Weddings Parties Anything else

[Twodogs]

I have to admit that I've scoffed at this band more than any other Australian band. From their early days to their peak I had no time for them, somiething about them rubbed me up the wrong way. This was despite the fact that ,Ost of my friends liked them and one friend never missed a show. Which meant that I never missed a show either. He'd be at the front and I'd be in a back bar waiting for them to finish.

Anyway I happen to have a vinyl copy of the first album Scorn of the Women and my son put it on the other day. What a great album it is. It has to be one of the great Australian debut albums of all time. Then I found the greatest hits CDthat I didn't know I had. I didn't realise how many great songs they had. Step in, Step Out. Father's Day. Monday's Experts. Scorn of the Women, Saturday Night in Halifax. Away Away. Makes me wish I'd watched them play in the next room when I had the chance.

Any other Weddos fans here?

[Remi Moses]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

They played at the fight back of 89( the arts centre I think)
Like some of their stuff

[ledge]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Father's Day hits a a heart string for obvious reasons. Tend to break down a little, and it was 13 years ago.
My kids were 5 and 10 at the time.

[Twodogs]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Father's Day hits a a heart string for obvious reasons. Tend to break down a little, and it was 13 years ago.
My kids were 5 and 10 at the time.

Yep. It hits mine for the exact same reason mate. Mine were 7 and 4. They have lived full time with me for the last 8 years-but to get to this stage I had to go without them for long times.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Mentioned Weddos in my post on the Best Gigs Ever Seen thread.

Such a great live band. Their Xmas shows in Richmond every year through the 90s were a Melbourne institution. Me and a couple of mates went at least once every year, I knew people who'd attend all religiously.

Musically, Weddos were great fun live but nothing special. Their real strength was Mick Thomas' brilliant lyrics. His best songs stand up with anyone we have ever produced and could easily be read from the page and taught as a form of alternate Australian history class.

[Ghost Dog]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Weddos were a great band and if you are getting commercial airplay in Hamilton in the 90's you must have been doing pretty well. We only had a few radio stations down there at the time.

I think Father's day is perhaps their best song. I don't have kids but it's an important song.
Scorn of the Women is a really interesting song as well. Someone uploaded their stuff to Baidu ( Chinese Google ) and all their stuff is available free here in China.

[Twodogs]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Weddos were a great band and if you are getting commercial airplay in Hamilton in the 90's you must have been doing pretty well. We only had a few radio stations down there at the time.

I think Father's day is perhaps their best song. I don't have kids but it's an important song.
Scorn of the Women is a really interesting song as well. Someone uploaded their stuff to Baidu ( Chinese Google ) and all their stuff is available free here in China.

Scorn Of The Women is a song I think about every day. It's unbelievable how word perfect the lyrics are. Even just the doctor saying "that will be all, thank you very much" is filled with poignancy when he mentions that what he remembers is the tone of his voice when he said it.

[Ghost Dog]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Well said TD. I guess there are a lot of songs we love that probably never made a band a lot of money or fame for a band, but exist in 'cult classic' fandom. This is why I decry the demise of the live music scene thanks to pokies I guess.
I used to live in Abbotsford, and you had the Tote, Punters club and a hell of a lot of live music. You would regularly see members of the Weddos down at Abbotsford pubs, or gigs. A shadow of what the scene it used to be.

[Twodogs]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Sure is a pity. I'm glad I was there when I was through. Thursday night walking from the POW to the Espy and the Crystal Ballroom to see the free bands. weekends we could catch the main bands at the Corner-usually 11ish, the Prince of Wales-1ish and Users Club-anytime after 4am all in one night if we timed it right.

Psychos, Dockers, Gravies. Great times.

[ledge]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Isn't one of the hunters and collectors songs one of the most famous in the world but Didnt become big until
they broke up .. Wrap your arms around me, I think That's the song.

[Twodogs]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Isn't one of the hunters and collectors songs one of the most famous in the world but Didnt become big until
they broke up .. Wrap your arms around me, I think That's the song.

Nah, Wrap your Arms Around Me was huge long before Hunnas broke up. It was on Human Frailty the second album they released and ?I can remember it being in the charts and on telly and the radio in 1989.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

Nah, Wrap your Arms Around Me was huge long before Hunnas broke up. It was on Human Frailty the second album they released and ?I can remember it being in the charts and on telly and the radio in 1989.

It was Throw Your Arms Around Me. Think they had 3 separate goes at recording it. Was a hit in it's day but definitely became a bigger song over time. The Hunnas song that really grew legs after a slow beginning was Holy Grail, can't say I really care for it much though.

[Twodogs]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

It was Throw Your Arms Around Me. Think they had 3 separate goes at recording it. Was a hit in it's day but definitely became a bigger song over time. The Hunnas song that really grew legs after a slow beginning was Holy Grail, can't say I really care for it much though.

No not a big fan of the stuff after Human Frailty but some of the songs before then like Talking to a a Stranger, Betty's Worry, 42 wheels of death, Everything's on Fire, Say Goodbye, Stuck on You are fantastic songs. A lot of the stuff after that leaves me cold.


You're right, they did record Throw Your Arms Around Me three times before it got big.

[ledge]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

I knew there was something about that song that was a struggle of some sort.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Weddings Parties Anything else

No not a big fan of the stuff after Human Frailty but some of the songs before then like Talking to a a Stranger, Betty's Worry, 42 wheels of death, Everything's on Fire, Say Goodbye, Stuck on You are fantastic songs. A lot of the stuff after that leaves me cold.


You're right, they did record Throw Your Arms Around Me three times before it got big.

I agree TD, Jaws of Life and Human Frailty are great records, but H&C were decidedly patchy after that.

Mark Seymour is remarkably honest in discussing how he deliberately tried to make the band more commercial after Human Frailty got them to a certain level of popularity, mainly chasing more radio play. In the 80s, mainstream (pre national JJJ) radio meant gigs in the suburban beer barn circuit which meant financial security.

Was somewhat successful short-term but they lost their edge and were never the same band. Classic case of chasing the bucks leading to a poorer product in the end.