To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the forty-fourth episode of Vinyl Vibes Jack talks with Les Hall, founding member and guitarist of Ted Mulry Gang. Les grew up in Maitland during the '50s and early '60s. After playing piano at the insistence of his father, he was inspired to play guitar by George Harrison of The Beatles. In 1964 he would see the Beatles live when they came down under on their world tour. Four years later in 1968 he joined a Newcastle band called The Velvet Underground. It was through this band, in the early '70s, he came to meet and play backing for Ted Mulry. After backing Ted for a little while, Ted Mulry Gang was formed in 1972 with Les on Guitar, Ted on Bass and Herman Kovacs on drums. In 1974 the band would sign to Albert Productions and release their first album Here We Are in November of that year. After a failed first single, at the insistence of a Newcastle Radio DJ, the band released Jump In My Car, an album track off their first album. It would go to number one for six weeks and would become an Aussie classic. The band would go on to have 4 more top ten singles and after six albums would disband in 1986. More recently, Les has got the band back together and have the have released a brand new single and their first album in over 30 years. Jack zoomed Les to talk about his early years growing in Mainland, how he came to start playing the guitar, his memories of seeing the Beatles live in 1964, how he came to join Newcastle band the Velvet Underground in 1968, the formation of TMG, the recording of the bands first album Here We Are, the writing of Jump In My Car, the guitar and amp used on the Jump in My Car recording, the production work of Ted Albert, how songs such as Darktown Strutters' Ball and Jamaica Rum came to be, his work post TMG, the re-formation of TMG and the bands new single and album.  "It happened at Collaroy Plateau, I was in the bedroom, I'd just listened to a Faces' song called 'Stay With Me', which I really love the feel of, its a really Stonesy feel actually and I was listening to that, that finished and I was fiddling on the guitar and I came up with this riff and I went out to Ted who was in the lounge room watching TV and I said "hey, listen to this" and I played it, he went and got his bass and he followed and we came up with the thing that ended up as Jump In My Car." - Les Hall on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about how TMG hit Jump In My Car was written The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the forty-third episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Tony Currenti, an early AC/DC session drummer. Tony grew up Sicily in the '50s and early '60s listening to local Sicilian  artists as well as Elvis and The Beatles. In 1967 he and his family immigrated to Australia where his love for the drums would soon flourish. He started playing drums in local bands around the Sydney area. First he played in a church band before forming a band called Inheritance. This group was signed to EMI and would release a single on the label. In 1971 Tony would meet Harry Vanda and George Young for the first time. As a member of Jackie Christian & Flight, Tony would play drums on a Vanda and Young production for first time on the band's 1974 single "The Last Time I Go to Baltimore". After recording some tracks one night for the group, George Young asked Tony to stay back and record with Young's younger brothers' band AC/DC.  Over the next few nights Tony would play drums on eight songs with AC/DC for their debut album High Voltage. Seven of these songs would be featured on the album. The final song, not on the album, also called High Voltage would be AC/DC's first top ten single. Tony was asked to join the band twice but had to knock them back both times due to his Italian passport. After AC/DC, he continued to record with Vanda and Young with his drumming being featured on Stevie Wirght's "Evie Part 3" and John Paul Young's "Yesterdays Hero". He lost contact with Vanda and Young in 1976 and after three years of playing in various local bands, he would open his own pizza shop in 1979.  Jack phoned Tony to talk about his early childhood in Sicily, the songs on the radio in Sicily growing up, his journey to Australia in 1967, his early days playing in local Sydney bands such as in the church band he played in and in Inheritance, how Inheritance came to sign to EMI, his meeting of Harry Vanda and George Young, working with Vanda and Young in the studio with Jackie Christian & Flight, how he came to play with AC/DC, why he chose not join AC/DC, the recording of High Voltage, his drumming with JPY and Stevie Wright, his pizza shop which he opened in 1979 and his music work today.  "We finished at a 11 o'clock and George (Young) said 'midnight my two brothers are coming with their band, would you like to hang around to record some songs'?. I had no idea what to expect but at midnight Bon Scott walked into the studio and he was so happy to see me." - Tony Currenti on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about the recording of AC/DC's album High Voltage The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the forty-second episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Peggy Seeger, a folk music icon. Peggy grew up in a musical family with her mother Ruth being a modernist composer and her father Charles being a musicologist. The music she grew up with would be greatly made up of the blues and folk music recordings collected by  Alan Lomax. One of the artists she's listened to growing up was Leadbelly, whom she would meet in 1942 when he visited her house with Alan Lomax.  She would record her first album Folksongs of Courting and Complaint in 1955 and It would be the beginning to a long career in music. In 1957 she would inspire Ewan MacColl to write The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face and the year after Peggy would write her first song The Ballad Of Springhill. A highlight of Peggy's time in music includes her song I'm Gonna be an Engineer. The song was released in 1979 and begun Peggy's journey into feminism. More recent work from her includes the song (which Peggy's calls one of her best) "The Mother" off her 1996 album An Odd Collection  and her brand new album The First Farewell which came out in 2021.  Jack zoomed Peggy to discuss her early childhood, what it was like growing up in a musical family, the blues and folk music she grew up listening to, meeting Leadbelly in 1942, the beauty in not having music at your finger tips in the pre-internet days, her opinion on rock and roll when it started in 1955, the recording of her first album, the writing of I'm Gonna be an Engineer, her journey into feminism, the writing of The Ballad of Springhill,  her song "The Mother" and her new album The First Farewell. "I was in the middle of doing the accounts and Ewan MacColl was upstairs writing a script for a theatrical show we put on every year and he came down stairs and he said 'this script needs a women's song, so would you please write a women's song', I'm in the middle of doing the accounts for god sakes and I wasn't very pleased at that...I dashed that song off literally in two hours." - Peggy Seeger on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about how her song "I'm Gonna be an Engineer" came to be  The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the forty-first episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Andy Anderson, lead singer of The Missing Links. Andy grew up during the '50s and early '60s in New Zealand. He was exposed to rock and roll for the first time when he heard Little Richard's "Can't Believe You Wanna Leave" over the radio. He would soon start playing drums and playing in various local bands such as being the drummer for The Corvairs. During his teenage years he was greatly impacted by The Beatles. Andy would get to see the fab-four live on their 1964 world tour when they played Wellington Town Hall in June of that year.  Soon after Andy would travel via plane to Sydney Australia. In 1965 he would join a band called the Missing Links in what would become their second lineup. The band would sign to Philips Records and release their first single "You're Drivin' Me Insane" in August 1965. The single was hard-hitting and had of its time as It was released before fellow hard-hitting groups such as The Who and The Troggs had concurred the music world. The singles  "Wild About You" and "H'tuom Tuhs" would follow in September and October respectively. Their sought after self-titled album recorded without a producer in a cramp studio would come out in December 1965. Before their break up in August 1966 the band would release an EP called Links Unchained in April 1966.  Andy remained in music for sometime after the break up of the band but would undertake a successful acting career soon after. Has has since returned to music and on Half a Cow Records released his latest album, Andersongs, in 2017. "The second show...you had the seats behind the Beatles...and Ringo Starr, I was right behind him literally like three steps and I knew he had been sick, he couldn't do some of the shows in Sydney and  I'm siting there going 'fall off that stool, yes fall out of that stool, I know your songs just fall off that stool" ha ha...they were just an amazing band" - Andy Anderson on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about seeing the Beatles' 23 June 1964 concert at Wellington Town Hall The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the fortieth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Dave Burgess, founding member and guitarist of The Champs. Dave recorded for the first time at the age of 17 in 1953 and by 1957 had his first top-ten hit, I'm Available which was made a hit by singer Margie Rayburn. However it is an instrumental song he helped write that he is most remembered for. Dave wrote a song called Train To Nowhere after hearing Bill Justis' Raunchy". His label liked the song and so in December 1957 he went into Gold Star Studios to record it. After finishing the song, he was told he needed a B-Side for the single. Within moments Dave and the studio musicians he gathered started jamming what would become "Tequila". Within one take the song was recorded and Dave the session musicians, together became known as The Champs.  By Late March 1958, it was the B-side, "Tequila" that had reached number one on the billboard top 100. By April 1958 the band were playing on The Ed Sullivan Show and by April, American Bandstand. For the song, the band received the first ever grammy award for "Best Rhythm and Blues Performance". "Tequila" has gone down as one of the best tracks of the rock and roll era and one of the most recognised instrumentals of all time.  The band would go on to have other minor hits such as "El Rancho Rock", "Too Much Tequila" and "Limbo Rock" before coming to an end in 1965. Dave has stayed in music since that time producing for the likes of Gene Vincent and Don McLean. In 2020 Dave revitalised The Champs and released the album Tequila Party, the first brand new Champs' album since 1962.  Jack Zoomed Dave to discuss his early beginnings, his first recordings at 17 in the early '50s, his song I'm Available, how "Tequila" came to be, the guitar and amp he used on the recording of "Tequila", his memories of playing on The Ed Sullivan Show, his touring of Australia with the Champs in the '60s, his opinions on Ai's usage on music, The Champs album cover of "Go Champs, Go", the break up of The Champs, how the new album Tequila Party came to be, and what's next for Dave.  "They said that's great Dave but we need a B-Side. I said, 'give us a few minutes', so I started playing this riff on the guitar and Danny (Flores) started playing this guitar solo...Buddy Bruce came up with bridge, I got the idea of Danny to say tequila on it, he always had this whisky voice and was alway carrying around this flask of tequila with him." - Dave Burgess on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about how The Champs' big 1958 hit Tequila came to be The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty ninth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Rick Pointon, a '60s and '70s Newcastle music legend. Rick spend his first ten years of his life in England before becoming a Ten-Pound Pom in 1956 when he and his family moved to Australia. His moving to Australia also marked the beginning of rock and roll with Buddy Holly and Bill Halley being early influences. However, it was Hank Marvin of the Shadows that inspired Rick to buy his first guitar in 1962. Rick would soon join his first band the Mystery Men. The band would go through many name changes such as The Others before becoming known as The Second Thoughts in 1966. The group would record a single in the same year with producer Nat Kipner withs its A-side being Run Back Home and its B-side being The World Keeps Going Round. The single would be recorded in the same studio and with the same producer as that of the Bee Gees Spicks And Speaks single.  After being in a few other groups during the alter '60s and early '70s, in 1974 Rick would form Bennie and The Jets. This group would become popular around the Newcastle area playing '50s inspired rock and roll. The group would have number singles locally in Newcastle and release a locally popular album called Hey Rock And Roll. After music Rick went on to have a career in radio. More recently Rick has written a book about his time in music and the Newcastle music scene during the '60s and '70s. Its called "Hey Rock 'N' and Roll" and is available locally in book chains around Newcastle.  Jack Phone Rick to discuss his time growing up in England, hearing Bill Haley for the first time, why The Shadows impacted his generation greatly, how he came to join his first group the mystery men, the impact hearing the Beatles for the first time had on him, what it was like playing local gigs back in the early '60s, his memories of supporting the likes of the Bee Gees and Easybeats, the recording of the Second Thoughts single, the formation of Bennie and The Jets, what it was like playing The Starr Hotel back in the '70s, Ricks Record store he owned in the '70s, the recording of various Bennie and The Jets songs, how Rick's book "Hey Rock 'n' Roll" came to be, and his love for vinyl records.  "There we were playing on Nobbys Beach in forty degree heat in suits and ties, I mean ridiculous...but that's what it was. Whatever the Beatles and British Invasion bands did, that's what we did" - Rick Pointon on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about playing in the Others in the mid '60s The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty eighth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Brian Lizotte, owner of Newcastle's own Lizotte's Restaurant. Brian grew up in the United States during the '60s. His childhood music memories include hearing the sounds of Crosby, Stills And Nash as well as the Doobie Brothers. In 1970, Brian and his family moved to Australia. His interest in food began to flourish and thus at the end of his high school year did his Diploma in Catering and Hotel Management. Completing this diploma in 1984, he would travel Europe after  to hone in on his cooking skills. On his return to Australia he had the opportunity to work in the kitchen of Rhinoceros Studios in Sydney. This recording studio was part owned by INXS at the time and so Brian would mix with some of Australia's biggest music stars at the time including Midnight Oil and Ian Moss.  In 1989 he would start his own catering company called More Then a Morsel Catering. This catering company was a pioneer in the field as it was the first to specialise in national music tours. His clients would include The Beach Boys, Frank Sinatra, Billy Joel, Elton John and U2. After More Then a Morsel Catering, Brian would start opening his own restraurants. One he opened in 2009 was Live n Cookin' @ Lizotte's Newcastle in New Lambton. At the time of this interview Brian was looking for a buy for the restaurant but has since found one and so it will be a part of the community for years to come. Jack phone Brian to talk about his memories growing up during the '60s in the United States, the music he grew up listening to, his love of vinyl records, how came to decide to do cooking as a career,  how he came to work at Rhinoceros Studios, his memories of catering for INXS, his memories of hearing classic albums at Rhinoceros Studios before the were released, how More Then a Morsel Catering came to be, his memories of catering for Frank Sinatra in the early 90s, his time as the personal chief for the Beach Boys on their 1992 national tour, the innovations of More Then a Morsel Catering, the 1998 Face 2 Face tour of Billy Joel and Elton John, his other catering work with the likes of U2 and Madonna, and how Lizottes Newcastle came to be.  "(Sinarta) was still drinking his chivas regal, he would have a good scotch and they would have to help him get up onto the stage...even though I did feed him, it was only a tuna fish salad sandwich and he always traveled with his Campbells' chicken and rice soup..mixed with Evian Water and then put into Royal Doulton  china...it was a weird era ha ha" - Brain Lizotte on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about catering for Frank Sinatra while on national tour of Australia  The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty-seventh episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Mitchel Eaton, owner of Newcastle's own Hiss And Crackle Records. In recent years, vinyl records have seen a resurgence, leading to a big return of the local record shop.  Owner of Hiss and Crackle, Mitch got into music at a young age growing up listening to his dad's music such Jimi Hendrix and Tanman Shud. Mitch has been a part of the music sales industry for most of his life, working at JB HI-FI for 18 years. Mitch decided to take the leap and open his own record store in May 2019. The store has become an important part of the vinyl record and music scene in Newcastle. Jack phoned Mitch to talk about his early music beginnings with artists like Jimi Hendrix, his time at JB HI-FI, why young people are connecting with vinyl so much, the return of independent local record stores, vinyl turntables, how to look after your vinyl, how to the store came to be, the reasons why CDs are not doing as well as vinyl now, The Rolling Stones recent album, the local Newcastle music scene, his tips on how to be a successful local band in Newcastle, and what's next for the store.  "I think with the independence side of it, you get to craft your own store, so its like an extension of yourself." - Mitchel Eaton on this episode of vinyl vibes discussing the benefits of independent local record store.  The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty-sixth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Graham Russell, co-founder of Air Supply. Since Graham was kid, all he wanted to be was a songwriter. Growing up amongst Beatlemania in 1960s UK, the music of the Beatles inspired him greatly. On the other side of the world in Australia, Russell Hitchcock was also inspired by the Beatles. Russell and Graham would meet on the set of a production of Jesus Christ Superstar in 1975, and together would form Air Supply.  It was their love of The Beatles that brought them together.  Their first single "Love and Other Bruises" would come out in 1976 and would be a top ten hit in Australia. A few years later, they would find international success with their song "Lost in Love" which in 1980, would go to number 3 on the Billboard Top 100. This would be the beginning of a string of hits they would have in the US, with other US hits for the group being "All Out Of Love" (Number 2 on the Billboard Top 100) , "Every Woman in the World" (Number 5 on the Billboard Top 100) and "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" (Number 2 on the Billboard Top 100). The band has been touring non-stop since 1975 and in December 2022 released a new single, "Be Tough". Graham is currently working on book about his life leading up to Air Supply's worldwide success and the band plans to return down under in 2024. Jack zoomed Graham to discuss his early music beginnings, the impact the Beatles had on him, his time in his first band Union Blues, his moving to Australia in 1968, meeting Russell Hitchcock in 1975, the band's first single "Love and Other Bruises", playing on Countdown, why "Lost in Love" brought the band worldwide success, touring China and Vietnam at a time when most bands did not, the writing of "All Out of Love", music videos and MTV, the group's new single "Be Tough", Graham's upcoming book, and when the band is coming to Australia to play again.  "(Russell) would sing one take for pretty much everything in those days, he just did it, nobody said to him 'ah, I want you to go up in the end and hold that note' - he just did it . . . he just used intuition, and just went with the flow and I think that's what became part of the song, part of the record, that energy and the freedom was inherent in the song." - Graham Russell on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about Russell Hitchcock's singing on All Out Of Love The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty-fifth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Keith Potger, founding member of The Seekers. In the late 1950s Keith was in a group called The Trinamics and Athol Guy was in a group called The Ramblers. They would come together to form the Escorts. By 1962 the band was called The Seekers and they were looking for a female lead singer and thus Judith Durham became part of the group. By 1963, the group had done their first album Introducing The Seekers. This was the beginning to the iconic line-up of Keith on lead guitar, Athol Guy on double bass, Bruce Woodley on rhythm guitar and Judith Durham on lead vocals. The group would sail to the UK in March 1964, and by year's end had their first number one hit "I'll Never Find Another You". This would make The Seekers Australia's biggest music group at the time. They would go on to have other hits such as "A World of Our Own" (Number two hit in Australia and Number 3 in the UK), "The Carnival Is Over" (Number one hit in Australia and the UK) and "Georgy Girl" (Number one in Australia and Number 3 in the UK). The Seekers broke up in 1968 but would reform many times in the succeeding decades.  More recently, Keith has released three solo albums, Secrets of the Heart (2004),  Sunday (2007), and Smile Now (2010), and is currently working on a new album. As a solo artist, Keith is still touring.  Jack zoomed Keith to discuss his early music beginnings, the music of his childhood in Sri Lanka, his memories of his early years in Australia, the impact that rock and roll and doo-wop had on him, his time in The Trinamics, the formation of The Seekers, the recording of the band's first album Introducing The Seekers, his time at the ABC, the groups trip to the UK via ship, the over-night success the group had in the UK, the recording of "I'll Never Find Another You", Keith's iconic 12-string sound, the group's performance on The Ed Sullivan Show, Tom Springfield's production work with the group, the group's 1965 tour of Australia, why "The Carnival is Over" is Keith's favourite Seekers song, Keith's solo work, and upcoming music projects.  "That was a three-hour session, we had to record the main song and the B-side in one session, and Judith was living with her sister at the time in London and she slept in - we were all at the studio - let's say it was 10 o'clock in the morning - and we were sort of wondering "Its 9:30 now! We re supposed to be warming up for session!" and we had to ring a taxi and Judith was really upset because she didn't want us to spend money on the taxi - "Oh no, I'll catch the train," and we said "No, bugger that, you'll get a taxi!" - Keith Potger on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about the recording session for I'll Never Find Another you  The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty-third episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Normie Rowe, the biggest music star of 1960s Australia. Norm grew up listening to the likes of Col Joye and Ray Charles. All he wanted to be growing up was a singer. He made his first live performance at the age of 14 and was soon playing at lots of local rock and roll dances. In 1965 Norm would release his first single "It Ain't Necessarily So" which would be the first in a string of eight top-ten hits in a row for Norm. The biggest selling record of the '60s in Australia was Norm's double A-side "Que Sera Sera" and "Shakin' All Over" which came out in September 1965. It sold 80,000 copies. In 1966 Norm would go to the UK to make a music career over there. This success was cut short however when in early 1968, Norm would be drafted to serve in the Vietnam War. His service would put a halt to his string of hits and leave him with PTSD when he returned home to Australia in February 1970.  Norm has remained performing since then and is still making music. He wrote about his life in music in his 2013 autobiography called Normie Rowe - Normie, The Normie Rowe Story. Norm's most recent music work has included his 2016 album Missing in Action which tells his story in being a Vietnam Veteran. His most recent single came out in 2019 and was a cover 1927's "Compulsory Hero". Jack phoned Norm to discuss his early musical beginnings, the impact Ray Charles and Col Joye had on him, his first live performance at the age of 14, his long-time band The Playboys, the recording of his first single "It Ain't Necessarily So", his memories of recording with tape, how his biggest single "Que Sera Sera" came to be, his time recording in the UK with session musicians like Jimmy Page, his service in Vietnam, his PTSD, and his more recent music work such as his most recent single "Compulsory Hero". "I would love to be able to say that ("Que Sera Sera") was my reimagionation but it wasn't. It was a group in America called The High Keys..and I fell in love with this song straight a way and when I had it - I had in my possession- and I played it incessantly for two years before I even recorded "It Ain't Necessarily So"." - Normie Rowe on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about how his biggest single "Que Sera Sera" came to be The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty-fourth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Jack Casady, bass player and founding member of Jefferson Airplane. Coming to age during the onset of rock and roll, Jack Casady was initially inspired by the likes of Carl Perkins and Gene Vincent. He would form his first band in the late '50s, The Triumphs with Jorma Kaukonen. Jorma would become a life-long friend of Jack's. By 1965 Jefferson Airplane had been formed in San Francisco with Jorma on Guitar. Jack was in college and had recently started playing bass. In September of that year, original bass player, Bob Harvey left the group and Jack was asked by Jorma to join. The band's first album Jefferson Airplane Takes Off would come out in 1966. In 1967 the iconic Grace Slick would join the band and bring with her the songs "White Rabbit" and "Somebody to Love". These songs, along with the band's album Surrealistic Pillow would go down to be some of those most iconic music made during the '60s. For his work with the band, Jack was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. Jack would play bass on every album the band made till the group broke up in 1972. After this, Jack focused more on his and Jorma's musical project, Hot Tuna. Today the pair are still touring as Hot Tuna with the band undertaking a 2023 tour called Electric Hot Tuna’s Last Waltz. Jack is also busy running bass workshops though the Fur Peace Ranch. Jack Hodgins zoomed Jack Casady to discuss his early musical beginnings, the music in Washington in his early days, his time playing in The Triumphs, his time in college, how he came to join Jefferson Airplane, the recording of the band's first album Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, the group's early gigs, the musical greatness of "White Rabbit", the recording of Surrealistic Pillow, the group's iconic lead singer Grace Slick, his work with his band Hot Tuna, the group's upcoming tour and the bass workshops he is running. "Grace (Slick) is really a wonderful pianist and she does really interesting structures, she has her classical background too, and I think that's why in a lot of her compositions you hear a lot of very interesting chordal structures and the way she overlaps the song and the story she is talking about . . . because she has such a unique world view, as it were, and she puts that into a story line in her song, and I think that's why she was so unique, she wasn't trying to be a pop artist." - Jack Casady on this episode of vinyl vibes talking about Jefferson Airplane vocalist Grace Slick   The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty-second episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Peter Staples, bass player and founding member of The Troggs. In 1964 Peter joined a group that contained Reg Presley (vocals), Ronnie Bond (drums) and Chris Brition (guitar), and they would soon be named The Troggs. In 1966 the band would record a song written by Chip Taylor called "Wild Thing". The song would be a number 2 hit in the UK and a number 1 hit in the US. It is also one of the most recognised songs ever written.   The group would follow with singles such as "With a Girl Like You" (Number 1-hit in the UK) and "Love Is All Around" (Number 5-hit in the UK). The latter was famously covered by Wet Wet Wet in 1994 and became one of the best selling singles in the UK.  Pete left the Troggs in 1969 and would for many years not be in the music world. More recently he has come back to write and record original songs with singer Karen-Ana. He also has authored two books: his first, Wild Thing A Rocky Road, was written on his time in The Troggs; his second is about the music history of his local town, and called Andover - A Musical History. Jack phoned Pete to discuss his early musical influences, his first band The Senators, how he came to meet Chris Britton, his time in Ten Feet Five, how he came to join The Troggs, the recording of Wild Thing, how the iconic solo in Wild Thing came to be, the iconic hook on "With a Girl Like You", the success the band had during '66 & '67, the writing of  "Love Is All Around", why Pete left the group in 1969, Pete's solo work and his recent two books.  "On the original demo, the recording engineer, he sort of had his hands cupped together and he was blowing though it making that sort of noise . . . so Colin, that's the musical director, he went down the road and went to this music shop and he said 'Can I have an ocarina please?' and the person said 'What key do you want it in?', he said 'I didn't know they came in different keys!' . . . he brought the ocarina back . . . and all he wanted to find was three notes that he could do this solo . . . he actually taped up most of the holes in the ocarina and just left three there and he played the ocarina with just three holes there." - Pete Staples on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about how the solo in Wild Thing came to be played with an ocarina and not a guitar The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirty-first episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Alan Warner, original guitarist and founding member of The Foundations. In 1966 Alan put an ad in a music magazine looking to play in a reggae/soul group. He found a group called ''The Ramongs''. At the time, the group had two lead singers, Ramong Morrison and Clem Curtis. After Ramong Morrison left the group, the band needed a name change. Alan was the one who came up with the idea to call the band The Foundations. The band's first single, "Baby, Now That I've Found You", would be a number-one hit in the UK, but it is the group's 1968 hit "Build Me Up Buttercup" that they are best remembered today for. After three top ten hits in the UK, The Foundations would break up in 1971.  Alan would remain in music and play in various bands, such as Pluto, in the following decades, and today he tours as The Foundations Featuring Alan Warner. Jack Zoomed Alan to discuss his early musical influences, his time in bands such as The Skeletones and The Trekkers, how he came to join The Ramongs in 1966, how he came up with the name The Foundations, how the band came to record music, the recording of their number one hit "Baby, Now That I've Found You", recording techniques of the '60s, the success the band had after "Baby, Now That I've Found You", playing on Top of The Pops, the band's US tour in 1968, how "Build Me Up, Buttercup" came to be, and Alan's work today as The Foundations Featuring Alan Warner. "Apparently David Essex turned (Build Me Up Buttercup) down because David Essex was a bit more of a rock type of singer . . . so the song was offered to us; he (Tony Macaulay) started playing it, we thought 'oh that's great!' but I turned around and said, 'Trouble is, it's got Baby in it again' - build me up - butter cup - Baby - every song we done has got baby in it' - Alan Warner on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about being presented with Build Me Up Buttercup for the first time The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the thirtieth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Ian Peewee Wilson, founding member of The Dellttones. Peewee formed the Delltones in 1958 along with Noel Widerberg, Warren Lucas, and Brian Perkins. After being discovered by radio DJ, Bob Rodgers, the group were quickly singing backing for artists like Johnny O'Keefe. Their first single, Why, would come out in 1959 and would reach number 15 on the Sydney charts. This release made the group a part of the first wave of Australian rock and roll. In 1962, "Get a Little Dirt on Your Hands" would bring another hit, but it also marked a sad turning point for the group when, two weeks after its release, founding member Noel Widerberg was killed in a car accident. The band would continue with Colin Loughnan taking over Noel's duties. In 1963, they would release what would become their biggest hit, "Come A Little Bit Closer". After some success during the surf craze, the band would find less success in the later '60s. However, in the 1980s, the band would make a big come back with their 1984 album Bop Til Ya Drop.  Peewee has been with the band the entire time up until the group's last tour in 2016. He wrote about his time in the band in the 2013 autobiography Come A Little Bit Closer. Jack phoned Peewee to discuss his early musical beginnings, the formation of the Delltones, the group's first gig, the first wave of Australian rock and roll, how the band got to record and be Johnny O'Keefe's backing band, the recording of the group's first single Why, the passing of Noel Widerberg, the group's biggest hit "Come A Little Bit Closer", TV's role in making music successful in Australia, the surf music craze of the early '60s, the impact of The Beatles, the group's 1984 come back, and his 2013 book.  "We didn't have any machines to do that for the reverb, in our case we were using the -in Festival's case - they were using the women's toilet, we would run a line down to the ladies' toilet . . . there was a sheet of plate glass up against the wall with a microphone . . . there was a microphone and a speaker in there, and all it would do is cut through the speaker and come back through the microphone and pick up the reverb that was in the room." - Peewee on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about how they got reverb on "Come A Little Bit Closer" in late 1962 The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the twenty-ninthth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Tim Gaze, legendary Australian guitarist. Tim joined his first band Stonehenge in 1968 at the age of 14. After a year or so as their guitarist, Tim made a bold move and auditioned for Tamam Shud. He would prove to be successful and would join the band at the age of 16 in late 1969.Tamam Shud would be Tim's first major band and he is featured as a lead guitarist on the the group's second album The Goolutionites and the Real People. After six months in the group, Tim left in mid 1970 to form progressive rock group, Kahvas Jute. The band only do one album which was called Wide Open and came out in 1971. After leaving Kahvas Jute, Tim would return to play in Tamam Shud till their break up in 1972.  By 1973 Tim was in another group whihc he formed called Ariel. Tim would co-write many of the songs on the groups debut album, A Strange Fantastic Dream. The groups single  "Jamaican Farewell"  would win an ARIA award for single of the year. He remained with the group till April 1974. He would then tour with The Stevie Wright Band for the reminder of 1974. Following this he would be a touring guitarist for John Paul Young and the Allstars in 1975.  More recently In 2020, Tim completed his doctoral studies in Creative Industries and is now moving back to his roots in songwriting and performing. To support Tim you can head to his Patreon. Tim also offers one on one guitar lessons which you can find more about here.  Jack phoned Tim to discuss his early musical beginnings, his first guitar he got when he was 11, his first band Stonehenge, how he came to join Tamam Shud in 1969, what it was like playing with musicians many years his senior, his early gigs with band, the recording of the album The Goolutionites and the Real People,  the formation of  Kahvas Jute, his time in Ariel, the creativity of A Strange Fantastic Dream, the ARIA award wining song "Jamaican Farewell", his time playing in The Stevie Wright Band and with John Paul Young and the Allstars, his recent PhD graduation, his guitar lessons, and more recent music projects.  "Those guys were about ten years older then I was, so here were these guys drinking whisky and playin' poker and stuff and I'm going "what are they doin'?"...that band was a little bit more out of my depth..but when I think about the guys that were in that band and I think about them now, mate I have a lot of respect for all of them because they kind of, I was a bit of a loose cannon, and they kinda put up with me a little bit but they also tried to wise me up" - Tim Gaze on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about playing in JPY's Allstars band in 1975 The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the twenty-eighth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Steve Bingham, former bass player of The Foundations. When Steve was 12 his sister took him to see a local band called The Strollers. This would be the first time Steve would see a bass and is the moment he fell in love with the bass sound. By 1969 Steve had formed a group called Misty. The band would release a single called Hot Cinnamon but it would not experience commercial success. The band would record an album in the same time called "Here Again" however the album would be shelved and not released until recently. The album, after five decades of not being heard was released by Grapefruit Records in 2022. Steve's big break would come when he was asked to join the successful band The Foundations (know for their song Build Me Up Buttercup). He would join in late 1969 at a time when the band were not experiencing as much commercial success as they previously had in 1967 and 1968. He would be featured as bass player on the band's single "I'm Gonna Be a Rich Man". The band would break up in 1971.  After The Foundations, Steve would do a lot of work as a session bass player throughout the early '70s. One of his greatest works from this time is his bass playing on Colin Blunstone's 1972 album Ennismore. In 1974 Steve would play alongside ex-faces member Ronnie Lane on his debut solo album Anymore for Anymore - an album said to be Ronnie Lane's best work post-Faces. Today Steve is still playing bass with his band Slim Chance and with Geno Washington & the Ram Jam Band.  Jack phoned Steve to discuss his early musical beginnings, the impact Little Richard had on him, seeing bass for the first time when seeing local band The Strollers, the formation of Misty in 1969, his time in Misty, the bands album "Here Again", how he got to join The Foundations, the recording of  "I'm Gonna Be a Rich Man", his memories of playing live with The Foundations, the break up of The Foundations, his session work during the early '70s, his work with Colin Blunstone, the recording of Ronnie Lane's Anymore for Anymore, the 1974 tour Ronnie Lane's Passing Show, and his recent work with Geno Washington & the Ram Jam Band. "Another thing the Foundations were doing was, which I applaud them for, when I joined them, they were moving away from the pop stuff, it turned out to not be a great career move in all honesty but they were trying to sort of expand their musical horizons if you like and I was all for that" - Steve Bingham on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about the musical direction of the Foundations' later work The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the twenty-seventh episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Larry Van Kriedt, original bass player of AC/DC. Larry grew up in San Francisco during the '60s, being exposed to music as diverse as west-coast jazz to Jimi Hendrix. He is the son of jazz legend, David Van Kriedt which increased his exposure to music. In 1969, at age 15, he and his family moved Australia. It was here in Sydney, Australia, shortly after his arrival, he met a young Angus Young. After showing Angus his Gibson guitar, Angus invited Larry over to his house for a jam session. The next day Larry was taken to the Young household and here he met Malcom Young for the first time. Angus and Larry would become good friends.  A few years later in late 1973, Larry was asked to join a new band that had just been formed by Malcom Young. It would soon become to known as AC/DC. On December 31 1973, the band performed their first ever live show with lead singer Dave Evans, drummer Colin Burgess, lead-guitarist Angus Young, rhythm-guitarist Malcom Young and Larry on Bass. Larry would record three tracks while a member of AC/DC. The songs were "Can I sit Next to You Girl" (the group's first single), "Rockin in the Parlour" and another track which Larry could not recall the name of. Larry left the group in early 1974.  Since AC/DC, Larry has stayed in music playing in bands such as Non Stop Dancers and Afram. More recently Larry founded his business Jazzbacks in 2002 and released his first solo album "Finally" in 2021.  Jack zoomed Larry to talk about his early musical beginnings, his father David Van Kriedt, the impact Jimi Hendrix had on him, when he started playing bass, growing up in San Francisco during the '60s, coming to Australia in 1969, meeting Angus Young for the first time, how he came to join AC/DC, the recording of AC/DC tracks "Can I sit Next to You Girl" and "Rockin in the Parlour", the band first gig in late 1973, why he left the band in 1974, his time in bands like Non-stop Dancers, his recent solo album, his business Jazzbacks, and his upcoming music work. "I could see these other kids after their school, in their uniforms..and there's this one kid, one day brought his guitar with him and he was on the other side of this small kinda path - there were a few guys there, a couple of girls- he was showing off and dancing around like Chuck berry or something - It was Angus Young" - Larry Van Kriedt on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about meeting Angus Young for the first time The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes In the twenty-sixth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Dick St Nicklaus, possibly the greatest disco star you haven't heard.  You are probably more familiar with Dick as the drummer of The Kingsmen (known for their hit song "Louie, Louie"). This is a position he has had with the band since late 1963. The band took two breaks during its time in music, one during the psychedelic rock era of the late '60s and one during the disco era of the '70s. During the break the band had during the disco era, Dick released two disco-pop albums under the name Dick St Nicklaus. They were Magic in 1979 and Sweet and Dandy in 1980. In this episode Jack discusses at length with Dick his 1979 album Magic.  The album went to number one in Japan but was never released in the US. This makes Dick's album possibly one of the greatest what-ifs in Disco.  Jack phoned dick to discuss how his album Magic came to be, the writing process, his initial thoughts on disco, the recording process of the music, the album track by track, his fellow members of the Kingsmen thoughts on the album, why the album never came out in the US despite being number one in Japan, and some upcoming music work by him. "The problem with record companies, in those days anyway...record companies were run by A&R people and I have never met an A&R person - and I'm telling you I've met a lot of them because I've worked for a lot of different labels - that I've never met one that wasn't a person who was musician who tired to make it but they couldn't...they throw everything up against the wall and then whatever hits they take credit for. They don't have an ear and my manager had arguments with them and it wasn't the album they wanted to put out, they were putting other stuff out and they couldn't sell it to MCA (records) because I was already released in Japan and they didn't want to release it in the states" - Dick St Nicklaus on this episode of Vinyl Vibes telling why his hit album in Japan never came out in the USA To check out Jack's interview with Dick about his time in The Kinsmen ">you can find it here. The website for Vinyl Vibes. If you like this content let us know by leaving a review or subscribing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes   In the twenty-fifth episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Bob Spencer, former guitarist of Skyhooks & The Angels. Bob joined his first band Finch in 1973. After recording and playing with the band for a few years, he left the group in 1977 to join Skyhooks on guitar. This was just after the departure of original Skyhooks guitarist Red Symons. The first single to feature Bob on guitar was the bands iconic track "Party to End All Parties". He would play with the group on the 100th episode of Countdown and would be on their classic album Guilty Until Proven Insane. After the release of the commercially unsuccessful Hot for the Orient album, Skyhooks came to an end in 1980.  Bob would remain in music on the production side of things until in 1986 he joined The Angels on guitar to replace John Brewster. He would become a co-writer on a lot of material for the band over the next few years. He would also be on the band's hit album Howling which had the hit single "We Gotta Get Out of This Place". He was in the band till he departed in 1992.  More recently Bob released his solo album  "Saints and Murderers" in 2017 and is currently offering one on one guitar lessons.  Jack zoomed Bob to discuss his early musical beginnings, his time in Finch, how he came to join Skyhooks, the recording of "Party to End All Parties", the 100th episode of Countdown performance, the group's tours of '77, the greatness of Guilty Until Proven Insane, why the band broke up in 1980, Bob's production work of the early 1980s, how he came to join The Angels, the recording of Howling, why the band decided to cover "We Gotta get Out of This Place", why their version of "We Gotta get Out of This Place" worked so well, his solo album and his guitar teaching work.  "I had seen every successful Australian band, I'd seen Billy Thorpe, I'd seen Sherbet a number of times- we had played with Sherbet a number of times- Jeff St John, Stevie wright - what ever the big bands were at the time -I'd seen them all - I hadn't seen anything like Skyhooks. The first gig that I saw was under the harbour bridge...and I was completely gobsmacked" - Bob Spencer on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about seeing Skyhooks for the first time live The website for Vinyl Vibes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.