REPOST: Jeff St John - Live (1974)

(Australian 1965-76).

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Soul-styled rock singer Jeff St John (born Jeffrey Newton in Sydney, 1946) fronted a number of first class bands during the 60s and 70s, including The Id and Copperwine. His performances were memorable not only for his strong, soulful vocals but for the wheelstands and spins he would execute with his wheelchair (Jeff being paralysed from birth by spina bifida).

1965-1971 Lead Vocalist Member of the bands The Id, Yama, and Copperwine with The Id and Copperwine achieving national success, both live and with Top Ten hit singles. ("Big Time Operator" - The Id), ("Teach Me How To Fly" - Copperwine). In May 1970, Wendy Saddington joined musician Jeff St. John's highly acclaimed and well-established group, 'Copperwine', as co-vocalist just after the release of the group's Joint Effort album.

Copperwine's line-up consisted of the following musicians: Wendy Saddington (lead vocals), Jeff St John (lead vocals), Harry Brus (bass), Ross East (guitar, vocals), Peter Figures (drums), and Barry Kelly (keyboards, vocals). With St. John temporarily away from the band, Wendy fronted Copperwine for their acclaimed performance at the Wallacia Festival on the central-coast of New South Wales. A live recording of the event, Wendy Saddington and The Copperwine Live was released on Festival's new progressive subsidiary Infinity during '71, which showcased Copperwine's sympathetic backing sensibilities for Wendy's distinctive vocals. Wendy left Copperwine around February 1971.

By mid-1973, beset by personal upheavals, disillusionment and continuing health problems, Jeff decided to throw in the towel and head off to the UK. His farewell concert was a gala event staged at the Sydney Opera House, with the St John Band augmented by friends including Vince Melouney, John A. Bird and Ace Follington.

In May 1974, Infinity issued an album of the concert, Jeff St John Live (included here), while Jeff was playing a handful of low-key gigs in London. He returned to Australia in August that year, to plan his next move. On his return, Jeff formed a new backing band, Red Cloud, and his new single "Mr Jones" / "Acapulco Lady" was released in May 1975. Produced by Martin Erdman and arranged by ex-Blackfeather-guitar-wiz John Robinson, the single was a minor sales success. It was followed up in October by another 45, utilising the same production/arranging team, "Blood Brother" (b/w "Reach Out And Touch Me"). Jeff and Red Cloud maintained a heavy touring schedule during 1975-76, and the singer continued as a popular live draw.

Jeff was the first Oz artist to sign with US imprint Asylum (whose listing included The Eagles, Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt) and he released a clutch of impressive singles for the label, capped by his welcome return to the national Top 10 during early 1977 with his scorching version of the Frankie Miller-Andy Fraser track "Fool In Love", a recording which must surely rate as one of the greatest soul records made anywhere, anytime, and must surely rank as one of Jeff's very finest vocal performances. A fresh (and typically thorough) Glenn A. Baker retrospective compilation, Survivor 1965-1975 was released in late 1977.

Jeff continued to record and perform live through the late 70s and into the early 80s, producing some quality rock performances, but in 1983, at the age of 37, he announced his retirement.

From 1983 until now has done a lot of things including collaboration with Universities on various programs for the disabled, lecture tours on the same, and designing plus building a beautiful Harley Davidson trike (the Dinosaur)plus of course fronting Jeffrey St John and The Embers.

Jeff was recently made PATRON for the MOSAIC FAMILY & COMMUNITY SERVICES Organisation. This recently formed organisation provides support for disabled people in many areas, including rehabilitation programs for disabled people unfairly penalised by the legal system. (Extracts from Milesago and Jeff's Website which is no longer active)

This rip was taken from Vinyl in FLAC format and includes album artwork. I've also included label scans of my album for your interest. Enjoy!

                          New Improved Rip!

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Track Listing

01 - St John's Chariot

02 - (I Wanna Be A) Survivor

03 - Teach Me How To Fly

04 - Levon

05 - Jailhouse Rock

06 - Children Of The Storm

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Band Members:

Jeff St John (Vocals)

Ron Barry (Guitar, Vocals)

Tony Ansell (Piano)

Peter Figures (Drums)

B.J (Bass)

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Jeff St John Link (237Mb) 

New Link 11/02/2026

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Andy Bown - Gone To My Head (1972) + bonus live track

(UK 1966 - Present)

Andy Bown (born 27 March 1946, The City, London, England, UK) is an English musician, who has specialized in keyboards and bass guitar. He is currently a member of the rock band Status Quo.

Bown's first major band was The Herd, along with Peter Frampton. After The Herd dissolved he spent two years with Judas Jump who were the opening act of the Isle Of Wight Festival 1970.

He played [keyboards at first] for Frampton in the 1970s then switching to bass briefly when Rick Wills departed the Peter Frampton band in early 1975. Bown himself left the Frampton entourage less than a year later, just as Frampton was on the verge of becoming a world-wide Rock sensation.

He went back to England where he first dabbled with a solo career, releasing this debut album "Gone To My Head" in 1972 (with assistance from Frampton on guitar), then resumed work with Status Quo whom he started playing keyboards for in 1973 as a session musician, first appearing on their Hello! album in the same year. He joined Status Quo as a full member in 1976, recording "Rockin' All Over The World" with the band in 1977. His live piano intro to Quo's performance of "Rockin' All Over The World" was the first music heard at the beginning of the original Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium in 1985, which was broadcasted to approx 1.5 billion people worldwide.

Andy was the surrogate Roger Waters during Pink Floyd's 'The Wall' tour of 1980 and 81 and he also played keyboards on Pink Floyd's "The Final Cut" album and Roger Waters' subsequent release Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking".

Status Quo (featuring Andy Bown)

He plays keyboards, guitar and harmonica with Status Quo to this day and is an integral part of the band, having co-written many well known Quo songs, most prominently the group's hits "Whatever You Want", "Again and Again" and the 1988 hit "Burning Bridges" which, re-recorded, went on to reach No.1 in the charts as Manchester United Football Club's anthem.

Andy Bown 2016

The Album

'Gone To My Head' was the 1972 debut solo studio album by English musician Andy Bown, known for his work with The Herd, Peter Frampton, and Status Quo. The album is considered a lost treasure of British singer-songwriter and pop rock music. Released on Mercury Records (catalog number SRM 1-625), the album features a blend of folk rock, with Bown contributing vocals, piano, and guitar and Peter Frampton is also featured playing Electric and Acoustic Guitar. The album was remastered and reissued on CD in 2016 by Big Pink. 

Designed by John Youssi, the cover Illustration was created by Doug Taylor and art direction by Des Strobel. The artist’s name is in a film typeface named 'Horse Tank'. The lowercase-only bold oblique face with tiny counters and thin stems here appears with an outlined drop shadow. The album title shows lettering based on 'Mistral'. 

The hammer and nail caractures on the front cover of the album remind me of those used in Pink Floyd's The Wall video and one might wonder whether there was some connection between the two with Bown's involvement with The Wall tour while playing with Pink Floyd.

In an article (published July 21st, 1973- Sounds Magazine), Gerry Gilbert writes:

A series of failures after the demise of the Herd had left Andy overly cynical about the entire music business. [His next bands].... Judas Jump and Storyteller both left their scars and when he finally resurfaced with the solo album "Gone To My Head" it seemed as though he had finally broken through. For the album, far from being a vehicle to excuse or escape his pop past, was a delightful cameo of reflaction upon mistakes, seeking absolution and searching for new paths. It was an album that worked in preciselyt the way Cat Stevens' "Mona Bone Jakon" had done, combining the essential elements of simplicity, clarity and honesty.

"But it was all a complete balls up",  Andy reflected when I met him for lunch last week. "No-one knew it was coming out because it was so far behind schedule and it got buried straight away. In fact, I don't think it even got to the shops".

Gerry later writes about up and coming gigs for Andy at the time:

"There are a whole bunch of good gigs lined up for Andy including a possible Status Quo tour and an appearance at the Reading Festival - and I urge you to try and catch the band in action.

Too late you cry? Well, the good news is that I have Phillip's '73 Reading Festival' release which features a track from Bown's performance called "Long Legged Linda" and is included in this post as a bonus track [It was this track that first brought my attention to the talents of Andy Bown, and his later involvement with Status Quo]

This post consists of FLACs ripped from my vinyl which I recently found in a bargin bin at a 2nd hand record seller.  I suspect the seller was unaware of the album's significance as a collector item and happily parted with my $5 for the near mint copy. Full album artwork and label scans are included, along with select photos of Andy (sourced from Andy's Facebook pages).

As mentioned, Andy Bown first appeared on my radar when I heard him play "Long Legged Linda" on Phillip Record's release of  the 1973 Reading Festival.  One anomaly that made it difficult to trace Andy's musical career at that point in time was the mispelling of his surname on the album cover (Andy Brown), although the record label itself had it spelt Bown. Remember, there was no Google back in those days to help sort out annomalies like this.  Anyhow, I have chosen to add "Long Legged Linda" as a Bonus track for your pleasure.

Note: Because the first 2 tracks run into one another (with no distinct separation), I have recorded them as one track.

Tracklist:

01 Pale Shadow (Of His Former Self)  2:12

02 Gone To My Head 3:02

03 And If My Love Wants To Know  0:54

04 P.S. Get Lost 3:19

05 The Mourning Leaves  3:37

06 Open Your Eyes 4:39

07 Oh, James 2:36

08 Eventually 5:17

09 Etcetera, Etcetera  4:45

10 If It's All The Same To You  2:00

11 lease Remember Me 3:20

12 Long Legged Linda (Bonus Live)  3:48

Band members:

Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Organ, Piano – Andy Bown

Backing Vocals – Caroline Attard, Lesley Duncan, Liza & Kay

Bass Guitar – Chris Belshaw

Drums – Micky Waller

Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar – Peter Frampton

Andy Bown Link (205Mb)

REPOST: Daniel - Last Night In The City (1978) + Bonus Tracks

(Australian 1976-79)
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Originating in Newcastle (NSW) under the name 'Delta', the band moved to Sydney, then on to the Melbourne circuit as Daniel. A clean blend of R'n'B with country overtones and featuring three part harmonies, the band came to the attention of Mike Rudd (Spectrum and Ariel) who then produced this, their only album.
For me, Daniel sounded a lot like Stars (both vocally and instrumentally) but still retained their own distinct sound. Roger Pyke's voice is very similar to that of Mick Pealing, particularly in "Creep" and "Loves Loser", while Paul Trimble's guitar work (particularly his Steel Guitar licks) are reminiscent of the legendary Andy Durant.

I remember seeing Daniel at the Nightmoves Concerts in the late 70's, held at the St Kilda Palace and thinking how much they reminded me of the Stars who were big at the time.
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Their album was not released at this time but they did have a flexi-disk single give-away in a current edition of RAM Magazine, which featured their hit single "Last Night In The City" and a promotional B-side for Yamaha with Mike Rudd talking with the band about their sound and Yamaha equipment. 
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During their three year career, they only released three singles and their debut album. As mentioned, their hit single was also captured live on a second Nighmoves Concert release, and "Two Wrongs" appeared later on the Nightmoves DVD release.
The album is easy to listen to and it is obvious that all band members were very talented musicians. It is a shame that they didn't stay together to record more material and were probably lacking the power of a Michael Gudisnski to promote them better.
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Thanks to Sunshine at Ausrock for the FLAC album rip and artwork. The bonus live tracks and debut single were taken from my record collection and also ripped to FLAC.

The Promo Flexi disk A & B Sides were ripped from my copy in FLAC format. I have also included scans of the Flexi Disk and cover - my copy is yellow but I believe it was also released on blue flex. 
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     New Improved Rip !

Track Listing
01 - Waiter Waiter
02 - Creep
03 - Go Underground
04 - Do The Whiteman
05 - Sad Sad Day
06 - Last Night In The City
07 - Moon-Go-Round
08 - Loves Loser
09 - Bon Voyage Australia
10 - The Wind
[Bonus Tracks]
11 - Are You Listening (Single-A)
12 - High Spot (Single-B)
13 - Last Night In The City (Live Nightmoves)
14 - Two Wrongs Don't Make A Right (Live Nightmoves)
15 - Flexi Promo-Last Night In The City (Single A)
16 - Flexi Promo-For Yamaha (Single B)
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Band Members:
Roger Pyke (Vocals, Guitar)
David Stewart (Drums, Vocals)
James Neal (Bass, Vocals)
Paul Trimble (Guitar)
Jose McLaughlin (Keyboards)
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Daniel Link (423Mb) New Link 02/02/2026

W.O.C.K On Vinyl: Roly Parks & the Sole Burners - ‘Good On Ya Cliff Young” Single (1983)

On Australia Day we come together as a nation to celebrate what's great about Australia and being Australian. It's the day to reflect on what we have achieved and what we can be proud of in our great nation. It's the day for us to re-commit to making Australia an even better place for the future. Australia Day, 26 January, is the anniversary of the arrival of the First Fleet of 11 convict ships from Great Britain, and the raising of the Union Jack at Sydney Cove by its commander Captain Arthur Phillip, in 1788.
With respect to Australia's Music Industry, we can be very proud of the contributions that our Aussie Musos have made in entertaining people from every nation with music and song, with many of our artists achieving world wide acclaim.

Whether or not you still support Australia Day, in light of the recent controversy that has arisen with the validity of what Australia Day represents, I hope you will still support the spirit of the day, where we all come together as a nation to celebrate what's great about Australia and being Australian.

In 1983, Roly Parks & The Sole Burners recorded a single for Wizard Records ‘Good On Ya Cliff Young” b/w “The Good Old Aussie Battler” (ZS 826). The single was produced by Bryan Dawe and Steve Groves who also penned both sides. Cliff Young OAM was an Australian potato farmer and athlete from Beech Forest, Victoria, best known for his unexpected win of the inaugural Sydney to Melbourne Ultra marathon in 1983 at 61 years of age.

It was his monumentous efforts in beating all odds (namely much younger and experienced long distance runners) to win the Sydney to Melbourne Ultramarathon that exemplified the little 'Aussie Battler' metaphor and is a reminder that greatness often wears humble shoes.

Launched in 1983, the Westfield Sydney to Melbourne Ultramarathon earned a reputation as one of the most grueling endurance races on the planet. Spanning 875 km (543.7 miles) through searing daytime heat and freezing nights, it demanded extraordinary preparation, strategic planning, and near-superhuman stamina. It was a race for elite ultramarathoners—athletes who calculated every calorie, nap, and step. That year, top contenders like the legendary Greek ultrarunner Yiannis Kouros had well-honed strategies: scheduled micro-naps, precisely calibrated fueling, and energy-saving strides. So when Cliff Young showed up at the start line wearing overalls and work boots, people thought it was a joke. What most didn’t realize was that Cliff, a native of Victoria, wasn’t entirely new to running. Despite what some internet myths might suggest, he had completed the Melbourne Marathon three times between 1980 and 1982, after taking up competitive running at the age of 56. His personal best? A respectable 3:02:53—remarkable for someone who began so late in life. But this time would reveal just how much more he had in him.

Cliff Young - The Potato Farmer (Centre Front)

The “impossible” feat/feet" of Cliff Young and his sheep

Every day on his farm in Beech Forest, Cliff would run for hours chasing stray sheep across rugged terrain—often for days without rest. So when he calmly told race officials, “I’m used to running for two or three days straight when rounding up the sheep,” it wasn’t just a quaint anecdote—it was his truth. At first, no one took him seriously. Other runners raised eyebrows. Spectators chuckled. Yet, once the race began, Cliff stuck to his own rhythm: a slow, steady shuffle that never stopped. While competitors took breaks to sleep, Cliff simply kept going. “If I stop to sleep,” he reasoned, “I’ll lose too much time.”

By day three, he had caught up to the leaders. By day four, he passed them. With no coach, no sports science, and no sleep, Cliff Young ran continuously for 5 days, 15 hours, and 4 minutes, smashing the previous record by nearly two full days. He finished a staggering 10 hours ahead of the runner-up, George Perdon—himself a veteran, known as the first man to run across Australia back in 1973. At the finish line, exhausted but smiling, Cliff said simply: “I knew I could do it. I just did what I always do.” His time would stand until 1985, when Yiannis Kouros set a new record of 5 days, 5 hours, and 7 minutes. Cliff’s performance even inspired a race in his honor—the Cliff Young Race, held annually from 1983 to 2005.

Cliff Young’s legacy: a new way to run [the shuffle]

Cliff Young didn’t just win a race—he changed the very fabric of ultrarunning. Before him, no one thought it was humanly possible to run nearly 900 km without sleep. After him, scientists and runners alike studied his signature stride: the “Young Shuffle”—a low-impact, ultra-efficient gait that dragged the feet just above the ground to conserve energy. To this day, it’s taught in ultramarathon training camps. But Cliff’s real legacy goes beyond biomechanics. He redefined what endurance means. He proved that patience and grit could outlast speed and youth. That simplicity can beat sophistication. That underdogs—those who don’t fit the mold—often hold untapped potential. Even Eliud Kipchoge, the Kenyan marathon legend and first man to break the 2-hour barrier (in an unofficial race), cited Cliff Young as an inspiration: “He taught me that limits exist only in the mind.” In Australia, Cliff remains a national icon. His story isn’t just a tale of winning against all odds—it’s a reminder that greatness often wears humble shoes. 

[Extract from www.marathons.com]

Cliffy Young's story resinates with me greatly, as I too was a marathon runner back in the 80's & 90's and totally understood the massive human endurance that is involved with this type of run.  Now, it's one thing to run a 42.195km marathon, but to run 875km is just, simply insane.  I remember watching the coverage of the event on TV over the 5 days and was on Sydney Road (extension of the Hume Highway) joining the thousands of other Melbournians to applaud Cliffy's amazing effort, when he ran past on his way to the finish line in the city.

Perhaps some of you were there also...if so, I would love to hear your thoughts on this amazing story.

In closing, I would like to dedicate this post to all our Aussie sports people who represent our great country and in doing so, exemplify the Aussie Spirit. The plaque shown right is a wonderful reminder of the spirit and legacy that Cliffy Young demonstrated when he undertook a mammoth challenge [as the under-dog] and won. 

This post consists of MP3's ripped from vinyl + label scans (thanks to Ozzie Musicman).

"Good On Ya Cliff Young" / "The Good Old Aussie Battler" Link  (14Mb)

REPOST: Stylus - For The Love Of Music (1976) with Bonus Track

(Australian 1975-1979, 1992, 2002-2010)
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Stylus was a 1970's Australian soul-pop group. The band is notable for being the only Australian act ever released by Motown Records in the USA. Stylus toured with George Benson, Average White Band, Ike & Tina Turner, and Australia's "Little River Band". Japan's Toshiba-EMI re-issued 3 Stylus CDs (For The Love Of Music, Best Kept Secret & Part Of It All) in 1998/99.
Stylus was formed out of the ashes of a group called “Mason Cure” (led by  Ian Mason), featuring four of the members of  Stylus, but once Ian Mason left in 1974, they formed “Stylus”, with Sam McNally taking on the keyboards role and Jeff Joseph the manager. The band was Peter Cupples vocals/ rhythm guitar, Peter Lee drums, Sam McNally keyboards, Ron Peers guitar/vocals and Ashley Henderson bass guitar/vocals.
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Summer Breeze_45

Peter Cupples wrote & produced the groups music. Their music is smooth and funky, widely regarded as Australia’s premier soul group in the 70's, supporting groups like the Average White Band, Tina Turner and George Benson when they were touring Australia. Stylus was also regular on the ABC television show 'Countdown'.
The band eventually scored a deal with WEA (Atlantic) and issued the single Seals and Crofts' "Summer Breeze"/"Feelin' Blue"  in July, 1975. The single reached #31 in Melbourne during August.
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If you're after hard funk then their albums won’t hit the spot but if you dig groups like Average White Band, The Eagles and other 70's groups that have a undercurrent of out funkiness running through their Rock then you may want to take a listen to Stylus.
This line-up recorded the first two albums 'Where In The World' and 'For The Love Of Music'.
For the third album 'Best Kept Secret' Trevor Courtney filled the drum position. Several drummers were used from this time till the fourth album 'Part Of It All' was released including Joe Tattersall's and Mark Meyer who played on 'Part Of It All'. Singer Peter Roberts joined the band from the middle of 1978.
'Best Kept Secret' was released in the USA by Motown on their Prodigal label. The album and singles received favourable reviews in Music Industry magazines such as Cashbox and Billboard.
'Part Of It All' was to be the second US release but due to a re-shuffle of key management in the record company this was shelved.

Album Review 1
This album showed heaps of potential, but the pressure to produce a new album on the back of the success of their first, made it hard. We never took time off to rehearse or even record. We kept on giging all the way through, as we had families to support. We rehearsed at sound checks, and in our hotel rooms while on tour.
Songs like "Getting in the Groove" "Moving on Home" and "Nature is giving" were great grooves to play live. I think this album produced three great ballads, "So much love", which introduces Ashley Henderson to the front mike. People got to hear what a fantastic and unique voice he has. 'So much love' was a good single for us, picking up airplay all around the country. (It even made it on to one of those 'explosive hits' records). The other two ballads were "Musical Man" & "Love is all we need". I believe those three songs would sound great, recorded with the sounds and technology we have today, (food for thought)...
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Peter Cupples goes on to say.....'For the Love of Music' was our second album. I think that potentially it should have been our best record. We had discovered, at this stage, that we had a wonderful and unique vocal talent in our band - our bass player Ashley Henderson. I set out to write some ballads to match his beautiful voice. This added another dimension to our music. The trouble was, with the pace that things had moved, and with the weight of the constant touring, we didn't have enough time to sit back and let it develop at its own rate. I had the ideas for the songs, and we were rushed into getting it out to follow up on our debut success. The record, whilst it was a nice recording, was probably a bit of a let-down. We changed managers at this stage and we also seemed to lose a bit of momentum. So we continued to tour and slog it out on the road. [extracts from Peter Cupples website, now defunct]
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Stylus On Stage 1976

Album Review 2
As an Australian record collector, you usually hear about the legend of Stylus from Japanese record collectors before hearing about it from locals, and this group does still seem to be a sought-after item over there. Having started out as a break-collector, I was more than a little disappointed by this album when I first heard it. The sound, which would now be best described as modern soul, is a lot smoother than it is funky. Fronted by Peter Cupples (known for his work with Stylus as well as his two solo albums), it’s surprising that nothing by the group was compiled until last year (Respect Overdue Vol. 3). The good tracks on here have a really upbeat, choppy funk groove, but be warned – the vocals may not be what you are expecting, or hoping for. "Gettin' in the Groove", "For the Love of Music" and "What’s Right for You" fall right into this category. They have three other albums in the same vein. I don’t listen to them very often and seem to recall this one being the best of them. Feel free to tell me otherwise! [from aussiefunk.blogspot.com]
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This post consists of FLACs taken from my pristine vinyl copy. Not a pop or crackle to be heard - something you wouldn't expect from a Stylus ! LOL
Also included is full album artwork, lyrics sheet and label scans. As a bonus, I have also included a B-side single that was not included on the album called "Funky Fig" (the flip side to their single "I Just Don't Wanna Fall in Love Right Now"). This rare single was sourced  from DJ Kinetic with thanks, from his AussieFunk blog - and is well worth visiting.

           New Improved RIP  !
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Track Listing 
01. For the Love of Music
02. Musical Man
03. Movin' On Home
04. So Much Love
05. Gettin' in the Groove
06. Nature is Giving
07. I Just Don't Wanna Fall in Love Right Now
08. We All Need One Another
09. What's Right For You
10. Love is all We Need
11. Funky Fig (Bonus B-Side Single)

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Band Members:
Bass – Ashley Henderson
Drums – Peter Lee
Guitar – Ron Peers
Keyboards – Sam McNall
Producer, Vocals, Guitar – Peter Cupples
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Stylus Link (346Mb) New Link 25/01/26

REPOST: Stiletto - Licence To Rage (1978) plus Bonus Tracks

(Australian 1976-1978)
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Stiletto formed in the Autumn of 1976 and quickly gained a reputation of being a strong feminist band. At that point, their line-up included singer / songwriter Janie Conway on guitar and vocals and Marney Sheehan on bass. Shortly after Chris Worrall joined the band", Janie left. She did some demo tapes, produced by Mike Rudd for EMI, played as a duo with another singer/songwriter, Marney Sheehan (ex-bass player in the original Stiletto line-up) and, finally, in late '78, formed her own rock band, Janie Conway's Scarlet.
Stiletto first appeared on vinyl in July 1977 when they provided the B-side, 'Nights In Parlour', to Red Symon's single "Only A Flipside'. Later in the year, they gained prominence with the release of the Oz Records compilation album, Debutantes, to which they contributed three songs.
Their first wholly Stiletto single, 'Bluebirds', written by Andrew, was followed in August '78 by their debut album, 'Licence to Rage' — unfortunately to become their only LP. Two tracks from the album, 'Goodbye Johnny' and 'Woman In A Man's World' were released as a single (Oz label) in the same month.
In November it was announced that one of their songs, 'Women In Trouble', was to be used on a film soundtrack (other tracks by the band had been used previously on movies). This news was accompanied by some not so good tidings — they were dropped by their record company, EMI. Regrettably, this seemed to precipitate their dissolution.
Chris Worrall left to join Paul Kelly and the Dots. He was replaced by Chris Dyson (ex-High Rise Bombers) and briefly the band seemed to rejuvenate, and even appeared as special guests on Elvis Costello's Melbourne show; but early in 1979 the final decision to split was made.
Jane, Andrew and Celeste appeared in a rock musical,Mickey's Moomba, at the Pram Factory in February-March '79. (Andrew and Celeste in the backing band and Jane in a singing-acting role. Andrew also wrote some of the show's music.) Chris and Eddie were to join a reformation of the Melbourne new wave band, News, but in early '79 were playing with the Romantics [extract from Noel McGrath's Australian Encyclopedia of Rock (1978-79) Yearbook, p94-95]
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Pub Bands - An Ocassional Guide
(Article by Jenny Brown, 'Bottom Line' Newspaper - March / April 1978, p12)
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Half man, half woman! C'est Stiletto, one of Melbourne's few truly underground bands, burrowing upwards toward the light of widerr recgnition.
Stiletto, whilst pretending to a certain cool, are closet flamboyants. Lots of colorand imagery, scrambled genders, and a sort of shivering toughness which has definite appeal.
Constant revolving in the club 'n' pub circuit has polished this sharp little gem of a band until crikey they can really rock. There's been the odd line-up casuality, but always the replacements have been well selected, eventually beefing up the band.

The line-up (at this time) is now Jane Clifton (vocals), Celeste Howden (bass), Chris Worrell(guitar), Andrew Bell (guitar) and Ed Van Roosendale (drums).
Stiletto's repetoire contains some very incentive originals, with a dyed-in-the-wool Melbournian 70's feel. Their interest in women's blues has labelled them a feminist band, but those who think the female members dominate the group may be surprised to know the guitarist Andrew Bell penned the tragicomic "Women In Trouble" (about the long distance adoration and eventual spurning "I wouldn't fuck you with a dog's dick" etc. of an impervious female passer-by building site workers). Also notable are "Premenstrual Blues", "Cream" and many more.

By no means are Stiletto going to set the world alight, but they have earned their tracks on the 'Debutantes' album released by Oz Records this November. They also have the flip-side of Red Symons "It's Only a Flip Side", the single from the album, with 'Nights in the Parlour'.
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Interview with Jane Clifton (circa Music Makers, June 1979,    The Toorak Times)

When Jane Clifton talks about Stiletto, you can’t help but get the feeling that she looks back on her days in a rock’n’roll band not so much with regret as with a wisdom and a knowledge that she didn’t have when the band started.

Comfortably settled into a circuit of activities that includes acting, swingtime/jazz singing, and a late night spot at the Last laugh Theatre Restaurant, she can probably afford to feel that way. But the Stiletto sag, starting off with so much enjoyment and ending in so much disappointment, still looms large in her mind.
“One of the great failings of Stiletto,” says Jane matter-of-factly, “was there was no single central figure to say this is the way ahead, this is the music we’ll play, these are the ideas we’ll have.”

“I firmly believe now that the most successful – in the commercial sense – rock and roll ventures have a typical structure, where there is a central person with an idea around whom other people cluster .“
She pauses a moment, then settles back into her armchair. It’s obviously a long story, and no longer worth telling in too much detail.
“ Like, in the beginning of Stiletto, we just fell into the band. It may have been that the five of us who ended up being together actually chosen people, we might not have chosen each other, for a lot of reasons.”

‘But,” adds Jane with a wry smile, “Stiletto was the band where I finally got to do the whole rock and roll trip, working four or five nights a week, touring…and getting exploited.”
.

Jane Clifton’s current relationship with rock’n’roll is what you might call a trial separation. “Right now I don’t think I’ll ever do that trip again,” she says.

“I don’t think I’ll ever give myself totally to rock’n’roll.”
The question of talent versus timing-and-luck comes up. To Jane,the latter is the crucial ingredient, one with which Stiletto was not blessed.
“We were always out of phase.”
“We released ‘Bluebirds’ at the height of when punk was in vogue, so we were stuffed on that one. ‘Bluebirds’ was the pinkest thing we could possibly have put out!”
She laughs it off. Time heals all wounds.

Jane Clifton (vocals), Celeste Howden (bass)

“Then we released ‘Goodbye Johnny’, but by then the wave was over.”

“Our lyrics were out of phase too.”
But Jane, I always thought that was the one thing about Stiletto that was IN phase!
“They were to start with,” answers Jane, ‘and we were singing about interesting stuff that would never be popular within mainstream commercial rock.”

Stiletto never did quite achieve what they wanted i.e.general acceptance. Compounded by an album, as Jane admits, never quite lived up to the promise the band had shown, the band, the concept, and the hopes folded.So how does she come to be performing with a jazz band doing Cole Porter material and the like?
The answer is simple.

She’d always enjoyed slipping into a torch song; even with Stiletto (‘Second Home’ and ‘Nights in Parlour’ were amongst their best songs).

When management of The Flying Trapeze Theatre Restaurant convinced her to take part in their fifth birthday celebrations, her spot was so successful that offers of work began coming in virtually of their own accord.

“Everybody kept saying ‘keep doing it’, and I kept getting offered gigs…it was exactly the same way Stiletto started, totally by accident and seeming like a nice idea.”

“I intend keeping it that way,” continues a worldly wise Jane. “With Stiletto we pushed the idea too far, kept it going too long. With this, as soon as the idea runs out or I get sick of it – I’m going to finish it.”

The obvious question is, do you feel more at home performing this style of music than you were in the rock band?

“Well, they’re both parts of what I wanted to do, Like, I don’t totally think of having left rock behind, but I’d never do it as part of a band.”

‘At the moment I’m getting another part of me out of my system, and learning a whole lot about jazz. Which, for me, is just great.”.  The smile on her face confirms that.
.

This post consists of FLACs ripped from my vinyl wuth full album artwork and label scans.  I have also chosen to include 3 bonus tracks, taken from the Aussie compilation album 'Debutantes' (produced by Red Symons) to sweeten the deal. Oh, and keep your ears out for the track "Cream" which has a distinct 'Skyhooks' sound about it, with Jane sounding a lot like Shirley Strauchan.

As an extra bonus for this REPOST, I am also including 2 demo tracks that Stilleto made for their record company in 1977, which never made it on their LP. Thanks to Sunshine for these demos.

Stiletto were certainly an under rated band who deserved greater success and better treatment from their record company. So grab a copy of this rare Aussie album while you can and know that with it comes a License To Rage !

New Improved RIP! with extra bonus tracks

Track Listing

01 - Public Enemy No.1
02 - Licence To Rage
03 - Woman In A Man's World
04 - Bluebirds
05 - Not Too Young For Joy
06 - Goodbye Johnny
07 - Middle Of The Bed
08 - 2nd Home
09 - Rozalyn
10 - The Man (Bonus Track) *
11 - Cream (Bonus Track) *
12 - Nights In Parlour (Bonus Track) *

13 - Dollar Go (Bonus Demo Track) +

14 - Housewife's Son (Bonus Demo Track) +

* Bonus tracks taken from the 1977 compilation 'Debutantes

+ Bonus Demo Tracks 1977 [Thanks to Sunshine at AusRock]
. 
Band Line-up:
Andrew Bell (Guitar)
Jane Clifton (Vocals)
Celeste Howden (Bass, vocals)
Eddie Van Rosendall (Drums, vocals)
Chris Worrall (Guitar, vocals)
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Stiletto Link (314Mb)

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Snakes Alive - Selftitled (1975) FLACs

(Australian 1973-1975)

Thought I was AWOL hey?  Well, I'm finally back from holidaying in Surfers Paradise and I'm ready to get back into the blogin'. Hope you enjoy this one:

Some time ago, I stumbled upon a "masterpiece" of progressive jazz / rock on the web, in MP3 format. The band / album is called "Snakes Alive", formed in 1973, but there was very little information given about the band, except that they were Australian and the album was recorded in 1974. I’m sure some of you have also stumbled upon this album at some stage while searching blogs.

Now as the old expression goes, curiosity killed the cat (and I must say that my pet cat has been looking very restless recently) - I wanted to know where this band had come from and whether they had released any other material.

So, I started to search the web looking for clues.

Well, to cut a long story short, there wasn't much info out there at the time, but I finally managed to track down one of the band members (Michael Vidale - bass player) and have had some very interesting dialog with him via email.

Snakes Alive

Firstly, the album has never been officially released and was secretly recorded in late 1974 at the EMI recording studios (B) at 301 Castlereagh Street, Haymarket (Sydney) while Michael was working as a junior engineer. Rehearsed at Peter Nykyruj’s (Nickeroy) house in Randwick, Sydney; Snakes Alive was never a band that performed live. Michael tells me that the album took almost a whole year to record, making it the most expensive album ever produced in Oz at that time!

50 vinyl pressings were made for private consumption, but the album was never officially released.
Somehow, elicit releases have been made by 2 record companies over the years - Poor Boy Records in Japan and Blue Wave Records in the United States.

Aragorn, 1973

Michael tells me that he was also involved with two earlier projects before Snakes Alive, one called "Bedtime Story" recorded in 1973 (somewhat ragged and rough around the edges) and another under the name of Aragorn ..."The Suite" and "The People and The Night" ..basically an album of material devoted to The Lord Of The Rings (45mins) .. recorded at Clover Studios , Surry Hills September 1973. He believes the Aragorn material is as good if not better than Snakes alive! Alex Ditrich, Michael Vidale and Ralph Cooper went on to form the Jazz-Rock/Fusion band Stepps

Sadly, none of their material was played publicly, as they never played gigs! What a waste I say. But Michael still has the Master Tapes for all of these bands.

Snakes Alive

Album Review:

The music is absolutely brilliant, and the title track is so damn catchy I can't believe the band didn't consider releasing it there and then. Their sound is so unique it is hard to compare them with other bands, but their rich sounds and diverse musical instruments make it a pleasure to listen to this album, time and time again.

This is progressive smelling hard rock seventies stuff with some similarities to Krautrock but is also excellent jazz-rock in the use of instruments such as trumpet, saxophone, flute and sometimes the keyboards sound psychedelic (organ sounds, piano similar to Supertramp).

LP Gatefold

Long compositions, complicated in structure and well executed, here are ornate guitar solos and sophisticated brass sections - trumpet, saxophone and flute.

Splendid organs on top of a solid rhythm part form the core of the sound, and the solos of the two wind instruments demonstrate a strong presence throughout the record. The songs are dramatic and detailed – reminiscent of King Crimson – and their ability to create a variety of musical expressions makes one incredulous of their obscurity.

The final track “Fruit Pie” finishes with a powerful rolling drum performance. The album is almost entirely instrumental, and the vocals that do appear help to strengthen their sound.

L-R: Alex Ditrich, Michael Vidale, Colin Campbell, Boris Peric, Jonas Saywell, Peter Nykyruj

The Band Members were:

- Michael Vidale (bass/producer) has played for The Bushwackers, Slim Dusty, The Whitlams, Anne Kirkpatric, The Toe-sucking Cowgirls, Jimmy And The Boys, The Feral Swing Cats, Reg Lindsay, Peter Wells and Don Walker

- Peter Nykyruj (drums) who apparently played with Kush back in 73'. Michael considered him to be one of the best double-kick drummers in the business. Peter eventually went to London to play straight Jazz with Mike Osbourne. His son Nat, now plays drums for the band ‘Friends of Ron. Sadly, Peter passed away in 2003

Michael Vidale

- Alex ‘Al’ Ditrich (keyboards) was the main writer and now lives in the Gold Coast. Micahel still stays in regular contact with Alex

- Boris Peric (guitar) currently lives in Cains

- Jonas Saywell/Thomas (sax, flute, vocals)

- Colin Campbell (trumpet)

- Ralph Cooper (tamborine/mixing) played with Air Supply, Ralph helped Michael mix the album. The album was originally much longer and was edited down to fit onto a single vinyl copy.

Now that I have shared this story with you, I would like to say how grateful I am to Michael Vidale for revealing the story behind Snakes Alive. I have suggested that he should contact Gil Matthews at Aztec records to investigate the release of this masterpiece (and perhaps some of the other material he has stashed away). I guess we can only wait and see if anything transpires from my suggestion.

This post consists of FLACs ripped from a CD release (see left), including full album artwork and label scans (rare LP test pressings) plus several bonus tracks.  Firstly, an unedited recording of the title track Snakes Alive (original extended version) and a rare recording of the Bedtime (early Snakes Alive) track "Charred Ducks".

Track Listing:

01 – Dear Suzy (11:28)
02 – Abbreviations (8:56)
03 – Theme For Myra (7:20)
04 – Snakes Alive (6:00)
05 – Fruit Pie (6:19)
Bonus Tracks
06 - Snakes Alive (Original Extended Version) (14:13)
07 – Charred Duck [Bedtime Story] (10:01)

Snakes Alive were:
-Alex Ditrich (keyboards, claviers)
-Michael Vidale (bass)

-Boris Peric (guitar)
-Peter Nykyruj (drums)
-Jonas Saywell [Thomasich] (saxophone, flute, vocals)
-Colin Campbell (trumpet)
-Ralph Cooper & Michael Vidale (production)

Snakes Alive Link (459Mb)