In this episode of Vinyl Vibes Jack talks with bass player of The New Dream and Country Radio, John Bois. John is best known for being the bass player in The Dingoes who did the iconic track Way out West, however, prior to this, he was in two groups, The New Dream and Country Radio. John joined The New Dream in early 1970 and got his first taste of national success with the band’s Top 40 bubblegum hits, The Groupie and Soft Delights.

Wanting to get away from bubblegum, John joined Greg Quill’s Country Radio in 1972. Shortly after joining the group, fellow members Greg Quill and Kerryn Tolhurst would pen the band’s signature song Gypsy Queen. It would reach number 9 on the Australian singles chart.

After recording an album and three singles in August 1973 John left country radio to join The Dingoes. More recently John has embarked on a solo career with a recent release being his 2024 album The Coal Minner’s Dimonds.  

Jack called John to talk about his time in Chicago Piano, how he came to join the New Dream, his memories of playing with new Dream, songs on the New Dream setlist, why he wanted to leave New Dream, how he came to join Country Radio, the recording of Gypsy Queen, playing the 1973 Sunbury festival, and his 2024 album The Coal Minner’s Dimonds. 

"That issue for an artist… are you doing anything that is really worthwhile? The New Dream was very poppy, and I kind of recognised that. There came a time when I needed a bit more than that, and that was country radio." – John Bois on this episode of Vinyl Vibes

Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins. 

In this episode of Vinyl Vibes Jack talks with bass player of The New Dream and Country Radio, John Bois. John is best known for being the bass player in The Dingoes who did the iconic track Way out West, however, prior to this, he was in two groups, The New Dream and Country Radio. John joined The New Dream in early 1970 and got his first taste of national success with the band&rsquo;s Top 40 bubblegum hits, The Groupie and Soft Delights.
Wanting to get away from bubblegum, John joined Greg Quill&rsquo;s&nbsp;Country Radio in 1972. Shortly after joining the group, fellow members Greg Quill and Kerryn Tolhurst would pen the band&rsquo;s signature song Gypsy Queen. It would reach number 9 on the Australian singles chart.
After recording an album and three singles in August 1973 John left country radio to join The Dingoes. More recently John has embarked on a solo career with a recent release being his 2024 album <a href="https://johnbois.com/music">The Coal Minner&rsquo;s Dimonds</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Jack called John to talk about his time in Chicago Piano, how he came to join the New Dream, his memories of playing with new Dream, songs on the New Dream setlist, why he wanted to leave New Dream, how he came to join Country Radio, the recording of Gypsy Queen, playing the 1973 Sunbury festival, and his 2024 album The Coal Minner&rsquo;s Dimonds.&nbsp;
"That issue for an artist&hellip; are you doing anything that is really worthwhile? The New Dream was very poppy, and I kind of recognised that. There came a time when I needed a bit more than that, and that was country radio." &ndash; John Bois on this episode of Vinyl Vibes
Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins.&nbsp;

Vinyl Vibes is a new music show created by Jack Hodgins. It features in-depth interviews with those who were a part of the vinyl era of music. If you are rocker, a groover or somewhere in between then this show is for you. On the podcast version you can find the uncut interviews but on the On Demand version you can listen to interviews along with music.

This show is the full creation of Jack Hodgins who is the producer, host and editor for the show. Jack has been a lover of older music since he can remember with Buddy Holly being the person who got him into music. He is even a musician himself having released his own EP.

Vinyl Vibes is a new music show created by Jack Hodgins. It features in-depth interviews with those who were a part of the vinyl era of music. If you are rocker, a groover or somewhere in between then this show is for you. On the podcast version you can find the uncut interviews but on the On Demand version you can listen to interviews along with music.
This show is the full creation of Jack Hodgins who is the producer, host and editor for the show. Jack has been a lover of older music since he can remember with Buddy Holly being the person who got him into music. He is even a musician himself having released his own EP.

Vinyl Vibes

Jack Hodgins interviews the likes of Colin Hanton (Quarrymen) about their music and lives.

Jack Hodgins interviews the likes of Colin Hanton (Quarrymen) about their music and lives.

John Bois - Bassist of The New Dream and of Country Radio

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 <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 Ain&rsquo;t It So 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 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 &mdash; the first book in the series <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Almost-Star-Book-Lonnie-Lee-ebook/dp/B0FCXY4D55">Almost a Star</a> &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 Ain&rsquo;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 &mdash; hearing this song was just... like a blind person seeing for the first time." &ndash; 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.&nbsp;

Lonnie Lee - Australian Rock and Roll Pioneer

In this episode of Vinyl Vibes Jack talks with legendary LA session musician Louie Shelton. Louie was doing music professionally by the time he was 12, playing in the country band Shelby Cooper & the Dixie Mountaineers. It was when he saw Elvis at his high school auditorium that his life changed, and he started playing rock and roll. Throughout his teen years, he was known as a virtuoso of guitar, and it was suggested he should go to LA to be a session musician. He took this advice and moved to LA, however it would take a few years before his dream would be realised.

It was when he started doing demo sessions for upcoming writers that he came to the attention of songwriters Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart. Boyce and Hart had the opportunity to write and produce for an upcoming TV show called The Monkees and wanted Louie to be a part of it. At the first writing session, Hart and Boyce said to Louie that they wanted a Beatles sounding song, and Louie, on the spot, started playing the riff to what would become Last Train to Clarksville. They recorded the backing, and the Monkees overdubbed their vocals. It would be a smash hit, reaching number one in the United States and number 14 in Australia. Louie soon became the most sought-after session musician in LA.

He would go on to play on records by the likes of The Jackson Five, Boz Scaggs, The Carpenters, and Lionel Richie to name a few. Today, Louie is still active in making music and playing the odd gig here and there.  

Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins. 

In this episode of Vinyl Vibes Jack talks with legendary LA session musician Louie Shelton. Louie was doing music professionally by the time he was 12, playing in the country band Shelby Cooper &amp; the Dixie Mountaineers. It was when he saw Elvis at his high school auditorium that his life changed, and he started playing rock and roll. Throughout his teen years, he was known as a virtuoso of guitar, and it was suggested he should go to LA to be a session musician. He took this advice and moved to LA, however it would take a few years before his dream would be realised.
It was when he started doing demo sessions for upcoming writers that he came to the attention of songwriters Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart. Boyce and Hart had the opportunity to write and produce for an upcoming TV show called The Monkees and wanted Louie to be a part of it. At the first writing session, Hart and Boyce said to Louie that they wanted a Beatles sounding song, and Louie, on the spot, started playing the riff to what would become Last Train to Clarksville. They recorded the backing, and the Monkees overdubbed their vocals. It would be a smash hit, reaching number one in the United States and number 14 in Australia. Louie soon became the most sought-after session musician in LA.
He would go on to play on records by the likes of The Jackson Five, Boz Scaggs, The Carpenters, and Lionel Richie to name a few. Today, Louie is still active in making music and playing the odd gig here and there.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Episode Hosted and Produced by Jack Hodgins.&nbsp;

Louie Shelton - Legendary LA Session Musician

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.

John Bois - Bassist of The New Dream and of Country Radio

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