Awesome Aussie Songs

This episode is part of our Anzac Day Special and we remember Cathy Wayne, the 19 year old Australian singer who was tragically killed on stage while she was performing for American troops. Fellow performers Col Joye and Leon Issackson talk about Cathy and that fateful day.

This episode is part of our Anzac Day Special and features The Rajahs, the first Australian band to entertain the Aussie troops during the Vietnam War. They even filled in for Bob Hope at a New Years Eve gig abroad the 17 storey warship, the USS Kittyhawk before 5000 Americans troops.  The Rajahs also played concerts for the local Vietnamese, giving the locals their first taste of rock n roll.

This episode of Awesome Aussie Songs is part of our Anzac Day Special and features another of our pioneer musicians Lucky Starr We speak with the I've Been Everywhere Man about his time entertaining the troops in Vietnam and his incredible experiences.  

Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs are one of the most iconic bands in the history of Australian music. Led by the late, great Billy Thorpe, the various versions of The Aztecs dominated the music scene for several decades. Although the line up of the band may have changed several times over the years, one constant of the group that remained was  Billy Thorpe leading the charge. This episode takes a look...

The Choirboys formed in the late 70’s and are one of the bands that typify Pub Rock. They’ve gone onto become one of the most melodic, hard-rocking bands ever produced in Australia. All up The Choirboys have released 8 studio albums and they’re still rocking today. This episode is on The Choirboys and their classic hit song Run to Paradise Our special guest is the bands frontman and songwriter, Ma...

Little Quirks are an indie folk-rock band from the Central Coast of NSW. We take a look at their song Crumbled. Apart from creating catchy music, and their energised live shows, what originally stood Little Quirks out from the crowd was their young age and also the fact the group is made up entirely of family members. Sisters Abbey and Mia Toole and their cousins Jaymi and Alex. They first kicked...

Diana Trask is an entertainment trail blazer – she was the first female Australian to star on prime-time television in America, she was nominated for a Grammy and is one of the few artists to cross over from Jazz and pop, to go onto have a successful career in country music. Very few ‘outsiders’ break into Nashville, however, Diana has had 18 singles make the Billboard Country Charts. As a songwri...

This episode is on The Delltones and their time with legendary American musicians Hal Blaine and Scotty Turner. Drummer Hal Blaine has played on 40 No.1 hits in America and guitarist Scotty Turner (also known as Scotty Turnbull) was a song writing partner of Buddy Holly. When Blaine and Turner were on tour in Australia in 1959, they entered the studio with The Delltones. The song they recorded tog...

Owing to the fact that Axiom was made up of already established recording artists, the media immediately dubbed the new band Australia’s first ‘Supergroup’, not that the band agreed with the tag.   Axiom was formed when The Groops Brian Cadd and Don Mudie, joined forces with The Twighlights lead singer Glenn Shorrock. Drummer Doug Lavery was recruited from The Valentines and lead guitarist Chris S...

In the early days of Rock 'n' Roll, Dig Richards & the R'Jays were one of the biggest bands in the land. With his movie-star good looks, Dig was Australia's very first teenage idol, and with his band the R'Jays, they were at the forefront of the Rock 'n' Roll revolution in in Australia. They were the first Aussie band to release a full-length album through Festival Records and as a live act, they...

Formed in 1969, Sherbet would go onto become one of the most successful Australian acts of all time. Led by vocalist Daryl Braithwaite, Sherbet had 20 consecutive singles make the ARIA charts. With 12 of these singles going top 10, including two No.1 hits in Howzat and Summer Love. In this episode we take a look at Sherbets amazing career and we also focus on the band’s classic song Howzat. Our sp...

Touch of Paradise was the third single released from John Farnham’s all-conquering album Whispering Jack. The song was co-written by Ross Wilson of Daddy Cool and Mondo Rock fame. Episode 14 of this podcast takes a look at Daddy Cool. The other co-writer of Touch of Paradise was Gulliver Smith from cult Melbourne band Company Caine.   The Whispering Jack album has now sold over 2 million copies wo...

When the synth pop of New Wave took off in Australia in the early 1980’s, Real Life were at the forefront of this emerging genre. The Melbourne band flew the flag for the New Romantics. This episode is on Real Life’s worldwide smash hit, Send Me An Angel. Our special guest is Real Life’s singer, songwriter and guitarist, David Sterry. Thanks for Listening to Awesome Aussie Songs. Please share this...

This episode is on one of Australia’s pioneer rock n roll bands Johnny Rebb and His Rebels, we take a look at their long lost classic Rock On Our special guest is the bands piano player and co-founder, John Charter. As a member of the first Rock n Roll band ever formed in Australia, John Charter has been there from the very beginning and is a true pioneer of music in this country. The first offici...

This episode is on thought provoking chart topper Billy Field and his classic hit song, Bad Habits. Our special guest is the man himself, Billy Field. Billy Field was one of the most popular musicians in Australian in the early 1980’s Fusing Jazz and Pop, Billy's distinctive husky vocals and piano playing saw him top both the singles and album charts and his songs have been recorded by Internation...

This episode is on Johnny Diesel and The Injectors and their hit song, Crying Shame. Our special guest was the bands front man, guitarist and songwriter, Diesel.   When Johnny Diesel and The Injectors first burst onto the Australian music scene, they took the country by storm.  Their hard rocking self-titled debut album would go onto become the highest selling album in 1989. On the back of this al...

This episode is on one of the highest selling Australian acts of all time, Air Supply. We take a look at their debut hit single Love and Other Bruises. Our special guest is Air Supply's lead singer Russell Hitchcock. When it comes to international ground breaking chart success, Air Supply are one of the most popular bands to ever come out of Australia. They stand alongside acts like AC/DC, The Bee...

The continued success of Eagle Rock has been phenomenal – the debut single by Daddy Cool  became the highest selling song in Australia in 1971 and it also reached No.1 in New Zealand.  In 2001 APRA released a list of the most successful songs in Australian music history and Eagle Rock came in at number 2, only behind Friday on My Mind by the Easybeats. The song is a true Aussie classic and as the...

This episode is on Aussie punk pop band One Dollar Short and their song Satellite. Satellite comes from their debut album Eight Days Away. The album reached No.7 on the Aria Charts in 2002. Our special guest is One Dollar Short's guitarist and songwriter Trent Crawford. Awesome Aussie Songs is presented by Josh Ursem and written and produced by Sheldon Kidd. Intro / outro music is Australia, So Ni...

This episode is on Normie Rowe and the Playboys and their number 1 smash hit It Ain’t Necessarily So. Our special guest is Australia’s original King of Pop himself, Normie Rowe. Thanks for Listening to Awesome Aussie Songs Guest Suggestions are more than welcomed. Hail, Hail, Australian Rock n Roll.

Our first Rock n Roll tragedy came with the death of The Delltones lead singer Noel Widerberg. Just 23 years old and one of Australia's biggest pop stars, Noel died just as his career was hitting new heights. We speak with The Dellies legend, Ian 'Pee Wee' Wilson and this episode pays tribute to the early years of the group and it's leader Noel Widerberg. Awesome Aussie Songs is presented by Josh...

There’s not many bands that can claim to be an original act, Melbourne band Skyhooks certainly can. No group has looked or sounded like Skyhooks and it’s a formula they took to the very top. Under the direction of chief songwriter and bass guitarist Greg Macainsh, Skyhooks took the glam rock image to the very extreme, and then some. The Skyhooks line up we know and love with Freddie, Greg, Bongo,...

This episode is on Andy Gibb and the song, I Just Want to Be Your Everything. When released as a single in 1977, I Just Want to Be your Everything went to No.1 on the American Billboard Charts, it also reached No.1 in Canada, Australia, Chile and Brazil. Andy is of course, the younger brother to Barry, Robin and Maurice, otherwise know to the world as the Bee Gees, however, Andy’s success wasn’t c...

Creators of the song Coppertone, Sydney band Fini Scad shined brightly, if only briefly, in the mid 1990's. This episode highlights the triumphs and pitfalls that go along with being in an up-and-coming band hailed as the 'next big thing'. Signed to Mushroom Records, the Fini Scad story is a lesson on how the business side of things can quickly sour an emerging musical dream. While the Fini Scad s...

Inducted into the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame and one of the highest selling acts of all time.......... say no more, ladies and gentlemen, Spicks and Specks by The Bee Gees. We have two special for this episode - Aussie music legend, Col Joye and Dig Richards and the R'Jays drummer Leon Isaacson. Thanks for Listening to Awesome Aussie Songs Guest Suggestions are more than welcomed. Awesome Aussie Son...