Debbie Byrne - 1991 - Caught In The Act FLAC

Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'/Wouldn't It Be Loverly/Every Day A Little Death/I Dreamed a Dream/Whats The Use Of Wond'rin'/Younger Than Springtime/Edelwiess/Memory/Tell Me On A Sunday/I'll Do Anything/Medley From The King And I



Debra Anne Byrne (born 30 March 1957), formerly billed as Debbie Byrne, is an Australian pop singer, actress and entertainer. From April 1971 to March 1975 she was a founding cast member of Young Talent Time. She started her solo singing career with a cover version of "He's a Rebel" (March 1974), which peaked at No. 25 on the Go-Set Australian Singles chart. At the Logie Awards of 1974 she won Best Teenage Personality and followed with the Queen of Pop Award in October – both ceremonies were sponsored by TV Week. She repeated both wins in the following year.

As an actress Byrne appeared in the Australian musical theatre versions of Cats (July 1985 to mid-1987), Les Misérables (November 1987 to May 1988, December 1989 to June 1990) and Sunset Boulevard (October 1996 to June 1997). Her solo album, Caught in the Act (April 1991), peaked at No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Chart and was certified gold. In 2006 Byrne published her autobiography, Not Quite Ripe: A Memoir.

Various - 1966 - Spinnin' High FLAC

 Tony Barber Someday/I Want Her Too/Is It Raining/You Can't Lie To A Liar    
 Steve & The Board The Giggle Eyed Goo!/Rosalyn/Margot/Rosemarie    
 Marty Rhone Nature Boy/Every Minute Of You/Thirteen Women/I Can Tell   
 Ronnie Burns True, True Lovin'/Too Many People/Very Last Day/Let It Be Me


There were a few of these 4x4's released in the sixties mostly by Festival Records a bit like having 4 EP's  on one album this one has 4 of the best Marty Rhone, Tony Barber, Ronnie Burns and Steve And The Board.




Marty Rhone was born as Karel (or Karl) Lawrence van Rhoon on 7 May 1948 in Soerabaja, Dutch East Indies (later named Surabaya, Indonesia).  The family migrated to Australia on 21 April 1950 and briefly lived in Sydney and Brisbane, and then moved to Darwin. After he finished primary school, the family moved to Sydney, where he attended Crows Nest Boys High School.  In mid-1961 he appeared on a talent quest segment of ATN7-TV series, Tarax Show, and was offered a singing spot on a children's show, Kaper Kabaret. In late 1965 he formed a band, The Blue Feelings, and they auditioned for an appearance on Saturday Date, a teen music show. After the audition Spin Records owner, Nat Kipner, signed Rhone to a recording contract and the label issued his debut single, "Nature Boy", in February the following year. For his next two singles, "Thirteen Women" (April) and "I Want You Back Again", Rhone was backed by Spin Records label mates, The Soul Agents, a beat pop group. They had formed in 1964 and by 1966 consisted of Jerry Darmic on bass guitar, Roger Felice-Andrews on drums, John Green on guitar and Barry Kelly on organ.

Rhone's fourth single, "She Is Mine", included the self-penned B-side, "Village Tapestry", which appeared in September. None of these singles charted on the Go-Set National Top 40, however Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, described "Village Tapestry" as being "highly regarded among 1960s aficionados". In Iain McIntyre's book, Tomorrow Is Today: Australia in the Psychedelic Era, 1966-1970 (2006), the track was listed by Ian D. Marks as one of the 'Top 7 Proto-Psychedelic Australian Tracks from 1966'. Marks described it as "completely out of left field. With a gentle, almost medieval lilt, autoharps a-strumming and a charming spoken word verse—there was nothing like this released in Australia at the time. Melodic, evocative and delicate". During 1966 Marty Rhone and The Soul Agents supported The Rolling Stones on the United Kingdom rock group's tour of Australia. They also performed on the bill of the P.J. Proby Show at the Sydney Stadium with Wayne Fontana, Eden Kane and The Bee Gees appearing. Marty would go on to have more success in the 70's.


Ronald "Ronnie" Leslie Burns AM (born 8 September 1946) is an Australian rock singer and guitarist. He fronted the Melbourne band The Flies in the early 1960s.
As a solo artist, Burns became one of Australia's most popular male pop singers from the mid-1960s to the early 1970s. His first single, "Very Last Day" was released in June 1966 on Spin Records and peaked at No. 12 on Melbourne's Top 40 singles chart. His second single, "True True Lovin" followed in August and reached No. 15. Go-Set published their inaugural pop poll on 5 October, Normie Rowe won 'Australian Male Vocal' of the year – he was later called 'King of Pop' – with Burns second and Johnny Young third. Also in October, Go-Set published Australia's first National Top 40 singles chart, Burns' third single, "Coalman", which was released in January 1967, peaked at No. 6. Another Top 20 single was "Exit, Stage Right" in June. In August, Burns topped the Go-Set pop poll for 'Top Male Singer' and ABC-TV broadcast a documentary, The Life of Ronnie Burns. Over the next four years, he consistently finished third on the Go-Set pop poll.

 Burns had several minor national hits – "We Had a Good Thing Going" (October 1967), "When I Was Six Years Old" (March 1968), written for him by Brian Cadd and Max Ross of The Groop, and "Age of Consent" (January 1969), written by Terry Britten of The Twilights. Most of Burns' 1967 material was written by The Bee Gees, the tracks appeared on his first solo album Ronnie (Spin, July 1967). "Smiley", Burns' biggest hit, reached number two on the Go-Set National Top 40 in February 1970. It was also written by Young, Young revealed that the song was inspired by the experiences of fellow pop star, Rowe, whose music career ended in late 1967 when he was drafted into the Australian Army and he was sent to fight in the Vietnam War. It is one of the first Australian pop singles released in stereo and features a lavish orchestral and vocal arrangement by John Farrar (ex The Strangers) who went on to write and/or produce many hits for Olivia Newton-John.

In the early 1970s, Burns had moved from pop to more adult contemporary music, he toured the club and cabaret circuit. Further Young-penned singles were "The Prophet" in January 1971 and "If I Die" in 1972. He appeared on variety TV shows including as a judge on Young Talent Time, where Maggie Burns was a choreographer. Burns' last single, "Brand New Number One" was released in 1980 on the Fable Records label.


In the short time they were around, Steve & The Board supplied listeners with a menu of sublime and snotty garage-punk songs and a wild stage presence. Formed in late '65, the group was unusually one of the very few young Australian beat units to be allowed the indulgence of an album without a string of chart hits behind them. This situation may be attributable to the fact that Steve's dad just happened to be the boss of Spin Records -- producer, songwriter and entrepreneur Nat Kipner, who had previously been one of the partners in Ivan Dayman's Sunshine label.

Nat had formed a close relationship with The Bee Gees. In 1966 he saved them from being dropped from the Leedon label by Festival Records, persuading the company to transfer them to the Spin label and co-produced most of their last Australian recordings with Ozzie Byrne at his St Clair studio in Hurstville. Through his father, Steve Kipner and the band became good mates with the Gibb brothers. Colin Petersen drummed on many of the Bee Gees Spin recording in 1966, and Carl Keats is also probably the only person to have ever written a song specifically for the Bee Gees -- "Lonely Winter" (1966). Steve & The Board returned the favour by covering Barry's "Little Miss Rhythm & Blues" on their Giggle Eyed Goo LP. The album was recorded at the end of 1966 with Colin Petersen, but he quit immediately after the sessions and head to the UK soon after.

 A particularly interesting piece of Steve & The Board trivia is that Brisbane-born drummer Colin Peterson was a noted child actor. Colin will be known to generations of Australians for his portrayal of the irrepressible young larrikin Smiley in the classic 1950s Australian film of that name, and he also appeared in The Scamp and A Cry in the Streets.

Nat Kipner penned the band's first single, the rude and raucous "Giggle Eyed Goo", which cheekily copped a line in the bridge from a contemporaneous toilet-paper commercial jingle -- "It's pink and blue and primrose too". This remarkable piece of ratbag punk-rock became a sizable hit in Eastern states in '66, and was followed up by a great rocking track with possibly one of the corniest garage rock titles ever: "I Call My Woman Hinges ('Cos She's Something To Adore)".

Colin Petersen's replacement was Geoff Bridgford, a solid player who went on to join Melbourne soul stylists The Groove. Geoff played on Steve and The Board's final single, "Sally Was a Good Old Girl"/ "Good for Nothing Sue" (January 1967), but the group broke up soon afterwards, in May 1967.



Guitarist, singer, songwriter and author Tony Barber is one of the unsing heroes of the Beat Boom in Australia. Rock historian Dean Mittelhauser considered him "one of our most underrated performers from the Sixties" and felt that Tony had "played a bigger part in the success of Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs that has been generally credited".

Tony was one of the many music-crazy young migrants who arrived in Australia in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and he had played in a minor band called The Electrons before leaving the UK. Within weeks of his arrival in Australia in 1964 he met a cocky young singer called Billy Thorpe in Kings Cross and he was immediately drafted in as the fifth member of Billy's backing band, The Aztecs. Tony was already developing into a competent pop writer and he composed both sides of the Aztec's first single "Blue Day" / You don't love me", released on the Linda Lee label in April 1964.

Two days before The Aztecs' next recording session, Tony received a 'care package' from his brother in the UK that contained the Rolling Stones' first EP. Afer hearing The Stones' version of Lieber & Stoller's "Poison Ivy", Tthe Aztecs decided to record the song on their next single. It's now a matter of history that their version (widely regarded as being superior to The Stones') shot to #1, became one of the biggest Australian pop hits of the year, kept The Beatles out of the top spot in the Sydney charts in the very midst of their tour, and made Billy and The Aztecs into national stars. Tony featured on the next three Aztecs singles, "Mashed Potato" "Sick and Tired" and "Over The rainbow" -- all of which were major hits -- but in late 1965 Tony and the rest of The Aztecs quit en masse, mainly because of ongoing financial wrangles with manager John Harrigan.
After leaving The Aztecs, Tony and fellow Aztec Vince Maloney formed the shortlived Vince & Tony's Two, with John Shields on bass and Jimmy Thompson on drums. In late 1965 Tony was signed as a solo artist to the newly formed Everybody's label, which had been established by Clyde Packer's Consolidated Press. Tony's solo debut single (produced by Nat Kipner) was a thumping beat original called "Someday", which it was one of the first (and only) four singles issued on Everybody's. None of these singles -- including Tony's -- was unsuccessful on first release because of resistance from radio DJs who (not unreasonably) regarded the label as blatant cross-promotion for Packer's Everybody's magazine and refused to name it on air.

 The label was hastily rebadged as Spin Records and Tony's single was re-issued in February 1966. This time it took off, becoming a major hit that peaked at #7 in Sydney and #11 in Melbourne. Tony released four more singles on Spin -- "Wait By The Water" (Apr. 1966), "Wondrous Place" (July '66), "Lookin' for a better day" (Jan. 1967) and "Bird's Eye View", which was written for a long-forgotten TV documentary. Tony was also granted the rare privilege of recording an entire LP, entitled Someday ... Now!, on which he was backed by labelmates Steve & The Board and The Bee Gees.

Although he was signed to Spin as a recording artist, Tony also worked with another independent label during this period, the Melbourne-based Phono Vox. He produced several singles by Phon Vox artists, including Denise Drysdale and The Bentbeaks, and he also wrote the A-side of Denise's single "Sunshine Shadow". In late 1967, after his Spin contract had ended, Tony released one single under his own name on Phono Vox, but this proved to be his swansong as a recording artist. During 1967 Tony married his girlfriend Sue Peck, a staffer with Go-Set magazine, and soon after he left the pop scene to concentrate on business ventures and raising a family. In the 1980s he reunited with his old friend Billy Thorpe in the successful 'Sunshine Friends' soft toy enterprise.

In 2002, after more than thirty years away from the limelight, Tony reunited with Billy and the original Aztecs for the historic Long Way To The Top concert tours. His experiences inspired him to write a memoir of the tour and his early days as a pop musician, entitled Long Way Til You Drop. Regrettably, there was opposition to the book from some of those involved in the LWTTT tour, fuelled by pre-publication media hype that suggested it would be a tell-all exposé. In the event, Tony's book proved to be an entertaining, witty and affectionate account of an important chapter in Australian rock history.

Various - 2000 - Sixties Downunder Vol. 4 FLAC

DINAH LEE - Don’t you know Yokomo
MERV BENTON & THE TAMLAS - Yield not to temptation
M.P.D. LIMITED - Lonely boy
GRANTLEY DEE - Let the little girl dance
BILLY THORPE & THE AZTECS - Over the rainbow
BEV HARRELL - What am I doing here with you?
JOHNNY YOUNG & KOMPANY - Step back
THE EASYBEATS - Come & see her
BOBBY & LAURIE - Hitchhiker
GLEN INGRAM & THE HI FIVE - Skye boat song
NORMIE ROWE - Ooh la la
THE EXECUTIVES - My aim is to please you
THE CHEROKEES - Minnie the moocher
LOVED ONES - Sad dark eyes
THE GROOVE - Simon says
THE IGUANA - California, my way
THE VIRGIL BROTHERS - Temptation’s ‘bout to get me
PASTORAL SYMPHONY - Love machine
THE STRANGERS - Happy without you
RONNIE BURNS - Age of consent
ZOOT - 1x2x3x4
NEW DREAM - Groupie
THE FLYING CIRCUS - Hayride
RUSSELL MORRIS - The girl that I love
RONNIE CHARLES - Katy Jane
THE EASYBEATS - St. Louis
AXIOM - Arkansas Grass
KING FOX - Unforgotten dreams

Various - 1998 - Sixties Downunder Vol. 3 FLAC

 EASYBEATS- She’s so fine
BOBBY & LAURIE- Someone
PETER DOYLE & THE PHANTOMS- Stupidity
M.P.D. LIMITED- Little boy sad
THE CICADAS- That’s what I want
THE CHANGING TIMES- Mary Lou
BOBBY & LAURIE- Judy Green
THE EASYBEATS- Wedding ring
NORMIE ROWE- The breaking point
RAY BROWN & THE WHISPERS- Ain’t it strange
ALLUSIONS- Gypsy woman
PURPLE HEARTS- I’m gonna try
THE THROB- Black
THE RUNNING JUMPING STANDING STILL- Diddy wah diddy
PHIL JONES & THE UNKNOWN BLUES- If I had a ticket
LA DE DAS- Hey baby
THE TWILIGHTS- What’s wrong with the way I live
LARRY’S REBELS- Painter man
THE WILD CHERRIES- Krome plated yabby
JAMES TAYLOR MOVE- Magic eyes
THE PLAYBOYS- Sad
PROCESSION- Listen
SOMEBODY'S IMAGE- Hide & seek
TERRY BRITTEN- 2,000 weeks
DOUG PARKINSON IN FOCUS- Dear Prudence
THE MASTER’S APPRENTICES- 5.10 man
THE DAVE MILLER SET- Mr. Guy Fawkes
RUSSELL MORRIS- The Real Thing

Various - 1990 - Sixties Downunder Vol. 2 FLAC

NORMIE ROWE & PLAYBOYS- Shakin' all over
TONY BARBER- Someday
MIKE FURBER & BOWERY BOYS- Just a poor boy
NORMIE ROWE & PLAYBOYS- Que sera sera
RAY BROWN & THE WHISPERS- Fool fool fool
RAY COLUMBUS & THE INVADERS- She's a mod
BILLY THORPE & THE AZTECS- Sick & tired
THE TWILIGHTS- Bad boy
THE ALLUSIONS- The dancer
JOHNNY YOUNG & KOMPANY- Caralyn
RONNIE BURNS- Coalman
LYNNE RANDELL- I'll come running over
NORMIE ROWE & PLAYBOYS- Tell him I'm not home
THE THROB- Fortune teller
THE EASYBEATS- I'll make you happy
RONNIE BURNS- Exit stage right
THE PURPLE HEARTS- Early in the morning
THE LOVED ONES- The loved one
MASTER'S APPRENTICES- Undecided
THE GROOP- Sorry
THE VIBRANTS- Something about you
JEFF ST. JOHN & THE ID- Big time operator
RAY HOFF & THE OFFBEATS- Tossin' & turnin'
MAX MERRITT & THE METEORS- Shake
PYTHON LEE JACKSON- Um um um um
THE EASYBEATS- Friday on my mind
MASTER'S APPRENTICES- Elevator driver
TWILIGHTS- Cathy come home
THE GROOP- Such a lovely way

Various - 1988 - Sixties Downunder FLAC

BILLY THORPE & THE AZTECS - Poison Ivy
BOBBY & LAURIE - I belong with you
NORMIE ROWE & THE PLAYBOYS - It ain't necessarily so
RAY BROWN & THE WHISPERERS - Pride
MIKE FURBER & THE BOWERY BOYS - You stole my love
TONY WORSLEY - Just a little bit
PINK FINKS - Louie Louie
EASYBEATS - Sorry
TWILIGHTS - Needle in a haystack
STEVE & THE BOARD - Giggle eyed goo
LIBRETTOS - Kicks
PURPLE HEARTS - Of hopes & dreams & tombstones
MASTERS' APPRENTICES - Buried & dead
BLACK DIAMONDS - I want, need, love you
EASYBEATS - Women
MAX MERRITT & METEORS - Fannie Mae
BEE GEES - Spicks & specks
THE GROOP - Woman you're breaking me
LOVED ONES - Everlovin' man
THE WILD CHERRIES - That's life
TWILIGHTS - 9.50
MASTERS' APPRENTICES - Living in a child's dream
THE GROOVE - Soothe me
NORMIE ROWE - It's not easy
THE TOWN CRIERS - Everlasting love
LYNNE RANDELL - Ciao baby
SOMEBODY'S IMAGE - Hush



 The first disc in this superlative and very popular series came out in 1988. Sixities Downunder was also the first release in the new CD format from renowned reissue specialists Raven Records, who had already made their name with classic compilations of The Masters Apprentices and The Twilights. Compiled and annotated by Oz rock guru Glenn A. Baker, they are as near to a definitive collection of '60s Australia pop as we're ever likely to get. Now into its fourth volume, this is a true musical feast, and the most remarkable thing is that there's barely a dud amongst its 112 tracks.

Raven have taken 1964 as their starting point, and Volume 1 kicks off in appropriate fashion with Thorpie's epoch-making Poison Ivy, the song that marked the start of the Beat Boom in Australia, and it's uphill all the way from there. Every track on this first disc is a gold-plated classic, and Disc One alone must rate as perhaps the best sampler of Australian '60s pop every released. It shares a number of tracks in common with the excellent Festival compilation So You Wanna Be A Rock'n'Roll Star?, but that set necessarily featured only Festival (or Festival distributed) artists and focused primarily on NSW acts. The Sixties Downunder series covers the whole gamut of Australian pop, with tracks from every major label (and a few minor ones!), every major city, and virtually every important act of the period.

Johnny Young - 1988 - Step Back FLAC

Step Back/Cara-Lyn/Kiss Me Now/When Will I Be Loved/Lady/Good Evening Girl/Mrs. Willoughby/Mrs. Willoughby/Let It Be Me/All My Lovin'/Every Christian Lion Hearted Man Will Show You/Craise Finton Kirk/ I Am The World/After Dark/Epitath To Mr.Simon, Sir/Unconscientious Objector/This Is My World/Mr. Reagan 43/Willy Nilly/Devoted To You




Johnny Young (born Johnny Benjamin de Jong, 12 March 1947) is a Dutch Australian singer, composer, record producer, disc jockey, television producer and host. Originally from Netherlands, his family settled in Perth, Western Australia in the early 1950s. Young had a career in the 1960s as a pop singer and had a number one hit with the double-A-side, "Step Back" and "Cara-lyn" in 1966. As a composer, he penned number one hits, "The Real Thing" and "The Girl That I Love" for Russell Morris, "The Star" for Ross D. Wylie and "I Thank You" for Lionel Rose. He presented and produced the popular television show, Young Talent Time, which screened on Network Ten from 1971 to 1988 – it launched the careers of teen pop stars Jamie Redfern, Debra Byrne, Dannii Minogue and Tina Arena – typically each episode closed with a sing-along rendition of The Beatles song "All My Loving".
On 9 March 1990, Young was inducted into the TV Week Logie Awards' Hall of Fame. On 27 October 2010, he was inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame by Tina Arena who performed his song, "The Star". He is the first, and so far only, person to be inducted in both halls.

Pseudo Echo - 1989 - Race FLAC

Fooled Again/Over Tomorrow/Caught/Imagination/Don't You Forget/Runaways/Searching For A Glory/Take On The World/Metropolis/Eye Of The Storm



 Pseudo Echo are an Australian new wave band that formed in 1982 in Melbourne. The original line-up consisted of Brian Canham (vocals, guitars and keyboards), born 3 July 1962, Pierre Gigliotti (as Pierre Pierre) (bass guitar, keyboards), Tony Lugton (guitars and keyboards) and Anthony Argiro (drums). A later line-up included James Leigh (keyboards) and his brother, Vince Leigh (drums). In the 1980s, Pseudo Echo had Australian top 20 hits with "Listening", "A Beat for You", "Don't Go", "Love an Adventure", "Living in a Dream" and their cover of "Funky Town" (from Lipps Inc.), which peaked at No. 1 in 1986. In 1987, it reached No. 1 in Canada and New Zealand, No. 6 in United States and No. 8 in United Kingdom.

 They released their debut album, Autumnal Park in 1984 which peaked at No. 11 on the Australian Kent Music Report. Love an Adventure followed in 1985 and reached No. 14. Their third album, Race (1989) peaked at No. 18 and in 1990 the group disbanded. They reformed in 1998 and issued Teleporter in 2000. Rock music historian Ian McFarlane, stated they "combined flash clothes, blow-wave hairstyles, youthful exuberance and accessible synth-pop to arrive at a winning combination ... and found a ready-made audience among teenagers who fawned on the band's every move".

Race is the third studio album released by Australian new wave band, Pseudo Echo. It was released via EMI Australia in 1988 and RCA Records internationally in 1989. Race resulted in a musical change for the group as it mirrored the music landscape at the time; dominated by big hair, big guitars and rock. While the album no doubt alienated the majority of the bands fan base, it equally attracted a new breed of rock loving fans. The album included their track "Take On the World" which won at 1987 World Popular Song Festival (aka Yamaha Music Festival) in Japan. Three singles were released from the album, the first "Fooled Again" (which had "Take On The World" as a B-side) peaked at No.32 in Australia in late 1988

Sherbet - 1976 - Howzat! FLAC

Howzat!/Lady Of The Night/Gimme' Love/If I Had My Way/Hollywood Dreaming/Dancer/Blueswalkin'/Motor Of Love/The Swap (You Can Get The Lot)/Can't Find True Love/I'll Be Coming Home



Howzat is an album by the Australian band Sherbet released in 1976. It spent two weeks at number one on the Australian albums chart in 1976.

The title track was also a number one hit and remains the group's biggest hit, especially outside of Australia, reaching the top 5 of the UK charts and also entering the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. It is often used as a cricket anthem and is sometimes loudly played by ground organisers at limited-overs matches. "Howzat" is a catchcry used by cricketers when appealing to the umpire for a wicket. It was featured on the soundtrack of the New Zealand-made film In My Father's Den, and later covered by the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra.

Bobby and Laurie - 1966 - Hitch Hiker

No Next Time/Jump Back/Sweet & Tender Romance/Not My Girl/Fallin'/You'll Come Round/Hitch Hiker/Tonight When I Come Home/Bless You/I've Learned/Down In The Valley/Trouble With A Woman



 Bobby & Laurie were a popular Australian singing duo of the 1960s, featuring Laurie Allen (vocals, guitar, keyboards) and Bobby Bright (vocals, guitar). Their regular backing band were The Rondells. The pair formed one of the leading acts in the first wave of the Australian 'beat pop' era between 1964 and 1967, alongside contemporaries such as Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs, Ray Brown & The Whispers, The Easybeats and Normie Rowe. They became one of the most popular and successful acts of their day.

Allen's first amateur group was in Melbourne in the late 1950s and called The Three Jays. This was followed by The Lories (c.1958) and The Roulettes (1958–59), a long-running Melbourne revue band. From 1959 to 1961, he was lead guitarist for Malcolm Arthur & The Knights and in 1962 was lead singer/organist of a previously instrumental group The Blue Jays. At about the end of 1963, The Blue Jays became The Fabulous Blue Jays, the backing band for singer Tony Worsley. Laurie then rejoined The Roulettes.

Bright had previously worked mainly as a solo artist, starting his singing in Adelaide. He later moved to Melbourne and released two solo singles on the W&G Records label in 1963.



One of The Roulettes was Ron Blackmore who decided to leave the performance side of the industry and move into band management. In about 1963, Allen also left the band and he and Bright performed separately as soloists under Blackmore's management in the dance club circuit around Melbourne. On 11 March 1964, Allen made his first solo television appearance, on Graham Kennedy's In Melbourne Tonight. Later in 1964, the two appeared on The Go!! Show and soon teamed up to create a highly successful duo through their good looks, a clean cut image and sharp performances. Originally billed as Laurie Allen and Bobby Bright, the duo became regulars on the show alongside The Strangers and were paid 50 pounds per appearance.

They had the first record on the new Go Records label with I Belong With You which was released with its 45 B-side song Trouble in Mind in August 1964. The record was produced by English producer Roger Savage, who had just arrived in Australia from London where he had worked with the Rolling Stones. I Belong With You was a hit staying at number-one on the Melbourne charts for two weeks and won Laurie an Australian Record Award for 'Best Composition' in 1965.
Peak success

 At this time, Bobby & Laurie started working with a Blackmore-managed backing band The Rondells (previously called The Lincolns and The Silhouettes). The duo reached their peak in late 1964, busily touring the country and appearing in numerous concert and television performances. They had dozens of engagements and personal appearances every week, with as many as six shows on a Saturday night. One unusual performance was playing 'Tweedledum' and 'Tweedledee' in a Christmas pantomime production of Alice In Wonderland at the Tivoli Theatre in Melbourne in December 1964.

In early 1965 the pair appeared on the Teen Scene music television show on the ABC, where they were famously dragged off the stage by screaming female fans. They appeared in the premiere episode of Channel 0's new children's program the Magic Circle Club on 23 January, playing characters 'Twoddle' and 'Boddle'.

They released three more successful singles on the Go label during 1965: Someone (which reached #3 in Melbourne), Judy Green and Crazy Country Hop which reached #25. 

In May 1965 they supported a national tour by The Dave Clark Five, The Seekers and Tommy Quickly. Later in the year they supported American P. J. Proby on his national tour.

In 1966 they switched to the Albert Productions label, releasing Sweet And Tender Romance and Hitch Hiker, which gave them a national number-one hit for five weeks in May and June. At about this time they also changed management from Blackmore to Mal Fisher. On the strength of Hitch Hiker, the ABC gave them their own television show, It's A Gas, which was later rebadged as Dig We Must. The name change was designed to attract a more sophisticated 'adult' market, but lost the duo much of their 'teen' appeal which led to friction between the two singers.

After recording their last album Exposaic, the pair officially split in early 1967 after just three years as Australia's chart-topping stars. After the breakup, Allen continued performing as a soul revue act initially called 'Dice', which he later renamed The 'Laurie Allen Revue'.

Bright worked in cabaret as well as some acting parts, including an appearance on television cop-show Homicide. In 1968, he became a disc-jockey at Melbourne radio station 3XY. The pair reunited on the radio program in February 1968 and shortly after made a return to the charts with a country music styled song Carroll County Accident. This was followed by Looking Through The Eyes Of Love, but they had split again by late 1971. In 1973, Bright performed as the Doctor in the Melbourne stage production of Tommy.

 In the intervening years, the pair performed occasionally as Bobby & Laurie until their final "Don't Let The Music Die" concert on 1 June 2002 at the Kingston City Hall.

On 13 June 2002, Allen died suddenly from a heart attack.

$py Vs. $py - 1987 - H@rry's Re@sons FLAC

All Over The World/ Something/Learn To Laugh/Shirt Of A Happy Man/Out And Dreaming/Dangerman/Harry's Reasons/Way Of The World/The Wait/Iron Curtain/Injustice


Spy vs Spy, also known as v. Spy v. Spy, The Drug Grannies and The Spies, are an Australian ska/pub rock band from Sydney formed in 1981. They became known for tackling political issues through their music, including racism, homelessness and contemporary drug culture. They were named after a comic strip, "Spy vs. Spy" in the US Mad magazine.
The band's initial line-up was the trio of Craig Bloxom on bass guitar/lead vocals, Cliff Grigg on drums/percussion and Mike Weiley on lead guitar/vocals. Spy vs Spy's early music was ska-influenced indie rock, exemplified by their debut single "Do What You Say" on the independent Green label in April 1982. They released an EP Four Fresh Lemons in August. Their music became more straight forward hard rock for their pub audiences. The band broke up in early 1983 only to reform mid-year, by which time they were using the name v. Spy v. Spy to avoid legal problems with Mad magazine. They were eventually signed to Midnight Oil's label Powderworks and managed by Oils manager, Gary Morris. Their first full-length album Harry's Reasons was released in March 1986 and produced by Leszek Karski. They switched labels to WEA and had their highest charting success in February 1987 with their single "Don't Tear It Down" on the Australian singles chart and the associated album A.O. Mod. TV. Vers. peaked at #12 on the Australian albums chart.
Spy vs Spy's follow-up album, Xenophobia (Why?) was released in March 1988 peaked at #15 in Australia. It was produced by Karski and Guy Gray and released by WEA in 14 countries. Their 1989 album Trash the Planet peaked at #22 on the ARIA Charts.None of their subsequent releases reached the Australian Top 40. The band split and reformed a number of times but still developed a strong following in Brazil.

The Moffs - 1985 - The Moffs (12 inch) FLAC

Look To Find/A Million Years Past/I Once Knew/I 'll Lure You In/The Meadowsong



During the mid 80s Australia were the leaders in the pack for psychedelic bands and The Moffs on their early records were one of the best.Rifling through record bins is always an adventure. You never know what'll be next, what surprises you may find. When I stumbled across this self-titled Ep (mini-album?) by short lived Australian neo-psych band The Moffs, little did I know that I would be in for such a treat. Pretty uncertain as to what the record would sound like, I was immediately intrigued by the trippy psychedelic cover, the gothic font, and the 1985 release date. I was perplexed and excitedly intrigued at the sonic possibilities.

To my ears, the band sounds like a 60's mod-garage troupe, stranded in a lazy beach town. It's somewhat bizarre to hear a rock aesthetic from the mid to late 60's transposed straight to the mid 80's recording technology and mix aesthetic. The sound of the recording is clean and soothing making for an unfamiliar yet refreshingly comfortable listening experience. I enjoy all five of the songs on this mini album and find it shocking there isn't much more information out there about this band. A proper anthology of their output was re-released in 2008 coinciding with a short reunion of sorts that found the band reforming for some live gigs around Australia.


The first line-up included Tom Kazas, Smiley Byrnes, Nick (Chesh) Potts on keyboards/harmonica and Brandon Saul.They played their first gig at a party called "Freakout" at the notorius 181 Campbell St, Redfern. I'm not sure when Brandon left and Alan Hislop came into the picture (can anyone help me with this?). However at some stage, Alan joined the Moffs to play drums. Apparently, this line-up met through Nick, who knew Alan through Suicidal Flowers, a long-standing band that played intermittantly though the 1980's. He met Tom and Smiley through the Sydney mod scene. At the time, Tom was studying philosophy at the University of New South Wales.

The band were doing gigs around Sydney and Lismore, and being managed by Greg "Quick" Squirl. Greg Kasch mixed at some of these early gigs.One of the most intriguing thing about the band at this time was undoubtably their haircuts! In photos of this time, Nick, Smiley and Alan all have their eyes totally obscured by thick fringes.  When they started to move away from the bluesier style of music, Nick moved onto No Man's Land (another 80's Sydney band that features a scary-looking singer with masses of hair-sprayed black hair called Dave Slade and current Celibate Rifles bass player, Jim Leone as well as stints with Suicidal Flowers. He was replaced by Mick Duncan who had previously been in No Man's Land.

More moves in the band saw Mick being replaced by Damon Giles (who had been in mod-style band, Stupidity)and Alan making way for Smiley's little brother,Andrew Byrnes, on drums. Damon left and began to do stints with Suicidal Flowers and the final line-up was formed, which was the most stable and included Tom, Smiley, Andrew and keyboardist Scott Barnes.  The Moffs played shows for a few more years and eventually stopped playing as a band. In 1994, a compilation CD called "Psychedelicatessen" was released, which included 13 tracks from previously released vinyl and an unreleased track recorded in 1987.

John Paul Young - 1981 - The Singer FLAC

Hold Me/Summer In The City/Good Lovin'/Fool On The Hill/All Along The Watchtower/For Your Love/It's Too Late/Out Of Time/Magic Carpet Ride/1,2,3/Groovin'/ You Really Got Me/Soul Sister/Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood




In 1981, Young recorded an album of 1960s rock and pop favourites called 'The Singer', again for the budget label Hammard and his cover of The Stones/Chris Farlowe classic "Out of Time" came out as a single in September 1981. Despite its budget price, the album featured top-shelf session musos including guitarists Jimmy Doyle (ex-Ayers Rock), and Stuart Fraser (ex-Feather), Rex Bullen (keyboards; ex-Bakery), Ralph White (trumpet; ex-Fugitives), Les Young (bass; ex-Chessmen) and Russell Dunlop (drums, percussion, synthesiser; ex-Levi Smiths Clefs, SCRA, Johnny Rocco Band, Ayers Rock).

 Singer John Paul Young (b. 1950) was one of the most popular stars of the 1970s. Affectionately known by his fans as `Squeak', Young came to the attention of an enormous audience via his regular appearances on the ABC-TV's pop show Countdown. Under the guidance of the venerable songwriting/ production team of Vanda and Young, who fashioned for him a string of sprightly, reckless and downright catchy pop hits like `Yesterday's Hero', `I Hate the Music', `Standing in the Rain' and `Love is in the Air', Young was never far from the charts. He also toured with his crack backing band The All Stars, with whom he gained valuable exposure on the concert and pub circuit.

John Young was born in Glasgow, Scotland and he migrated to Australia with his parents in 1966. After completing school, Young took an apprenticeship as a sheetmetal worker. By night and on the weekends, he sang in Sydney band Elm Tree, which comprised Andy Imlah (co-lead vocals), Oli Chojnacki (guitar), Ron Mazurkiewicz (keyboards), Roger `Slim' Barnett (bass) and Geoff Watts (drums). Elm Tree cut one single for producer Martin Erdman's Du Monde label, a cover of Marmalade's `Rainbow'/`Lonely Nights' (November 1970), but never broke out of the suburban dance circuit. The band broke up at the end of 1971, and Young took the role of Annas in the Australian stage production of Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Tim Rice's rock musical Jesus Christ Superstar. At the same time, visiting English producer Simon Napier-Bell (Yardbirds, Move, T-Rex) took Young into the studio to record the Vanda and Young composition `Pasadena' (with lyrics written by English actor David Hemmings). When issued as a single on the Albert label in March 1972, `Pasadena'/`Better Go Back to Bed' took Young into the Sydney Top 10 (#10).

 Young stayed with Jesus Christ Superstar until February 1974, during which time he issued a second single on Albert, `You Drive Me Crazy'/`For My Love' (February 1973). `It's Only Love'/`Bad Trip' followed in March 1974. In the meantime, Vanda and Young had returned from the UK and, fully ensconced in Albert's Sydney recording complex, took charge of Young's career. They came up with the rambunctious `Yesterday's Hero' as Young's next single. Issued in March 1975 (with `The Next Time' as the flip), the single leapt to the national #1 spot and John Young became a scream-dream pop sensation. `Yesterday's Hero' stayed at #1 on the Melbourne chart for six weeks before being knocked off the top spot by Hush's `Boney Maroney'.

`Yesterday's Hero' also charted at a respectable #42 on the US Cashbox charts. Young's next single, the rollicking `The Love Game'/`St Louis' (August 1975) appeared under his new John Paul Young appellation. It became Young's second national Top 5 hit (#5 in September), as well as peaking at #9 in Melbourne during October. By mid-year, Young had linked up with The All Stars (who had been working with Stevie Wright), which included veteran musicians Warren Morgan (piano, vocals; ex-Chain, Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs), Kevin Borich (lead guitar; ex-La De Das), Ian `Willie' Winter (guitar; ex-Carson, Daddy Cool), Ronnie Peel (bass; ex-Pleazers, Missing Links, Rockwell T. James and the Rhythm Aces, One Ton Gypsy, La De Das) and Johnny Dick (drums; ex-Max Merritt and the Meteors, Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, Fanny Adams, Wild Cherries). Young completed work on his Vanda and Young produced and written debut album Hero, which reached #20 in November 1975. Ray Goodwin (guitar; ex-Dragon) then replaced Borich in The All Stars. Goodwin also left in the new year to join Punkz (who became Cheek).

Young's second album, J.P.Y., produced the singles `I Hate the Music'/`My Name is Jack' (March 1976) and `Keep on Smilin''/`If I Could Live My Life Again' (October 1976). `I Hate the Music' reached #3 nationally in April and `Keep on Smilin'' peaked at #14. J.P.Y. reached #10 on the album chart and went on to achieve platinum status (70000). The album featured the first of many John Paul Young/Warren Morgan compositions (`Won't Let this Feeling Go By', `Give It Time' and `The Painting') that would balance out all the Vanda and Young tunes on subsequent albums. During 1976, various members of The All Stars issued solo records. Warren Morgan teamed up with drummer Gil Matthews (from Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs) for the single `Endless Winter Nights'/`Raw Love' (November). Johnny Dick issued the single `The Warrior'/`She was My Baby' (January). Ronnie Peel (under his Rockwell T. James persona) issued the singles `Come on Home (A Song for Anna)'/`Belinda' (May) and `Roxanne'/`Hey Mama' (October).

In January 1977, Winter left The All Stars to join Ross Wilson's Mondo Rock. Peel switched to rhythm guitar, Dallas McDermott joined on bass and legendary blues guitarist Phil Manning (ex-Chain) took over on lead guitar. The new line-up recorded the album Green, which came out in May. The album featured five J.P. Young/Morgan compositions, four by Vanda/Young and one by Warren Morgan. Green produced the singles `I Wanna Do It with You'/`The Painting' (February 1977) and `Here We Go'/`Shake that Thing' (April). `I Wanna Do It With You' reached #8 nationally and #11 in Melbourne, but `Here We Go' was not successful. Following a national tour, Manning left The All Stars in June. Producer Ian Miller (ex-Chetarca, Wild Beaver Band) took over as lead guitarist.

In the meantime, Young's singles had begun to chart overseas. The discofied `Standing in the Rain' (from the J.P.Y. album) reached #6 in Germany, and Young left for a European promotional tour. It was in South Africa, however, that Young experienced his greatest success. Four singles, `Yesterday's Hero', `Keep on Smilin'', `I Hate the Music' and `I Wanna Do It with You', all made the Top 10. In September, Young and the All Stars embarked on a South African tour that produced wild scenes of fan hysteria the likes of which had not been seen before in that country. The band played 32 concerts to a total audience of 70000 people. When Young left the country, `The Painting' was sitting at #1 on the South African charts.

Young's next Australian single, `Where the Action Is'/`Down on My Knees' (September 1977), failed to chart nationally, peaking at #23 in Sydney. `Where the Action Is' appeared on the compilation album All the Best (December 1977). Young's eleventh Australian single, `Standing in the Rain'/`Same Old Thing' (January 1978), reached #13 nationally during March and #4 in Melbourne during May. By that stage, Jacques De Jongh (bass; ex-Redhouse, Hush) had replaced McDermott. The new line-up recorded the album Love is in the Air, which produced the hit singles `Love is in the Air'/`Won't Let this Feeling Go By' (#3 in June 1978), `The Day that My Heart Caught Fire'/`Lazy Days' (#18 in September) and `Fool in Love'/`It's All Over' (December).

`Standing in the Rain' made #1 in South Africa, the Top 10 in Germany and Holland, Top 40 in France and the lower reaches of the US Top 100. The breezy, seductive `Love is in the Air' did even better by reaching #1 in South Africa and Bangkok, #2 in Norway, Sweden and Holland, #3 in Germany, #5 in the UK and Top 40 in the USA, as well as selling well in France, Switzerland and Italy. Young undertook extensive promotional tours of Europe, the UK (where he appeared on the television pop show Top of the Pops) and the USA.

 Following a successful Australian tour, Young completed a monumental 1978 by winning the TV Week King of Pop award. 1979, however, proved to be a quiet year for Young. His two albums, John Paul Young 1974-79 (on the budget Hammard label) and Heaven Sent (November), plus the single `Heaven Sent'/`Don't You Walk that Way' (August 1979) were not successful. The All Stars line-up on Heaven Sent comprised Morgan, Miller, Tony Buchanan (sax; ex-Thunderbirds, Cool Bananas, Johnny Rocco Band) and Ray Arnott (drums; ex-Company Caine, Spectrum, Mighty Kong, Dingoes), plus Harry Vanda and George Young. Multi-instrumentalist Billy Rogers (ex-Dragon) and John Young (bass; ex-Ayers Rock) joined in January 1980.

Young's sixteenth single, `Hot for You Baby'/ `I Don't Want to Lose You' (January 1980), was his last for the Albert label. In 1981, Young recorded an album of 1960s rock and pop favourites, The Singer, for Hammard. Jagger/Richards' `Out of Time'/`Hold Me' came out as a single (September 1981). Session musicians on the album were Jim Doyle (ex-Ayers Rock) and Stuart Fraser (ex-Feather) on guitars, Rex Bullen (keyboards; ex-Bakery), Ralph White (trumpet; ex-Fugitives), Les Young (bass; ex-Chessmen) and Russell Dunlop (drums, percussion, synthesiser; ex-Levi Smith's Clefs, SCRA, Johnny Rocco Band, Ayers Rock).

 In 1981, Young assembled a new All Stars with Vince Melouney (guitar; ex-Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, Bee Gees, Fanny Adams), Peter Northcote (sax, keyboards) and Ray Arnott (drums). He issued the single `Oh No No'/`You Can Do Anything' (July 1982) on the Southern Cross label. In 1983, Young signed to the Australian branch of German label I.C. Records. He flew to Germany with producer/keyboards player John Capek (ex-Carson) to record a new album in Horus Sound Studios, Hannover and Union Studios, Munich. They completed the album with sessions in Los Angeles, AAV Studios Melbourne and Albert Studio 2 Sydney. The resultant album One Foot in Front (March 1984; renamed Soldier of Fortune for the European market) produced four singles, `Soldier of Fortune'/`Sirens' (September 1983), `War Games'/`Come on Down' (January 1984), `L.A. Sunset'/`Cryin' Eyes' (1984) and `Call the Night'/`L.A. Sunset' (1984).

The album displayed a contemporary electro-pop sound. Most of the material had been written by John Capek and Canadian Marc Jordan, with one Young/Morgan composition `Cryin' Eyes'. `Soldier of Fortune' returned Young to the Australian Top 20 for the first time in five years when it reached #15 in December. `Soldier of Fortune' was picked as the theme song for the 1984 Disabled Olympics held in New York, and it also went on to be a hit in Germany. The album put Young back in the spotlight for a while, but apart from two more singles, `Spain'/`Money to Burn' (on EMI, October 1986) and `Don't Sing that Song'/`Here We Go' (for CBS, June 1989), he essentially retired from the music business. One Vanda and Young song, the whimsical acoustic tune `Lazy Days' (from the Love is in the Air album) summed up Young's philosophy best: amongst the hurly-burly of pop stardom, Young would rather be sitting on his sail boat with fishing line in hand and sipping wine.

In 1992, Young came to the attention of a new generation when `Love is in the Air' was used as the theme song to director Baz Luhrmann's internationally acclaimed feature film Strictly Ballroom. `Love is in the Air (The Ballroom Mix)' came out as a CD single on Albert/Sony (August 1992) and peaked at #4 in October. Young came out of retirement to record a new album, Now, which consisted of a re-recorded version of `Love is in the Air', plus old chestnuts like The Young Rascals' `Groovin', `Fats Domino's `Ain't that a Shame' and The Easybeats' `St Louis'. It also yielded a new single, `Happy the Man' in August 1996.

Frank Hyde - 1973 - Frank Hyde Sings (Re-Post Request)

 Always/The Gang That Sang Heart Of My Heart/This Is My Song/Among My Souvenirs/Love Is A Beautiful Song/ Irish Medely/ I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen/Somwhere My Love/ All I Do Is Dream Of You/The Mountains Of Mourne/Try A Little Kindness/Alice Blue Gown/ Shine On Harvest Moon/Danny Boy

In a distinguished football career, Hyde played for the Newtown Jets, Balmain Tigers, North Sydney Bears and NSW. He scored a try for the Tigers in their winning grand final in 1939, and captained NSW in the same year.He was captain-coach of North Sydney the last time they reached the grand final in 1943, but they were well beaten by his original club Newtown.Hyde began his radio career in 1953, calling games into a microphone set up on a card table on the sidelines.He called 31 consecutive seasons for Sydney radio station 2SM without ever being beaten in the ratings.His catch cry of "It's long enough, it's high enough and it's straight between the posts" became part of the fabric of the game."Frank Hyde was the voice of the game for so many people," NRL chief executive David Gallop said."The technology has changed a lot since, along with the way the game is played, but Frank's ability to make people feel part of the action through his calls is one of his great legacies."ARL chief executive Geoff Carr described Hyde as a great gentleman."Frank charmed everyone and he was one of the best judges of the game you could ever talk to."His influence was enormous and there are generations of fans who, every time they watch a goal being kicked, to this day hear in their mind the words 'it's long enough, it's high enough ...'."Hyde retired as a player in 1945 but continued coaching and became a qualified referee.Although the Second World War robbed him of the chance of playing for Australia, Hyde led Kangaroos supporters tours and was always invited to reunion dinners.He charmed people with his stories and renditions of Irish songs.He made a recording of Danny Boy which made it into the top 10 in the 1970s.A devout Catholic throughout his life, Hyde is survived by six children, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.Gaby, his wife of 64 years, died earlier this year.He was awarded an MBE, an OAM, and the Dally M Life Achievement award.Last year he was inducted into the radio hall of fame.Rugby league remained his passion throughout his life. In 1995 he said: "In its modern dress or its old, it is a fine, fine game - the best of all, I reckon, played by men with a ball in their hands."NSW Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell has described late rugby league broadcaster Frank Hyde as an icon."(He was) just an extraordinary icon", Mr O'Farrell told reporters in Sydney."For those of us who remember growing up listening to rugby league before the days of great television telecasts, radio descriptions were important, and no-one did them better than Frank Hyde."

Y0thu Y!ndi - 1999 - One Blood FLAC

Laykarrambu/One Blood/Mainstream/World Turning/Baywara/Dots On The Shells/Rrama/Djapana (Sunset Dreaming)/Written On A Bark/Tribal Voice/7 Sisters/Minga Minga/Tears For Law (Garrathiya Run)/Baru/Belief In The Future/Nyinga Nyinga/Our Land/Yarryurru/Treaty 98



Yothu Yindi (Yolngu for "child and mother") were an Australian musical group with Aboriginal and balanda (non-Aboriginal) members, formed in 1986 as a merger of two bands formed in 1985 - a White rock group called the Swamp Jockeys and an unnamed Aboriginal folk group. The Aboriginal members came from Yolngu homelands near Yirrkala on the Gove Peninsula in Northern Territory's Arnhem Land. Founding members included Stuart Kellaway on bass guitar, Cal Williams on lead guitar, Andrew Belletty (Drums), Witiyana Marika on manikay (traditional vocals), bilma (ironwood clapsticks) and dance, Milkayngu Mununggurr on yidaki (didgeridoo), Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu on keyboards, guitar and percussion, and leader Mandawuy Yunupingu on vocals and guitar.
 

The band combined aspects of both musical cultures, their sound varying from traditional Aboriginal songs to modern pop and rock songs, where they blended the typical instruments associated with pop/rock bands, such as guitars and drums, with the traditional yidaki and bilma. They adapted traditional Yolngu dance performances to accompany their music, more broadly they promoted mutual respect and understanding in the coming together of different cultures. Yothu Yindi's most widely known song "Treaty" peaked at No. 11 on the ARIA singles charts in 1991 and the related album Tribal Voice peaked at No. 4 on the ARIA albums charts. The second single from Tribal Voice was "Djäpana (Sunset Dreaming)" which peaked at No. 13 in 1992. Their debut album was Homeland Movement in 1988 on Mushroom Records, other albums are Tribal Voice in 1991, Freedom in 1993, Birrkuta - Wild Honey in 1996, One Blood in 1998 and Garma in 2000.

 The group helped established the Yothu Yindi Foundation in 1990 to promote Yolngu cultural development, including from 1999 producing the annual Garma Festival of Traditional Cultures and as from May 2007 running the Dilthan Yolngunha (Healing Place). Chairman of the foundation is Galarrwuy Yunupingu. He is Mandawuy's older brother, a Yolgnu clan leader and sometimes a member of Yothu Yindi on bilma and guitar. Galarrwuy had been named Australian of the Year in 1978 for his work for Aboriginal communities and Mandawuy was Australian of the Year for 1992 for his work with Yothu Yindi. In December 2012, the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) inducted the band into the ARIA Hall of Fame, as part of the ARIA Music Awards of 2012.

The Loved Ones - 1989 - Magic Box FLAC

The Loved One/Everlovin' Man/Sad Dark Eyes/A Love Like Ours/Love Song/Blueberry Hill/Shake, Rattle and Roll/This is Love/Magic Box/More than Love/The Woman I Love/The Loverly Car/I Want You to Love Me/(I'm no Good) Without You/Everlovin' Man (Live)/Ongo Bongo Man/Rave On/Oh Lonesome Me/My Name is Earl




 The Loved Ones were formed in Melbourne, Victoria, in October 1965 by Gerry Humphrys (originally from London) on vocals and harmonica, Kim Lynch on bass guitar and Ian Clyne on organ and piano. They were all former members of a trad jazz group, The Red Onion Jazz Band, in which Humphrys played clarinet, and sang, and Lynch played tuba. Red Onions Jazz Band was released as an eponymous album in 1964 on W&G Records blue label. Following the British Invasion, led by the Beatles' tour of Australia in mid-1964, the band split as the three members wanted to switch to R&B and felt they had drifted towards more mainstream 1940s jazz. The Loved Ones were named after Evelyn Waugh's short and darkly satirical novel The Loved One. To round out the line-up, Humphrys, Lynch and Clyne recruited former Wild Cherries guitarist Rob Lovett. Their first drummer, Terry Nott, was soon followed by Gavin Anderson.

The Loved Ones became renowned as an exciting, if erratic, live act in a Rolling Stones/Animals mould and rose to prominence in the local club and dance scene. The group's visual impact was heightened by their striking mod stage attire and the band had a strong focal point thanks to the charismatic stage presence, saturnine good looks and growling blues-influenced baritone voice of Humphrys, who is widely acknowledged as one of Australia's finest male pop-rock vocalists. The Loved Ones were also one of the first Australian pop bands to use the electric piano (a Hohner pianet) as part of their regular stage set-up and their distinctive keyboard-based sound set them apart from most of their contemporaries.

Early in 1966, they signed to the In Records label, a subsidiary of W&G Records. Their debut hit was "The Loved One", which reached number two on the Sydney Top 40 singles charts in May. The song was written by Clyne, Humphrys and Lovett. It has a complex double rhythm, which is joined by hand clapping, and Humphrys' bluesy and soaring vocals.

Director, Peter Lamb filmed the group performing it for a documentary on mid-1960s Melbourne, Approximately Panther (1966), with Go-Set writer Doug Panther interviewing other local acts including Lynne Randell and Bobby & Laurie. The song was an Australian Top 20 hit again in 1981 when covered by INXS.

The Loved Ones' released their second single "Ever Lovin' Man" in July 1966, which peaked at number seven on the Go-Set National Top 40 singles chart in October while "The Loved One" was still in the Top 20. To promote their singles, the group appeared on ATV-0 popular music series The Go!! Show on 24 October to perform, "The Loved One", "Ever Lovin' Man" and "More Than Love".

A cover of Fats Domino's version of "Blueberry Hill" was issued in December on a four-track extended play, Blueberry Hill, which reached number 11 on the Go-Set singles chart. The EP included both "Ever Lovin' Man" and "The Loved One". After some personal crises, Clyne left and moved to Sydney; he was replaced by Treva Richards (ex Delta Set) on piano and organ in September. After leaving The Loved Ones, Clyne played in The Black Pearls, The Ram Jam Big Band, Excalibur, Levi Smith's Clefs and Chain, he was in Aunty Jack's backing group The Gong in the mid-1970s.

"Sad Dark Eyes" followed in February 1967, which peaked in the Top 20. This was the first single with Richards' input. "A Love Like Ours" was issued in April and also reached the Top 20.[16] Each captured an emotional intensity and musical inventiveness which marked them out from their peers. On 23 April, they performed at Festival Hall, Melbourne and recorded live versions of "Ever Lovin’ Man", "Sad Dark Eyes" and "The Loved One". They supported the national tour by Eric Burdon and the Animals and Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich in April. In May, Lynch left and they added a new lead guitarist, Danny De Lacy (from Los Angeles), with Lovett moving to bass guitar.

Their fifth single, "Love Song" was released in August but did not chart. They released their debut album, The Loved Ones' Magic Box, in October, which essentially was a collection of the band's singles. W&G Records was unable to co-ordinate releases with the band's touring, The Loved Ones split in late October, two years after they formed.

     The split was a non-event. We had been in Perth for two weeks on what felt like a very long tour. A miserable tour by the end. It started off so well. We were mobbed at the airport and smuggled off in the caterer's van. We had people who spotted us and chased the cars that whisked us off, waving their autograph books in vain. We did TV, we did radio, we did concerts, we did a trip round Albany, Kalgoorlie and other places on the way – one-nighters – but the record company, W&G, hadn't thought to put any records in the shops. Anyway, at the end of the tour the promoters disappeared. I can't remember if we even had our tickets home. We got back to Melbourne broke and completely dispirited. People tell me our last gig was at Opus (Ormond Hall in Prahran) but I have to say I haven't any recollection of it.
    — Rob Lovett

The Loved Ones' Magic Box is considered a classic recording which enjoys cult status and has reportedly never been out-of-print since it was released.


Humphrys initially managed rock'n'rollers The Valentines (with vocalists Bon Scott and Vince Lovegrove). He formed Gerry and The Joy Band in 1971, a floating aggregation that, at times, included members of Daddy Cool and The Aztecs. At that time he moved to the suburban fringes of Sandringham and hosted many functions at his Spring Street residence. He went on to bigger things by hosting the inaugural Sunbury Pop Festival in 1972. In 1973 he returned to London in an unsuccessful attempt to save his failing marriage, giving up his music career to become a psychiatric nurse. Lovett formed a vocal trio, The Virgil Brothers, with Peter Doyle and Malcolm McGee (Wild Cherries, Python Lee Jackson) in 1968. The Virgil Brothers released a number of singles and toured the UK before splitting up in 1970. In the early 1990s Lovett joined The Fudds, alongside Chris Dyson, Stewart MacFarlane, Vic Mavridis and Peter Robertson. They released several albums over the following seven years. Anderson also moved into management, looking after The Party Machine until they split in 1969; he relocated to London and then New York. In 1981 he formed a PR company, Gavin Anderson & Company, which became a large and successful strategic communications business with headquarters in New York and offices throughout the world. Nott joined the psychedelic band, Grunewald Burlesque, and later became an architect in Melbourne. After Lynch left the band he turned to painting. Richards married and moved to Adelaide to raise a family. He lived for a number of years in the former Barr-Smith 'Auchendarroch' property in the Adelaide Hills.

Following a resurgence of interest in The Loved Ones, prompted in part by the INXS cover of "The Loved One", they reformed for a live tour in September 1987. The line-up of Clyne, Humphrys, Lovett and Lynch, was augmented by Melbourne session drummer Peter Luscombe (The Black Sorrows, later with Rebecca's Empire, Paul Kelly, and RocKwiz house band) sitting in for Anderson. The album Live on Blueberry Hill followed on Mushroom Records. In 1999, author Richard Miles wrote More Than a Loved One: The Musical Career of Gerry Humphrys. In 2000, filmmaker Nigel Buesst directed the documentary, Gerry Humphrys – the Loved One. The film includes interviews with band mates, performance footage and Buesst's efforts to track down and interview Humphrys in his suburban home in south London.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation TV series, Long Way to the Top, was broadcast in August 2001. The Loved Ones featured on "Episode 2: Ten Pound Rocker 1963–1968" where they are described as having "quirky rhythms and charismatic lead singer Gerry Humphries, the Loved Ones soon gained a serious cult status". The TV series inspired the Long Way to the Top national concert tour during August–September 2002, which featured a host of the best Australian acts of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. Although invited onto the tour, the band had to decline as Humphrys had to remain in the UK
 

Humphrys remained in London where he died of a heart attack on 4 December 2005, he has three daughters. On 27 October 2010, The Loved Ones were inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame. On hearing of their induction the band said "We were kids who discovered we could actually write and play music we believed in ..... and other kids liked it too." Attending in person were Clyne, Lynch and Richards, with Anderson (a resident of New York) and Lovett (London) unavailable. They were inducted by concert promoter, Michael Chugg, while rocker Diesel performed their signature tune, "The Loved One". In October 2010, Magic Box (1967) was listed in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums.

The Loved Ones - 1997 - Live On Blueberry Hill FLAC

More Than Love/I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man/Sad Dark Eyes/I Want You To Love Me/The Loved One/Three Hundred Pounds Of Joy/The Woman I Love/Lonely At The Top/Ongo Bongo Man/Tight Like That/Blueberry Hill/Everlovin' Man/Rave On



The Loved Ones were an Australian rock band formed in 1965 in Melbourne following the British Invasion. The line-up of Gavin Anderson on drums, Ian Clyne on organ and piano, Gerry Humphrys on vocals and harmonica, Rob Lovett on guitar, and Kim Lynch on bass guitar recorded their early hits. Their signature song, "The Loved One" reached number two on Australian singles charts, and was later covered by INXS. In 2001 it was selected as number six on the APRA's list of Top 30 Australian songs of all time. Their debut album, The Loved Ones' Magic Box was released late in 1967, which included other hit singles, "Ever Lovin' Man" and "Sad Dark Eyes". They disbanded in October and, although the band's main career lasted only two years, they are regarded as one of the most significant Australian bands of the 1960s. They reformed for a short tour in 1987 which provided the album, Live on Blueberry Hill. Humphrys lived in London from the mid-1970s until his death on 4 December 2005. On 27 October 2010, The Loved Ones were inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame.