| MILESAGO: Australasian Music & Popular Culture 1964-1975 | Tours by Overseas Artists |
ERIC BURDON & THE NEW
ANIMALS
DAVE DEE, DOZY, BEAKY, MICK & TICH
PAUL & BARRY RYAN
Australian Tour, April
1967
PROMOTER: Miller-Aztec-Stadiums
ERIC BURDON
& THE NEW ANIMALS
Eric Burdon [vocals]
John Weider [guitar and violin]
Vic Briggs [guitar and piano]
Danny McCulloch [bass guitar]
Barry Jenkins [drums]
DAVE DEE, DOZY,
BEAKY, MICK & TICH
Ian 'Tich' Amey [lead guitar]
Trevor 'Dozy' Davies [bass]
John 'Beaky' Dymond [guitar]
'Dave Dee' Harman [vocals]
Michael 'Mick' Wilson [drums]
PAUL & BARRY RYAN
AUSTRALIAN
SUPPORT ACTS:
The Loved Ones
The Mixtures
DATES / CITIES /
VENUES:
Tuesday April 18 - Adelaide - Thebarton
Town Hall (2 shows: 6pm, 8.45pm)
Thursday April 20 - Melbourne - Festival Hall (2 shows:
6pm, 8.45pm)
Friday April 21 - Melbourne - Festival Hall (2 shows: 6pm, 8.45pm)
Saturday April 22 - Brisbane - Festival Hall (2 shows:
6pm, 8.45pm)
Monday April 24 - Sydney - Sydney Stadium (2 shows:
6pm, 8.45pm)
Tuesday April 25 - Sydney - Sydney Stadium (2 shows: 6pm, 8.45pm)
History
Information about this tour is sketchy and more research is required, but we have been able to establish the fact that the band originally booked as co-headliners, The Hollies, did not participate in this tour, and did not come to Australia until the early 1970s. This tour has been mentioned in numerous sources as being co-headlined by The Animals and The Hollies, and this billing is mentioned in almost all articles about the tour's Australian support band, The Loved Ones. However, the band were in fact forced to pull out just before the tour because of the illness of drummer Bobby Elliott.
This is supported by a front page headline 6 April 1967 edition of Go-Set, which read "HOLLIES TO CANCEL TOUR?" A subsequent report in the 19 April edition (about problems at the Animals' Melbourne Festival Hall concerts) specifically names Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky Mick & Tich as the other headliner, and Chris Farrell, who saw this tour, confirms that the this was the correct billing.
This was the first Australasian tour for each of these acts, and as far as can be established, it is the only time that Barry Ryan performed here. He and identical twin brother Paul (sons of 1950s British singer Marion Ryan) were a popular duo in the UK but were not well known elsewhere; it would be another year before Barry Ryan scored his only major international solo hit, the grandiose "Eloise" (later covered by The Damned).
The Australia/NZ tour was also the first major outing for the new 'psychedelic' lineup of The Animals and came just two months before the 'New Animals' made their famous appearance at the epochal Monterey Pop Festival in June. The first single recorded by the new lineup, the raga-tinged "When I Was Young" was released in Australia to coincide with the tour and was very successful, reaching #2, although it only reached #15 in the U.S. and #45 in the U.K. During the tour Burdon and the band gathered, wrote and recorded the material for their next LP, Winds of Change which was released in October 1967.
It was the first international tour promoted by the new partnership between Harry M. Miller's Pan-Pacific Promotions, Kenn Brodziak's Aztec Services and leading venue owner Stadiums Ltd. According to Miller, the tour was a great success financially -- in his memoirs he succinctly commented that "we made a bundle".
However the 19 April edition of Go-Set reported that there were problems with both of the Melbourne Festival Hall shows; the audience was reported to have been unhappy with the performances at the first concert, and the second show was little short of a debacle. According to Go-Set, The Animals refused to perform and walked out because their drummer, Barry Jenkins, had been left behind at the hotel; not surprisingly, they refused to play without him. It was also reported that support act Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky Mick & Tich walked off during their set because of trechinical problems.
Whether Paul and Barry Ryan performed as a duo or whether they were backed by other players is not known at this stage.
Chris Farrell:
"The Animals were truly spectacular. I always remember Dave Dee doing 'Bend It'. He held up his index finger and proceeded to bend it; the song was full of innuendoes."
References / Links
Many thanks to Chris Farrell for additional information and to Michael DeLooper for tour dates.
Harry M. Miller
My Story
(MacMillan, 1983)
Eric Burdon
Official Website
http://www.ericburdon.com/
Kojak's Eric
Burdon Albums website
http://www.ericburdonalbums.com/01.6.1%20Through%20the%20Years.htm
Eric Burdon In
Australia website
http://takver.com/burdon/ericinoz.htm