warwick gilbert

KEVIN "BIG DADDY K" CHERRY
2RRR-FM host of "Sydney Sounds"
Sydney, Australia

I'm sure that everyone agrees that 2020 has been a shitty year. The worst I can remember in my 60 years on this planet.  I'm not generally into reminiscing and my bad short term memory usually prevents me participating in these types of lists. Living on the Northern Beaches area of Sydney and being in lockdown for the second time, however, I've decided to attempt to give my impression of the year's music events.

The last band that I saw before the first lockdown in March (which resulted in all the gigs I had planned to go to in the following weeks collapsing before my eyes like a stack of dominoes) was THE MEZCALTONESat The Orient Hotel in Sydney’s The Rocks district.

THE MEZCALTONES are a fantastic Mewxican Hillbilly Surf band from the Northern Beaches fronted by COL “PADRE” PORTER, his guitar-slinging wife NERALYN and whip-twirling, go-go dancing, singing percussionist, MISS MIMI, as well as the three other members. They always put on an entertaining performance of original songs and crowd pleasing covers and obscurities. They attract an audience that loves to get up and dance.

I also saw them at a socially distanced performance at The Marrickville Bowlo, which was a different atmosphere due to the restrictions, which meant that none of the audience could get up and dance or even stand with a drink in their hand. 

Flaming Hands have announced their line-up, six weeks out from their Sedition Festival show at Paddington RSL on August 31, and it’s an all-star cast.

Founders Julie Mostyn-Gilbert (vocals) and Jeff Sullivan (acoustic guitar) will be joined by Cub Calloway (guitarist with the Saints, New Christs and Ed Kuepper and The Yard Goes On Forever), bassist Warwick Gilbert (Radio Birdman, Hitmen, The Rats), Barton Price (The Models) on drums, John Hoey (Died Pretty, New Christsw) on keys and Phil Hall (Sardine v, Drop Bears and Lime Spiders) on sax.

Coinciding with this news, a rare 35-year-old Flaming Hands clip for single “The Edge” has resurfaced online.

Sedition 2019 is a Celebration of Public Art and Protest in Sydney during the 1970s, running across various venues and spaces this August-September. To celebrate, Feel Presents have put together a live music component featuring some musical giants from Sydney’s fertile post-punk scene of the late 1970s.

Mark down Saturday, August 31 at Paddington RSL for a show by The Aints!, Flaming Hands, Shy Impostorsand The Professors. DJ Dr Rock with be providing the soundtrack between sets. Tickets go on-sale at 12 midday today here. 

Ed Kuepper needs little introduction; as a founding member of Brisbane world beating proto-punks The Saints - residents of Sydney for a short four months in Jan-April 1977 - and Sydney’s post-punk giants the Laughing Clowns (1979-1984) Kuepper is almost single handedly responsible for igniting two musical movements. 

The Aints! is a continuation of those both projects having lain dormant for some 35+ years but reignited with a passion in 2017 that has thus far seen the release of two full lengths albums, a mini-album and a series of scorching live shows.

Flaming Hands and Shy Impostors both sprung from the ashes of Sydney's exclusive Detroit scene headed by the pioneering Radio Birdman during their reign of 1974-1977.

The first thing you hear when the stylus drops on Radio Birdman’s “What Gives?”, “Aloha Steve & Danno”, ”Descent Into The Maelstrom”, “Do The Moving Change” or The Visitors’ “Hell Yes” are the drums.

Solid, to the point, perfectly simple, lots of swing and dead on the money, That drummer’s name is Ron Keeley, who also played with Radio Birdman precursor The Rats (with Warwick Gilbert and Rob Younger), The Other Side (with Rob Younger) , The Hitmen (with Chris Masuak and Warwick Gilbert) and Comrades of War. 

I wanted to hear Ron’s story first-hand and have a beer or three with him in his adopted home of Woking, Surrey,l just outside of London. It's only a short, 17,000-mile trip from Sydney, Australia. We met in The Crown, a wonderful old-style “wet pub” (no food, no gambling, no TV - just drink, so what’s not to like?) in July 2023.

Read on at your own peril.

Catch Monday Evening Gunk on the MoshPit Faccebook at 7.30pm every Monday or catch up here every Tuesday. Next up on Gunk: Chris Masuak of Radio Birdman, the Scraming Tribesmen, the Hitmen and the New Christs who will be interviewed by Bob Short (Filth) and Tiffany Palmer (Sydney Rock and Roll Markets) and play a set with his band, The Viveiro Wave Riders. 

Some of Austrealian rock and roll’s best-known underground artists fwill be featured in an exhibition opening in Sydney next month.

The Rock ‘n’ Roll High School Art Class of 2023” runs at Ambush Gallery at 4 James Street, Waterloo, from Friday, October 13 until Sunday, October 15 from noon until 4pm.

Described as “a group show by artists that rock and rockers who art”, it will show art from the likes of Reg Mombassa (Mental as Anything), Warwick Gilbert (Radio Birdman), Glenno Smith and Gina Monaco (Hellebores), Mike Foxall (Sick Fizz, Neptune Power Federation), Celia Curtis (White Knuckle Fever), Ray Ahn (Hard Ons), Ben Brown (Hellmen), Link Meanie (The Meanies), Rick Chesshire and Simon Day (Ratcat).  

You’ll find the Facebook event here. 

Foundation Radio Birdman drummer Ron Keeley is offering a rare piece of memorabilia for sale on the UK eBay site, taken from his own collection.

This item is a 24 inch (61cm) diameter painted bass drumhead from his white Rodgers kit. It was hand-painted by the band’s long-serving bass player and their artist, Warwick Gilbert. It saw action from 1976-78. It was re-used by Ron after Birdman broke up and he joined The Visitors, at that point being covered by a cardboard fascia with that band’s logo.

“It was on the kit for ALL the Radio Birdman gigs we played during that time, including all those at the Funhouse, the famous live session at 2JJ Studios, both of the legendary 1977 Paddington Town Hall gigs and many others,” Ron said.

“Condition is pretty good considering its age and the number of ‘skirmishes’ it was involved in…although it’s a bit battle-scarred (and stained in places with splashes of beer and other unidentified liquids.)”

The item comes with a personally signed Certificate of Authenticity stating that the drum face is a contemporaneous item from Ron’s personal collection, and describing its provenance.

Alternative title: "He Gets by With Some Help From His Friends".

Producer-guitarist Bruce "Cub" Callaway assembled a stellar cast for this, his 2013 return to recording after a lay-off, and it shows.

John Hoey (Died Pretty), Warwick Gilbert (Radio Birdman), Paul Larsen (Celibate Rifles), Clyde Bramley (Hoodoo Gurus) and Julie Mostyn Gilbert (Flaming Hands) all played roles. Lesser-knowns Ian Johnson, Louis Callaway and Harry Rothenfluh also contributed drums.

1. R.I.P Ron Peno and Louis Tillett
To start on a sad note we lost Two of our greatest vocalist/Front men within days of each other in August last year - Louis Tillett and Ron Peno.

I don't have any of Louis Tillett’s albums apart from The Wet Taxis’ “From The Archives” record, but had seen his live performances lots of times over the years.  Of course, there were his legendary shows with Paris Green during their residency at The Sandringham Hotel in Newtown in the late '80's, and I recall seeing him solo on piano at Bar Broadway in the early '90s.  The last performance I saw him was at The Factory Theatre which I think was one of his last gigs.

Many people have tried to make a Radio Birdman documentary. For a variety of reasons, only one has succeeded.

And it would have been so easy for Jonathan Sequeira to fuck it up.

Don’t worry. He hasn’t. Not by any stretch of the imagination.

“Descent Into The Maelstrom” was screened to a select audience of band members, followers, media and other hangers-on in Sydney last night. The venue was the Chauvel Cinema, deep inside – ironically enough – Paddington Town Hall, the scene of the definitive Radio Birdman line-up’s last Australian stand.