Reviews

THE DINGOES
LIVE AT LAST
LIBERATION

Comebacks in the music industry do not always work but there seems to be enough nostalgia around these days to ensure that just about any musician or band who has had even a minor hit in the distant past can tour again successfully – at least once.

But the whiff of opportunism that hangs around so many reunions was not evident with The Dingoes last year when they got back together after more than 30 years. It might have represented a chance for the band to earn some handy pocket money but they didn’t need to do it. Guitarist Kerryn Tolhurst and bassist John Bois were based in the USA, with the former successfully producing and the latter teaching full-time. Chris Stockley had worked in a variety of other bands and had a thriving side business.

Brod Smith had pursued (some say stubbornly) his own solo career and refused to countenance another incarnation of The Dingoes. One of Smith’s more interesting quirks was the fact that he seemed almost blissfully unaware of the legacy of the band and just how great he was as its frontman!

In fact, I think the band’s fans needed the reunion more than the band members did! So, the most pleasing result of last year’s reformation of The Dingoes was that the band finally got some of the kudos it had long deserved for its abiding influence. And make no mistake: this was not only one of Australia’s best bands but also one the most important.

While ‘Boy On The Run’ and ‘Way Out West’ – the band’s two best known songs – had also achieved hit status for others, the passage of time seemed to have blurred The Dingoes’ reputation. Of all the Australian bands in the ‘70s they flew a flag for a style of roots music that still sounds vital. If they had still been around in the ‘90s or earlier this decade - before the demise of No Depression magazine - they might have been labelled alt.country. As it is they inspired a host of local bands in their wake.

Finally, a reunion was prompted by the long-overdue recognition from ARIA in 2009 when it inducted them into their Hall Of Fame. Reunited for that ceremony the remaining members of the band (John Lee had passed away some time ago) realised that the magic they had in their first incarnation was still there. Something that we had been telling them for years beforehand!

Inspired by the brief reunion and two-song performance at the Hall Of Fame ceremony (which, I am informed, ‘made grown men cry’) Kerryn Tolhurst convinced his colleagues to join him in his Tucson, Arizona studio to record a new album. Guitarist Chris Stockley was keen and luckily singer Brod Smith joined the crew, later augmented for the recording by Ashley Davies on drums.

The resultant album, Tracks, might have been seen as a remarkable comeback but given the band’s history and the fact that they were almost all still working in music it should have come as no surprise. There were at least four or five songs in the classic Dingoes’ mode and the remainder of the album was strong.

The tour that ensued was fairly low-key: smaller venues like Meeniyan Town Hall, Caravan Music Club and Williamstown RSL, Northcote Social Club in Victoria. The gigs drew out all the old fans (even some from the famous Station Hotel days back in the ‘70s).

“It’s better to have full houses than half empty ones,” said Kerryn Tolhurst recently. The next run of dates, which will bring them to much bigger crowds as well as the previous venues, are claimed to be the final ever for the band. They are playing some of the A Day On The Green shows, festivals such as Port Fairy and Bluesfest. Don’t miss them.

What the 2010 dates proved – and what is perfectly evident here - was that the band sounded as good, maybe even better, than ever. Augmented by Chris Copping on keyboards and Kevin Bennett on guitar and vocals, they were brilliant. They needed few rehearsals prior to the tour and the fact that they are all seasoned musicians was immediately apparent because the sound gelled almost from the first gig. Listening to this live recording one would think they had been playing together for years.

Live At Last

was recorded in August 2010 at the Norwood Hotel in Adelaide and Northcote Social Club in Melbourne. The sound is so good that when I played a track in the studio while interviewing Kerryn Tolhurst (who produced it) he had to ask, ‘Is that the live album?’ The quality is extraordinary and that makes it one of the finest live albums ever by an Australian band.

With 18 songs stretching to just over 80 minutes the double CD contains basically the entire set from the tour. There are seven songs from Tracks and these represent that album well (but I still would have liked to have heard ‘Right To Your Door’ included). The highlights are ‘No Rain, No River’ and ‘Snowblind Moon.’

The remainder of the songs are old favourites that still feel contemporary – or at least they have not dated as much as most material from the ‘70s. ‘Come On Down,’ ‘The Last Place,’ ‘Smooth Sailing,’ ‘Shine A Light,’ ‘Waiting For The Tide To Turn’ and ‘Sydney Ladies’ give the band a chance to rock out, while ‘Boy On The Run’ and ‘Way Out West’ are home where they belong.

Apart from the musicianship, which as you might expect is top class, it has to be said that Brod Smith has not sounded better than this in decades. Possessing one of the most distinctive voices in Australian music history he is also a demon harmonica player. One gets the sense that, no matter how much he rails against it, his rightful place is at the front of this band (and he should be forced to stay there!). It is the same way Springsteen and the E Street Band fit together perfectly.

The forthcoming tour might be billed as a farewell for The Dingoes but this live album proves there is a lot of life in the old dog yet.