Before Doc Neeson and the Angels were charting with their high-powered Oz rock the band had much more humble beginnings. They started in Adelaide as The Moonshine Jug and String Band which played "washboard rock".In November 1970, brothers Rick and John Brewster formed The Moonshine Jug and String Band. In 1971 the band was joined by Doc Neeson, an arts student and former Army sergeant and already a prominent figure on the Adelaide music scene. The band performed at university campuses and in 1973 released their debut E.P. "Keep You on the Move", which made the top 5 in Adelaide. This was followed in 1974 by the single "That's All Right With Me". Both these releases were on John Woodruff's Sphere label. Woodruff went on to become the band's manager for most of its career.
In 1974 they changed their name to The Keystone Angels, switched to electric instruments and began playing 1950s rock and roll on the pub circuit. On 3 August 1974, just before Go-Set magazine, a number of small ads started appearing weekly announcing "The KEYSTONE ANGELS are coming", possibly the first mention of the band in an Australian national rock music publication.
In 1975 the band supported AC/DC during a tour, and later performed as the backing band for Chuck Berry. They dropped "Keystone" from their name and became simply "The Angels". At this point the band was a four-piece with Neeson on bass guitar, Charlie King (Peter Christopolous) on drums, Rick Brewster on lead guitars and John Brewster on lead vocals and rhythm guitar.
The Angels' first single, "Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again", was released in April 1976. From this point there was no stopping the band who have been in and out of the charts since.
This download is the vinyl E.P. which has four songs: "Keep You On The Move", "On The Road Again", "Tell My Friends" and "Mad Mandy" plus as a bonus the track "Keep You On The Move" taken from CD.
Thanks again to Jimmy Barnes for these vinyl oldies.
http://rapidshare.com/files/376736321/moon_jug.zip
Tom, if I could reach through the internet and kiss you I would.
ReplyDeleteI've been looking for this record for THIRTY SEVEN YEARS...My Grade 7 teacher was briefly a member of this band, between this record and the Keystone Angels, and told me he'd get me a copy...and never came through.
cheers
B Smith
tom,
ReplyDeletemany thanks for all the downloads I've found on your site.
A couple of Aussie things I'd love to get if anyone has them - here goes...
Stephen Cummings doing the Medibank "I Feel Better Now" commercial
Rod Quantock theme to short-lived "Ratbags" TV show; and "Australia You're Standing In It"
Does anyone have a 1964/5 Johnny Rebb 45 on CBS called "Josie" or "Jessie" - I'm trying to ascertain the exact catalog number for a site I contribute to. Some sources say it was BA-222100 released 1974. Others say 1964 or 1965, but that number wasn't used until 1974.
The site I'm talkng about is www.rateyourmusic.com - it's a great source for record collectors, and several other Aussie collectors and I have been adding details and images of Ozzie releases to the huge database for a few years now. I even submit the occasional image sourced from the tommix site. Really useful if you're looking for label images to put on your itunes too.
one other thing - if anyone happens to know of a Xmas song that 2SM in Sydney played for a couple of weeks in either Dec 71 or Dec 72, maybe Dec 73, I would be eternally grateful. It was very upbeat pop, very cheery and infectious. It wasn't Wizzard's "I Wish It could Be Christmas Everyday", and it certainly wasn't Happy Xmas (War is Over). Been wondering about this for almost thirty years!
finally, send a g'day out to Al - I used to play Rock Trivia against him in North Sydany in the 1980s.
all the best,
jeff smith
castlecrag nsw
Have to report link is DEAD!!!
ReplyDeleteI have a tour T-Shirt from the 1992 concert at Flinders University in Adelaide signed by the whole band still in good condition. I put it away many moons ago when I thought it may be worth something when they all pass.It was one of the best shows Ive seen and got to chat with Doc and his wife (although very drunk at the time). Pity they cant do 1 more show
ReplyDeleteFollowing Doc's passing this week, my memory has gone back to my teenage years listening to Moonshine. I also went back to my vinyls to find my original of this EP. What a wonderful time it was.
ReplyDeleteHi Eric, just came across your comment above about listening to Moonshine during your teenage years. I'm currently writing a book on The Angels in co-operation with the Brewster brothers. Did you merely 'listen' to Moonshine, or did you go to their gigs? If you saw them, would love to hear from you with a memory of a good show - or from anyone else who saw Moonshine back in the day. bobyates@live.com.au
ReplyDeleteFor some fine memorabilia of some cool Australian Rock Bands visit http://www.smartartistsmemorabilia.com
ReplyDelete