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The Diary of a Rock Band
1956 – 1980
Foreword by Glenn A. Baker
JON HAYTON & LEON ISACKSON
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com
Copyright © Jon Hayton and Leon Isackson 2011
Cover design, typesetting: Chameleon Print Design
First published in Australia 2010 by Sid Harta Publishers Pty Ltd
Cover Photo: Publicity shot of Dig Richards & The R'Jays taken November 1960. L-R: Peter Baker (Bass), Leon Isackson (drums), Dig Richards (vocals), Ron Patton (sax), Jon Hayton (guitar).
The right of Jon Hayton and Leon Isackson to be identified as the Authors of the Work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
Hayton, Jon and Isackson, Leon
Behind the Rock and Beyond
ISBN-13: 978-1-4566-0459-2
Praise for Behind the Rock
‘Crazy diary of rock has tales to shock. A fascinating raucous book first published by Time-Life. It tells the story of the rock era from the inside — and Jon and Leon pull no punches.’
MONICA HENRY, DAILY TELEGRAPH MIRROR
‘Behind The Rock traces the story of rock’n’roll in Australia in an age of innocence. Its pages are littered with references to legendary Aussie bands — and the girls who shared the fun.’
MANLY DAILY
‘A real backstage look at the beginning of the Australian rock industry. Leon and Jon caught the birth, adolescence and middle age of Australian rock’n’roll.’
MATTHEW COWLEY, NORTH SHORE TIMES
‘Behind The Rock is written in a conversational style which vividly re-creates the highs and lows of life in a rock’n’roll band in Australia 30 years ago.’
NINE TO FIVE
‘This book is a valuable account of what Glenn A. Baker describes as an “appallingly over-eulogised era”. The authors provide much humour as they naively stumble into rock “stardom”. Behind The Rock is compelling reading for all musicians.’
BOB HOWE, MUSICIANS NEWS LETTER
‘Reading this “Diary of a Rock Band” is like sitting in a pub for nine hours listening to two guys reminisce about the days when they were more famous than the “Brumbies”. You’ll love Behind The Rock — It’s an oral history as honest and unpretentious as any conversation.’
ELIZABETH FEIZKHAH, MELBOURNE
‘Behind The Rock is based on the so called “Crazy Books” of Leon Isackson, a set of diaries so precious that in any other nation they would have been purchased by a national museum. Hayton and Isackson give a blow by blow description of that generation’s lifestyle packed with shocking revelations.’
BASIL ADDISON, MELBOURNE TRUTH
‘This is the greatest book that’s ever been written about Australian rock’n’roll history.’
GARY JAEGER, 2WS
Dedicated to
Digby George Richards, 1940 – 1983
Jon Uther Hayton, 1942 – 1995
Lizzie & Wendy
FOREWORD
One of my fondest rock’n’roll memories takes me back to 1982, when I accompanied The Mighty Guys — a rockabilly band I had signed to my Rivet Records label — to the ABC TV studios in Sydney’s Gore Hill, where they were to appear on Countdown. As we walked through the main studio, Leon Isackson, the trio’s drummer commented, “Gee, this place hasn’t changed since the last time I was here.” And when was that Leon? “When I used to do 6 O’Clock Rock.”
I can’t imagine there were too many Countdown performers who could claim to have been part of the origins of rock television in Australia. Then again I can’t imagine there are too many Australian musicians who can claim the incredible array of experiences of the genial, genuine Leon Isackson and his buddy-for-life, Jon Hayton.
As they point out themselves, they are hardly household names in Australian entertainment. Rather, they are the loyal foot soldiers, the engine-stokers who enabled innumerable stars to shine and Australian rock to climb inexorably upwards. Indeed, their vantage point was near perfect: on the edge of the spotlight without being withered by its fickle glare. Leon and Jon were present at the birth, puberty, adolescence and middle-age of Australian rock’n’roll.
This book is nothing less than a vital social document. It is one of the very few honest accounts ever published of an appallingly over-eulogised era. Notwithstanding the emergence of a rebellious new music form, the fifties and early sixties were far from the finger-poppin’, sock-hoppin’ happy days that mass media manipulation would have us believe. There was, as Leon and Jon make plain, neither sophistication nor sweet innocence about these years. It was a time of inhibition, uncertainty and soiled naivety, particularly in Australia.
Australian performers didn’t create rock’n’roll — it created them. With the sole exception of the explosive catalyst Johnny O’Keefe, local rockers really had no idea of the forces controlling their destinies. They held on to the saddle-horn, eyes closed, and tried their damnednest to stay on for the short ride; rockin’ and rootin’ for all their worth. When the initial explosion fizzled, most of the young stars were found sprawled in the dust, left behind by the dizzying pace of changing public taste.
As is often the case with clever second-level players of any game, Leon and Jon survived the cyclic rock’n’roll house-cleanings. Their good humour, adaptability and realistic expectations has enabled them to continue playing rock music in this country for almost thirty years — no small achievement, to be sure.
Behind the Rock is based upon the ‘Crazy Books’ of Leon Isackson, a set of diaries so precious that in any other country they would have been purchased by a national museum by now. Dutifully, day in and day out, Leon documented — in language half strine, half rock’n’roll — his activities in a “pop scene” that few took seriously
