Tony Worsley migrated to Australia with his parents at the age of 13. He started his singing career on the Brisbane dance circuit during 1963 when he was 18. A year later (around May 1964), he teamed up with popular Melbourne rock'n'roll band The Blue Jays who had been together since 1959.

The original Blue Jays line-up comprised Frankie Brent (vocals, rhythm guitar), Chris Lawson (lead guitar), Doug Stirling (piano) and Bob Johnson (drums). The band's first single, `Maori's Farewell'/`Everybody Loves Saturday Night', came out on the Crest label in October 1961. The Blue Jays issued the album Arthur Murray's Twist Party on Crest in 1962. By that stage, the line-up comprised Brent, Johnson, Laurie Allen (vocals, guitar, piano; ex-Malcolm Arthur and the Knights), Johnny Cosgrove (vocals, lead guitar), Alan Easterbrook (vocals, sax) and Ray Houston (bass). Laurie Allen and the Blue Jays issued the single `Wolfman'/`Kept a Broken Heart in Broken Hill' in January 1962. In 1963, the line-up became Allen, Johnson, Easterbrook, Mal Clarke (rhythm guitar), Dennis Tucker (bass) and Doug Flower (lead guitar). Allen left in 1963 and eventually joined up with Bobby Bright as Bobby and Laurie. By early 1964, the line-up was Johnson, Clarke, Ray Eames (lead guitar), Paul Shannon (sax) and Royce Nicholls (bass).

After promoter Ivan Dayman matched Worsley with the already established Blue Jays, the union proceeded to score a series of hit singles. The band's first release on Dayman's Sunshine label, however, was the instrumental `Jaywalker'/`Pathfinder' (sans Worsley and credited to The Fabulous Blue Jays, October 1964). A month later, Tony Worsley and the Fabulous Blue Jays issued the single `I Sure Know a Lot About Love'/`Me You Gotta Teach' on Sunshine. The single peaked at #25 in Brisbane, which provided the band with a stepping stone on to the local scene. The Fabulous Blue Jays issued their second single without Worsley, `Motivate'/`We're Friends', in January 1965. That same month, Worsley and the Fabulous Blue Jays supported UK visitors The Kinks, Manfred Mann, The Honeycombs and Tony Sheveton on The Big Show package tour. Worsley and the Fabulous Blue Jays' second single, `Just a Little Bit'/`If I', reached #23 in Sydney during March. The Fabulous Blue Jays' third single, `Zoom Gonk'/`Hey! Jack', also came out in March.

Sunshine issued the band's self-titled debut album, with one side dedicated to Worsley's songs and the flip to The Fabulous Blue Jays (sans Worsley). Of the album's 16 tracks, ten had already been issued as A and B-sides of singles. Eames left the band around that time to be replaced by Jimmy Cerezo (ex-Pleazers). The Fabulous Blue Jays backed Worsley on his third single, Chuck Berry's `Talkin' About You'/`I Dream of You' (June 1965), although their name was dropped from the label credit. The Fabulous Blue Jays issued their final single, `Beat Out Dat Rhythm'/`I'll Make You Cry', at the same time. Dayman began pushing Worsley as a solo artist, so his next three singles on Sunshine appeared credited to Tony Worsley.

They were `Velvet Waters'/`Rock-a-Billy' (September 1965), `Missing You'/`Lonely City' (January 1966) and `Something's Got a Hold on Me'/`Something' (March). Although the bulk of Worsley's material was rocky and uptempo, the ballad `Velvet Waters' provided him with the biggest hit of his career. It reached #5 in Sydney and #14 in Melbourne during October. A second ballad, `Missing You', failed to replicate that success (#28 in Sydney). Sunshine issued Worsley's second album, Velvet Waters and Other Great Songs, in late 1965. `Something's Got a Hold on Me' returned Worsley to more upbeat material, but it too failed to chart. Not long after the single's release, Worsley and the Fabulous Blue Jays parted company. The last Worsley record to feature The Fabulous Blue Jays on a couple of tracks was the album My Time of Day (November 1966).

Worsley formed a new, short-lived version of The Fabulous Blue Jays with Phil Manning (lead guitar), Brian Patterson (rhythm guitar), Brian Saunders (bass) and Jimmy Thompson (drums). By 1967, Manning had joined The Laurie Allen Revue, before going on to work with celebrated blues band Chain. Worsley's last three singles for Sunshine, `Raining in My Heart'/`Knocking on Wood' (May 1966), `No Worries'/`Humpty Dumpty' (January 1967) and `Reaching Out'/`Do You Mind?' (October 1967), sank without a trace, and Worsley disappeared from view. He joined a Brisbane band, Hands Down, in 1969, but virtually retired from the music industry soon after. In the early 1990s, Worsley issued three singles on the local Enrec label, `Heartache for You', `High on Love' and `Hey Hey Little Girl'.

During their time with Sunshine, Worsley and the Blue Jays issued eight EPs: `Pathfinder' and `Jaywalk' (The Fabulous Blue Jays), `I Sure Know a Lot About Love' (Tony Worsley and the Fabulous Blue Jays), `Motivate' (The Fabulous Blue Jays), `If I' (Tony Worsley and the Fabulous Blue Jays), `Velvet Waters' (Tony Worsley), `Missing You' (Tony Worsley), `Something's Got a Hold on Me' (Tony Worsley) and `Raining in My Heart' (Tony Worsley). Of The Fabulous Blue Jays members, Bob Johnson and Paul Shannon formed Grandma's Tonic with erstwhile Blue Jays member Ray Houston (bass) plus Dennis Whitehead (guitar). Grandma's Tonic backed solo singer Peter Doyle for a time, and also issued two singles on the Astor label, The Troggs' `Hi Hi Hazel'/`Johnny the Hammer' (October 1966) and the punkish `Lost Girl'/`I Know' (April 1967).

Royce Nicholls formed a folk-blues duo with English-born, Brisbane-bred singer Toni McCann. The Fabulous Blue Jays had already backed the teenage McCann on her astonishing debut single for Sunshine `No'/`My Baby' (July 1965). McCann issued a second single, `Saturday Date'/`If You Don't Come Back', which came out on the Everybody's label in December 1965. Both singles are among the wildest garage/R&B releases of the era (indeed, in the words of the late Dean Mittelhauser, `Australia had never heard a girl singer quite like Toni McCann before!'). There is some conjecture as to whether it was The Fabulous Blue Jays, or Steve & the Board that backed McCann on `Saturday Date'. Either way, it was McCann's riotous vocal delivery (in that boisterous Wanda Jackson vein), and the rough-hewn sound quality on offer, that precluded any notion of chart success for the singles.

McCann recorded a third solo single, `Buy Some Love'/`Look on', which was due out on CBS in December 1966, but never seems to have appeared. Toni and Royce issued two singles on CBS, `On The Road'/`Happiness is Just a State of Mind' (May 1967) and `The Streets are Not Deserted Now' /`Even I Can Hear the Grass Grow' (February 1968), before disappearing from view. Mal Clarke went on to work with Ray Brown and Moonstone, the Ray Burton Band, Chariot and Bullamakanka.

Rick Springfield - 1981 - Jessie's Girl FLAC

Jessie's Girl/ Carry Me Away/I've Done Everything For You/ Everybody's Girl



Rick Springfield (born Richard Lewis Springthorpe; 23 August 1949) is an Australian musician, singer, songwriter, actor and author. He was a member of the pop rock group Zoot from 1969 to 1971, then started his solo career with his début single "Speak to the Sky" reaching the top 10 in Australia in mid-1972, when he moved to the United States. He had a No. 1 hit with "Jessie's Girl" in 1981 in both Australia and the US, for which he received the Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. He followed with four more top 10 US hits, "I've Done Everything for You", "Don't Talk to Strangers", "Affair of the Heart" and "Love Somebody". Springfield's two US top 10 albums are Working Class Dog (1981) and Success Hasn't Spoiled Me Yet (1982).

As an actor, he starred in the television series High Tide, from 1994 to 1997, and has appeared in supporting roles in Ricki and the Flash and True Detective (both in 2015). He portrayed Dr. Noah Drake on the daytime drama General Hospital, from 1981 to 1983 and during 2005 to 2008 and 2012, returning in 2013 for the show's 50th anniversary with son and actor Liam Springthorpe. In 2010, Springfield published his autobiography, Late, Late at Night: A Memoir. He's been set to play Lucifer in the twelfth season of American TV show Supernatural on the CW Network.


Richard Lewis Springthorpe (later known as Rick Springfield) was born on 23 August 1949 in Guildford, a western suburb of Sydney. He is the son of Eileen Louise (Evennett) and Norman James Springthorpe, an Australian Army career officer. His maternal grandparents were English. When he was young, he lived at the army camp with his family in Broadmeadows, Victoria, Australia. At the age of fourteen, he witnessed the Beatles perform at Festival Hall, Melbourne.
Music career

Springfield was 13 when he learned guitar. He joined various bands in England, where his father was stationed from 1958 to 1963, and several more after returning to Australia. In 1968, he was approached by bass guitarist Pete Watson to join his group Rockhouse. Later that year, Watson changed the band's name to MPD Ltd and, in October when Springfield was 19 years old, they toured South Vietnam to entertain Australian troops. Another member of MPD Ltd was Danny Finley (drummer). Upon returning to Australia, they formed Wickedy Wak. They were joined by Phil Blackmore on keyboards and Dick Howard. Go-Set journalist Ian "Molly" Meldrum produced Wickedy Wak's single, "Billie's Bikie Boys", with Beeb Birtles of pop rock group Zoot as a backing vocalist.

In September 1969, Springfield replaced Roger Hicks as lead guitarist and vocalist in Zoot, with Birtles on bass guitar and vocals, Darryl Cotton on lead vocals and guitar, and Rick Brewer on drums. Upon joining Zoot, Springfield adopted the "Think Pink – Think Zoot" theme that had the band members dressed head to toe in pink satin. The publicity gimmick brought attention to the group and attracted numerous teenage girl fans; however it caused problems in establishing their credibility as serious rock musicians. Zoot's fifth single, "Hey Pinky", was written by Springfield. The group attempted to shake off their teeny-bopper image. They followed with a hard rock cover version of The Beatles' hit "Eleanor Rigby", which peaked at No. 4 on Go-Set's Top 40 in March 1971. Despite another hit single with "Freak" in April, which was written by Springfield, the band broke up in May.

Springfield signed with Sparmac Records and issued his début solo single, "Speak to the Sky", in October, which peaked at No. 5 on the Go-Set singles chart. Sparmac label owner, Robie Porter, was also producer and manager for Springfield. After recording his début album, Beginnings, in London, Springfield moved to the United States in mid-1972. Springfield provided all the songwriting, lead vocals, guitar, keyboard and banjo for the album. "Speak to the Sky" was issued in the US by Capitol Records and peaked at No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 in September. His début album, Beginnings, was the first of seven top 40 albums on the related Billboard 200. However, follow-up success was hampered by rumours that Capitol Records paid people to purchase Springfield's albums, which led to some radio stations boycotting his music.

 In 1973, Springfield signed to Columbia Records and recorded his second album, Comic Book Heroes, which was also produced by Porter. In Australia, released on Porter's new label, Wizard Records, the album and its two singles failed to chart. Springfield was promoted as a teeny pop idol similar to David Cassidy and Donny Osmond.

Springfield spoke of the teenybopper image in Circus Magazine in 1973. He said he was not sure how it happened. "Someone saw my photo and that was it." He went on to say that someone asked to take a photo of him in a white suit and thought that it was "a bit dull", so he took some crayons and "scrawled an R with a lightning bolt going through it ... which became my emblem."

From September 1972 to September 1973, Springfield starred as "himself" in the ABC-TV Saturday morning cartoon series Mission: Magic!, for which he usually wrote and performed an original song in each episode. In 1974, he issued an Australia-only album, Mission: Magic!, which was "full of infectious bubblegum pop songs". His single, "Take a Hand", reached the US top 50 in 1976. The single was taken from the album Wait for Night, which was issued by his new label, Chelsea Records. Soon after its release, the record company folded. During the late 1970s, he concentrated more on his acting career, guest-starring in several primetime TV dramas.

Springfield won the 1981 Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. Working Class Dog reached No.7 on the Billboard 200. Another top 10 single from the album was the Sammy Hagar-penned "I've Done Everything for You". He had further success with the follow-up albums Success Hasn't Spoiled Me Yet (1982) and Living in Oz (1983).

Springfield was frustrated with people in interviews mistaking him for Bruce Springsteen, expressed in the track "Bruce" on the album Beautiful Feelings (1984). In 1984, Springfield starred in his own movie, Hard to Hold, and recorded the majority of the material on the accompanying soundtrack. The soundtrack included a top-ten hit, "Love Somebody", as well as several moderately successful follow-up singles. However, the movie itself was not successful, and the soundtrack's success (though higher than that of the movie) paled in comparison to previous Springfield albums. Nonetheless, Springfield released his next album Tao in 1985, scoring several modest hits from this release, including "State of the Heart" and "Celebrate Youth". That same year, Springfield was one of several performers who participated in the Live Aid charity concert. Around this time, he took a brief hiatus from recording.

Springfield continued to write and record and, in 1981, released his next album, Working Class Dog. The album spawned the single "Jessie's Girl", a worldwide hit which peaked at No. 1 for two weeks in the US on the Hot 100 and the Australian Kent Music Report singles chart.

Various - 1975 - Original T.V. Themes FLAC

Theme From Rush/Seven Little Australians/Theme From Cash & Co/Theme From Ben Hall


 In 1976, Image Records released four popular Australian T.V show themes on an E.P. called "Original T.V. Themes".
The songs include two tracks by Brian May And The ABC. Showband, "Theme from Rush" and the "Theme from Seven Little Australians" and two tracks by The Bushwackers, the "Theme from Cash & Co" and the "Theme from Ben Hall". All four shows were set in the Australian Colonial days and centered on themes such as The Goldrush and Bushrangers.

 Rush
In 1974 the Australian Broadcasting Commission took the initiative and produced the high quality, critically acclaimed series Rush. Two series were made of Rush, and they were effectively two different programmes. Rush was set on the Victorian goldfields in 1852 in the fictitious settlement of Crockers Gully.
The first series was set in Victoria during the gold rush of the 1850's, and was produced in Melbourne and filmed in black and white. A second series went to air two years later, and the period and location was changed to the 1860's in New South Wales. This time it was produced in Sydney, filmed in colour and featured an almost entirely new cast line-up - the only character carried over from the original was that of Sergeant McKellar, played by John Waters.
I have wonderful memories of watching this TV show (both series) and for this reason alone I purchased the EP featured here. I was a big fan of John Waters (and his character who sported a distinctive scar on his left cheek) and followed his acting career thereafter (ie. Breaker Morant, Jesus Christ Superstar). Of course the soundtrack theme was also very catchy and well suited to the colonial setting.

Robert McKellar was the Crockers Gully Police Sergeant, who had a rather colourful past. McKellar was in the Army in England, until he shot a Sergeant with whose wife he was having an affair, and was subsequently transported to Australia as a convict. He was released on a ticket-of-leave after four years and joined the Victoria Police. McKellar is subordinate to Gold Commissioner Fitzalan, and disagrees with Fitzalan's administration of the law. McKellar identifies with the miners and their problems, and was often at loggerheads with Fitzalan - but first and foremost he was a policeman and would do his duty.

 

Seven Little Australians
Australian mini-series produced by the ABC, Australian Film Development Corporation, Ethel Turner Productions. It aired in 1973 (10 episodes) and featured Leonard Teal as Captain John Woolcot and Ruth Cracknel as Martha
Based on Ethel Turner's classic children's novel, this award-winning mini-series is about a family of seven children set in 1880s Australia. The father of this lively brood is the dashing Captain John Woolcot, and he would like to run his household with army discipline, but is no match for his seven mischievous and fun-loving children. The war of wills between the Captain and his troop of independent-minded sons and daughters is tempered by the gentle guidance of Esther, his wife, and the children's kindly step-mother.




Cash & Co
The gold rush days of the 1850’s were a significant part of Australia’s history, yet the subject was not treated in a television series until 1974. The ABC’s Rush was the first series of any note to deal with the period, and was closely followed by Homestead Film’s production of Cash & Co.
Unlike Rush, Cash & Co was conceived purely as an escapist adventure series. Although the stories are based on fact, they make no attempt to recreate any authentic events. However, much research was done to ensure the settings, costumes and props faithfully recreated the period.
The show’s theme tune and much of the incidental music was written and performed by the 'Bushwhackers And Bullockies Bush Band', later simply known as the 'Bushwackers Band'. The theme tune and some of the incidental music has also appeared on their albums.

Cash & Co reflected the view that not all outlaws were necessarily bad, but were sometimes reasonable men who were persecuted and driven outside the law by the law itself - as administered by ruthless officials, epitomised in this case by the corrupt police officer Lieutenant Keogh. The outlaws, Sam Cash (played by Serge Lazareff) and Joe Brady (played by Gus Mercurio with his gravelly, cigar choked voice), are on the run after being framed for murder by Keogh. In fact, Keogh and his troopers murdered Brady’s partner for not having a mining licence, and Brady would have been next if not for Cash’s timely intervention. The role of Jessica Johnson is played by Penne Hackforth-Jones. Jessica is strong-willed and as competent as any man, and features equally in the action scenes.

 
 Ben Hall
Ben Hall (May 9, 1837 – May 5, 1865) was an Australian bushranger. A bushranger is a thief who roamed the countryside and country towns of Australia, usually escaping on horseback, like a highwayman. Most bushrangers were simply criminals and thieves. Ben Hall is one of the few bushrangers, like Ned Kelly, who were thought of as outlaw heroes.
Ben Hall lived at a time when gold had been discovered in New South Wales and Victoria. Thousands of people went out to the places where gold had been discovered to seek their fortunes (hoping to get rich). Like many bushrangers, Ben Hall and his gang robbed coaches that were carrying gold from the goldfields. Ben Hall was able to avoid being arrested by the police for many years because he had many friends and relatives to help him..
Ben Hall was a 1975 historical mini-series produced by the ABC in Sydney as a co-production with the BBC. The Ben Hall set was located at Belrose in Sydney's north and the set formed the township of Wheogo in the mini-series. Strangely enough, there is scant information available for this mini-series and is not even featured on the ABC website. It would seem that this series has been treated as a poor cousin to the the acclaimed Rush mini-series.

Thanks to Sunshine and AussieRock

Lost Souls - 1967 - The Lost Souls (1987)

What'Cha Gonna Do/Everything Is Black/In This World/It's Gonna Be Alright


Formed in Melbourne, Australia, in 1965, the Lost Souls consisted of Rob Woff (lead vocals), Terry Paul (guitar), Bill Putt (guitar), Les Wilkins (bass), and Alan Gregory (drums). They got together right out of high school, enamored of the bluesier side of the British beat boom, especially the Rolling Stones, the Animals, and the Pretty Things, and won a local battle-of-the-bands competition, which got them a shot at a single on the Sunshine label. The resulting record, "This Life of Mine," was heavily influenced by the Animals, both in Woff's vocal performance and its pounding beat, while the fuzz-laden guitar called to mind the Pretty Things at their raunchiest, and the whole record rivalled the Who for ballsiness. It became a local hit but it was as far as the group got, in terms of leaving any lasting mark. They broke up three years later, unknown outside of their region of Australia.  The band recorded more material at the Theatresound in 1967 which wasn’t released at the time but later came available on the Kavern label in 1987.

     Left to right Terry Paul (Rhythm Guitar) Alan Gregory (Drums) Bilge Pump (Lead Guitar)
                         Les Wilkins (Bass Guitar) Robert Wolf  (Vocalist) seated.

Col Joye - 1961 - At Hitsville

Yes Sir That's My Baby/Bad Man/The Bells Are Ringing For Me And My Gal/Pony Tail




 Colin Frederick Jacobsen AM (born 13 April 1936 in Sydney), better known by his stage name Col Joye, is an Australian pioneer rock musician, popular entertainer and entrepreneur, (he has also recorded various other cross-over styles such as country music). Joye was the first Australian rock and roll singer to have a number one record Australia-wide and experienced a string of chart successes in the early Australian rock and roll scene.

Recording as a solo artist and with his backing band, The Joy Boys, which included his brothers Kevin and Keith, Joye enjoyed a string of hits on the local and national singles charts of Australia beginning in 1959. Joye's first single, "Stagger Lee" was a cover of the Lloyd Price US original. However, his third single "Bye Bye Baby" reached No.3 on the Australian Kent Music Report charts in 1959, followed by "Rockin Rollin Clementine" also peaking at No.3. His fifth single, "Oh Yeah Uh Huh", became his most successful, peaking at No.1. He also had other charting singles, including "Yes Sir That's My Baby" peaking at No.5 nationally. Joye was an original member of Brian Hendersons Bandstand television program, and appeared regularly on this show for fourteen years. Joye also toured Australia with fellow Bandstand acts, including Judy Stone, Sandy Scott, and Little Pattie. Joye's popularity leveled off with the changes to the music scene around the time of the rise of the British invasion, and especially The Beatles, and it was not until 1973 that he had another hit record, with "Heaven Is My Woman's Love" reaching No.1 on the Go-Set charts in 1973.

 During the period between personal musical successes in the 1960s, Col and Kevin Jacobsen built an influential entertainment management, publishing, and recording business, including ATA Studios in Glebe, NSW. This business worked with developing and promoting artists including the Bee Gees, and their brother Andy Gibb. Their promotions company, Jacobsen Entertainment, continued into the 2000s, with Col and Kevin remaining as principal members.
Awards and recognition

Joye won several music awards, including two ARIA Music Awards, and he earned numerous gold and platinum records. On 8 June 1981, he was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia for his entertainment and philanthropic work. Joye also continued to perform publicly, including providing entertainment at the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs post-1985 NSW Rugby League grand final victory celebration. Joye was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 1988, the first year of such inductions.In 1998, Australia Post issued a special edition set of twelve stamps celebrating the early years of Australian Rock 'n' Roll, featuring Australian hit songs from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. One of the stamps commemorated Joye, based on the song "Oh Yeah Uh Huh". Australia Post wrote that "Each of them said something about us, and told the rest of the world this is what popular culture sounds like, and it has an Australian accent".

In 2010, "Bye Bye Baby", by Col Joye and the Joy Boys with backing vocals from the Sapphires, was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia register. The curator's notes stated that:

There is not a lot to this pop song, written by American Frank McNulty, other than a catchy title hook. The lyrics are about the singer saying goodbye to his girlfriend and how lonely he will be without her until the next time they meet.The original recording was made using a nylon string guitar, bass (wonderfully out of tune in the beginning) and minimalist drums with Col Joye almost whispering the vocals (as he had a cold at the time). This is the released version, with added celeste and ‘ooh-ahh’ backing vocals from the Sapphires, presumably to give it a little more musical interest.
 

In 1990, while pruning a neighbour's tree with a chainsaw as a favour, Joye slipped and fell six metres onto brick paving below, striking his head and falling into a coma, as well as sustaining serious lower back and shoulder injuries. Initially given a poor prognosis, he eventually recovered to start performing and touring again in 1998, and in 2008 celebrated his 50th Anniversary in show business.

The Phantoms - 1963 - Instrumental Hits By The Phantoms

 Southern Cross/Dance On/Apache/Ridin' The Wind/Spring Is Nearly Here/The Two Forty-Two




The Phantoms began their career in early 1960. The band consisted of Dave Lincoln (Lead Guitar) Gene Taylor (Rhythm Guitar) Pete Wason (Bass Guitar) and Alan "Ollie" Fenton (Drums). Under the management off Bruce Stewart (who saw the playing at The Malvern Town Hall approached them after the show and asked if he could manage them) the band began to increase their popularity around the Melbourne scene.

They backed all the major solo artists on the various weekly shows at The Malvern Town Hall, Preston Town Hall, Springvale Town Hall, The Mechanics Town Hall Frankston, Cogurg Town Hall and other one off events like the Royal Melbourne Show, Moomba and the 3DB Lunchtime Concert at the Melbourne Town Hall. These Concerts Gave The Phantoms the chance to really excell and improve their skills and back the superstars of the day like Johnny O'Keefe, Johnny Chester and many others.  

 In November 1962 the Phantoms released their single on W & G titled "Stampede"/"Midnight" #27 in Melbourne. April 1963 their second single was a terrific version of "The Rumble" backed with "The Two Forty-Two" around Victoria these two singles sold well this kept the band in demand not only in demand in Victoria but N.S.W and Queensland as well.

W & G as a follow up released the six track EP Instrumental Hits By The Phantons which these days has become a collectors item changing hans for hundreds of dollars the release was not promoted and soon disappered from the the record stores. In April 1964 their next single for W & G wa released "Hava Nagila" with the popular tune "Round and Round" sales for this release were good.

The Beatles Touring Party The Phantoms back row with Johnny Chester and Johnny Devlin.

 The band was then selected as one of the support acts fot the Beatles tour of Australia Iin May they also supported Johnny Chester and Johnny Devlin. The Phantoms started each show with two songs "Hava Nagila" and "Round and Round". Members of the group for the tour were Dave Lincoln,Bob Garde, Pete Watson, Alan Fenton and Alan Tresider.

June 1964 saw the release of their album "The Two Sides Of The Phantoms" after being cast as Shadows clones the approched the album with the intent of throwing of that mantle. They decide that they would record vocals for the first time Pete Watson and Dave Lincoln took up the task.

 

Some months after the release of the album W & G issued anothe single in August  "I Want You"/"Move It" W & G then issued their final single "The Cruel Sea" with "My Babe" on the flipside. The "The Cruel Sea" was also issued in the USA on the Ford label reaching #137 on their charts.

Around this time Dave Lincoln was hit by a car and badly injured so the band advertised for a replacement and chose Mike Brady of the Hearsmen Pete and Mike hit it off and after a coupe of months they decided to pusue a more contemporary beat style of musuc this was the virtual end of the Phantoms. Pete and Mike recruited Danny Finley of The Saxons and M.P.D. Limited was born.

Essendon Airport - Sonic Investigations (Of The Trivial)

Runway Rock/How Low Can You Go/Wallpaper Music/Three Against Four




Essendon Airport was an Australian post-punk group from 1978 to 1983 who explored experimental minimalist, electronic, and funk music. They reformed in the original duo lineup for occasional performances in 2003 following the re issue of Sonic Investigations of the Trivial. A new double CD reissue of Palimpsest and other live material was released by Chapter Music in August 2011.

Based in Melbourne, Essendon Airport began as an instrumental duo in 1978 with Robert Goodge on guitar and David Chesworth on Wurlitzer electric piano along with a homemade drum machine bought from the Trading Post. Both members lived in or near the suburb of Essendon, and took the name of Essendon Airport which since 1971 was no longer an international terminal (replaced by Melbourne Airport in Tullamarine).

 

 They later became a four-piece, adding drums – Paul Fletcher, and saxophone – Ian Cox, and finally a five-piece with bass player Barbara Hogarth in 1982. The group disbanded in 1983. Each of these three line-ups produced quite different music. Essendon Airport performed around Melbourne's newly emerging post-punk inner-city venues such as The Crystal Ballroom, various galleries such as the George Paton and the Clifton Hill Community Music Centre (CHCMC), a venue for experimental music, performance and film during this time. They were also closely associated with performance group → ↑ →.

Duo 1978–79

The duo released the EP Sonic Investigations of the Trivial and the single Talking To Cleopatra with Anne Cessna both on Innocent Records.

                                                                                             David Chesworth and Robert Goodge 1979


Their EP was described at the time by Essendon Airport as .... songs which combine many of the most facile and insipid kinds of music in a redeemingly dignified manner.... creating new trivia out of old. All this takes place along with a kind of pedantic fetishism for small-repetition games - the music travels in circles, spirals and solid blocks of sameness and difference. This manifestation of Essendon Airport is perhaps less well known than the later ones but played some memorable performances around Melbourne including the Clifton Hill Community Music Centre and supports at the Crystal Ballroom in front of bemused punters waiting for bands like Midnight Oil and Jimmy and the Boys

Quartet 1980–81

Embellished with the arrhythmic drumming of Paul Fletcher and the often sweet, often brittle saxophone of Ian Cox. The four-piece performed a range of material from extreme minimalism to plundering the hidden resonances of the popular song. Examples can be heard on the album Palimpsest (Innocent Records). The group also made recordings for Fast Forward cassette magazine and a disc give-away for the Art Network magazine.

Quintet 1982–83

Adding bass player Barabara Hogarth (from the funky band 'Government Drums' featuring Willy Zygier and Richard Pleasance) the group developed material with an art/funk feel and performed many headliners at the Jump Club, Crystal Ballroom and toured to Sydney. No recordings by the quintet were released until 2011, when the 2-CD release of Palimpsest included live an studio tracks, including a Live-to-Air performances on 3RRR FM including their final performance at the Crystal Ballroom.

After the dissolution of Essendon Airport, Chesworth continued performing as a soloist and with a new group entitled Whaddya Want? (with Phillip Jackson ex Whirlywirld, Equal Local) Goodge, Cox and Hogarth formed the nucleus of the successful pop-funk band I'm Talking which featured Kate Ceberano as lead vocalist. After the dissolution of I'm Talking, Goodge, Cox and Chesworth collaborated again in 1990 in the group "Power Trip featuring Mr Larry Weems".  Chesworth later formed the instrumental group the David Chesworth Ensemble, in which Goodge has occasionally performed.

Maria Dallas - 1966 - Encore

Changing All Those Changes/I'll Cry Tomorrow/ I Don't Have A Penny/Ballin' The Jack


For a time in the mid-sixties life was a fairytale come true for a young woman from Morrinsville named Marina Devcich. One minute there she was the second youngest of twelve children working as a hairdresser in her home town. Eighteen months later she had won the Loxene Golden Disc Award with her first record, and had just returned from four months in the USA, recording with Chet Atkins and appearing on the Grand Ole Opry.

It all started in 1964 when Marina and Isabel Leigh won a Johnny Cooper talent quest in Morrinsville. Further solo performances with the Lew Manson Band around the Waikato area followed. One night in 1965 she was booked to appear in a Morrinsville hotel with Howard Morrison and Auckland bandleader Mike Perjanik. Mike went straight back to Auckland to tell Viking Records' chief Ron Dalton that he'd found his next star in the Waikato. Almost overnight the girl with the power packed voice was in an Auckland recording studio, recording Jay Epae's "Tumblin' Down". Ron Dalton decided to rename her Maria Dallas. 

 

 "Tumblin' Down" backed with "When I Get Through With You" was a very infectious number. Released in 1966, the song made it to number 11 on the national charts and was entered into the Loxene Golden Disc Awards, where it took first place. Despite this success, Maria never felt at home as a pop singer and soon returned to her country music roots.           

Viking churned out six albums during 1966 and 1967, and a similar number of singles. None of the singles faired as well as the first.                                            
Later in 1967 she moved to Australia, before venturing to Nashville, where she did a considerable amount of recording. Although singles were still released during her absence, New Zealanders had almost forgotten about her until she returned in 1970 with a song called "Pinocchio" which went all the way to number 1 on the national charts.

Again she couldn't reproduce her success after that, but Viking capitalised by releasing another album in 1971 and a follow up in 1972. Maria married an Australian and has lived there for many years.

Tommy Leonetti - 1970 - Tommy Leonetti Sings

Kumbaya/Hands/My City Of Sydney/Till I See You Again



Anyone who lived in Sydney during the 60’s and 70’s would surely remember the days when the television stations did the nightly close-down. Unlike today when you can watch TV all through the night, sometime between 10.30pm and midnight each channel did their own particular close-down and from then until the next morning all you got was a test signal on the screen.

The ABC (Channel Two) played ‘Advance Australia Fair’ – I cannot recall what Channel Nine or Ten did – but who from that time does not recall the wonderful entertainer Tommy Leonetti singing ‘My City of Sydney’ at the end of the night’s broadcasting on Channel Seven ?

As a backdrop to the song there is a clip of Tommy wandering around Sydney and along the beaches – now this was filmed back in the very early 70’s so you do notice a huge difference in the Sydney skyline; the hydrofoils, the old ferries, there’s no Centrepoint Tower and even the Opera House is still in it’s final stage of construction…

The bikini’s on the girls, the cars, the fashions of the day. The absence of all those five star hotels, the Australia Square building dominating the skyline.  Back then you drove over the Harbour Bridge – only the bridge workers walked over it and I would bet that if the camera had lingered long enough on the bridge you would see Paul Hogan working as a rigger there somewhere.

Tommy Leonetti was actually an American entertainer who came to Australia and quickly became a favourite with audiences on TV (The Tommy Leonetti Show) and around the clubs as a singer. He had a wonderful voice and during his TV show endeared himself to his colleagues for his habit of missing camera cues and forgetting his lines and did you know that Gary McDonald based his character ‘Norman Gunston’ on Tommy’s endearingly clumsy style of interviewing…? but it was as a singer in front of a live audience that Tommy was at his best.

Jay Justin - 1963 - Proud Of You

Proud Of You/Promise Me/Why Don't You Try/ Love Me Love Me Baby Darling



 Jay Justin a shoe salesman-cum-pop singer, Justin first hit the Australian charts in 1961 with his second record, "Why Don't You Try". The popularity of this hit helped Justin to become a regular on national TV shows Bandstand and the Johnny O'Keefe Show. More small local hits

followed until Justin recorded the biggest hit of his singing career in 1963, the smash "Proud of You" his own composition it reached # 3 in Brisbane & Sydney , & # 2 in Melbourne , April 1963, it was also released in the USA, (though failing to chart in that country).

In addition to recording, Justin has also written songs for other artists, such as Bryan Davies, Little Pattie, and Patsy Ann Noble. 'He’s My Blond Headed Stompie Wompie Real Gone Surfer Boy’ by the 14-year-old Little Pattie. It got to No. 2 in the Sydney charts and got her a best female Vocalist Award for 1963. The B side was 'Stompin’ at Maroubra’ and both songs were written by producer Joe Halford and singer Jay Justin. 

The Scientists - 1980 - The Scientists

Last Night/Bet Ya Lyin' (Slink City Lee)/It's For Real/Pissed On Another Planet


The Scientists are an influential post-punk band from Perth, Australia, led by Kim Salmon, initially known as the Exterminators and then the Invaders. The band had two primary incarnations: the Perth-based punk band of the late 1970s and the Sydney/London-based swamp rock band of the 1980s. The Scientists were much more influential than their minimal commercial success would indicate, lending their influence to artists such as Mudhoney and New York's downtown indie scene of the early 1990s.

Dig Richards - 1962 - Raincoat In The River

Raincoat In The River/A Long Way From Home/Do Re Mi/Dear Lady Twist



 Digby George Richards was born on 12 September 1940 in Dunedoo. His father, Gordon Forrest Richards, was a rural-based policeman, and his mother was Mona, (née Dennis). His younger brother is Douglas Ryman Richards (born ca. 1944). Gordon was later an oyster farmer in Narooma. Richards attended Narooma Central and Moruya High schools, where he completed his Leaving Certificate. At the age of 17 he travelled to Sydney to work in a large department store.

He formed the R'Jays as lead singer with Jon Hayton (ex-Red Jeans) on lead guitar. The band played their first dance in August 1958 with a line-up of Richards and Hayton joined by Kenny Conyard on rhythm guitar, Barry Lewis on drums, Peter Morris on saxophone, and Roger Paulfreman on tea chest bass. They auditioned with Festival Records in 1959 and were the third rock and roll act to be signed to a recording contract; the previous two were Johnny O'Keefe, and Col Joye and the Joy Boys.

In July 1959 Dig Richards and the R'Jays released their first single, "I Wanna Love You", which was written by Richards' 15-year-old brother, Douglas. It peaked at No. 8 on the local radio station, 2UE's Top 40 records chart. By that time the line-up was Richards, Hayton, and Lewis with Jay Boogie on piano and Peter Baker on electric bass. The group's second single, "I'm Through", also written by Doug, followed in September and reached the Top 40.

Dig Richards and the R'Jays were the first group to play live on Brian Henderson's TV pop music show, Bandstand, and became one of the regular performers. They were also regulars on rival TV show, Six O'Clock Rock, hosted by O'Keefe. From August 1959 they were the house band on music TV show, Teen Time, which ran on Sydney's ATN-7 until about 1962. In mid-October 1959 they were due to support United States singer, Fabian, on his tour of Australia However, Richards was hospitalised after a car accident and was unable to tour for months.

Richards became the first Australian rock and roll artist to record a 12" LP record when Dig Richards was released in November 1959. Australian Women's Weekly's entertainment reporter, Ainslie Baker, felt it had "tunes nicely judged to show off the paces of this young rocker". Richards was backed on most tracks by the R'Jays but on four tracks he used The New Notes. In January 1960 Richards supported a tour by US rocker, Billy "Crash" Craddock, promoted by Lee Gordon. Also that month Richards and the R'Jays issued a single, "(Real Gone) Annie Laurie", on Festival Records' label, Rex. Leon Isackson replaced Lewis on drums. The group, with Richards, issued three further singles on Rex. In September 1960 they supported visiting US singer-actor, Ricky Nelson. Richards' second solo album, Bad Boy, appeared in November. In the studio, for different tracks, he was backed by the R'Jays, The Crescents, or The Graduates. Richards also released solo singles, "You Gotta Love Me" in December 1960, and "Alice (In Wonderland)", which reached No. 33 in June 1961.

After 1962 Richards became a solo performer and taught himself to play guitar. In August he released an extended play, Dig Richards Gets out of the Groove, with guitar supplied by Douglas. Also that month he formed a commercial venture, All Star Promotions, with fellow pop artists Rob E. G. and Johnny Devlin, which ran teenage dance venues. Richards then undertook two review show tours with Ted Quig to "gain more experience in stage work and comedy sketches". His next single, "Raincoat in the River", reached No. 19 in October 1962. He had a four-week tour of rural areas working as a comedy singing duo with Clarence "Buster" Noble, where "One of the things he taught me was facial expression". In December Richards took the lead role in the musical theatre production of Melody Fair at the Elizabethan Theatre, Sydney. He followed with singing and dancing lessons.

In May 1963 he issued another single, "The Love Express", which Baker noted had "a perky girl chorus, train sounds, and the come-hither note in Dig's voice make [it] a train not to be missed, and there's plenty of intimate appeal in the other song ["The Whole Wide World"] – which Dig wrote himself". It was followed in December with "Comin' Down". In December he had a role, Dig the Beatnik, in Once Upon a Surfie, a surf musical farce at the Palace Theatre, Sydney. Also in the musical were Bryan Davies, Rob E. G., Jay Justin, Lucky Starr and Jackie Weaver.

Richards' next four singles for Festival were "Come on and Dance with Me" (May 1964), "Mary from the Dairy" (December), "Puff (The Tragic Wagon)" (June 1965) and "I was Yesterday's Hero, Today I'm a Broken Hearted Clown". From October 1964 to January 1965 Richards compered a weekly children's TV general knowledge quiz show, Ampol Stamp Quiz, with co-host and fellow pop singer Little Pattie. He then worked on the club circuit and in 1966 he toured South East Asia and performed for Australian troops in Vietnam. During 1970 he relocated to the United Kingdom to work the club circuit there.

He returned to Australia in 1971 and, as Digby Richards, continued performing and recording with a mainly country style. That year his next album, Harlequin, appeared on RCA. It provided four singles, "A Little Piece of Peace" (June 1971) No. 28, "Just Loving You" (September), "People Call Me Country" (February 1972) No. 24, and "Dirty River" (May). In 1973 he travelled to Los Angeles where he recorded his next album, Digby Richards (February 1974). Four singles were issued from the album, "If I Could Write a Love Song" (December 1973), "New York City (Send My Baby Home)" (No. 35, April 1974), "Do the Spunky Monkey" (No. 21, June) and "Be My Day" (September).

Richards next album, Collection (1975) provided three singles, "Mr Hard Times" (January 1975), "Little Suzuki" (May) and a re-recorded version of "Raincoat in the River" (August). By 1977 Richards had relocated to the UK again. His 1978 album, Whiskey Sundown, appeared in December and from late that year into the next year he toured Europe as the support act for Dolly Parton, including shows in London. His next album, The Thing is ...?, appeared in January 1981 and was followed by If You Could Read My Mind in December the following year. On 17 February 1983 Digby Richards died of pancreatic cancer, aged 42