Fast Forward - John French

24/01/2026

John was there! 51 years ago 🎶

22/09/2025

Thanks to John French! 🎤🎸🎶

On this day in 1974, the Skyhooks single “Living in the 70’s” debuted on the Australian charts at #76 (September 23)

Skyhooks formed in March 1973 in Melbourne with Steve Hill on vocals (ex-Lillee), Peter Inglis on guitar (The Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band), Greg Macainsh (Frame) on bass guitar and backing vocals, Peter Starkie on guitar and backing vocals (Lipp & the Double Dekker Brothers) and Imants "Freddie" Strauks (Frame) on drums and backing vocals.

Their first gig was on 16 April 1973 at St Jude's Church hall in Carlton.

By August, Bob "Bongo" Starkie (Mary Jane Union) on guitar replaced his older brother Peter (later in Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons) and Inglis was replaced by Red Symons on guitar, vocals and keyboards.

By late 1973, after Skyhooks supported Ross Wilson’s band Mighty Kong, the ex-Daddy Cool frontman convinced Michael Gudinski to sign the band to his booking agency, Australian Entertainment Exchange, and eventually to Gudinski's label, Mushroom Records.

Skyhooks gained a cult following around Melbourne, but a poorly received show at the January 1974 Sunbury Pop Festival saw the band booed off stage, and resulted in singer Steve Hill resigning.
Macainsh replaced him with ex-Frame bandmate, occasional singer, surfer and carpenter Graeme “Shirley” Strachan.

It was a masterstroke…

Released a few months later, ahead of the LP of the same name, Skyhooks’ debut single “Living in the 70’s”, written by Macainsh, went on to peak at #28 on the Australian charts.

Skyhooks’ debut single would go on to be recognized as one of the iconic Oz rock songs of the era, and set Shirl, Red, Freddy, Greg, and Bongo on the road to National stardom…

Click on the link below to watch:

https://youtu.be/5ZCjTUIeZW0

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

24/01/2025

This week in 1975, the last of the legendary 1970s Sunbury Rock Festivals in Victoria Australia was being held (January 24 - 27)

The Sunbury Rock Festivals were conceived and promoted as Australia's Woodstock, and staged on the Australia Day long weekend from 1972 to 1975 on a 620-acre private farm between Sunbury and Diggers Rest, Victoria.

The final ‘75 festival ended in controversy with the promoters running at a massive loss.
Deep Purple went home with $60,000, but most local groups went home empty handed.

AC/DC also refused to play after Deep Purple’s roadies provoked an onstage fight with the AC/DC crew, over the use of equipment.

According to Deep Purple's lead vocalist, David Coverdale, "Apparently, a young Aussie band had jumped onstage, plugged into our gear and started playing!
Well, all hell broke loose, from what I was told. Our roadies (big buggers to a man) wrestled with the young band to get them off our equipment and off the stage. Chaos and frolics ensued".

Angus Young recalls that there were incidents both before and after Deep Purple played…

Later in the year, Deep Purple planned a tour for 1976 and after the Australian Musicians Union "made it clear ... that the proposed tour of Deep Purple could lead to considerable unrest" the UK band placed money into a fund so that artists appearing at Sunbury '75 could be paid the full musician's rate.

Click on the link below to watch some cool Sunbury ‘75 footage:

https://youtu.be/azLLeQpmzO4

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

12/07/2024

MainFM 94.9 RADIOTHON 2024 ~ Who listens to the radio???
As part of MAINfm’s tribute to NAIDOC Week, Djaara elder, Uncle Rick Nelson was the special guest on the In Didj’n’Us radio program. This is just one example of the value of radio in our community in keeping people informed on local issues and events.
Radiothon is about asking the community to support the station by becoming a subscriber, and kicks off at 7.30am on Friday 19th July until 8pm on Saturday 27th July. Every subscriber gets a subscriber pack with a letter of thank you, a bumper sticker, a subscriber card, a postcard and a program guide. Daily prizes will read out by presenters each day of Radiothon with winners’ names drawn at random at the end of each day and announced on air the following day. All subscribers will be eligible for the Major Prizes, which will be announced in the first week of August. Apart from tuning into 94.9 listeners can stream at mainfm.net/listen-live and for enquiries telephone 54 724376.