Gavin Wood's Podcast

Tommy Emmanuel was a working professional age of 6, playing rhythm guitar in his family’s band as they toured Australia.   He has never had a formal guitar lesson, in fact, he doesn’t read music or know music theory. However, he’s considered one of the modern masters of the guitar, with Chet Atkins naming Tommy as a Certified Guitar Player, an honour bestowed to only 4 other people.   Tommy’s guit...

Philip Kenneth Collen (born 8 December 1957) is an English musician who is best known as the co-lead guitarist for the rock band Def Leppard, joining the band in 1982 during the recording of the Pyromania album. Prior to joining Def Leppard, Collen had performed with a number of bands in the burgeoning British glam metal scene. Outside of Def Leppard, with which he still records and performs live,...

Born Christopher John Cheney in 1975, Chris graduated with a VCE from Wheelers Hill Secondary College. Chris played guitar since age 6 and studied jazz at Box Hill Tafe in 1994-95. However, it was at a barbecue Chris' was introduced by his sister to Scott Owen. In 1992 they formed a cover band called 'The Runaway Boys' taken from a Stray Cats song of the same name which performed cover...

Peter first came to prominence with Stylus in 1975, releasing four albums with hits such as ‘Summer Breeze’ and ‘World of Make Believe’ before the band split in 1980. A successful solo career followed throughout the 80’s, with a top 20 hit for his first release, ‘Fear of Thunder’, and success with the song ‘Blame it on the Weather’ – not only for Peter but also for John Farnham, whose voice, incid...

Melbourne-born sisters, Vika and Linda Bull, grew up singing at church, and were taught how to harmonize by their Tongan mother. The talented siblings first made their mark as members of Joe Camilleri’s The Black Sorrows in the late 1980s, also providing backing vocals for other artists including Hunters and Collectors, Archie Roach, John Farnham, Deborah Conway, and Paul Kelly. In 1994 they left...

Tania Doko become a pop sensation in 1998 as one half of Melbourne duo ‘Bachelor Girl’. Their 1998 debut single, "Buses and Trains", was a top-10 hit in Australia and New Zealand; it peaked in the top 30 in Sweden and charted in the UK. The follow-up single, "Treat Me Good", reached the top 40 in Australia and New Zealand and their debut studio album, Waiting for the Day, was released in 1998 and...

Lee (Vassilis) Simon was born in 1954 in Melbourne to Greek immigrant parents. At age five, he changed his first name to Lee, as "it was easier to use." He worked as an audio engineer from 1971 at local radio station, 3AW. His first job as a DJ was for radio 2BE in Bega, New South Wales followed by stints at 7HT (Hobart), 2NX (Newcastle) and 2SM (Sydney). Simon returned to Melbourne as a...

Mike Brady was born in England and moved with his family to Australia when he was 11 years old. His recording career began in the mid 60’s with the formation of MPD Ltd (Mike, Pete & Danny). After MPD Ltd, Mike spent the majority of his time building his career as producer and writer of jingles for Television and Radio. One such jingle brought Mike back into the public spotlight. He was asked...

Bill Armstrong - Legendary Music Producer was born  in 1929.   The Melbourne audio technician-turned-producer has been at the forefront of the local music industry for more than 60 years.   In the mid-50s, Armstrong was working as a "balance officer" at ABC Radio, producing live-to-air programs, outside broadcasts and variety shows and working with the likes of Graham Kennedy. In 1956, h...

Bill Armstrong - Legendary Music Producer was born  in 1929.   The Melbourne audio technician-turned-producer has been at the forefront of the local music industry for more than 60 years.   In the mid-50s, Armstrong was working as a "balance officer" at ABC Radio, producing live-to-air programs, outside broadcasts and variety shows and working with the likes of Graham Kennedy. In 1956, h...

John St Peeters was born in Melbourne, in 1956, to Italian-born parents, Pasqualino Lo Piccolo – a greengrocer – and Giovanna (née Basile). He grew up in Richmond with a younger sister, Josephine "Jo".  Early in his career he performed as Johnny Lo Piccolo. From the age of 11 he played piano accordion on TV talent quests, such as Brian and the Juniors, New Faces, variety shows, including...

For over 40 years Shane Howard has established himself as one of Australia's most influential writers and singers and created a uniquely Australian voice. From the red heart, where he penned his enduring song ‘Solid Rock, Sacred Ground’, to the wilds of Tasmania that gave birth to ‘Let the Franklin Flow’, Howard's songs have created a new map of Australia. His songs challenge exist...

Mark Dixon Kitchen (born 8 September 1950), known professionally as Mark Gable, is an Australian musician who serves as the frontman and a founding member of the rock band The Choirboys. The band was formed in Sydney in 1979. Mark was born in Captains Flat, New South Wales. Starting in 2012, Mark hosted The Awesome Eighties on 107.7 2GO in The New South Wales Central Coast, with assistance from Mi...

Tim Finn was born in  New Zealand.  In 1971 he completed a Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Auckland. It is there that he met Mike Chunn, Robert Gillies, Philip Judd and Noel Crombie. Phil and Tim formed a band called Split Ends, which became Split Enz before they started to tour Australia. Finn recorded his first solo album, Escapade, in 1983. This album was very successful in Austral...

Counting Crows is an American rock band from San Francisco, California. Formed in 1991, the band consists of guitarist David Bryson, drummer Jim Bogios, vocalist Adam Duritz, keyboardist Charlie Gillingham, multi-instrumentalist David Immerglück, bass guitarist Millard Powers, and guitarist Dan Vickrey. Counting Crows gained popularity following the release of its first album, August and Everythin...

Born on 10 May 1946 in Manchester, Graham was given his first guitar at the age of 11 and started playing with local bands at 15. He received early encouragement to develop his musical talent from his mother Betty and father Hymie, who also contributed with suggested lyrics and song titles. Graham played with various Manchester bands before forming The Mockingbirds in 1965 (with Kevin Godley on dr...

Patrick Simmons born October 19, 1948 is an American musician best known as a founding member of the rock band The Doobie Brothers (whom he was inducted as a member of into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020. Born in Aberdeen, Washington, he has been the only consistent member of the band throughout their tenure. In 1970, a California-based power trio consisting of Tom Johnston, Skip Spence, a...

Mark Jeremy Seymour  (born 26 July 1956)   is an Australian musician and singer best known for his work as the frontman and songwriter of rock band  Hunters & Collectors . In 1997, whilst still officially part of Hunters & Collectors he released his debut solo album King Without a Clue, which earned him a nomination in the ARIA Awards for Best Male Artist (as well as Be...

On this episode of Gavin Wood’s Countdown podcast, Gavin chats to Gary Puckett, solo artist and the lead singer of 60’s American pop/rock group Gary Puckett & The Union Gap. Active in the late ‘60’s Gary Puckett & The Union Gap rose to prominence worldwide with hit singles "Woman, Woman", "Young Girl", "Lady Willpower", and "Over You", all achieving top 10 chart positions in the US, UK, an...

1927 are an Australian pop rock band formed in 1987 with James Barton on drums, Bill Frost on bass guitar, his brother Garry Frost on guitar and keyboards, and Eric Weideman on vocals, guitar and keyboards. They were popular in the late 1980s and early 1990s with their major hit songs "That's When I Think of You", "If I Could", "Compulsory Hero" and "Tell Me a Story". Their multi-platinum number-o...

Norman John Rowe AM (born 1 February 1947)[1] is an Australian singer and songwriter of pop music and an actor of theatre and soap opera for which he remains best known as Douglas Fletcher in 1980s serial Sons and Daughters. As a singer he was credited for his bright and edgy tenor voice and dynamic stage presence. Many of Rowe's most successful recordings were produced by Nat Kipner and later by...

Michael Glenn Chugg AM (born 15 June 1947) is an Australian entrepreneur, businessman and concert tour promoter. As a promoter and manager he was a founder of Frontier Touring Company (1979–99) and Michael Chugg Entertainment (2000–present). On 8 June 1998, he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia with the citation "for service to music and the performing arts, particularly in relation...

Reyne was born in Lagos, Nigeria. He formed a band called Spiff Rouch. By early 1978 Spiff Rouch had split, and Reyne formed Clutch Cargo, with Binks, Robinson, Williams and his younger brother David Reyne. In late 1978, Clutch Cargo was renamed Australian Crawl and started to gain popularity on the pub circuit. The band went on to sell more than one million albums in Australia in the 1980s. In 19...

Temperley was born in 1978 in Mosman Park, Western Australia, and grew up in Fremantle. At seven years of age, his name was changed to 'Satyam Kavyen Temperley'—Temperley is his mother's maiden name and 'Satyam Kavyen' means "Poet of Truth". The Temperley family were members of the 'Orange People' (Rajneesh movement) and made trips to India as well Oregon, United States, throughout the early 1980s...

Austen Tayshus is always, as a matter of principle, pushing the boundaries, and entering the quagmire of Political Correctness throwing hand grenades all to stomp on narrow-mindedness and mediocrity to wake people up to alternative ideas. He performs anywhere-from outback bowls clubs, to hipster pubs in Melbourne and Adelaide, Universities, Theatres, and Rock Concerts all over Australia, to refine...