In this episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack is joined by Kevin Johnson, an Australian musical icon. After getting the first guitar, Kevin joined his first band The Candymen in his late teens. This was also when he started writing songs. By the mid '60s, Kevin's work as a songwriter got the notice of Col Joye who signed Kevin to his publishing company in 1966. In 1967 Kevin moved to the music capital of Australia at the time, Sydney. It was during this time he released his first singles including his song "Woman You Took My Life" which was later covered by Tom Jones. 

His first big hit came in 1971 with his self-penned song  "Bonnie Please Don't Go". It would reach No. 12 in Melbourne, No. 2 in Sydney, and No. 15 on the Go-Set National Top 60. However following this success he would not release music again for another two years. It was this two year hiatus that inspired him to write the song that would become his biggest hit; "Rock and Roll I Gave You all the Best Years of My Life". In 1973 the song would go to number four on the national charts and is now an Australian musical icon. 

Kevin is still doing music with his most recent album "The Devil Found Work" coming out in 2019. In 2023 he released his first novel "Deep Decisions" and a new complication album also in the same year on Vinyl and CD called The Classics.

Jack Zoomed Kevin to discuss his early musical beginnings, his time in The Candymen, when he started writing songs, how he came to be discovered by Col Joye, his early singles made in Sydney in 1967, how it felt having "Woman You Took My Life" covered by Tom Jones, the success of "Bonnie Please Don't Go", the writing process of "Rock and Roll I Gave You all the Best Years of My Life", his albums throughout his time in music, his recent album "The Devil Found Work", his 2023 novel "Deep Decisions", and upcoming musical projects in the works.   

"We were living in Dee Why in Sydney at the time... we had two children by that stage -Shane and Scott who I later wrote songs about later on - they were playing with the kids  next door and to get away from them I use to go out and write in the store room at the back which had all the tools for the maintenance guys...so I was out there with shovels and picks and whatever else and that's where I finished rock and roll off, in the gardening store room" - Kevin Johnson on this episode of vinyl vibes talking about the writing process of his biggest hit "Rock and Roll I Gave You all the Best Years of My Life"

Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins

To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes

The website for Vinyl Vibes. 

If you like this content, we'd love to hear from you. 

In this episode of <a href="https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes">Vinyl Vibes</a>, Jack is joined by <a href="https://www.rocknrolligaveyou.com">Kevin Johnson</a>, an Australian musical icon. After getting the first guitar, Kevin joined his first band The Candymen in his late teens. This was also when he started writing songs. By the mid '60s, Kevin's work as a songwriter got the notice of Col Joye who signed Kevin to his publishing company in 1966. In 1967 Kevin moved to the music capital of Australia at the time, Sydney. It was during this time he released his first singles including his song "Woman You Took My Life" which was later covered by Tom Jones. 
His first big hit came in 1971 with his self-penned song  "Bonnie Please Don't Go". It would reach No. 12 in Melbourne, No. 2 in Sydney, and No. 15 on the Go-Set National Top 60. However following this success he would not release music again for another two years. It was this two year hiatus that inspired him to write the song that would become his biggest hit; "Rock and Roll I Gave You all the Best Years of My Life". In 1973 the song would go to number four on the national charts and is now an Australian musical icon. 
Kevin is still doing music with his most recent album <a href="https://www.rocknrolligaveyou.com/product/the-devil-found-work/">"The Devil Found Work"</a> coming out in 2019. In 2023 he released his first novel "<a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/deep-decisions-kevin-johnson/1143652764">Deep Decisions"</a> and a new complication album also in the same year on Vinyl and CD called <a href="https://www.rocknrolligaveyou.com">The Classics.</a>
Jack Zoomed Kevin to discuss his early musical beginnings, his time in The Candymen, when he started writing songs, how he came to be discovered by Col Joye, his early singles made in Sydney in 1967, how it felt having "Woman You Took My Life" covered by Tom Jones, the success of "Bonnie Please Don't Go", the writing process of "Rock and Roll I Gave You all the Best Years of My Life", his albums throughout his time in music, his recent album "The Devil Found Work", his 2023 novel "Deep Decisions", and upcoming musical projects in the works.   
"We were living in Dee Why in Sydney at the time... we had two children by that stage -Shane and Scott who I later wrote songs about later on - they were playing with the kids  next door and to get away from them I use to go out and write in the store room at the back which had all the tools for the maintenance guys...so I was out there with shovels and picks and whatever else and that's where I finished rock and roll off, in the gardening store room" - Kevin Johnson on this episode of vinyl vibes talking about the writing process of his biggest hit "Rock and Roll I Gave You all the Best Years of My Life"
Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins
To hear the full on-demand version of this program, go to <a href="https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes/">https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes</a>
The <a href="https://www.2nurfm.com.au/shows/vinyl-vibes">website for Vinyl Vibes</a>. 
If you like this content, we'd love to hear from you.

Jack Hodgins speaks with the people behind the music you love.

Jack Hodgins speaks with the people behind the music you love.

Vinyl Vibes

Jack Hodgens talks to the people who created the music that is the foundation of today's music.

Jack Hodgens talks to the people who created the music that is the foundation of today's music.

Kevin Johnson Interview - Songwriter of "Rock And Roll I Gave You All The Best Years of My Life"

On this episode Jack is joined by Lonnie Lee, Australian rock and roll pioneer.

Lonnie grew up in a time before rock and roll, when artists like Johnny Ray and Nat King Cole ruled the airwaves. But everything changed in 1955 when he first heard Bill Haley and from that point onward rock and roll was his passion. In 1957, Lonnie entered a competition setting out to find “Australia’s Elvis” and he won. From there, his career began to take off, getting gigs around Sydney and doing other various competitions. After taking a year out of music in 1958 due to a car accident, Lonnie made his musical comeback in 1959.

Lonnie came to record through promoter Lee Gordon, who signed Lonnie to the Leedon label. During his first session, he didn’t have a B-side for his debut single, so in the studio he and Johnny O’Keefe penned Ain’t It So in about 20 minutes. It would become Lonnie’s first hit, making it into the top ten on the Sydney charts in late 1959. Through the early '60s, Lonnie would have a string of other hits including Starlight Starbright and I Found a New Love.

More recently, Lonnie has just released his first book in a planned set of four on his life — the first book in the series Almost a Star — and goes into his early life before his success in rock and roll.

Jack phoned Lonnie to talk about his early musical memories, the impact Johnny Ray had on him, life pre-rock and roll, hearing Bill Haley and Elvis for the first time, his memories of winning a competition in 1957 that was looking for Australia’s Elvis, his work throughout 1957, the car accident he had in late 1957, his time as a jackaroo in 1958, what it was like being isolated from rock and roll during most of 1958, his comeback to music in 1959, how he came to be signed to the Leedon label, how Ain’t It So came to be, the success he had throughout the late '50s and early '60s, how he came to be the first Aussie artist to have a full-colour album cover, his 2019 album Back to Base X, and his new book Almost a Star.

"So he (a friend of Lonnie's) went and bought this record and of course it was 'Rock Around the Clock' and it was just amazing — hearing this song was just... like a blind person seeing for the first time." – Lonnie Lee on this episode of Vinyl Vibe, talking about hearing rock and roll for the first time.

Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins. 

On this episode Jack is joined by&nbsp;<a href="https://lonnielee.com/official/">Lonnie Lee</a>, Australian rock and roll pioneer.
Lonnie grew up in a time before rock and roll, when artists like Johnny Ray and Nat King Cole ruled the airwaves. But everything changed in 1955 when he first heard Bill Haley and from that point onward rock and roll was his passion. In 1957, Lonnie entered a competition setting out to find &ldquo;Australia&rsquo;s Elvis&rdquo; and he won. From there, his career began to take off, getting gigs around Sydney and doing other various competitions. After taking a year out of music in 1958 due to a car accident, Lonnie made his musical comeback in 1959.
Lonnie came to record through promoter Lee Gordon, who signed Lonnie to the Leedon label. During his first session, he didn&rsquo;t have a B-side for his debut single, so in the studio he and Johnny O&rsquo;Keefe penned&nbsp;Ain&rsquo;t It So&nbsp;in about 20 minutes. It would become Lonnie&rsquo;s first hit, making it into the top ten on the Sydney charts in late 1959. Through the early '60s, Lonnie would have a string of other hits including&nbsp;Starlight Starbright&nbsp;and&nbsp;I Found a New Love.
More recently, Lonnie has just released his first book in a planned set of four on his life &mdash; the first book in the series&nbsp;<a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Almost-Star-Book-Lonnie-Lee-ebook/dp/B0FCXY4D55">Almost a Star</a>&nbsp;&mdash; and goes into his early life before his success in rock and roll.
Jack phoned Lonnie to talk about his early musical memories, the impact Johnny Ray had on him, life pre-rock and roll, hearing Bill Haley and Elvis for the first time, his memories of winning a competition in 1957 that was looking for Australia&rsquo;s Elvis, his work throughout 1957, the car accident he had in late 1957, his time as a jackaroo in 1958, what it was like being isolated from rock and roll during most of 1958, his comeback to music in 1959, how he came to be signed to the Leedon label, how&nbsp;Ain&rsquo;t It So&nbsp;came to be, the success he had throughout the late '50s and early '60s, how he came to be the first Aussie artist to have a full-colour album cover, his 2019 album&nbsp;Back to Base X, and his new book&nbsp;Almost a Star.
"So he (a friend of Lonnie's) went and bought this record and of course it was 'Rock Around the Clock' and it was just amazing &mdash; hearing this song was just... like a blind person seeing for the first time."&nbsp;&ndash; Lonnie Lee on this episode of&nbsp;Vinyl Vibe, talking about hearing rock and roll for the first time.
Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins.&nbsp;

Lonnie Lee - Australian Rock and Roll Pioneer

In this episode of Vinyl Vibes Jack is joined by founder of Ariel, Mike Rudd.

In 1973, Mike’s band Spectrum came to an end shortly after the recording of their 4th studio album, Testimonial. Soon after this, Mike and Spectrum’s bass player Bill Putt were joined by Tamam Shud band members Tim Gaze and Nigel McAra, forming Ariel in the same year. Over the course of three months, Mike would write the band’s first album, A Strange Fantastic Dream. 

Following the release of the band’s first album in late 1973, Tim Gaze and Nigel Macara left the band. Although this devastated Mike at the time, it allowed him to take on the ambitious creative project that was The Jellabad Mutant Rock opera album. Over the course of 1974, this would be Mike and the band’s main project. During the year, the band had interest from EMI in the UK and was invited to record at Abbey Road Studios. However, once The Jellabad Mutant had been demoed, EMI Australia outright rejected it. This led to the band having to rely on material from the Spectrum days and the few songs Mike could write in the short amount of time leading up to recording in the UK.

The Rock and Roll Scars album would be recorded at Abbey Studios and would feature a re-recording of Spectrum’s number 1 hit I’ll Be Gone. They would return to Australia in early 1975 and play the last Sunbury festival. 

Ariel would continue to make music until their last gig in August 1977 at the Dallas Brooks Hall in Melbourne. 

Jack called Mike to talk about the formation of Ariel, the writing of A Strange Fantastic Dream, how the album pushed the boundaries of songwriting, the controversy surrounding some  of the songs on Strange Fantastic Dream, playing a tour with Gary Glitter, the demoing of The Jellabad Mutant, how EMI's rejection of The Jellabad Mutant impact the band when they went to the UK to record, recording at Abbey Road Studios, playing at the '75 Sunbury festival, and the band's last gig in 1977 at the Dallas Brooks Hall. 

"The opportunity to actually demo stuff was pretty remote in those days. I think I had a tape recorder, but that was it. Quite often, they were just dubbed onto a cassette, and the band expanded on that—and whatever we ended up with was Ariel" - Mike Rudd on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about finding the Ariel sound

Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins.

In this episode of Vinyl Vibes Jack is joined by founder of Ariel, Mike Rudd.
In 1973, Mike&rsquo;s band Spectrum came to an end shortly after the recording of their 4th studio album,&nbsp;Testimonial. Soon after this, Mike and Spectrum&rsquo;s bass player Bill Putt were joined by Tamam Shud band members Tim Gaze and Nigel McAra, forming Ariel in the same year. Over the course of three months, Mike would write the band&rsquo;s first album, A Strange Fantastic Dream.&nbsp;
Following the release of the band&rsquo;s first album&nbsp;in late 1973, Tim Gaze and Nigel Macara left the band. Although this devastated Mike at the time, it allowed him to take on the ambitious creative project that was The Jellabad Mutant Rock opera album. Over the course of 1974, this would be Mike and the band&rsquo;s main project. During the year, the band had interest from EMI in the UK and was invited to record at Abbey Road Studios. However, once&nbsp;The Jellabad Mutant had been demoed, EMI Australia outright rejected it.&nbsp;This led to the band having to rely on material from the Spectrum days and the few songs Mike could write in the short amount of time leading up to recording in the UK.
The&nbsp;Rock and Roll Scars album would be recorded at Abbey Studios and would feature a re-recording of Spectrum&rsquo;s number 1 hit I&rsquo;ll Be Gone. They would return to Australia in early 1975 and play the last Sunbury festival.&nbsp;
Ariel would continue to make music until their last gig in August 1977 at the Dallas Brooks Hall in Melbourne.&nbsp;
Jack called Mike to talk about the formation of Ariel, the writing of A Strange Fantastic Dream, how the album pushed the boundaries of songwriting, the controversy surrounding some&nbsp; of the songs on Strange Fantastic Dream, playing a tour with Gary Glitter, the demoing of The Jellabad Mutant, how EMI's rejection of The Jellabad Mutant impact the band when they went to the UK to record, recording at Abbey Road Studios, playing at the '75 Sunbury festival, and the band's last gig in 1977 at the Dallas Brooks Hall.&nbsp;
"The opportunity to actually demo stuff was pretty remote in those days. I think I had a tape recorder, but that was it. Quite often, they were just dubbed onto a cassette, and the band expanded on that&mdash;and whatever we ended up with was Ariel" - Mike Rudd on this episode of Vinyl Vibes talking about finding the Ariel sound
Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins.

Mike Rudd - Founder of Ariel

In this episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack talks for a second time with Gil Mathews, drummer of Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs. Gil joined the Aztecs in August 1970 and remained with them until their farewell performance in 1973. In Jack's last interview with Gil, he delved into hit records by the Aztecs, such as Most People I Know Think I’m Crazy and also their famous 1972 Sunbury performance. In this episode Jack dives deeper into Gil’s time with the Aztecs.

Gil joined Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs in August 1970. On June 13th, 1971, the Aztecs would famously headline a gig at the Melbourne Town Hall. Their Town Hall set would be recorded and released as the live album Aztecs Live. The performance featured the majestic sound of the Melbourne Town Hall organ, which, after being used by the loudest band in the country, reportedly ruptured the foundations of the building next to the Town Hall.

When the Aztecs played the Melbourne Town Hall, above the band and the crowd there was a massive inflatable octopus. The artist behind this floating sea creature, after the Town Hall gig, suggested to the Sydney Opera House committee that they book the Aztecs for a concert. The committee agreed and booked the Aztecs on the assumption they were a string quartet. It wasn't until closer to the concert that they realised that the Aztecs were in fact a rock and roll band. And so Billy Thorpe and The Aztecs, by accident, became the first rock band to perform at the Opera House.

This Sydney Opera House gig would be the farewell gig for Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs. Following this, Gil would remain drumming for Billy Thorpe on his solo albums, such as Downunder in 1973 and Million Dollar Bill in 1975.

Gil has remained in music and has been running his own music label, Aztec Records, since 2005. The label specialises in remastering and reissuing classic Oz releases onto CD. Their latest CD release is The Live Adventures of Ariel.

Jack called Gil to talk about his work at Havoc Records pre-Aztecs, recording Lobby Loyde, his memories of the Melbourne Town Hall gig, the majestic one-off performance of Somebody Left Me Crying, how the Aztecs came to play the Sydney Opera House, why they chose to open the Opera House gig with an acoustic set, his work on Thorpe songs such as It's Almost Summer, and his work today with Aztec Records.

"The (Sydney Opera House) committee thought the Aztecs were a string quartet! They had no knowledge the Aztecs were Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, the rock and roll band, until the day we started playing." - Gil Mathews on this episode of Vinyl Vibes

Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins.

In this episode of Vinyl Vibes, Jack talks for a second time with Gil Mathews, drummer of Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs. Gil joined the Aztecs in August 1970 and remained with them until their farewell performance in 1973. In Jack's last interview with Gil, he delved into hit records by the Aztecs, such as&nbsp;Most People I Know Think I&rsquo;m Crazy and also their famous 1972 Sunbury performance. In this episode Jack dives deeper into Gil&rsquo;s time with the Aztecs.
Gil joined Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs in August 1970. On June 13th, 1971, the Aztecs would famously headline a gig at the Melbourne Town Hall. Their Town Hall set would be recorded and released as the live album&nbsp;Aztecs Live. The performance featured the majestic sound of the Melbourne Town Hall organ, which, after being used by the loudest band in the country, reportedly ruptured the foundations of the building next to the Town Hall.
When the Aztecs played the Melbourne Town Hall, above the band and the crowd there was a massive inflatable octopus. The artist behind this floating sea creature, after the Town Hall gig, suggested to the Sydney Opera House committee that they book the Aztecs for a concert. The committee agreed and booked the Aztecs on the assumption they were a string quartet. It wasn't until closer to the concert that they realised that the Aztecs were in fact a rock and roll band. And so Billy Thorpe and The Aztecs, by accident, became the first rock band to perform at the Opera House.
This Sydney Opera House gig would be the farewell gig for Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs. Following this, Gil would remain drumming for Billy Thorpe on his solo albums, such as Downunder in 1973 and Million Dollar Bill in 1975.
Gil has remained in music and has been running his own music label, <a href="https://www.aztecrecords.com.au/">Aztec Records</a>, since 2005. The label specialises in remastering and reissuing classic Oz releases onto CD. Their latest CD release is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.aztecrecords.com.au/collections/aztec-music/products/avscd097">The Live Adventures of Ariel</a>.
Jack called Gil to talk about his work at Havoc Records pre-Aztecs, recording Lobby Loyde, his memories of the Melbourne Town Hall gig, the majestic one-off performance of Somebody Left Me Crying, how the Aztecs came to play the Sydney Opera House, why they chose to open the Opera House gig with an acoustic set, his work on Thorpe songs such as It's Almost Summer, and his work today with Aztec Records.
"The (Sydney Opera House) committee thought the Aztecs were a string quartet! They had no knowledge the Aztecs were Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, the rock and roll band, until the day we started playing." - Gil Mathews on this episode of Vinyl Vibes
Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins.

Kevin Johnson Interview - Songwriter of "Rock And Roll I Gave You All The Best Years of My Life"

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