See also: [The Pink Finks] [Party Machine] [Sons Of The Vegetal Mother] [Mighty Kong]

"A rollicking good-time band amid a sea of hairy heavyweights"
- Glenn A. Baker

The original Daddy Cool lineup, ca. 1971
(l-r) Ross Wilson, Gary Young, Ross Hannaford, Wayne Duncan

Almost by accident, Daddy Cool became one of the most successful Aussie groups of the '70s. The band originally formed in 1970 as an occasional and informal offshoot of Melbourne progressive-rock outfit Sons of The Vegetal Mother. But within twelve months it had completely eclipsed its parent band to become the most successful and popular act in the country, and the Daddy Cool story became one of the pivotal chapters in Australian rock history. Their debut single and LP were the biggest selling Australian records ever released up to that time, and they ushered in a whole new era of Australian rock. The records are perennial favourites, their signature tune, Eagle Rock, has become one of the anthems of Australian popular music -- it was recently voted by APRA as one of the ten best Australian songs of all time. Their recordings l have been anthologised many times in many forms, with around 20 compilations of their songs to date.

It might have looked like overnight success, but of course the background to Daddy Cool's breakthrough was years of hard slog. Founders Ross "The Boss" Wilson and Ross Hannaford had played together around Melbourne since they were teenagers, first in the Pink Finks, then Party Machine. The rhythm section, drummer Gary Young and bassist Wayne Duncan, had been working consistently since the early 60s, mostly in instrumental bands backing solo singers - notably in the Rondells, the backing band for pop duo Bobby & Laurie.

After the breakup of Party Machine in 1969, Ross Wilson was asked to go to the UK to work with expatriate band Procession, who were floundering and in search of a new musical direction. In the event, it didn't work out, and after they split, Ross returned to Australia in early 1970, armed with some hot new material and the concept for a new band, inspired by the work of Frank Zappa and The Mothers. Ross was particularly captivated by Zappa's 50's rock'n'roll/doowop parody, Cruisin with Reuben and the Jets.

The new band, Sons Of The Vegetal Mother, was an "esoteric special occasion progressive band" with a floating lineup based around the nucleus of Wilson and Hannaford. Their music was strongly influenced by Wilson's interest in Zappa and they performed intermittently at multimedia and art events, 'happenings' and concerts at Melbourne galleries and venues like the TF Much Ballroom. Band 'members' at these events included Wilson and Hannaford's former Party Machine colleague Mike Rudd (Spectrum), bassist Tim Partidge and sax player Jeremy Noone (Co. Caine).

As well as writing progressively-oriented material, Wilson had begun exploring the music of the rock'n'roll era in earnest. (no doubt inspired by Zappa). He came up with the idea of creating his own version of 'Reuben & The Jets' -- an informal rock'n'roll group to play this style of music, which was as part parody, part tribute. He was encouraged in this by Young and Duncan -- who shared his love for the music of that period and had large rock'n'roll record collections -- and by friends like Keith Glass. Keith in fact was originally pencilled in as one of the singers for the group (curtailed by his recruitment for HAIR) and it was Keith who suggested the song Daddy Cool (from which they took their name) as an addition to their repertoire. Numerous other numbers from the classic rock'n'roll era of the 1950s became staples of the DC set list, and these were combined with Wilson's more progressively-oriented originals.

In the beginning, Daddy Cool was certainly not the main event. In keeping with the theatrical tone of the time (think Captain Matchbox) the idea was that the two Rosses, Gary and Wayne would step out and perform a short, snappy set of '50s rock'n'roll songs, in between the lengthy progressive pieces performed by the main group. Their first (impromptu) appearance was at a Vegetals gig at Glenelg Town Hall in November 1970, when they filled in (as DC) for a support band that failed to show up. A few weeks later Daddy Cool made their 'official' debut at the TF Much Ballroom in Melbourne.

They combined great musical strength, honed by years of experience playing around the traps, with an irreverent and ebullient stage presence. In Wilson they had both a great songwriter and one of the great frontmen of Australian rock. Gangly and rather goofy looking, Ross Hannaford's appearance belied the fact that he was - and is - one of the true legends of the guitar - and the perfect foil for Wilson. Another memorable feature was their stage outfits - the Mickey Mouse ears, the foxtail which Wilson attached to the back of his pants, and of course Hannaford's trademark helicopter cap. Daddy Cool stood out against the prevailing serious progressive mood of the time. They rocked, they were danceable, immediate, accessible and, above all, fun.

Audiences responded immediately. Over the next few months SOVTM/Daddy Cool became one of the most popular live acts on the Melbourne dance/disco circuit. They played regular gigs at the Much More Ballroom, Garrison, the Myer Music Bowl and the Melbourne Town Hall, as well as festival appearances at Launching Place (Melbourne) and Odyssey (Wallacia, NSW). By the time of their rapturous reception at the Myponga Festival in January 1971 (where the DC set totally eclipsed the Vegetals) it was clear that Daddy Cool were far more popular than their parent band. This appearance is also notable as the place where film maker Chris Lofven shot the concert footage of the group that he used in the Eagle Rock film clip (It was shot at Myponga, not at Sunbury as many have suggested). Sons of the Vegetal Mother was soon shelved for good.

The major turning point came on 7 May 1971, and from there things moved very fast. Daddy Cool played a gig at the Melbourne Town Hall with Tully, and it was there that Robie Porter spotted them. A child guitar prodigy, Porter was a teenage pop performer turned producer. He had his own unusual -- and remarkably successful -- musical career in the early 60s, performing guitar instrumentals under the stage name "Rob E.G". In 1971, he had recently become part-owner of the Sparmac label and when he saw DC, he immediately signed them to his label. Within days, he had them in the studio and the first single was out before the end of the month.

Porter produced the tracks for their first LP, and he also contributed piano and steel guitar to various tracks, with the help of Jeremy Noone on saxophone. It's a testament to the band's strength as a performing unit that they were able to cut all the tracks in a marathon two-night, 22 hour session. The album included two Ross Wilson originals that became instant classics: Come Back Again and their legendary debut single Eagle Rock.

Eagle Rock's musical character was influenced by Delta blues (evident in the classic opening riff), as was the title. Wilson had picked up the phrase from a newspaper article which he read while he was in London -- a Sunday Times story describing the juke joints of the Deep South in the 1930s, which included a fateful photo:

Eagle Rock entered the Melbourne charts at No 20; it was immediately picked up by pop stations around the country and was the national #1 within two weeks. It became one of the biggest hits of the year and its success shot the band into the national spotlight. They undertook a joint nationwide tour with Spectrum, and the song also had plenty of TV exposure thanks to the famous promotional clip made by Chris Lofven, a former member of Cam-Pact who had also recently made the clip for Spectrum's national smash hit I'll Be Gone.

Eagle Rock rewrote the record books for Australian popular music - it was #1 nationally for 8 weeks, #1 in Melbourne for a record-breaking 17 weeks, charted for 25 weeks in all, and became the best-selling Australian single of 1971. Daddy Cool were voted Best Group in the 1971 Go Set Pop Poll, and Best Group in the TV Week "King of Pop" awards. Eagle Rock has long since taken on a life of its own; it's become one of the best-known songs of the era, and a staple of commercial radio "classic rock" programming. Legend has it that Elton John was so struck with the song that he immediately penned his own riposte, Crocodile Rock, which was an massive international hit for him; on his 1973 tour, Marc Bolan good-naturedly ribbed Wilson about "ripping off" Eagle Rock's main riff from T-Rex's Ride A White Swan! When it was re-released as a 12" single in 1982 it was a Top 10 hit all over again.

The debut LP Daddy Who? ... Daddy Cool was released in July 1971. It too went to #1 and smashed all previous sales records - it went gold within the month, sold an unprecedented 60,000 copies from its initial release, and went on to become the first Australian LP to sell more than 100,000 copies locally. The album was originally issued in a textured cover, and the cover illustration, -- a cartoon rendering of the band members by Melbourne artist (and Go-Set staffer) Ian McCausland -- effectively became the group's logo. McCausland created all the band's graphics and was responsible for much of their visual image. The album is still as fresh and immediate as it was back in 1971, and Porter's clean, warm production has tremendous presence and fidelity, and still sounds terrific. The majority of the original songs were by Ross Wilson (except for Bom Bom, which was co-written by Hannaford) but they sit very comfortably next to the vintage R&B covers - Guided Missile, Good Rockin' Daddy, Cheery Pie, Slay & Crewe's Daddy Cool and Chuck Berry's Schooldays.

As brilliant as the group was, it also has to be said that their success was partly due to good luck and good timing - it was released in May 1971, at the height of the infamous "radio ban". At this time commercial radio was embroiled in a dispute with the major record companies, who wanted to charge royalty payments for songs played on air. Not wanting to pony up for what they (rightly) claimed was free promotion for the majors, radio boycotted all major label product. Obviously though, radio still needed material, so local independent labels like Fable and Sparmac leaped into the breach, and thus got a unique chance to get their foot in the door - a situation not really possible before or after, when the majors had a stranglehold on commercial play-lists.

In August they flew to America for a short tour, including a 4-day engagement at the famous Whisky A Go Go in Los Angeles, supporting the Elvin Bishop Group. The tour was not especially successful, largely because of differing expectations. The promoters wanted the good-time, funny-costume Daddy Cool, and they overhyped the group in the US, but Wilson was reportedly very uneasy about taking American culture back to Americans, and worried about looking foolish to US audiences. The resulting performances were reportedly below par, but the trip did result in the offer of further engagements later that year, on which they supported acts like Flash Cadillac & The Continental Kids and Captain Beefheart; it also secured the release of Eagle Rock on Warner Bros (why it never became an international hit remains a total mystery). Both albums and various singles were released in the US over the next year, but Daddy Cool remained essentially a cult attraction on the US West Coast. The other result was the track Please Please America, a tongue-in-cheek plea for stateside fame and fortune, inspired by their experiences on the tour.

Melbourne DJ Ken Sparkes (left) greets Daddy Cool
at Tullamarine Airport on their return from the USA

In September Jeremy Noone (Company Caine) joined on sax and keyboards. He already had a long association with the band as part of the floating lineup of the Vegetals, played on their ultra-rare The Garden Party EP, and of course also played sax on the first Daddy Cool album. His arrival coincided with the release of their wonderful second single, Come Back Again, which was another huge hit for them reaching #2 nationally. It was covered by country singer Anne Kirkpatrick in 1986.

Daddy Cool toured the US again in October and then returned to release their 5-track D.C.E.P. in November. It was divided into a "Jump" side (Flip, Lollipop and Jerry's Jump) and a "School" side (Long After Schooldays Are Through and Three O'clock Thrill), came in a lavish gatefold cover, again with artwork by Ian McCausland, who created the pop-art candy-cane design for the front cover. Each of the group members got to sing a track, and it was another big success for them, reaching #11. On November 29 Daddy Cool achieved another Australian first, becoming the first local rock band to broadcast live from a recording studio. They performed in front of 80 people at Armstrong's Studio in Melbourne, and the concert was broadcast nationally around Australia and also to New Zealand.

The third single, released in December, was another brilliant Wilson original, Hi Honey Ho / Don't Ever Leave Me (Don't Ever Go), which was later issued as the group's second US single. The song was taken from their forthcoming second LP, and was also released in a rare promotional issue which carries the full-length (6'45") album version, as opposed to the edited (3'29") version on the official single.

The new LP Sex, Dope, Rock'n'Roll - Teenage Heaven was released in mid-January 1972; its famous "lipstick kiss" cover was designed by Hannaford and realised by Ian McCausland, who also provided the irreverent comic strip which adorned the inside of the gatefold. The LP showed their repertoire expanding, mixing the familiar 50's-style rock'n'roll with more progressive material, along the lines of Wilson's earlier work in Sons of The Vegetal Mother. Some of the longer tracks indicate that they were still listening hard to Zappa (and the Hot Rats LP in particular) - a fact especially noticeable in the arrangement for Wilson's dope anthem Make Your Stash, which Ross had already performed with Procession and the Vegetals, and which had also been covered - in a radically different arrangement - by Spectrum. There were also unmistakeable"lipstick traces" of Zappa in the album's centrepiece, the "drive-in trilogy" Teen Love / Drive-In Movie / Love In An F.J. There was some controversy after the LP was reviewed in a Melbourne newspaper, mainly due to its title, and the choice of the two '50s covers (both of which were mildly suggestive, at best): The Penguins' Baby Let Me Bang Your Box, and Billy Ward & The Dominoes' Sixty Minute Man. There was the inevitable outcry from the wowser fringe, with calls to ban the LP, even though both songs were mild innuendo at best, and what's more, they had been released in the early 1950s in America and had been top-sellers at the time. Undoubtedly, this all helped sales and Teenage Heaven was another Top 10 album. It was issued in the US (minus the "Sex, Dope, Rock'n'Roll..." part of the title!) and it was promoted with as a special 10", 78rpm record, which featured the drive-in trilogy across its two sides.

In February '72 Jerry Noone left the band, apparently because he felt that he was not fully involved in the spirit of the group. He was replaced in March by Ian Winter (ex-Carson) who took over the rhythm guitar duties, so that Wilson could concentrate on singing. They undertook a third US tour from March-June 1972 and recorded several tracks including Teenage Blues, At The Rockhouse and Rock'n'Roll Lady at Warner Bros studios in L.A.

The next single I'll Never Smile Again / Daddy Rocks Off was released in June in the US and in July in Australia, providing another Top 40 hit, peaking at No.27. By now the group was becoming divided, with Young and Duncan keen to form their own band. By August the end was in sight and they performed their farewell show (which was recorded) at the Much More Ballroom on 13 August 1972. They released Teenage Blues/At The Rockhouse (probably in late 1972 - although exactly when is not listed in Ian McFarlane's exhaustive Daddy Cool discography), reportedly in order to fulfill contractual obligations to Sparmac. The four original members pursued their own plans, and Ian Winter rejoined Carson.

In September '72 Young and Duncan formed Gary Young's Hot Dogs, and the two Rosses began planning their next venture. The project briefly involved Tim Gaze and Nigel Macara, ex-Tamam Shud, but they soon moved on, after which singer Gulliver Smith and guitarist Russell Smith from Company Caine came in. Gulliver was only involved briefly, and he moved on to a solo career and album before the band was launched, but Russell Smith stayed on and two Smith-Smith songs made it onto the eventual album. In May 1973 Wilson and Hannaford unveiled the new band, dubbed Mighty Kong, which comprised Wilson, Hannaford, Smith, bassist Tim Partridge and drummer Ray Arnott, from Spectrum. (Arnott's departure to join Kong in fact triggered the break-up of Spectrum, but in a neat turnaround, Gaze and Macara then linked up with Mike Rudd and co. to form the first lineup of Rudd's new band Ariel.) Unfortunately Mighty Kong did not achieve long-term success and the group folded in December 1973, just after the release of their excellent and much-underrated album All I Wanna Do Is Rock.

Meanwhile, the Daddy Cool juggernaut rolled on regardless. Sparmac (who had a lot of unreleased material stockpiled) issued the Daddy Cool's Golden Hits LP in January 1973; it combined the best tracks from the two LPs, and the original pressing came with a bonus 7" of the Hi Honey Ho / Don't Ever Leave Me single. During 1973 Sparmac was bought out by Wizard Records, co-owned by Porter and Steve Binder, and they released the double album Daddy Cool Live! The Last Drive-in Movie Show in September '73. This was the live recording of their farewell gig at the Much More Ballroom from August 1972. The track order faithfully followed the set list on the night. Record One features the original 4-piece Daddy Cool, with Side One devoted to R&B covers, and Side Two turned over to Gary Young's selection of country and rockabilly numbers. On Record Two, the second half of the show, they were joined by Ian "Willy" Winter and this included some of the more progressive material including Flash In My Head and Boy You're Paranoid. The original pressing also included a bonus one-sided 33-1/3 rpm single with the live version of Daddy Cool. Incredibly, it sold less than 5000 copies on its first release in spite of the group's huge popularity, and it is now by far the rarest of their three original LPs.

By 1974 Mighty Kong and Hot Dog had both split. Because of financial pressures (i.e. outstanding debts to Sparmac), Daddy Cool got back together for a rapturously-received reunion gig at the second Sunbury Festival in January '74. It was meant to be a "one-off" event, but the band was so encouraged by their reception that they decided on a semi-permanent reformation with the original members, and a series of shows during 1974-75. A new studio LP was arranged and the group began recording in April/May, but during the sessions a dispute erupted with Porter and Wizard over contracts and copyright, and only the tracks All I Wanna Do Is Rock Parts I & II, Boogie Man and I Was A Teenage Creature made it onto tape. These were later released on the Missing Masters LP in 1980.

In June/July 1974 Ross Wilson took a month out from Daddy Cool out to produce the debut album for a new Melbourne band, whom he had first seen when they supported Mighty Kong in 1973. Wilson was reportedly so impressed that he immediately their songwriter to a publishing contract, and he was instrumental in getting them signed to Michael Gudinski's Mushroom Records label. It was a gamble for Mushroom, who were by then struggling financially. The band had not been notably successful - in fact they had been booed off the stage during their first major appearance at Sunbury earlier that year - and it was also Wilson's first major production job. But the wager paid off handsomely - the record was of course the legendary Living in the Seventies by Skyhooks, released in October 1974. It made Skyhooks stars overnight, became the best-selling album in Australian recording history to that time (eclipsing Daddy Cool's own record) and saved Mushroom's skin, establishing Mushroom and Gudinski as a major force in the Australian recording industry.

In January 1975, Daddy Cool appeared at the final Sunbury Festival, after which (Ian) Gunther Gorman was recruited to help bolster the group's lineup, but by now Daddy Cool was now well past its use-by date. They soldiered on for a few more months; when Wayne Duncan was sidelined after injuring his hand in a car accident in June, Hannaford switched to bass and guitarist Wayne Burt (later of Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons) was brought in, creating the very last Daddy Cool lineup. In August Ross Wilson announced the group's final split, and in September 1975 they played their final shows at Paddington Town Hall in Sydney and the Reefer Cabaret in Melbourne.

Since the final DC split, all four members have worked with one another in various combinations at various times, and each has a list of credits far too long to recite here in full:

• Ross Wilson worked with Young and Wayne Burt on the soundtrack for Chris Lofven's cult road movie Oz in 1975, and had a hit with the solo single Living in the Land of Oz. He continued his association with Skyhooks, producing their second and third albums, and of course went on to enormous success in the late 70s and into the 80s as leader of his new band Mondo Rock.
• Ross Hannaford is still one of Australia's most respected guitarists, and he has done a huge amount of session work, and played in many bands. His group and recording credits including The Black Sorrows, Paul Madigan & The Humans, Ian Moss, Steve Hoy, Mark Gillespie, Billy T and Goanna. In recent years he and his band Diana's Kiss have had a long-standing residency at the famous Esplanande Hotel in St Kilda.
• Gary Young has worked and recorded with a long list of prominent groups and artists over the intervening years. including Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons (1976-81), his own group Rockin' Emus in 1981-2, and he even subbed for the departed Steve Prestwich in Cold Chisel in 1983. He continued his association with Joe Camilleri and was the original drummer in The Black Sorrows in 1984-5.
• Wayne Duncan likewise has a long string of credits since Daddy Cool, which includes work with Gulliver's Travels, Jane Clifton, Phil Manning, the Black Sorrows and the Ross Hannaford Trio.

Daddy Cool have been anthologised many times, with numerous 'Best Of' collections appearing over the years. Probably the most interesting compilation to collectors would be The Missing Masters, issued in 1980, which brought together the rare single b-sides like Don't Ever Leave Me, all the previously unreleased studio material. including the three tracks from the aborted third studio LP, plus a selection of live tracks.

In 1992 Mega Records issued the definitive Daddy Cool collection, Totally Cool, a 3CD boxed set compiling the studio albums, the singles, the D.C.E.P., the live album, and the rare tracks from the Missing Masters LP. The only problem with this fantastic set is that it regrettably uses the shorter versions of Come Back Again and Hi Honey Ho rather than the longer album versions.

In 1995 the original Daddy Cool lineup got back together and joined Skyhooks for a final farewell tour, which was promoted with the single The Ballad of Oz, released in tandem with Skyhooks' valedictory Jukebox in Siberia.

7/71 Daddy Who? Daddy Cool! [Sparmac SPL 001]
Reissued 1977 (with different sleeve) as Wizard ZL 214 and in 1982 (with original artwork but non-gatefold sleeve) as Wizard MID-160005

1/72 Sex, Dope, Rock'nRoll: Teenage Heaven [Sparmac SPL 002]
Reissued 1977 (with "back seat" illustration as front cover) as Wizard ZL-242

1/73 Daddy Cool's Golden Hits [Sparmac SPL 004]

9/73 Daddy Cool Live! The Last Drive-In Movie Show [Wizard ZL 202]
Reissued 1982 with different cover

?/76 The Greatest Hits [Wizard ZL 219] (with 'back seat' cover)
Reissued in 1982 with red cover

?80 The Missing Masters [Wizard ZL 241]

?/82 Daddy's Coolest Volume I [Wizard WIZLP 2002]
Reissued 1992 on CD as Mega 472002-2

?/86 Daddys' Coolest Volume II [Wizard WIZLP 2003]
Reissued 1992 on CD as Mega 472003-2

?/86 Daddy's Coolest [Wizard RRLP 104-105]

? The Daddy Cool Collection [Axis 260313]

? The Daddy Cool Story [Music For Pleasure MFP 2-398042]

? The Best Of Daddy Cool [Summit SRA 295-001]

?/88 Retrospective [EMI EMX 748315]

• Long Way To The Top (ABC TV)
• Paul Conn (1996) - 2000 Weeks
• Ian McFarlane (1999) - Encyclopedia of Australian Rock & Pop
• Ian McFarlane with Francis Andersen (1990) - "Daddy Cool" article in From The Vault, Vol. 2, No 3, 1990
• Noel McGrath (1978) - Australian Encyclopedia of Rock
• Ed Nimmervol (1981) - "Daddy Who?" article in the Australian Music Directory (edited by Peter Beilby & Michael Roberts
• Chris Spencer (1993) - Who's Who of Australia Rock