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Digby Richards
Digby George "Dig" Richards (12 September 194017 February 1983) was an Australian rock and roll singer, songwriter, instrumentalist, musical theatre actor and television presenter, active during the late 1950s and early 1960s as lead singer with the R'Jays. Richards was the first Australian rock and roll artist to record a 12" LP record in Australia, with the self-titled album ''Dig Richards'', released in November 1959. From 1971 he performed as a solo country music artist. According to the Kent Music Report he had four Top 30 national hit singles, "(My) Little Lover" / "Quarrels (Are a Sad Sad Thing)" (September 1960), "A Little Piece of Peace" (June 1971), "People Call Me Country" / "The Dancer" (February 1972), and "Do the Spunky Monkey" (June 1974). On 17 February 1983 Digby Richards died of pancreatic cancer, aged 42. He was survived by his wife, Sue and two children. Biography Digby George Richards was born on 12 September 1940 in the rural central western New South ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dunedoo
Dunedoo ( ) is a village of 1,021 inhabitants situated within the Warrumbungle Shire of central western New South Wales, Australia. Dunedoo is well known to Australian travellers due to its distinctive name (''Dunny'' is a colloquial Australian word for a toilet). The name is actually derived from a local Aboriginal word meaning "swan", which are commonly found in the area's lagoons. The local tip is free of charge residents are able to dump rubbish for free in the designated areas. The town is located on the north-western edges of the Sydney basin. Geography and features Dunedoo is located above sea-level on the southern bank of the Talbragar River at the intersection of the Golden Highway, Golden and Castlereagh Highways. It is a relatively isolated township with the two nearest rural centres of Mudgee and Dubbo situated approximately to the south and west respectively. It is due to this isolation that Dunedoo has many facilities not usually found in villages of this size. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Six O'Clock Rock
''Six O'Clock Rock'' was an Australian rock and roll television show broadcast on ABC Television from 28 February 1959 to 1962 at 6 p.m. on Saturdays. Program synopsis Inspired by the BBC program ''Six-Five Special'', it had a similar format to its rival on TCN-9, ''Bandstand'' compered by Brian Henderson. This was ABC-TV's first youth-oriented music program, long before '' Countdown''. The show initially opened with American girl Ricki Merriman as compère and Johnny O'Keefe and his band The Dee Jays as guests. The Dee Jays consisted of Dave Owens (tenor sax), Johnny "Greeno" Greenan ( baritone sax) and Johnny "Catfish" Purser on drums, Keith Williams on bass guitar, and Lou Casch on guitar, Bob "Bluto" Bertles, later a leading jazz player, substituted as the second saxophone. After six shows O'Keefe took over the hosting role. The show usually opened with O'Keefe singing ''"Weeeeeell, come on everybody it's six o'clock, uh huh huh huh"'', with The Graduates provid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lucky Starr (singer)
Leslie William Morrison (born 29 December 1940), known professionally as Lucky Starr, is an Australian pioneer rock and roll, pop and country music singer, guitarist and television presenter. His most popular single, "I've Been Everywhere", appeared in early 1962, which peaked at number one in Sydney. Starr became well known through his many TV appearances on shows such as ''Bandstand'' and ''Six O'Clock Rock'', in which he briefly hosted taking over from Johnny O'Keefe, he was the first star to entertain troops in Vietnam. Early life Lucky Starr was born as Leslie William Morrison in 1940. His father was a motor mechanic and his mother was a housewife, and he had a younger sister and an adopted older sister (who was his cousin but adopted into the family when her parents passed away). He attended Canterbury High School before starting an apprenticeship as an electrician. Note: includes a photo of Starr. Career The Hepparays Two-and-a-half years later he began his rock and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bryan Davies (singer)
Bryan Davies (born 4 July 1944) is a British-born Australian pop music singer and entertainer. He appeared on 1960s TV pop shows, ''Sing! Sing! Sing!'' and ''Bandstand''. From March 1962, at age 17, he became the youngest person in Australia to host their own TV show, '' The Bryan Davies Show''. The singer issued two albums, ''On My Way'' (1965) and ''Together by Myself'' (1968). His most popular singles were, "Dream Girl" (July 1961) and " Five Foot Two Eyes of Blue" (October), which both reached the top 4 on the Sydney charts. Early life Bryan Davies was born in Manchester in 1944. At the age of four his family migrated to Sydney. His father, Norman R Davies, was an analytical chemistry lecturer at the University of New South Wales, his mother was a former dancer. Career His first TV appearance was on teen music show, ''Teen Time'', on 27 September 1960, while he was a student at Canterbury Boys' High School. He left in the following year and was signed by the His Mas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Surf Music
Surf music (also known as surf rock, surf pop, or surf guitar) is a genre of rock music associated with surf culture, particularly as found in Southern California. It was especially popular from 1958 to 1964 in two major forms. The first is instrumental surf, distinguished by reverb-heavy electric guitars played to evoke the sound of crashing waves, largely pioneered by Dick Dale and the Del-Tones. The second is vocal surf, which took elements of the original surf sound and added vocal harmonies, a movement led by the Beach Boys. Dick Dale developed the surf sound from instrumental rock, where he added Middle Eastern and Mexican influences, a spring reverb, and rapid alternate picking characteristics. His regional hit " Let's Go Trippin', in 1961, launched the surf music craze, inspiring many others to take up the approach. The genre reached national exposure when it was represented by vocal groups such as the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean. Dale was quoted on such groups: " ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elizabethan Theatre, Sydney
The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust (AETT) is an Australian theatre and performing arts company based in Sydney established in 1954. It is today especially known for its music scholarship program. History The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust was established in September 1954, with the aim of establishing drama, opera and ballet companies nationally. It was founded by H.C. Coombs, governor of the Commonwealth Bank, Sir Charles Moses, general manager of the Australian Broadcasting Commission, and John Douglas Pringle of the ''Sydney Morning Herald''. The arts company was so named to commemorate Queen Elizabeth II's visit to Australia, after the trust raised £100,000 by a public appeal. The trust had an agreement with the Commonwealth government to match public donations "in the ratio of 1:3 and to provide ongoing funding".Roger Wettenhall, 'Kaleidoscope, or 'Now We See Them, Now We Don't!', ''Canberra Bulletin of Public Administration'', No. 110, 2003, p. 32. With sub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johnny Devlin
John Lockett Devlin (born 11 May 1938) is a New Zealand singer, songwriter, and musician known for his influential role in the country's early rock and roll scene. He has often been compared to Elvis Presley. His cover of Lloyd Price's "Lawdy Miss Clawdy" in 1958 went to number one in the New Zealand charts with sales of more than 100,000, launching a long-term career. He spent much of his time in Australia from 1959 touring in support of The Everly Brothers and making appearances on Australian television shows such as ''Bandstand'', ''Six O'Clock Rock'' and ''The Go!! Show''. In 1964, he toured Australia and New Zealand as a support act for The Beatles. Early life John Lockett Devlin was born on 11 May 1938, the son of a railway ganger stationed in the mid-North Island. He grew up in various towns, including in Wanganui or the nearby small town of Raetihi. The family soon shifted to nearby Ohakune and then Marton before eventually settling in Wanganui, where John spent his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robie Porter
Robert George Porter (4 June 1941 – 16 December 2021) was an Australian country and pop-rock musician, producer and record label owner. Beginning in 1959, he performed under the stage name Rob E.G. and recorded lap steel guitar instrumentals or cover versions, covers of country-style vocals. On the local Sydney music charts, he provided four top ten hits including two No. 1 hits with "Si Senor" and "55 Days at Peking (song), 55 Days at Peking". From 1970, Porter ran an independent record label, Sparmac, and produced three Long play, LPs for Daddy Cool (band), Daddy Cool. Porter received the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) at the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours (Australia), 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours for "service to the music industry as a producer, writer and performer". Life and career Porter was born in 1941 and raised in Ashfield, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney. He reluctantly took steel guitar lessons from the age of eight – he wanted to play Rug ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Crescents
The Crescents were a vocal harmony group which formed in Sydney, Australia in late 1958 under the name The 4 Tops (not associated with American quartet, the Four Tops). The Crescents were best known for their Top 10 hit "Mr. Blue" and for their tours with Lee Gordon's "Big Shows" supporting Johnnie Ray, Fabian, and Ricky Nelson. Dennis O'Keefe, Kel Palace, Mike Downes, and Col Loughnan formed The 4 Tops, however a few months later O'Keefe left, and the remaining trio changed their name to The Crescents. Johnny O'Keefe became their manager, and promoted his young vocalists with live performances, appearances on his television program, "Six O'Clock Rock", in print media, and by signing them to Leedon Records. O'Keefe used his connection with Gordon to secure inclusion in the Big Shows. This move paid dividends when the audiences showed strong appreciation, in particular teenage girls. The Crescents released seven singles, and two EPs, with "Mr. Blue" reaching the Top 10 in Mel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ricky Nelson
Eric Hilliard "Ricky" Nelson (May 8, 1940 – December 31, 1985) was an American musician and actor. From age eight, he starred alongside his family in the radio and television series ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet''. In 1957, he began a long and successful career as a popular recording artist. His fame as both a recording artist and television star also led to a motion picture role co-starring alongside John Wayne, Dean Martin, Walter Brennan, and Angie Dickinson in Howard Hawks's Western (genre), western feature film ''Rio Bravo (film), Rio Bravo'' (1959). He placed 54 songs on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and its predecessors between 1957 and 1973, including "Poor Little Fool" in 1958, which was the first number one song on ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine's then-newly created Billboard Hot 100, Hot 100 chart. He recorded 17 additional top ten hits and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on January 21, 1987. In 1996, Nelson was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lee Gordon (promoter)
Lee Gordon (born March 8, 1923 – November 7, 1963) was an American entrepreneur and rock and roll promoter who worked extensively in Australia in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Gordon's jazz and rock 'n' roll tours had a major impact on the Australian music scene and he also played a significant role in the early career of pioneering Australian rock'n'roll singer Johnny O'Keefe, serving as his manager. Early life and career Many parts of Gordon's life story remain sketchy or obscure, and there is much contradictory information about him. The passing of time makes it increasingly difficult to verify or refute the various versions of his life and career, since many of his former close associates like his Australian colleagues Max Moore and Alan Heffernan are now deceased. Although both men wrote memoirs of their collaboration with Gordon, their accounts suggest that Gordon himself was the likely source of many of these contradictory tales, and that he may well have concocted t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billy "Crash" Craddock
Billy Wayne "Crash" Craddock (born June 16, 1939) is an American country and rockabilly singer. He first gained popularity in Australia in the 1950s with a string of rockabilly hits, including the Australian number one hits " Boom Boom Baby" and "One Last Kiss" in 1960 and 1961 respectively. Switching to country music, he gained popularity in the United States in the 1970s with a string of top ten country hits, several of which were number one hits, including "Rub It In", " Broken Down in Tiny Pieces", and " Ruby Baby". Craddock is known to his fans as "The King Of Country Rock Music" and "Mr. Country Rock" for his uptempo rock-influenced style of country music. Biography Early life Billy Wayne Craddock was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. He learned how to play guitar from his oldest brother when he was six. At age 11, he entered a local television talent contest and was voted top winner for 15 consecutive weeks. Craddock received the nickname "Crash" while pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
