Syrius - 1971 - Devil's Masquerade (2012) FLAC

Concerto For A Three-Stringed Violin And Five Mugs Of Beer/Crooked Man/I’ve Been This Down Before /Devil’s Masquerade/Psychomania/Observations Of A Honest Man/In The Bosom Of A Shout /Take 2 Signature/Shattered Dreams/I'm A Man/Fixing A Hole/Summertime Blues/Who Is The Clown



While technically not an Australian band they were here for 2 years before returning to Hungary while here they became part of the lanscape and recorded this album on the Spin Label.





Miklós József "Jackie" Orszáczky (8 May 1948, Budapest, Hungary – 3 February 2008, Sydney, Australia) was a Hungarian-Australian musician, arranger, vocalist and record producer. His musical styles included jazz, blues, R&B, funk and progressive rock; he mainly played bass guitar – from the early 1990s he used a modified piccolo bass – but also various other instruments. In 2006 Orszaczky was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit by the Hungarian government. Also that year Orszaczky was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma and died on 3 February 2008, aged 59.

 In 1969 Orszaczky joined jazz-fusion and progressive rock group, Syrius on bass guitar, guitar and vocals. Other members of Syrius were Zoltan "Joel" Baronits on piano, oboe and saxophone; Latsi "Les" Pataki on organ, piano and drums; Mihaly "Michie" Raduly on saxophone, flute and violin; and Andras "Andrew" Veszelinov on drums, guitar and trombone. Australian backpacker, Charles Fisher, saw one of the group's gigs and advised them to tour Australia. Syrius toured there in 1970-71, including a performance at the Myponga Festival in South Australia in January 1971. In Melbourne they recorded an album, Syrius, with Fisher producing, which was released both in Australia (on the Spin label) and Hungary. In Australia they also issued a single, "I've Been This Down Before". According to Australian rock music historian, Ian McFarlane, Syrius were "Hungary's top rock attraction, and had already issued several albums of jazz fusion before relocating to Australia". In October 1971, after the tour, the group returned to Hungary.

 Progressive fusion jazz influenced by impressionistic effects and Frank Zappa – that’s how we would sum up the first (and most important) album of one of the most underrated Hungarian bands, Syrius. “The Devil’s Masquerade” was recorded in Australia, and that’s the only record created by the classic lineup: Zsolt Baronits (alto and tenor saxophone, vocals); Miklós Orszáczky aka “Jackie” (vocals, bass, violin, acoustic guitar); László Pataki (piano, organ); Mihály Ráduly (alto and tenor saxophone , flute, piccolo); and András Veszelinov (drums, vocals). There is a strong ’70s experimental-avant-rock edge to it too, with a butter-churning funky rhythm section – sometimes a bit too cacophonous for everyone’s liking, but clearly a masterpiece.

Butler - 1973 - Butler FLAC

Bang Bang/Sucide Ride/We're Getting Nowhere/In The Morning/Especially For You/Green River/Reach Out/Tilda Jane/Mistake/Southern Magic/Here We Come/Mirror Don't You Weep



Butler were one of few all-Maori rock bands. All four members were originally from Rotorua, but the band actually formed in Christchurch in 1970. Predominantly an underground group, they played their early gigs at the Open Door, before moving into Trevor Spitz's nightspot Aubrey's. Having built a strong Christchurch following, the band took stabs at other South Island centres, returning to hometown Rotorua in 1971. From there they began building up a North Island following, proving popular on the University circuit with their combination of originals and Led Zeppelin / Wishbone Ash covers.

Some television exposure followed with a spot on 'Happen Inn', 'Popco' and 'Free Ride'. This was fairly rare for an underground group and even with this they never really gained much pulling power.

 In 1973 they recorded a self-titled album for Pye. It was released on the Family label and from it came one single, "Green River"/"Especially For You". They never scored a hit single and the only album they released was a commercial flop, but Christchurch-based band Butler found a warm place in the hearts of many NZ rock fans in the early and mid-1970s. Their fusion of psychedelia, progressive and blues-rock shone in a live setting, and Butler became a highly popular band on the national campus circuit. One of the few all-Maori bands of that era, the story of their formation is one of the most fascinating in NZ rock.
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The creation of Butler was both spontaneous and unconventional. A typical New Zealand rock band circa 1970 would comprise high school pals or early twenty-something Pakeha males, jamming in a garage or rehearsal space. The bonds between the four members of Butler were forged in the tobacco fields of Motueka and a drop-in centre in Christchurch. Butler comprised four Rotorua area born and raised Maori teenagers. The original (and only) line-up comprised Steve Apirana (guitar, vocals), Heidi Warren (guitar, vocals), Angel Adams (bass), and Hori Sinnott (drums). Apirana started playing guitar at age 15, and a year later he and Warren (who was a year younger) decided they'd start a band. Their dream, however, only coalesced with these jams in Christchurch. "We approached the guy who was running the centre and got him to open it up on a night it was not normally open so we could practice," Steve told Cross Rhythms. "Three days later, the son of the minister offered to be our manager. Here we were, a band formed in three days, nowhere to play, only a couple of instruments, but we had a manager!"

 As a buzz around Butler built, the band was invited to play orientation week gigs at the University of Canterbury, starting in early 1971. I had just begun studies there, and I have fond memories of beer-soaked campus gigs featuring Butler serving up high-energy and more than competent cover versions of the songs we'd play in our frigid student flats. Butler's career took a significant leap in 1972 when they took over from fellow blues-rockers Ticket in a residency at top Christchurch music club, Aubrey's. Apirana told Maori TV, "Ticket were like The Beatles to us. They were the number one band around. I'd go to see them whenever I could, getting tips from their compositions." Regular playing at Aubrey's, support slots for visiting bands like Daddy Cool and other gigs in Christchurch and beyond helped Butler hone their skills, and they began asserting themselves as one of the best live bands in the country.


This fast-growing reputation led to an invite to appear at the now-legendary Ngaruawahia Festival in early 1973, alongside such other fledgling New Zealand bands as Dragon and Split Enz. "Back then everyone was getting record deals," notes Apirana. "Our manager asked around for a deal and Pye took us up on it. They put us on a new label, Family. I think John Hanlon was the only other artist on it." 
 

Butler's disenchantment with the record and the label grew as time went by. "It took them 18 months to release it and by then we’d progressed more into prog rock and bands like Wishbone Ash. We weren’t even playing many of those songs on the record." An initial single had a cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival hit 'Green River' as the A-side, but it fared poorly. "The label never really got behind it," Apirana laments.

On the Butler album, nine group originals nestled alongside covers of 'Green River’, Cher's hit 'Bang Bang’ and the Four Tops classic 'Reach Out I’ll Be There'. Despite the album's failure, Butler remained popular on the touring circuit, and they opened for such visiting groups as The Average White Band and Osibisa.  By 1976, Butler were hoping to make another album, one that better captured their improved musical chops, but internal and philosophical differences within the band deepened, causing them to call it quits in 1977.

Dragon - 1986 - Dreams of Ordinary Men FLAC

Dreams Of Ordinary Men/Speak No Evil/Nothing To Lose/Western Girls/Intensive Care/Temptation/Midnight Sun/Love Don't Stop/Forever And Ever/Smoke/ Start It Up/When I'm Gone




 Dragon is a rock band which was formed in Auckland, New Zealand, in January 1972 and relocated later to Sydney, Australia in May 1975. They were originally fronted by singer Marc Hunter and are currently led by his brother, bass player/vocalist Todd Hunter. They performed and released material under the name Hunter in Europe and the United States during 1987.

Keyboard player Paul Hewson wrote or co-wrote most of the group's 1970s hits: "April Sun in Cuba" peaked at #2 on the 1977 Australian singles chart, "Are You Old Enough?" reached #1 in 1978, and "Still in Love with You" reached #15 also in 1978. Later hits, from when the band re-grouped in the 1980s, were written by other band members, often working with outside associates: The Hunter brothers, with Todd's partner, Johanna Pigott, wrote "Rain," a #2 hit in 1983, while other, more minor hits were written by the Hunters and/or Alan Mansfield, frequently in collaboration with any combination of Pigott, Mansfield's partner Sharon O'Neill, Marc Hunter's partner Wendy Hunter, or producers Todd Rundgren and David Hirschfelder.

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

Dragon have endured tragedy, adversity and notoriety, and during the course of the band's earlier career, several members died from drug-related causes. Problems began soon after their arrival in Sydney in late 1975, when all their equipment was stolen. Several months later, in 1976, drummer Neil Storey died of a heroin overdose; Paul Hewson of a drug overdose in 1985 and Marc Hunter of smoking-related oesophageal cancer in 1998. Several members of the group including Hewson and Marc Hunter were heavy heroin users during the band's heyday, and The Stewart Royal Commission (1980–1983) which investigated the Mr. Asia drug syndicate obtained evidence that Dragon members were clients. Two members were involved in a serious car crash in 1977, where Paul Hewson's neck was in a brace as well as having a broken arm and Robert Taylor needed plastic surgery, and Hewson also suffered from debilitating scoliosis and arthritis, the pain of which reportedly contributed to his heroin use. The band also undertook a famously disastrous 1978 tour of the USA, supporting Johnny Winter, which ended when Marc Hunter abused the Texan audience as "faggots" and the band were pelted off stage, while Winter's band were said to have taken bets about how long it would be before Hunter was shot. On 1 July 2008, the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) recognised Dragon's iconic status when they were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.


Dreams of Ordinary Men is an album recorded by Australian-New Zealand rock band Dragon in 1986. Dreams of Ordinary Men peaked on the Australian Music Charts on 7 October 1986 at number 17. Dreams Of Ordinary Men first charted on September 8, 1986, peaked at 18th position and stayed in the charts for 20 weeks. The album spawned three singles, "Speak No Evil", "Dreams Of Ordinary Men" and "Western Girls". "Speak No Evil" first charted on March 11, 1985, peaked at number 19 and stayed in the charts for 14 weeks. "Western Girls" first charted on December 8, 1986, peaked at number 58 and stayed in the charts for 11 weeks. The album was produced by Todd Rundgren.



Personnel

    Backing Vocals – Todd Rundgren
    Bass – Todd Hunter
    Drums – Doane Perry
    Engineer – Chris Andersen, Todd Rundgren
    Guitar [Additional] – Todd Rundgren, Tommy Emmanuel
    Keyboards – Alan Mansfield
    Saxophone – Gary Window, Lenny Pickett
    Vocals – Marc Hunter, Todd Hunter

Dennis Knight - 1985 - A Knight To Remember FLAC

Born On The Wind/Corrina Corrina/Hooked On Music/Never Walk Alone/One More Last Chance/Return To Sender/Return To Sender/She Wears My Ring/Sunset Dreamer/Take A Chance/This Lonely Heart



 In the late 60’s Dennis Knight recorded a song “Every Breath I Take,” with the backing of the then Bee Gees, Dennis’s career really started then. Dennis commenced working all major clubs throughout Queensland. Dennis further distinguished himself by winning the “Queensland Entertainer of the Year” award, five times in succession. In 1973, Johnny O’Keefe became Dennis’s manager and this boosted his career to the corporate market of the entertainment scene. J.O.K. nurtured Dennis to perform with such charisma, he himself had on stage. At Expo ’88 in Brisbane, Dennis performed to 12,000 people at the river stage and his concert could not be followed by any other artists, local, interstate or international. Dennis has shared the stage with some of the greats in the industry and he is still receiving the ovation he deserves. After the recording of four albums and six singles throughout his career, he finally received two Gold Albums for sales in excess of 80,000 for each album. Dennis is a great entertainer and in 1993 was voted “Variety Performer Of The Year”, for the Variety Club of Australia in which he plays an active part.  Thanks to Geoff for this one.

Ray Hoff & The Offbeats - 1988 - Let's Go

Let's Go Let's Go Let's Go/Bama Lama Bama Loo/My Good Friend Mary Jane/Sinner's Prayer/Sweet Little Rock And Roller/Lookin' For My Pigs/Uncle Willee/Tossin' And Turnin'/ I've Got To Get You/Love, Love, Love/Chaser-I've Got My Mojo Working/In The Midnight Hour/Mercy, Mercy/Ain't Doing Too Bad




 Singer Ray Hoff formed the first version of Ray Hoff and the Off Beats in Sydney during the late 1950s. The band's style of rock'n'roll was raw with a strong R&B base. The band made little headway, despite several years of slogging around the Sydney dance/discotheque circuit. There were a number of different line-ups during the band's early days. John Ryan and his brother Vince (sax) were temporary members. In 1960, Jimmy Taylor left to join Johnny Devlin and the Devils, and Leon Isackson joined Dig Richards and the R'Jays.

RCA issued one single in 1964, a cover of Chuck Berry's `Little Queenie'/`Baby What Do You Want Me to Do?', before Hoff dissolved The Off Beats and headed over to Perth in Western Australia. The final version of The Off Beats contained Jimmy Taylor, Col Risby (lead guitar) and Mike Downes (rhythm guitar), all of whom joined Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs. In Perth, Hoff formed a new Off Beats line-up, a seven-piece band comprising Graham Bartlett (guitar), John Gray (bass), Basil V'Delli (keyboards), Warwick Findlay (drums), Robert Baxter (sax), Roger Bloom (sax) and David Birkbeck (trumpet). As Perth's premier R&B outfit, Ray Hoff and the Off Beats signed to the Clarion label and issued the singles `Let's Go, Let's Go, Let's Go'/`Bama Lama Bama Loo' (May 1966) and `Tossin' and Turnin''/`Looking for My Pigs' (October 1966).
 

Ray Hoff and the Off Beats' rare, self-titled debut album featured one side of live cuts and one side of studio material. Among obligatory covers of `Got My Mojo Working', `In the Midnight Hour' and `Mercy Mercy' was the wild instrumental `My Good Friend Mary Jane'. Ray Hoff and the Off Beats issued one more single, `Love Love Love'/ `I've Got to Get to You', this time on the Action label (August 1967). With the final break-up of The Off Beats, Hoff formed a duo with Andre De Moller (ex-Blue Dogs) before travelling to the UK. In late 1971, Hoff joined an ambitious rock'n'roll revue band in Perth called Likefun. The line-up also included Stevie Wright (vocals; ex-Easybeats), Shirley Reid (vocals), Morri Pierson (vocals), John Tucak (bass) and Alan Wilkes (organ).

Original line-up: Ray Hoff (born Ray Hough, vocals), Jimmy Taylor (piano; ex-Warren William and the Squares), Darby Wilson (guitar), John Ryan (bass), Leon Isackson (drums)

Albums: Ray Hoff and the Off Beats (Clarion, 1966), Let's Go: The Festival File (Festival, 1988).

Ross Wilson - 1989 - Dark Side Of The Man (Cassette) FLAC

Dark Side Of The Man/Bed Of Nails/Ever Get The Feeling (That You've Been Had)/ Who Do You Take It To/You Got A Mirror/Go Bongo - Go Wild/When I Get My Hands On You/Tough Guy/What's Wrong With This Picture/Slow Fade


Ross Andrew Wilson (born 18 November 1947) is an Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. He is the co-founder and frontman of the long-standing rock groups Daddy Cool and Mondo Rock, as well as a number of other former bands, in addition to performing solo. He has produced records for bands such as Skyhooks and Jo Jo Zep & the Falcons, as well as for those of his own bands. He appeared as a judge on celebrity singing TV series It Takes Two from 2005. Wilson was individually inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame in 1989 and again as a member of Daddy Cool in 2006. Wilson's most successful solo release was 1989's "Bed of Nails" which reached No. 25 on the National singles charts. It was released from his July 1989 solo album Dark Side of the Man on WEA.