Yep... I certainly agree with you Dogsby Hocks !!!
To many are to quick to judge...
Its a different decade, there is nothing wrong with living & dreaming the way you want, Tomorrow comes around to fast, live your life the way you want accept people at face value not what you may think they should....
I think a lot of time on hands is the problem here....
Cant help myself here but, people are just to busy watching others instead of living there own life...... Get out & enjoy what we have, Be yourself, Be happy, Laugh, Love, Dance, SHOP, Take a picnic basket, Walk in the rain, Eat cake, OMG...some one STOP me *hehehe*
Rocknray, Jiver J, Rockin Bones and Briancanrock. It was interesting and entertaining reading your perspectives and experiences re rockers and growing up in that era.
It seems there were variations depending on where you lived and the particular moment in time.
My mate John from a band called IC Rock, grew up in Bairnsdale and has lots of stories to tell of his experiences up that way including supporting Johnny Farham one night when girls in the crowd ripped his shirt off. Maybe Jiver J was one of the girls LOL. That was the 60's more than the 50's though. in the 50's the girls squealed going by old footage, the 60's they ripped off the shirts and since then, what happens on the road stays on the road.
John also said, he earned more in his band saturday night back then than a whole week as an apprentice mechanic.
When I first met Cliff (1974) he was a rocker still as were all his particular mates round Springvale. The hair, the pointy shoes, the stove pipe jeans. He was into all sorts of music though. It was only his mates that dressed the part that I noticed then. The girls dressed to the 70's - Super tight round the hips and wide flared legs on the jeans.
Me being a country girl from Sunraysia, didn't know rockers still existed.
I moved to Melbourne in 1975 with Cliff. I think Springvale was the last bastion of Rockers as I didn't see them anywhere other than Springvale.
I liked Skyhooks and ACDC, flares ands high chunky shoes, so I dont know what catorgory I belonged to if any.
By around 1977, Cliff and his friends had moved into the 70's with longer hair and different clothes.
Seems everything old is new again.
Whatever everyone's interest, its all been and is good fun. Having lost a few friends along the way to car accidents etc, I'm so glad to still be here.
I wish I could have experienced the hysteria Johnny O'Keefe created in his heyday or be totally blown away when Sgt Pepper and Pet Sounds came out. I appreciate it all but its not the same as being there.
Mind you I was there at St. Albans High School when a young band called ACDC came on stage and totally blew us all away... Bon Scott was my hero much to the shock of my parents LOL...
To me, the definition of a rocker is someone who dares to be different with the cheek, the balls and the audacity to go against the establishment and put up with the crap thats thrown at you and all power to any of you from any era who gave the establishement the finger...
It doesn't matter what era you grew up in. If you didnt care what people thought of you, if you listened to music that your parents, teachers didnt approve of, if you believe in standing up for whats right, if you didnt trust "the man" then you're a rocker in my book.
It's great to see so many people in the rocknroll/country music scene defying the norm and getting into what they love. We might not be getting arrested anymore but at least we still dare to be ourselves.
Thumper
Last edited by bassthumper; 11-05-2009 at 12:18 PM.
Reason: add stuff
Life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans - J. W. Lennon
Hey Figjam, funny about that time you mentioned in Bairnsdale, I really do remember times like that. In fact I think I was there, lol. I also remember going to see Crash Craddock in the 60`s and the same thing happened, he was petrified as the Ozzie girls ripped his shirt off. I used to go to Springy rock too so may have even seen Cliff in those points. I had one friend from Springy who had a gold painted Ford Customline with gold spare wheel, he cruised the scene for years. I remember George`s cafe in Dandenong where people traveled for miles just to get a burger. During the 70`s I also changed to Flares, knee high boots or platform soles. But I was always a rocker chick and still danced 50`s rock and roll at places like the Springy Pub or Riccabella`s in Caulfield. I`ve seen most of the old legends live - Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee, Bo Diddley, Everly Bros, Roy Orbison, Johnny O`Keefe etc etc. It was fun in those days, but it`s just as much fun today (not as wild though) dancing to the great bands we have available in Australia. I personally get so much pleasure seeing Baby Boomers as well as younger rockers all enjoyng the old classic stuff of our past legends of rock and roll. Long live rock and roll. Please forgive some of us if we like to reminisce !!
well said jiver j,you hit this post right on the head with one single word,not rocker,but reminecing!thats what we do,or i do anyway,reminece on things we did yesterday.today and tomorrow?who knows or cares.i initially backed down over a couple of negative answers to all our memories,to simply hold the peace,but regretted that action.we dont catagorize?judge?or criticize our fellow rockers,what ever there story,and if we correct or query a post,no malice intended,ive been corrected heaps of times and smile because?yes we are human or people,and make mistakes and move on,we all have freedom of speech,and my mouth has got me in trouble too but ive learnt from that.thank you all for your wonderful memories and keep on telling stories from your past to keep this wonderful site alive,otherwise?more music please!terry(tezza)
Like most people, I find it a joyous experience reflecting and getting in touch with those long lost memories of events and happenings of years gone by. And it’s always fascinating to read other people’s accounts and experiences growing up as a rocker. This got me thinking about what actually happened in the country of my birth (not Australia) during those late 1950-60’s rock & roll years.
Yes, I wasn’t old enough to participate in it but I could certainly remember my older sisters & uncles being immersed in the local rock n roll scene. Well, for one thing, the Elvis and rock n roll revolution weren’t restricted to the English speaking world only. Their impact on young people seemingly was far and wide. I remember vividly Elvis was popularly called “King of the Cats” in our local lingo. All the local girls adored him, and all the guys just wanted to sing and look like him. I remember seeing my sisters in their 1950’s dresses when going to dances, and my uncles wore long pointy shoes and spending hours gelling hair and getting a pompadour hairstyle. Unfortunately, I can’t remember too much about the cars and bikes but I suspect that being a former British colony, the kids would ride British bikes like Norton, BSA and Vincent.
But I can definitely remember the dances at the local community hall where hundreds of local and kids from surrounding areas congregated to dance to live bands. I couldn’t get in because I wasn’t old enough so I and all the other kids watched the dances through the open windows. I can’t remember exactly what they were dancing mostly – probably rock & roll, but I do remember they were also doing the “twist”. Music was provided by the local “rock n roll” bands. There were at least 3 local bands in our little town, and one was called the “Hail Stones” (probably because of the Rolling Stones). I remember this band because one of my sisters went out with the band’s drummer for a little while. And what a furore it created as my parents were doing all they could to try to stop the relationship. Why? Because band members were considered bad boys and therefore a bad influence on my sister! I can laugh about it now but it definitely wasn’t very funny to my parents then. And like the Oz rockers, there was the usual aggro being openly displayed. And I could remember seeing a few fights, and not just with their fists either.
I think the next big thing that hit the local scene was the hippie sub-culture, and they even staged a mini “Woodstock” there. Damn! Again, I missed out as I was still not quite old enough to go. Although a few years later, I grew my hair to shoulder length and started wearing platform shoes and what we colloquially called “bell bottom” pants (or flares in Oz).
Congrats Jitterbug on another thought provoking thread. What is a Rocker or Rock & Roller? Sounds like a simple enough question but the answers seem to be so varied. Spose it relates to when, where and how people were exposed to rock & roll music, dance and dress.
I experienced 50’s rock & roll as a kid and clearly remember the pre TV days huddled around the radio listening to plays of Tarzan, Biggles and Dad & Dave. The hit parade at the time was pretty sad I thought with artists like Perry Como, Pat Boone and Johnny Ray usually in the top ten. Apart from top-artist wild boys Chuck, Elvis, Jerry Lee & Little Richard, Melbourne radio stations were reluctant to play the more “off the road” wild stuff. Australia seemed slow in the new-trend take up. Thank god for 'Johnny O’Keefe'.
I was taken to a few dances by older siblings & friends like Mordy Rock, Springy Rock and Dandenong town hall and experienced the uprising. I tried to blend as much as a 12 year old could. Eventually … the oil went into the hair and the points on the feet. My first pair of points were second hand and 2 sizes too big. Denim jeans (with name branded on a leather patch attached to the back pocket), white 'T' shirt and studded black leather jacket seemed to be the standard look. By the time I grew into those shoes, there was a change in the air that was later dubbed “The British Music Invasion”. Rock & Roll music & culture certainly did not die but was infiltrated and taken down new avenues.
As a teenager in the 60’s, I took for granted some of the bands I saw locally. I used to frequent a public hall in Lyndale, the ‘Impact’ dance at Dandenong Town Hall, St James Rock and a dance called 54321 at St Mary’s Hall. We saw bands such as ‘Easybeats’, the ‘FIVE’ and the ‘Purple Hearts’ from Perth, plus early ‘Aztecs’ & ‘Throb’ from Sydney. Local bands like the ‘Freeloaders’, 'Swingin’ Margates’, the ‘Phantoms’ who were the support band for the Beatles in Melbourne, the ‘Trend’ and a young ‘John Farnham’ at 15 doing guest appearances with a band called ‘Strings Unlimited’. One of Dandenong’s best kept secrets was the ‘Havana’ coffee lounge with a 2am licence that boasted great bands like Ronnie Burns’ ‘Flies’, the ‘Groop’ and the ‘Loved Ones’. You could set your watch by the fights at these packed venues coz the punters were a blend of Rockers, Mods and Sharpies.
One memory I treasure is witnessing a concert by the 'Rolling Stones' with the late 'Brian Jones' at the Palais Theatre St Kilda in January 1965. The ticket cost 1 pound. Apart from the new-wave British music, I think a significant change in Melbourne was early 1966 when hotels were renovated to accommodate entertainment for late night closing. What did die was the rock dances in Community & Town halls.
Being branded a Rocker or a Mod in the mid sixties didn’t really faze me that much. I was in it for the live bands. Especially the ones with a gutsy drivin’ back-beat. Stove pipe jeans evolved into bell bottoms then flares, 'T' shirts to wide collared flowery shirts, Pointy toed boots to platforms. Quiffs and duck tails turned into mop tops then mullets. I can absolutely relate to songs like Pete Townsend’s “My Generation” and Bob Dylan’s “The Times, They are a Changing”. I feel so fortunate to have experienced those ever changing modes of music, fashion and fun. 1965 AUSTRALASIAN TOUR
Promoter: Harry M. Miller
Stan Rofe (second from left) talks to The Stones backstage at the Palais Theatre, St Kilda.
[Photo: Laurie Richards Collection, Museum of Performing Arts]
Live & let Live, Love & let Love, Rock & let Roll, plus related clichés.
Yes Jazza, you`ve definately been around the music traps. The old dance halls were a hive of activity, but remember there was no drinking alcohol at these premises so the guys used to sneak out to the carpark to indulge, and of course the odd fight would errupt between these testosterone fuelled youth.
I also saw a young John Farnham as he actually lived in Dandenong in the early days. I also saw Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, Ray Brown & The Whispers, Normie Rowe, MPD LTD, The Masters Apprentices. And who can ever forget the late Lyn Randell.
In those early days in Australia you were either for the clean cut Beatles or the Scruffier Rolling Stones. I was mad on the Beatles and was sucked into the Beatlemania frenzy of the mid 60`s. When they arrived in Melbourne in 1964 everyone went crazy including me. All the girls had a favourite band member, mine was the cute baby faced Paul McCartney. I wore Beatle jumpers, stockings, shirts, badges, and any Beatles memorabilia I could get my little hands on. The guys even wore Beatle wigs with black stove pipe pants and Winkle Picker shoes.
During that time I remember going to many `Hoadley`s Battle of the Sounds`at the great old Festival hall and also at the Karma hall in Morwell. At this time Go Go dancers were beginning to emerge and disco`s were opening up. The Thumping Tum was a popular haunt in Melbourne, and artists such as Doug Parkinson in Focus emerged.
Well seems like some of us have gone the full circle through the evolution of rock and roll. And have kept true to the cause `Don`t let the music die `.
Re: What is a Rocker?
Re: What is a Rocker?
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