Joe Camilleri

Joe Camilleri has had a remarkable career and he’s reached a point that he is willing to look back on it – for one night only. On Saturday May 9 Camilleri will be performing at the venerable Palais Theatre at what has been billed as a celebration of his 45th Anniversary in music. I’m not sure exactly how that is calculated but it seems likes a good excuse for a great show.

Now the fact is there is ample opportunity to see Joe Camilleri in action – he performs around 150 shows per year – but few shows offer the circumstances featured at the Palais. Firstly it’s the venue itself  – I’ve rarely found a live act that hasn’t benefited from the atmosphere provided by the grand old concert hall.

Secondly there’s no doubt that the format of the show, with Camilleri being joined by various representatives of all of his musical incarnations with be a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Camilleri has been involved in a remarkable series of bands commencing with the Pelaco Brothers (which included the likes of Steve Cummings, Johnny Topper and Peter Lilley) through to The Falcons, the Black Sorrows, the Revelators and Bakelite Radio.

Each of these bands will be represented on a set list which Camilleri admits is proving very difficult to finalise.

“I’m half doing it for the people who have played with me and I think that’s a nice thing”, says Camilleri, explaining the motivation for the show. “I’ve been a leader of a band but I’ve had to learn on the job. You’ve got guys playing in the trenches with you and you need these guys. While we are all alive I thought it would be god to do something that shows the journey that we’ve been able to make. Part of it is pride to show that I’m more than one-dimensional and I’ve done different things”

There’s no doubting Camilleri’s credentials when it comes to versatility. He’s played the length and breadth of the country and in just about every format imaginable. He’s had hit records – at one time he had three albums in the Top 100 and one of those Harley And Rose was selling 67000 copies in a week. He’s also had stages where he was pressing his own vinyl and selling it out the back of his car.

“Half the time I feel like I’m in the game and I could have a hit record but most of the time I feel like I’m not in that game”, he considers. “ But I feel like I’ve got enough credits to play. What I’ve ended up with is people who come to see me not just to hear Harley And Rose or to hear Chained To The Wheel, but they just come to see what is going to happen.

“Every time I do a gig, I’ve come to play – that goes without saying. But it’s about something else too. It’s not about trying to prove anything, its about the feeling that music gives you, whether its my song or someone else’s song. It’s about playing with people that you like to stand next to on stage and looking out for them.”

Camilleri claims that “I’m fighting for my life every time I play”, but there is no disguising the fact that the passion to create still burns within him. He’s one of those musicians who recognises that music is his job, and he does his best to go about it in a business-like way but at the same time cant deny that as jobs go he’s got one of the better ones.

In a way he is in a great position. He’s had enough success that he is a household name and hence able to continue to work knowing that there will be an audience. But he’s never had a such big hits that they have become millstones around his neck.

This is born out by the fact that one of the central parts of the 45th Anniversary show will be the music of the Falcons. They had some great songs and a few smaller hits but they are remembered with a greater affection than thir commercial standing would suggest. The Falcons will re-unite in their entirety for the Palais concert.

“The Falcons were a much bigger band Than I ever thought they were – in the hearts and minds of a lot of people even though we only had minimal success. It really was about the music in the Falcons – there wasn’t any beauties in the band! People came to see the band and other bands loved that band.

“They gave me that first taste of hearing good musicians play the songs and be able to ad-lib. We were a band of a time and we were an R&B band when that was out of step. It was a treat to see people like Elvis Costello and Graham Parker also being out of step.

“For the few years we were together as a band, it was a real band . I say that the Falcons was the only real band I’ve been in. There was no-one going big and if  one didn’t play, nobody played.”

Talking to Joe Camilleri you sense that he still has unfinished business to take care of. As Sony Music head Denis handlin once said to him “there is no finish line for you Joe” He’s continually working on new songs with his long time collaborator Nick Smith and he releases a surprisingly large number of albums through his Head label, including a number of jazz artists.

He contemplates the notion that there is an increasing acceptance of performers of his era as still being relevant and capable of releasing their best music. Artists like his contemporaries Stephen Cummings and Ross Wilson are still at the height of their powers both as live performers and recording artists.

And typically Camilleri has worked out that there is a DIY ethic that is best suited for sustaining a career.

“You’ve got to become your own shop front”, he explains. “You sell two or three thousand copies through the stores and that’s considered a lot of records these days. But I can sell that amount myself at shows in a few months.

“These days you spend more time signing CD’s and doing photos. People will gladly give you money to buy the CD, to get the photo. Then you’re hoping that they will go home and play the friggin’ CD. Sometimes you will then get an email saying that they did play it and  it was worth the 25 bucks. That’s all you can hope for”

Joe Camilleri 45th Anniversary Concert

In what sounds like one of the highlights of the local music year Joe Camilleri has announced a special show celebrating his 45th Anniversary of making music.

What makes the show special is that its on at the Palais Theatre which remains one of the finest venues in the country to see good concerts and that Jowe will be delving deep into his back catalogue on the night playing songs from Jo Jo Zep and the Falcons, the Black Sorrows and Bakelite Radio. He is expected to be joined by members of all of those bands in what should be a celebration not just of Joes music but of Melbourne musicians – because let’s face it there isn’t too many great local players that haven’t been in someway touched by Joe Camilleri.

But the good news doesn’t stop there. Part of the proceeds on the night with be donated to the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal.

But there’s more – the ticket price includes a copy of Joe’s limited edition greatest hits and rarities CD!

The concert is on Saturday May 9 and tickets go on sale on Monday March 23.

Willie De Ville

Willie De Ville was one of the names that was essential to the legend of CBGBs but in truth he had little in common with the likes of The Ramones, Blondie or Television. But I suppose being mis-categorised is nothing new for an artist that Glenn A Baker described as “chronically misunderstood”.

Initially recording under the band name Mink De Ville the band created music that owed more to Spanish Harlem than to the Lower East Side. So much so that one of their most successful songs was their version of the song Spanish Harlem which had been a hit for Ben E King, King Curtis and Aretha Franklin.

Whether recording as Mink De Ville or Willie DeVille, the artist born as Billy Borsay seemed to be channelling the streets of New York through his music – a rich blend of latin, r&b, salsa and swing that was unabashedly ‘urban’ long before that term came to mean what it does today.

But it was Willie’s voice that bought it all together – within one song he could be as tough and streetwise as a switchblade knife and as heartbreaking and romantic as a moonlit night. Willie was the real deal.

But he remained difficult to pigeonhole – one critic described his album Le Chat Bleu as “an artful but unexpected melange of soulful struts and grand romantic ballads, eccentrically spiced with a cavorting cajun reel and an elegant doo wop tribute”. There’s more genres in that description than most artists master in a whole career.

Artists like Bruce Springsteen and Southside Johnny Lyon could be seen to draw on the stylings offered by Mink DeVille just as DeVille himself drew on similar influences such as Mitch Ryder and The Drifters. Much of  De Ville’s music was boardwalk music without the boardwalk.

The influence of Mink DeVille reached into Australia with artists such as Joe Camilleri and the Sports clearly being aware of his sound and style.

Mink De Ville’s early albums Cabretta, Return to Magenta, Le Chat Bleu, and Coup de Grace were produced by Jack Nitzsche – famed for his work with Phil Spector and later with Neil Young, Mick Jagger and Randy Newman amongst numerous others or Steve Douglas, another Phil Spector alumni.

Over the years DeVille went on to work with numerous iconic figures from Elvis Presley’s rhythm section to the Muscle Shoals horn section, to Mark Knofler to Chet Atkins – he was a singer than musicians loved to work with.

In 1987 Willie De Ville dropped the Mink De Ville band name and continued to record under his own name. The first album Miracle was produced by Knofler. Perhaps the song where his voice reached the widest audience was Storybook Love which was nominated for an Academy Award after it was featured in The Princess Bride.

Willie De Ville hasn’t really stopped recording and touring although he seems to have always been more popular in Europe than in his homeland.

The albums released under his own name are ;

* Miracle (Polydor), 1987
* Victory Mixture (Sky Ranch) 1990 (Orleans Records) 1990
* Backstreets of Desire (FNAC) 1992 (Rhino) 1994
* Willy DeVille Live (FNAC) 1994
* Big Easy Fantasy (New Rose) 1995
* Loup Garou (EastWest) 1995 (Discovery) 1996
* Horse of a Different Color (EastWest) 1999
* Acoustic Trio Live in Berlin (Eagle) 2003
* Crow Jane Alley (Eagle) 2004
* Pistola (Eagle), 2008

Willie De Ville continued to play in America and Europe until his death on August 7, 2009

Between The Bays Festival Returns

In its fourth year the Between The Bays Festival is on again providing a late summer highlight for Victorian gig goers.

The date this year is Saturday 21st March and the line-up is impressive:

DIESEL & BAND

JOE CAMILLERI & THE BLACK SORROWS

DEBORAH CONWAY & WILLY ZYGIER

NICK BARKER

STEPHEN CUMMINGS

REBECCA BARNARD

LISA MILLER

GOOD FIGHT

Between the Bays happens at Penbank, located at the end of Rickards Road in Moorooduc, Mornington Peninsula (Mel Ref 146 G8) approximately 1 hour south of Melbourne on a  37 acre property five minutes from Mornington, which has many different accommodation options.

Between the Bays is also a food festival and attendees will be treated to a variable feast of local gourmet food stalls offering a wide range of tastes and smells. Food stalls include the Flying Calamari Brothers, The Moroccan Spice Kitchen, Wood Fired Pizzas, Specialty Cheese Platters, Chorizo Sausage, Salad Cones, Mango Licks and even a Lolly Shop for the kids! Not to mention the amazing assortment of homemade cakes, slices and jams available to enjoy with your freshly brewed latte or cappuccino!

Between the Bays has a great patronage of local wineries that attend the festival. including Barmah Park, Tuck’s Ridge and T’Gallant to sip try and buy whilst lying back on the lawn enjoying the festival sights and sounds. If wine is not your thing, then you may be interested in sampling a few different local beers handcrafted by the famous Red Hill Brewery. Beers include Golden Ale, Wheat Beer and Scotch Ale.

Music At Melbourne Zoo

If you are looking for something a bit different to do on a warm summer night then perhaps a Zoo Twilight might be the go. For $34 you get admission to the Zoo from 4.30pm  where you can wander around looking at the animals before setting up your picnic blanket and staking your claim on the lawn.

There’s a bunch of shows happening over January, February and March and although some of them have more appeal than others those listed below look like the pick of the crop.

The music starts at 6.30pm and the food options are impressive.

You can take advantage of Tastes of Twilights. On offer will be gourmet pizzas, noodles, grilled wraps and paella straight from the pan. Matilda Bay will be offering boutique tap beers and showcasing some of Victoria’s best wines. Coffee, cold beverages and ice-creams will also be available. All food items will be the same price and to simplify and spend less time in queues you will be able to buy food tickets from all the beverage outlets.

January

Sun. 18     Tim Rogers and Nick Barker
Sat. 24      Tex Perkins and Jess McAvoy

February

Sat. 14       Kate Ceberano and Ryan Meeking
Sat. 21       Mental As Anything and Michael Paynter
Sun. 22      The Badloves and Chris Wilson
Sat. 28       Joe Camilleri & The Black Sorrows

March

Sun. 8         Diesel and The Hello Morning
Sun. 15       Wilbur Wilde & Lisa Edwards