DOWNLOAD NO.207 - SOUTHERN CONTEMPORARY ROCK ASSEMBLY

This band was massive with 11 band members at it height and they came from the UK, Oz and NZ. The band also incorporated various styles of rock and pop. They could rock with big band tracks similar to Blood, Sweat And Tears and then take it down a notch to small quiet love songs.

Some of the original band members were from Levi Smith's Clefs which provided a valuable training ground for young players.

New Zealander, Mike “Mickey” Leyton became a member after leaving his band Sounds Unlimited (from Auckland). He married singer Lyn Barnett and they moved to Sydney in the late 1960s. In February 1971 Mickey had became a singer in a pub band called Small Chant (which over the course of 1971 was upgraded to become SCRA - Southern Contemporary Rock Assembly).

The Small Chant members were: Barrie Heidenreich - piano, Mickey Leyton - vocals, Wayne Ford - bass, Peter Martin – classical guitar and composer and Leon Isakson on drums. Peter was breaking his neck to play classical works after studies in Spain. Peter had also written a few songs including one called Roly Poly, which they played live but never recorded as Small Chant.

By mid 1971 Peter Martin had finally secured a permanent gig at the Oceanic Hotel, but by that time Leon Isakson had joined the Delltones. Peter’s band went into the Oceanic with the old line-up of the Small Chant plus a few changes. Barrie had other commitments and Peter replaced him with his star pupil on guitar, Jim Kelly. Russell Dunlop came in on drums with Ian Bloxom on percussion and Dave Ellis on bass. Greg Foster (trombone and blues harp), Mick Kenny (trumpet) and Don Wright (sax) made up the front-line. Michael Lawler’s girlfriend, Sheryl Blake, made up the 3rd singer with the band along with Mickey Leyton and Ian Saxon. And so SCRA was formed. It was a huge 11-piece band and it all sounded fabulous. Dig Richards was so impressed that he decided to use SCRA on his next RCA album, Harlequin.

Singles:

CC Rider (M7 4512) 1971
Roly Poly (M7 4514) - #19 December 1971
Sydney Born Man (M7 4519) 1971
Our Ship (Atlantic 10009) 1972
It’s A Game (Atlantic 10012) 1972

Sheryl Blake female singer with SCRA has a solo single “As Long As Life Goes On” lodged on this blog. Please use the search facility to locate this track.

The single of "CC Rider" is available at download No.56 - type 56 in the search facility box and scroll down the page to this second item...

Here for download is a live recording of SCRA at Sunbury 1972. The track “I Just Want To Make Love To You” is taken from the DVD of this recording which is different again to the version dubbed and cleaned up for the commercial version on the 1972 Sunbury Soundtrack:

http://rapidshare.com/files/226298239/s_c_r_a_-_i_wanna_make_love_to_you__live_at_sunbury_.mp3

DOWNLOAD NO.206 - SUPERNAUT

Formed in 1974 Supernaut (originally called Moby Dick) had a short but successful music run. Supernaut was a Molly Meldrum discovery. They hailed from Perth Western Australia. On Molly's recommendation, the band signed with Polydor Records. In 1976 Supernaut had a #9 hit with “I Like It Both Ways”. They followed that with the #10 hit “Too Hot To Touch”. In 1977 they charted with “Young And Innocent” #28 and “The Kids Are Out Tonight”, another #28 hit. In 1978 their appeal waned and with a name change to “Nauts”, they had their last hit “Unemployed” which just made the top 40 by getting to #36.

A change in sound, a change in image and a change in producer alienated Supernaut from their original fan-base in Perth and Melbourne which is where they sold well. They disbanded in 1980.

Band member Gary Twinn went on to form Twenty Flight Rockers, Chris Burham joined The Saints, Joe Burham now composes film scores and Philip Foxman writes scores for Network Ten and MTV.

Their hits were short catchy tracks but I always thought that one of them was ultra short so to rectify this situation here is the extended Tom Mix 12" version of “The Kids Are Out Tonight”:

http://rapidshare.com/files/224774638/Supernaut_-_The_Kids_are_Out_Tonight__Ext_Tom_Mix_.mp3

DOWNLOAD NO.205 - NORFOLK SINGERS

For ANZAC Day (25th April) I have posted an old 1965 protest song based on the old traditional song "Here We Go Gathering Nuts In May". The Sydney-based Norfolk Singers were talented musos who mixed classics like “The First Time Ever” (1965) and “Whiskey in the Jar” (1964) with topical drollery like “Nasho Service” (1965) and “The Opera House is Falling Down” (1964-5).

“The Opera House is Falling Down” was their biggest hit according to the Ozburn charts and got to #27 in Sydney in December 1964. It makes an appearance on the 2SM top 40 charts and local 2NX Newcastle charts but didn't make the top 40 on the often quoted 2UE Sydney chart.

I sometimes wonder if top 40 charts were very reliable in recording what was popular? I used to work in a co-operative shop that sold 7" records and I know that top 40 singles sometimes sold volumes but only got placed in the lower reaches of the charts. Radio DJs in the early days could make or break an act by helping them to place on the charts...I wonder if we had our own Oz version of "payola"? (Wink)!!!

The Norfolk Singers recorded their brand of folk music on the CBS label which was one of the big music labels at the time trying to find the next big thing to promote, after all the Beatles couldn't last much past 1965, could they?

"Nasho Service" for those too young to know was a colloquial term used for the training all the conscripted male youths faced during the Vietnam War era. During the era of "National Service", most boys were not able to vote but they were sent off to War unless they were at university or married (according to the song).

Here for download is the droll protest song "Nasho Service":

http://rapidshare.com/files/224346817/norfolk_singers_-_nasho_service__from_tom_mix_.mp3

Re: "Opera House Is Falling Down" from contibutor Jim B.: It made No 47 for 6 wks on the National Charts in late 1964. It appeared briefly on the 2UE predictions list in Jan 1965 for two weeks at positions 18 & 20 and then dropped off.

NB. The newspaper article "Roll Of Honour" is a copy of what I try to put in the newspapers every 5 years or so on ANZAC Day.

DOWNLOAD NO.204 - DOVE

Dove was a Melbourne quartet that formed in 1970 and released several singles and three albums 1973-76. Their lead vocalist was Sharyn Cambridge. Sharyn and her partner Colin Stephen have a myspace site you might like to visit:

http://www.myspace.com/cambridgestephensongwriters

Dove singles:

It Might As Well Rain Until September 1973 (#31 Melbourne)

Magic To Do 1974 (#36 Melbourne)

Amazing Grace 1974 (#7 Melbourne, #2 Adelaide)

Long Live Love 1975 (#22 Adelaide)

The Lion Sleeps Tonight 1976 (#9 Adelaide)

Here for download is their last single "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" courtesy of Jim B. who has given me many vinyl rarities for my Tom Mix blog which I have also contributed to Ozburn:

http://rapidshare.com/files/223940238/DOVE_-_LION_SLEEPS_TONIGHT__VINYL_TOM_MIX_.mp3

DOWNLOAD NO.203 - LEO DE CASTRO AND FRIENDS

Leo De Castro (real name Leo De Castro Kino) was a NZ singer with a big soulful voice whose career stalled in NZ so he moved to Australia in 1969 and headed for Sydney and joined the Browns, which included Ronnie Peel from the Pleazers. (Ronnie Peel lives in Newcastle nowadays not far from where I work). Leo then worked with a group called Leo and Friends. The band broke up at the start of 1970, so in September 1970 he formed King Harvest. They immediately earned acclaim as one of the “heavy” bands on the progressive rock circuit. King Harvest broke up in September 1971, when De Castro formed Flite for a couple of months, but by December 1971 he had formed a different group called Friends. In 1972 they recorded a fairly successful single called "B. B. Boogie" which was on the Col Joye label ATA. One of their other singles "Lucille" was a live recording. It got to #48 on the national charts in March 1973 - selling mostly in Melbourne and Adelaide. By mid 1973 Friends had broken up, not before performing at Sunbury 1973.

For download is the 12" Friends song “B. B. Boogie”:

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=6L0UH07U

DOWNLOAD NO.202 - CARSON

NB. Please use search facility top left of page to locate other works by Broderick Smith.

Carson had formed in January 1970 and was a 3 chord boogie band influenced by US group Canned Heat. During 1971 Broderick Smith replaced founder John Capek, providing vocals and harmonica. Other members included Greg Lawrie, Ian Ferguson, Tony Lunt and Ian Winter. After they released a single "Travelling South" in August 1971, Ferguson left to be replaced successively by Barry Sullivan and then Garry Clarke; Mal Logan joined later that year. Carson performed at the first Sunbury Rock Festival in January, 1972. Their next single after their exposure at Sunbury fired up a lot of business. The 7” single "Boogie, Part 1" backed with "Boogie, Part 2" reached #30 on the National charts in September 1972. Their following album “Blown” contained another version of “Boogie” but it was substantially different to the single and the record buying public were a little disappointed with the new version – I know I was because it lacked the punch of the single. The single version was two edits of a seven minute master but this was not on the album and both parts have never been edited back together for CD. I’ve posted a vinyl 12" bootleg promo where both sides of the single were joined to provide seven minutes of timeless boogie, enjoy!

http://rapidshare.com/files/223861126/carson_-_boogie__parts_1_and_2_tom_mix_.mp3

Don't forget to check out my links on the left of the page for my new download site called "Songs That Made It Big In Oz"...

(or click here) http://tommixmusic2.blogspot.com/

It has foreign songs which charted well in Oz but have not made it to CD...Do yourself a favour!

DOWNLOAD NO.201 - MICK FLINN BAND AND PUSSYFOOT

MICK FLINN WAS IN THE OZ GROUP THE MIXTURES. HE WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR MOST OF THEIR HITS. AFTER THEIR BIG SUCCESS WITH THE PUSHBIKE SONG THE MIXTURES HEADED OFF FOR ENGLAND. WHILE THERE MICK LEFT THE GROUP AND TEAMED UP WITH DONNA JONES AND WORKED AS A MEMBER OF SPRINGFIELD REVIVAL. NOT LONG AFTER IN THE MID 1970S THEY PUT TOGETHER A DUO CALLED PUSSYFOOT. MICK STAYED IN THE BACKGROUND WHILE DONNA TOOK LEAD. THEIR PUSSYFOOT SINGLES ARE LOCATED ON THIS BLOG AT A PREVIOUS POST - PLEASE USE THE SEARCH FACILITY TO LOCATE THE TRACKS.

MICK WORKED ON AND OFF WITH NUMEROUS PROJECTS INCLUDING THE SEEKERS WITH HIS OLD MIXTURE'S BAND MATE BUDDY ENGLAND. IN THE LATE 1970S MICK FORMED A BAND CALLED THE MICK FLINN BAND AND IN 1978 THEY HAD A SINGLE READY FOR RELEASE BUT IT DIDN'T GET MUCH FURTHER THAN BEING A RADIO STATION DEMO. THE A-SIDE WAS "DOIN' IT RIGHT" AND THE B-SIDE WAS CALLED "DO WHAT YOU WANNA DO". SINCE THE PROJECT WAS SHELVED THE TRACK SAT IN THE VAULTS UNTIL 1982.

MICK KEPT THE BACKING TRACK AND WHILE HERE IN OZ (CIRCA 1982) HE RECORDED OVER THE OLD SHELVED SONG USING FOSTERS BEER TO GAIN HIMSELF SOME PRODUCT PLACEMENT RECOGNITION FOR SALES IN THE U.K. WHERE BREWERY COMPANY FOSTERS REIGNED SUPREME...IN FACT THE WHOLE THING COULD HAVE BEEN COMMISSIONED BY FOSTERS FOR ALL I KNOW...NB. THE LABEL SAYS "AUSTRALIAN RECORDING" ON THE ASTOR SINGLE, YET THE MUSIC WAS ORIGINALLY RECORDED IN 1978 IN ENGLAND. THE OZ RECORD PRODUCER WAS JOHN FRENCH.

BY CLEVERLY USING "DO WHAT YOU WANNA DO" AND REMOVING ALL THE VOCALS MICK CREATED AN A-SIDE CALLED "TWO CANS OF FOSTERS AND A PACKET OF POTATO CHIPS" WHICH WAS A REMAKE OF THE DAVE AND THE DERRO'S SINGLE "TWO CANS OF BEER AND A PACKET OF CHIPS", WHICH IN TURN WAS BASED ON THE U.K. SONG "TWO PINTS OF LAGER AND A PACKET OF CRISPS, PLEASE".

ON THE A-SIDE MICK SHOUTED OVER THE LOUD BACKING TRACK, ASKING A BARMAN AT A PUB FOR THE CHIPS AND BEER. THE B-SIDE WAS THE SAME SONG WITH THE BARMAN'S ANSWERS CLEVERLY PLACED IN SYNC WITH MICK'S SHOUTS ON THE A-SIDE....BY PLAYING BOTH SIDES OF THE DISK SIMULTANEOUSLY YOU CREATE A QUESTION AND ANSWER STYLE SONG....

THE FLINN SONGS ARE COURTESY OF JIM B. WHO HAS CONTRIBUTED PREVIOUSLY TO THIS BLOG, MANY THANKS JIM!

HERE FOR DOWNLOAD ARE ALL THREE VERSIONS OF THE SONG "DO WHAT YOU WANNA DO", "TWO CANS OF BEER AND A PACKET OF POTATO CHIPS" AND "THE BARMAN'S REPLY":

http://rapidshare.com/files/222770759/FLINN_-_DO_WHAT_YOU_WANNA_DO_WITH_TWO_CANS_OF_FOSTERS_AND_PACKET_OF_POTATO_CHIPS.mp3

FURTHER OVER IN THIS BLOG ARE TWO 7" SINGLES AND TWO 12" MIXES BY MICK AS PART OF THE DUO PUSSYFOOT...HAVING GONE THROUGH MY OLD CLUB DANCE RECORDS RECENTLY I DISCOVERED I HAD ANOTHER TRACK WHICH WAS AN IMPORT FROM CANADA. I DON'T RECALL IT BEING RELEASED IN OZ...???

AS PUSYFOOT, DONNA JONES AND MICK FLINN RELEASED A DANCE 12" CALLED "DANCER DANCE" WHICH WAS A 1982 CLUB HIT IN NORTH AMERICA, MOSTLY IN CANADA. IT FOLLOWS THE SAME MUSICAL DIRECTION AS THE DONNA SUMMER HIT "I FEEL LOVE".

HERE FOR DOWNLOAD IS PUSSYFOOT'S EXTENDED VERSION OF "DANCER DANCE" SLIGHTLY REMIXED AND ATTENUATED BY YOURS TRULY TO BRING IT UP TO TODAY'S MODERN HI-FI DEMANDS...

ENJOY!

http://rapidshare.com/files/222794844/Pussyfoot_-_Dancer_Dancer__Stereo_Tom_Mix_.mp3