''Semantics'' was a 1983 EP by Australian

surf rock Surf music (or 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 su ...

band

Australian Crawl Australian Crawl (often called Aussie Crawl or The Crawl by fans) were an Australian rock band founded by James Reyne (lead vocals/piano/harmonica), Brad Robinson (rhythm guitar), Paul Williams (bass), Simon Binks (lead guitar) and David Re ...

. The album marked a change in the line-up of the band as Bill McDonough (drums) was replaced first by

Graham Bidstrup Graham Leslie "Buzz" Bidstrup (born 30 August 1952) is an Australian musician, songwriter, music producer and talent manager. He was a member of the Angels (1976–1981), the Party Boys (1983–1984) and Gang Gajang (1984–1987, 1993–1996, ...

(ex- The Angels,

The Party Boys The Party Boys was an Australian rock supergroup with a floating membership commencing in 1982. Created by Mondo Rock's bass guitarist, Paul Christie with founding member Kevin Borich (ex– La De Da's, Kevin Borich Express) as a part-time ...

with Crawl member

James Reyne James Michael Nugent Reyne OAM (born 19 May 1957) is an Australian rock musician and singer-songwriter both in solo work and, until 1986, with the band Australian Crawl. Biography Early years Reyne was born in Lagos, Nigeria. His father, Rod ...

) to record the EP. The more permanent replacement, after the EP, was John Watson (

Kevin Borich Express Kevin Borich Express are an Australian rock band formed in 1976 by the New Zealand born Kevin Borich. After the demise of New Zealand's successful band The La De Das, Borich moved to Australia and formed the group Kevin Borich Express. It fe ...

). The EP contains their best known song and only number 1 single, " Reckless (Don't Be So)" NOTE: Used for Australian singles and albums charting from 1970 until

ARIA In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...

created their own

charts A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent ta ...

in mid-1988. (aka "She Don't Like That") which was written by lead singer Reyne. Listeners of

Triple M Triple M is an Australian commercial radio network owned and operated by Southern Cross Austereo. The network consists of 40 radio stations broadcasting a mainstream rock music format and 5 digital radio stations. The network dates back t ...

voted "Reckless" the 39th best song of all time in 2007, it was the highest placed Australian Crawl song. In the United States and Europe ''Semantics'' was released in 1984 by

Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint. Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and ...

as an expanded version LP featuring the EP's four original tracks plus re-recorded versions of six earlier Australian Crawl songs. The original EP was also re-released as a CD-EP in 1996. Australian Crawl performed "Reckless" as one of their three songs for the ''

Oz for Africa Oz for Africa was an Australian concert held on 13 July 1985 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre. It was organised by Bill Gordon who also organised the EAT Concert held at the Myer Music Bowl in Melbourne at the end of January 1985. That event was ...

'' concert (1985). This was the Australian leg of the global ''

Live Aid Live Aid was a multi-venue benefit concert held on Saturday 13 July 1985, as well as a music-based fundraising initiative. The original event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine ...

'' show organised by

Midge Ure James Ure (born 10 October 1953) is a Scottish musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. His stage name, Midge, is a phonetic reversal of Jim, the diminutive form of his actual name. Ure enjoyed particular success in the 1970s and 1980 ...

and

Bob Geldof Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof (; born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter, and political activist. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part of ...

. The "Oz for Africa" concert was broadcast on MTV, but only performances by Australian band

INXS INXS (a phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. The band's founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboardist Andrew Farris ...

were placed on the 20th Anniversary DVD collection.

Background

was founded in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

, Australia by

(

lead vocal The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...

), his younger brother

David Reyne David Nicholas Reyne (born 14 May 1959) is an Australian actor, musician, television and radio presenter. Reyne was born in Lagos, Nigeria to an Australian mother and English diplomat father. The family moved to Victoria, Australia in the early 1 ...

(

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...

), Brad Robinson (

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guita ...

), Paul Williams (

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and s ...

) and

Simon Binks Simon John Binks (born 27 November 1956,) is an Australian rock musician who was a guitarist and singer-songwriter for Australian Crawl from founding in 1978 to disbanding in 1986. Biography Early career Binks was raised in the Mornington Peni ...

(

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the feature ...

) in 1978. David Reyne soon left and was replaced by Bill McDonough (drums,

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

), and the band was later joined by his younger brother

Guy McDonough Guy Gillis McDonough (17 October 1955 – 26 June 1984) was an Australian rock musician best known for rhythm guitar and singer-songwriter with the iconic band Australian Crawl. He provided rhythm guitar and lead vocals on two of their well-know ...

(vocals, rhythm guitar). Their third studio album, '' Sons of Beaches'' was released in 1982 and reached number 1 on the albums chart. Bill McDonough left before they recorded their

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

, ''Semantics'' in 1983, which achieved number 1 on the Kent Music Report singles chart. Bill McDonough was replaced on drums, temporarily by

for the EP recording, and more permanently by John Watson. ''Semantics'' contained the track " Reckless (Don't Be So)", which some sources list as a number 1 single. A live mini-album ''

Phalanx The phalanx ( grc, φάλαγξ; plural phalanxes or phalanges, , ) was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar pole weapons. The term is particular ...

'' was released in December 1983, and the band signed with

for international release of their material. In 1984, the band released the best of their early material as a compilation titled '' Crawl File'', which peaked at number 2. Geffen released ''Semantics'', internationally, as a

long play The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and a ...

album with six newly re-recorded tracks compiled from their first two studio albums. Promotion of the album and the subsequent tour was stalled when Guy McDonough died in June of viral

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

. Meanwhile, remaining Australian Crawl members had recorded their fourth studio album, ''

Between a Rock and a Hard Place Between a rock and a hard place, or simply a rock and a hard place, is an expression meaning having to choose between two difficult options. It may also refer to: __NOTOC__ Literature *''A Rock and a Hard Place'', a 1988 Vietnam War novel by David ...

'' which was released in 1985 and achieved number 11. This was followed by the announcement that they would disband after another tour, the live album, '' The Final Wave'' recorded their last performance on 27 January 1986, which was released in October and peaked at number 16. During his solo career, James Reyne recorded a different version of "Reckless" for ''Electric Digger Dandy'' (aka ''Any Day Above Ground'') in 1991. He performs the song during live concerts.

Track listing

''Semantics'' EP

# " Reckless (Don't Be So)" (James Reyne) - 5:20 ^ # "The Night" (Brad Robinson) - 4:11 ^ # "White Limbo" (Simon Binks) - 4:03 ^ # "Looking for Cool" (Reyne) - 4:15 ^

''Semantics'' LP

The US and European LP included the four tracks from the EP, as well as six newly recorded versions of the songs from the band's earlier albums. "The Boys Light Up" and "Indisposed" are re-recorded versions of tracks from their debut album ''The Boys Light Up'' (1980), while "Errol", "Lakeside", "Things Don't Seem" and "Unpublished Critics" are re-recorded versions of tracks from their second album ''Sirocco'' (1981). # " The Boys Light Up" (Reyne) - 4:41 # " Errol" (Reyne, Guy McDonough) - 3:30 # "Indisposed" (B Robinson, James Robinson, Reyne, William 'Bill' McDonough) - 4:05 # "Looking for Cool" (Reyne) - 4:13 ^ # " Reckless (Don't Be So)" (Reyne) - 5:23 ^ # "Lakeside" (Reyne) - 4:49 # "White Limbo" (Binks) - 4:04 ^ # "Things Don't Seem" (G McDonough, Sean Higgins) - 3:57 # "The Night" (B Robinson) - 4:13 ^ # "Unpublished Critics" (Reyne, Paul Williams) - 5:14

''Semantics'' Cassette

The cassette includes an additional song, "Love (Beats Me Up)", which was not included on the original release or the US release. It is a re-recording of a song from the band's 1981 album, ''

Sirocco Sirocco ( ), scirocco, or, rarely, siroc (see below) is a Mediterranean wind that comes from the Sahara and can reach hurricane speeds in North Africa and Southern Europe, especially during the summer season. Names ''Sirocco'' derives from ...

''.

Personnel

Australian Crawl *

–

s, keyboards,

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

–

* Paul "Tubbs" Williams –

– co-lead vocals,

* Brad Robinson – rhythm guitar * Graham "Buzz" Bidstrup –

, keyboards (on original EP tracks, marked with ^) * John Watson – drums (on re-recorded LP tracks, unmarked) Additional musicians * Andrew Thompson –

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

* Rosemary Westbrook –

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

on "Reckless" Production *David Nicholas – engineer *

Mark Opitz Mark Opitz (born 1952) is an Australian record producer and audio engineer. He started his career with Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) in 1971. He has produced AC/DC, the Angels, Australian Crawl, Cold Chisel, Divinyls and INXS. ...

– producer *Don Bartley – remastering (1996)

Charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control Australian Crawl albums 1983 debut EPs Albums produced by Mike Opitz EMI Records EPs Geffen Records EPs