Aussie covers
Paul Scott
There has been some discussion about English covers of the American
hits:
The following occurred Down Under.
The late Stan Stafford covered Hary Belafonte's Jamaica Farewell
Bruce Clarke covered 40 Miles of Bad Road and "Sleepwalk"
Sydney's Noelene Batley covered Soldier Won't You Marry Me (Doris Day)
Di Trask covered it in Melbourne.
Ian Crawford covered The Golden Rocket in Sydney. Frankie Davidson
covered it in Melbourne.
The Crescents covered Everlovin and then "Mr Blue"
The Fauns covered the Drifters hit "Dance With Me".
Col Joye covered Conway Twitty's Badman
He also covered "Stagger Lee" and "Sixteen Reasons".
John Laws covered "A House, A Car and a Wedding Ring" and "Susie Darlin"
Jimmy Little covered "El Paso".
Johnny O'Keefe covered "Lawdy Miss Clawdy", "Over the Mountain" "You Hit
The Wrong Note Billy Goat:" and "Shout".
Billy O'Rourke covered "Running Bear".
Johnny Rebb covered "Say Yeah"
Digby Richards covered Mel's "Comin' Down With Love" and "Kansas City".
Lucky Starr did a male version of "The Big Hurt" and covered the Freddie
Cannon version of "Way Down Yonder In New Orleans"
The Thunderbirds did "Peter Gunn"
The Toppers did "Village of St Bernadette".
Candy and Mandy covered "Clickety Clack:"
Barry Pilkington covered "The Shape I'm In".
The Webb Brothers covered "The Battle of New Orleans"
Mona Wiki covered "There's a Goldmine In The Sky".
Rhett Walker (and ex USA deejay who went to Australia) covered "I Don't
Know What It Is"
The Penny Rockets covered "Johnny B Goode"
Annette Klooger covered "Amor"
Frankie Davidson covered "Why".
Carole Davies covered "Sweet Nothins".
All these were commercial singles.
And finally - the greatest Aussie singer of them all was Nola Hirst. She
could slide into half notes. She covered "Black Hills of Dakata". Her
material lies in the vaults although I've seen some film clips of hers
preserved in Nashville.
Nola lives near Glen Innes. If you want to know about why she was a star
one minute, history the next ask her.
And if anyone ever lets you hear a Nola Hirst record - I believe there
were around eight singles- do listen.
Graeme Freeland
Paul Scott wrote:
> There has been some discussion about English covers of the American
> hits:
You've got me with quite a lot of these, Paul. A few I can remember though
and I can add a couple more.
> The following occurred Down Under.
> The late Stan Stafford covered Hary Belafonte's Jamaica Farewell
Folk singer- radio announcer Dennis Gibbons also did it. I remember his 3AW
colleagues splicing his and Stan's versions together as a strange sort of
duet.
> Bruce Clarke covered 40 Miles of Bad Road and "Sleepwalk"
> Sydney's Noelene Batley covered Soldier Won't You Marry Me (Doris Day)
> Di Trask covered it in Melbourne.
Don't know Noelene's version, or, strangely, the Doris Day, but I loved the
Diana Trask version. The only one of my old scrap books that has survived
shows, in my youthful handwriting, that on the totally unofficial G Freeland
Top 60 of November 22, 1959 this record was #1. Don't think it did much
good anywhere else though.
> Ian Crawford covered The Golden Rocket in Sydney. Frankie Davidson
> covered it in Melbourne.
> The Crescents covered Everlovin and then "Mr Blue"
The "Top 40 Research" book shows the Crescents had the hit version, #8.
> The Fauns covered the Drifters hit "Dance With Me".
> Col Joye covered Conway Twitty's Badman
Col took it to #7.
> He also covered "Stagger Lee" and "Sixteen Reasons".
> John Laws covered "A House, A Car and a Wedding Ring" and "Susie Darlin"
He also did Eddy Arnold's "Tennessee Stud", and he played it a lot on his
show. John Laws, and Bob Rogers, were my favorite DJ's at this time.
> Jimmy Little covered "El Paso".
The Book shows Jimmy's version as equal with Marty Robbins, #12. I would
debate that.
> Johnny O'Keefe covered "Lawdy Miss Clawdy", "Over the Mountain" "You Hit
> The Wrong Note Billy Goat:" and "Shout".
And on EP's he did "Silhouettes" and "Diana" and I don't think I've ever
heard them.
> Billy O'Rourke covered "Running Bear".
> Johnny Rebb covered "Say Yeah"
> Digby Richards covered Mel's "Comin' Down With Love" and "Kansas City".
> Lucky Starr did a male version of "The Big Hurt" and covered the Freddie
> Cannon version of "Way Down Yonder In New Orleans"
> The Thunderbirds did "Peter Gunn"
> The Toppers did "Village of St Bernadette".
Don't know that version. But I know the song was written by Australian
singer Eula Parker.
> Candy and Mandy covered "Clickety Clack:"
> Barry Pilkington covered "The Shape I'm In".
> The Webb Brothers covered "The Battle of New Orleans"
> Mona Wiki covered "There's a Goldmine In The Sky".
> Rhett Walker (and ex USA deejay who went to Australia) covered "I Don't
> Know What It Is"
> The Penny Rockets covered "Johnny B Goode"
> Annette Klooger covered "Amor"
Are you paying attention, Roger Ford?
> Frankie Davidson covered "Why".
> Carole Davies covered "Sweet Nothins".
>
> All these were commercial singles.
> And finally - the greatest Aussie singer of them all was Nola Hirst. She
> could slide into half notes. She covered "Black Hills of Dakata". Her
> material lies in the vaults although I've seen some film clips of hers
> preserved in Nashville.
> Nola lives near Glen Innes. If you want to know about why she was a star
> one minute, history the next ask her.
> And if anyone ever lets you hear a Nola Hirst record - I believe there
> were around eight singles- do listen.
I obviously spent way too much time listening to the DJ's that played the
imports.Very interesting list, Paul. Some memories there.
Graeme Freeland
Don Fisk
I've alway s been of the opinion that Bill Haley gave Johnny O'Keefe "You
hit the wrong note" and that Conway wrote "Bad Boy" for Col. At least
that's how both
Johnny and Col told the stories. Rockin" Don from Canberra
Paul Scott wrote:
> There has been some discussion about English covers of the American
> hits:
> The following occurred Down Under.
> The late Stan Stafford covered Hary Belafonte's Jamaica Farewell
> Bruce Clarke covered 40 Miles of Bad Road and "Sleepwalk"
> Sydney's Noelene Batley covered Soldier Won't You Marry Me (Doris Day)
> Di Trask covered it in Melbourne.
> Ian Crawford covered The Golden Rocket in Sydney. Frankie Davidson
> covered it in Melbourne.
> The Crescents covered Everlovin and then "Mr Blue"
> The Fauns covered the Drifters hit "Dance With Me".
> Col Joye covered Conway Twitty's Badman
> He also covered "Stagger Lee" and "Sixteen Reasons".
> John Laws covered "A House, A Car and a Wedding Ring" and "Susie Darlin"
>
> Jimmy Little covered "El Paso".
> Johnny O'Keefe covered "Lawdy Miss Clawdy", "Over the Mountain" "You Hit
> The Wrong Note Billy Goat:" and "Shout".
> Billy O'Rourke covered "Running Bear".
> Johnny Rebb covered "Say Yeah"
> Digby Richards covered Mel's "Comin' Down With Love" and "Kansas City".
> Lucky Starr did a male version of "The Big Hurt" and covered the Freddie
> Cannon version of "Way Down Yonder In New Orleans"
> The Thunderbirds did "Peter Gunn"
> The Toppers did "Village of St Bernadette".
> Candy and Mandy covered "Clickety Clack:"
> Barry Pilkington covered "The Shape I'm In".
> The Webb Brothers covered "The Battle of New Orleans"
> Mona Wiki covered "There's a Goldmine In The Sky".
> Rhett Walker (and ex USA deejay who went to Australia) covered "I Don't
> Know What It Is"
> The Penny Rockets covered "Johnny B Goode"
> Annette Klooger covered "Amor"
Graeme Freeland
Robert J. Boyne wrote:
> Graeme Freeland <graeme....@dwt.csiro.au> wrote:
>
> >And back to the original thread.
> >Add "Love Is A Golden Ring" by Ernie Sigley
> >Graeme Freeland
>
> Is theis this the same Ernie Sigley of the TV show fame.
>
> I have a vague memory of a TV show with an Ernie who had contestants
> play games.
>
> One contestant mentioned that he loved diving and Ernie said that he
> had a friend "Muff" who love to do the same thing.
>
> Ernie was along the lines of Ga Ga.
>
> Same guy?
Indeed it is.
Ernie was turntable operator, then radio announcer (as they were then called), then TV variety
show/games show host and now on radio again.
For a period in the 60s (maybe) Ernie Sigley worked as a dj on one of the pirate radio stations
beaming into the UK.
Ernie Sigley and Denise Drysdale, who worked with him frequently over the years, did a version
of "Hey Paula" which charted.
Graeme Freeland
Graeme Freeland
Robert J. Boyne wrote:
> >> John Laws covered "A House, A Car and a Wedding Ring" and "Susie Darlin">
>
> >Graeme Freeland
> *********************************
> I'm going on a poor memory bank.
>
> However, at the risk of being out in left field, is this the John
> Laws, a priest, who did the advertisments for a chain store? Maybe
> Grace Brothers?
>
No, John Laws is not a priest.
John Laws is reportedly the most highly paid radio personality in Australia today. He was one
of the Sydney djs that I loved listening to in the late 50s. Which wasn't easy because I live
500 miles away and reception was only possible at night, but fortunately John Laws and Bob
Rogers (separately) were on at night so I could hear them, with a bit of signal fading here and
there. Today John Laws does a syndicated morning program - current affairs, controversial etc.
Now, who was the priest that did the TV commercials? I feel I should know the answer but, as
this was Sydney TV and I don't see it, I can possibly be excused for not knowing straight off.
Have a feeling it's right on the tip of my tongue (finger) though. I'm sure someone from Sydney
can give us the answer.
Graeme Freeland
Don Fisk
I Think the guy you are after is expriest and Rugby League test Footballer Father John Coates who
also had a hit record in Sydney during the mid 60's.
Also some more covers
Lotta Lovin' Dig Richards and the RJ's
and what about the ones that went the other way.
Johnny Rebb and the Rebels - "Rebel Rock" covered by Tommy Steele, and
Johnny O'Keefe's "Wild One (Real Wild Child)" covered by The Crickets and Jerry Lee Lewis
Rockin' Don from Canberra.
Paul Scott
>
>
> And back to the original thread.
If we could only get Gil Mathews interested in the net we might get somewhere..
While Glen Baker gets the coverage as being the major historian, Gil would have the
biggest private colection of 50's, 6o's and 70's in Australia. Like 25,000 albums
and 35,000 singles.
He has every Leedon single ever released, every Teen label, every Rex, every Lee
Gordon.
I know he's got the three Johnny O'Keefe singles released in the USA. He also
collects London singles. I believe there have been around 1100 London singles
issued in Australia and he's got like 1059 of them.
By the way, Gil is the same guy who was a member of the Jon Konrads group (yes the
Olympic swimmer). They were called Jon Konrads and the Kaydets. (other members
included Pianist Warren Carr and David McKay, who went on to produce the Twilights
and a whole heap of sixties stuff in Australia".
Jon Konrad and the Kaydets issued one single - a cover of the Sil Austin track
"Balin Wire".
The story goes the studio had a copy of an Austin Mercury album and they said do
this - so they did. It was I think late 59 or early 60.
Frank Calabrese
Why doesn't Glenn contibute to the groups ???? He has his own website
http://www.timewarp.com.au, hasc won the Rock Brain of the Universe a
few times and over in the 60's groups his Raven & Timewarp/Sony
releases are given favourable coverage.
Frank
Frank Calabrese
Graeme Freeland
> Why doesn't Glenn contibute to the groups ???? He has his own website
> http://www.timewarp.com.au, hasc won the Rock Brain of the Universe a
> few times and over in the 60's groups his Raven & Timewarp/Sony
> releases are given favourable coverage.
>
I think Glenn is way too busy making money from his interest in the old music and
records.
Graeme Freeland