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Spinning
Around Vol. 1
This double set is subtitled 1952-1977 The Local Years. For collectors of Festival Records, and collectors of Australian records there is nothing on this 50 song collection to excite you. Almost every song is a recognised hit, and almost have found their way onto a Festival compilation over the past 30 years. However as a collection of Festival's hits over the years, it has an example of almost every band that had success over the 25 year period it covers. Thus it is very comprehensive overview of the Festival label. Disc one starts off with Les Welch & his Orchestra and Gus Merzi & His Quintet, two artists I am not familiar with, but whom were among our first artists to record for Australian labels. Welch worked in jazz while Merzi was a piano accordion player. Other artists that appear on the first disc include Col Joye, Johnny OšKeefe, Dig Richards, Johnny Rebb, Warren Williams, Noeleen Batley, Judy Stone, The Delltones, Jimmy Little, Billy Thorpe, Ray Brown, Johnny Young and Normie Rowe. The compilers have included the Bee Gees whom I disagree are Australian artists - they've never held Australian passports - and disc one ends on two wimpy selections from Rolf Harris and Lionel Rose. Disc two has more music to interest me, with a mixture of progressive rock, surprisingly best represented here by women vocalists (Wendy Saddington and Sharon Sims from Flake), through to pop (Colleen Hewitt, Daryl Braithwaite, Sherbet) and blues (Chain, Blackfeather and Matt Taylor). A bit out of place are The Lord's Prayer by Sister Janet Mead and The Whale by Fielding and Dyer. The latter I canšt recall being a hit in rural Victoria, but perhaps a bit like The Wheat in the Field by Harry Young and Sabbath, it was a bigger hit in Sydney than further south. Of all the local major record companies, Festival have done more work in re-issuing their back catalogue. Festival because of their size (and success), have often been regarded as one of the majors, but perhaps they should be seen as Australiašs largest independent music label. This collection is another example of their commitment to Australia's heritage. The liner notes, written by Glenn A Baker, come in a 24 page booklet and are well done, giving some background to the label, an overview of the social happenings of the times and a brief note about each artist. The packaging is of a high standard, indicating the label has taken some care and pride in the project. A nice memento of the label, with only a few quibbles. Let's hope Festival (now under the Festival Mushroom Group) continues to encourage and foster local talent. Previous
columns Chris Spencer is author of the "Who's Who of Australian Rock'. He can be contacted through Moonlight Publishing. |
Festival
Records are celebrating their 50th year this year. They began organising
jubilee celebrations last year, with an exhibition at the Power
House Museum and intend to continue this series of compilations.
Another 3 volumes are planned, another all-Australian collection
and then two containing Festival's overseas artists. At this stage,
despite pleadings from collectors, there are no plans to issue a
collection of their more obscure, hard to find, collectable recordings.
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