YESTERDAY MAN. CHRIS ANDREWS.

YESTERDAY MAN Chris Andrews

BACK IN THE USSR. BEATLES.

mike began to play drum kit with various rock bands in the land of the long white cloud in the 1960s and took a long break from doing so in 1979. some of these bands were notable locally for their ‘progressive-rock’ musical prowess, others only for their deeply obscure position in the grand scheme of things, including their inability to achieve anything resembling a footnote in local rock history – what to speak of meaning anything in this vast arid land of australia.

in the 80s mike moved on to playing percussion and hand-drums in various alternative situations outside of the music industry.

in early 2008 mike dusted off the drum kit after a chance meeting with izzy, when he told me him of the band he and johnny were planning – the yesterbeats. what a great opportunity to bring back the 60s in sound with two great players, who, like himself, were there in that golden decade and have loved these songs ever since…..

johnny carr (guitar) Born in Randwick, Sydney in 1945 . Moved to Tuncurry in 1950.

First paid music job as drummer with old Time dance band at age 12.

Moved onto guitar at age 14.

First band – the “Tellmen”. Played at Lakes and Ocean Hotel , Forster , the Bellevue Hotel ,Tuncurry and the Manning Hotel, Taree. The band moved to Newcastle in the early 1960s and played the Belmont Hotel for three years. John then left his first band and went toSydney and joined the “ Ghostwahs ” with Dave Ovenden ( who ran the BilambilBluesClub on alternative nights to John ) . The band moved to Surfers’ Paradise and worked the Cha-Cha Niteclub for 6 months – 6 nights a week.

Then back to Sydney and a new band called Prussian Blue with Russ Hinton ( Bullamakanka) playing Sydney’s Northern Beaches hotels and clubs.

Then John and Russ joined Ray Brown and Moonstone doing three national tours and one album at Festival Records. John and Russell kept Moonstone together and moved back to the GoldCoast’s Coolangatta and the famous Cabbage Patch Hotel for three years , then settling on the Coast.

The Call of the city again , back to Sydney and joined Lindsay Bjeere from “Taman Shud “ on his solo project , toured all capital cities in Australia supporting American band Manhattan Transfer – a great experience.

Next came the Richard Clapton Band , national tours and lots of good times.

Back to the Coast and Ray Burton’s “ 4 Wheel Drive” band. Ray, a prolific songwriter and singer had returned from U.S.A. after co-writing with Helen Reddy .

Then the “ Deves” with Robyn Banks and Al Britten ( Bondi Cigars) for local GoldCoast work and 6 weeks as band for the “Drifters” from the U.S.A.

Numerous local bands John formed include

• Taipan
• Sledgehammer
• Crushed Ants
• Vicars
• The Breeze

To name a few. John worked with his son Martin in the Vicars.

John’s  current band is TUFF, Australian Rock and Roll with Geordie Leach (Rose Tattoo) , Nigel Steele-Boyce and old drumming mate Robin Walsh.

International acts John supported include

• Joe Walsh
• Steelers Wheel
• Frank Zappa

MUSICAL INFLUENCES- Bob Dylan , JJ Cale, and all rock , Soul , blues, guitar players. John has never had a lesson in music , completely self-taught but has been inspired by all the musicians He has worked with.

izzy foreal (bass) – in the 1960s izzy (as peter knox) played with such notable acts as ‘the twain’ (with glynn williams), ‘soul survivors’, ‘fountain shout’ and ‘sylvester quincy barker’s music box’. things picked up for izzy through the 1970s. he played with such bands as ‘the 69ers’, ‘the original battersea heroes’, ‘johnny & the ringworms’, ‘red mckelvie’s third union band’ and ‘toons’. by the end of the 70s izzy was not peter knox any more, and formed ‘the zarsoff brothers’, who carved a name for themselves through the 1980s and into the 90s. they still make rare appearances. in the late 90s izzy formed ‘heartbeat – the 60s show’, which worked solidly around the sydney traps, and honed izzy’s skills for presenting songs from the golden era of electric music.

influences
the yesterbeats repertoire includes:

yesterday man

love potion number 9 (searchers)

judy in disguise (john fred)

the game of love (wayne fontana)

have i the right (honeycombes)

the letter (boxtops)

under my thumb (rolling stones)

venus

keep on runnin (spencer davis)

happy together (turtles)

glad all over (dave clarke 5)

gimme some lovin (spencer davis)

itchycoo park (small faces)

needle in a haystack (twilights)

back in the ussr (beatles)

heartbeat (herman’s hermits)

do wah diddy (manfred mann)

brown eyed girl (van morrison)

summer in the city (lovin spoonful)

just like a woman (bob dylan)

all i really wanna do (bob dylan)

so much in love (jagger/richards)

sorrow (merseybeats)

pretty flamingo (manfred mann)

ruby tuesday (rolling stones)

world without love (peter and gordon)

where do you go to my lovely (peter sarsted)

hold me (p j proby)

hang on sloopy (young rascals)

waterloo sunset (kinks)

my girl (temptations)

younger girl (loving spoonful)

something good (herman’s hermits)

do ya wanna dance (cliff richard)

groovy kind of love (wayne fontana)

love is all around (troggs)

tobacco road

gimme little sign

let it all hang out

candy man (roy orbison)

daydream (lovin spoonful)

pretty woman (roy orbison)

sunny afternoon (kinks)

mellow yellow (donovan)

sunshine superman (donovan)

YESTERBEATS joined a fine lineup of local musicians for the Club Xmas Party. BILAMBIL SPORTS CLUB. Check the Club website. The Beats lined up with names like Geordie Leach and Dave Cavanagh, Paul Cunningham, Tuff, Trina C and the Glengarries with Robin and John Sutton. Mark Quinn again came in with vocals. Digger Revel fronted up with a few legendary numbers. One young band punched it out early on. Was told they were once known as Odessa. Friday night they featured local Geordie Leach of the Padded Cell Recording Studio on Bass. Music in the Valley. Can’t beat it !

http://bilambilbluesclub.wordpress.com/ 

http://izzyforeal.wordpress.com/

About HGWT

Originally founded in Armidale (NSW) as S.T.D. Music, Hire and Promotion (1983) by Clay Djubal, Have Gravity Will Threaten (HGWT) is an independent specialist publisher of music, plays, poetry and images from writers, musicians, composers, bands and photographers who emerged out of the New England region of New South Wales during the ‘pub rock’ era of the 1970s and 1980s. After being based in Sydney during the mid- late 1980s HGWT was re-established in Stafford Heights (Brisbane) in 1993.

 

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