Daddy Cool
Band members Related acts
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line up 1 (1970-71) - Wayne Duncan -- bass - Ross Hannaford -- lead guitar, bass, vocals - Ross Wilson -- vocals, guitar, harmonica - Gary Young -- drums, percussion
line up 2 (1971-72) - Wayne Duncan -- bass - Ross Hannaford -- lead guitar, bass, vocals NEW - Jeremy Noone -- sax, keyboards - Ross Wilson -- vocals, guitar, harmonica - Gary Young -- drums, percussion
line up 3 (1973-74) - Wayne Duncan -- bass - Ross Hannaford -- lead guitar, bass, vocals - Ross Wilson -- vocals, guitar, harmonica NEW - Ian Winter -- rhythm guitar (replaced Jeremy Noone) - Gary Young -- drums, percussion
line up 4 (1974-75) NEW - Wayne Burt -- guitar- Wayne Duncan -- bass NEW - Gunter Gorman -- guitar - Ross Hannaford -- lead guitar, bass, vocals - Ross Wilson -- vocals, guitar, harmonica - Gary Young -- drums, percussion
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- Blackfeather - The Black Sorrows (Burt Wayne and Duncan Wayne) - Carson (Ian Winter) - Jane Clifton and the Go Go Boys (Burt Wayne) - Company Caine (Jeremy Noone) - Eternal Struggle (Burt Wayne) - Fabulaires (Burt Wayne) - Renee Geyser Band - Goanna (Ross Hannaford) - JoJo Zep and the Falcons (Wayne Burt and Gary Young) - Living Legends (Burt Wayne) - Mighty Kong Ross Hannaford - Ross Wilson) - Mondo Rock (Ross Wilson) - The Party Machine (Ross Hannaford and Ross Wilson) - The PInk Finks (Ross Hannaford and Ross Wilson) - Procession (Ross Wilson) - Rock Doctors (Burt Wayne) - Rock Granite (Burt Wayne) - The Rondells (Wayne Duncan - Gary Young) - Sherbert - Sneakers (Burt Wayne) - Ross Wilson (solo efforts) - Gary Young & Hot Dog - Gary Young & the Rocking Emus
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Genre: pop Rating: 3 stars *** Title: Teenage Heaven Company: Rerprise Catalog: MS-2088 Year: 1972 Country/State: Melbourne, Australia Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: white promo label; includes promo insert Available: 1 Catalog ID: 6193 Price: $25.00
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Yes, sob, sniff, choke, tears ... this is an album I purchased entirely for the cool Dave Willardson cover. What can I say.
Originally known as The Sons of the Vegetal Mother (thankfully they opted for a name change), Daddy Cool showcased the talents of former Rondells bassist Wayne Duncan, lead guitarist Ross Hannaford, singer/ rhythm guitarist Ross Wilson, and drummer Gary Young (also a Rondells veteran). Formed in 1970, the band's oddball mixture of '50s American rock, doo-wop, and more contemporary moves, along with a truly quirky stage show, quickly one them a following on the Melbourne club circuit and caught the attention of producer Robie Porter who helped them sign to Ken Sparkes and John MacDonald's small Sparmac label (Porter had actually recently bought out Sparkes interest in the label).
Recorded on a shoestring budget reported over a two and a half day period, the band's debut album "Daddy Who? Daddy Cool" became an Australian mega hit with their debut single parking at the top of the charts for three months, with the follow-up going top-three:
- 1971's 'Eagle Rock' b/w 'Born Born' (Sparmac catalog number SPR 001) - 1971's 'Come back Again/ b/w 'Just As Long As We're Together' (Sparmac catalog number SPR 010)
Thanks to YouTube you can see the band's original 'Eagle Rock' video clip and a goose bump inducing black and white television performances of the second single: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQfAZVsz6KM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIG9osPPILM&feature=related
Those Australian successes captured the attention of American labels with Reprise eventually signing them to a contract. where they hit the road on a series of American tours opening for the likes of Deep Purple and Fleetwood Mac.
Sparmac catalog number SPL-003
As exemplified by the Porter produced 'Teenage Heaven" these guys were immensely talented, gifted with a knack for commercial melodies and clever lyrics, and were also funny as all, though not in a clumsy Sha-Na-Na retro-style. Unfortunately the combination of poor timing (within a couple of years Australian bands would be all over the US pop charts), and record company incompetence ensured these guys never had a chance to make it in the States. That probably goes a long way to explaining why I've always had a soft spot in my heart for this outfit. Back to Sha Na Na for a moment. Apparently unsure what to do with the band, Reprise decided to market them as a Sha Na Na-styled retro band. While Daddy Cool included some doo-wop and '50s styled material in their repertoire ('I'll Never Smile Again' and 'Baby Let Me Bang Your Box'), they were far more than a Sha Na Na-styled oldies band, with prime songwriter Wilson being more than capable of putting together a radio-friendly pop number of snarling rocker (check out 'Daddy Rocks Off' and 'Teenage Blues'). Sadly, in spite of considerable marketing publicity, few people ever got to hear how good they were.
"Teenage
Heaven" track listing: 1.) Hi Honey Ho (Ross Wilson) - 3:29 rating: **** stars Opening up with a great Hannaford guitar riff, 'Hi Honey Ho' sounded like a combination of and INXS radio friendly melody coupled with Rolling Stone swagger, and a touch of Roy Wood quirkiness. Released as an Australian single, you were left to scratch your head and wonder how US radio stations managed to miss this wonderful rocker. YouTube has a nice promotion clip of the song at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WI4dWXuC6Ww 2.) Daddy Rocks Off (Ross Wilson) - 4:34 rating: **** stars With a 'nudge-nudge' lyric that would have sent radio stations into censorship spasms, 'Daddy Rocks Off' was another slinky rocker that combined a Stones-styled blues-rock base with more Wood-styled humor. Hannaford turned in a fantastic solo on this one. Wilson reportedly took his inspiration for the song from a John Lee Hooker track. 3.) Please Please America (Hear My Plea) (Ross Wilson - Ross Hannaford) - 3:12 rating: **** stars Sporting a beautiful mandolin powered country-rock melody, 'Please Please America (Hear My Plea)' gets my nod as standout performance. Simply one of the funniest autobiographical band songs you'll ever hear, Wilson and Hannaford didn't pull any punches on their overview of life as an Australian band in pursuit of the big time. ("I want a million bucks - it's not for me, it's for my country ...") 4.) I'll Never Smile Again (Lowe) - 4:17 rating: *** stars Tapped as the album's third single, 'I'll Never Smile Again' was a smooth, '50s-styled soul ballad. Quite pretty and more of a tribute to the genre than a stab at comedy. 5.) Baby Let Me Bang Your Box (McRae - Wyche) - 3:25 rating: ** stars Okay, the '50s-styled rocker 'Baby Let Me Bang Your Box' deserved comparison to Sha Na Na, though the risqué lyric was quite funny.
(side
2) Apparently inspired in part by Frank Zappa, 'Teen Love', 'Drive In Movie', and 'Love In an F.J.' amounted to a mini-concept piece . The title track had a distinctive '50s influence, but also reflected a weird mix of 10 c.c., Roy Wood, and Canterbury jazz-rock influences (the latter coming via the great Jeremy Noone repetitive sax riff). 'Teen Love' was one of the album's weirdest efforts, but to my ears, one of the coolest performances. YouTube has a clip of this song with an introduction from Wilson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAc7L8Okos8 2.) Drive In Movie (Ross Wilson) - 1:22 rating: *** stars 'Drive In Movie' found the band taking a stab at something perhaps best described a 'theatre rock'. Almost operatic, it wasn't a major stretch to imagine Freddie Mercury and Queen conjuring up something like this one. The latter sported another killer Hannaford solo. (Anyone know what an F.J. was ?). Here's a link to a black and white promo video the band made for the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YI4QaqdfOhM 3.) Love In an F.J. (Ross Wilson) - 4:43 rating: **** stars And for folks like myself who had no idea what and F.J. was, I got this email from a reader: Just
read your review of the US version of the second Daddy Cool LP "Teenage
Heaven". Great write-up dude.
4.) Donna Forgive Me (Ross Wilson) - 4:36 rating: **** stars Exhibiting a 10 c.c. styled tongue-in-cheek feel, 'Donna Forgive Me' was a sweet '50s-styled ballad. Surprisingly impressive. 5.) Teenage Blues (Ross Wilson) - 3:29 rating: **** stars Penned by Wilson, 'Teenage Blues' served to underscore their rocker credentials. Kicked along by some sterling Hannaford guitar, The Stones would have approved of this one. One of the album highlights.
As mentioned, the album spun off a series of Australian singles:
- 1971's 'Hi Honey Ho' b/w 'Don't Ever Leave Me' (Sparmac catalog number SPR 014) - 1972's 'Teenage Blues' b/w 'At the Rockhouse' (Sparmac catalog number SPR 018) - 1973's 'I'll Never Smile Again' b/w 'Daddy Rocks Off' (Sparmac catalog number SPR 019)
I've only seen promo copies, but Reprise also tapped the album for an instantly obscure US single:
- 1972's 'Hi Honey Ho' b/w 'Hi Honey Ho' (edited version) (Reprise catalog number REP 1064) - 1973's 'I'll Never Smile Again' b/w 'I'll Never Smile Again' (edited version) (Reprise catalog number REP 1090)
In support of the album the band embarked on a third US tour, opening up for the likes of Captain Beefheart, Little Feat, and REO Speedwagon. You almost have to laugh picturing what a Beefheart crowd would have though if these guys. Needless to say anemic sales saw Reprise quickly lose interest in the band. hey returned to Australia and briefly soldier on before briefly calling it quits later in the year. Anyhow, don't let the oldies label throw you off.
The band has a web presence at: http://daddycool.com.au/
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BACK TO BADCAT PAYMENT INFORMATION
Daddy
Cool's second album was originally released in Australia under the title
"Sex, Dope,
Rock 'n' Roll - Teenage Heaven"
. With Reprise Records marketing executives aware of the American
audience's sensitivity ("holy
crap Batman, we can't have an album title that includes the words 'sex' and
'dope'"),
the
collection was revamped with a revised track listing, new artwork and an
abbreviated, less offensive' title - "Teenage
Heaven".
For anyone curious, dropped from the US pressing were a cover of Billy
Ward's 'Sixty Minute Man' and the newly penned Wilson songs 'Make Your
Stash' with 'I'll
Never Smile Again' and 'Teenage Blues' being added to the album.
Those decisions certainly made me feel safer knowing they were out there
looking after my morals. 