| Friends | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 1970 [1] | |||
| Recorded | August 1969 | |||
| Studio |
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| Genre | Rock and roll [2] | |||
| Length | 38:01 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Producer |
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| The Easybeats chronology | ||||
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| The Easybeats Australian chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Friends | ||||
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Friends is the sixth and final studio album by Australian rock band the Easybeats. It was released in early 1970 as part of the group's new recording contract with Polydor Records. It would be the only album Polydor released of the band as they broke up before its release.
In 1969,the group parted ways with their production company Albert Productions and their international record company United Artists Records. After signing with Polydor Records,the Easybeats teamed up with producer Ray Singer for the single "St. Louis" and its B-side "I Can't Find Love". [3] The single failed to chart in the UK,but reached #21 on the Go-Set Charts in their home country of Australia.
In August the band's key songwriters,Harry Vanda and George Young,took over a small recording studio located in an apartment in Moscow Road,London. The studio was previously used for recording jingles for pirate radio. [3] The pair used the studios to record various demos for other artists,sometimes using other members of the Easybeats to contribute instrumentation and vocals. These demo recordings,along with the two songs recorded with Ray Singer were released by Polydor as Friends in the UK and Australia.
The album was originally advertised in the Australian music magazine,Go-Set during the group's 1969 Australian tour as a yet untitled upcoming release from Polydor Records. However,the band disbanded at the end of the tour. In February 1970 the album was listed on the new release schedule as being the group's final album. [1]
Between Australia and the UK there are two different versions of the song "Friends". On the Australian LP,the song is a faster-paced version sung by George Young (titled "Friends") while in the U.K. it is a slower ballad sung by Harry Vanda titled "Who Are My Friends". Vanda's "Who Are My Friends" was released as a single in the UK and Australia (under the same title as George's "Friends"). The album was released in Europe and Canada as Holding On and was due for U.S. release under the title Easy Ridin' through Rare Earth Records. This release would be canceled. [4]
It was reissued on vinyl in 1980 in Australia as part of the Rock Legends series. Repertoire Records released the album on compact disc twice (1992 and 2006). The band's Australian record company,Albert Productions,left the album out of their The Complete Easybeats box set.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
In a contemporary review The Sun Herald's Gil Wahlquist noted the "commercial English sound" of the album and that "everything is energy and vocal power from the opening "St. Louis" through to "Woman,You're On My Mind"". [5] In an article in Go-Set ,singer Stevie Wright noted the band were disappointed in the Ray Singer's production of the lead single St. Louis,saying "It ended up nothing like we envisaged it" and that they wanted it more "funky with lots of ad-libs". [6]
Retrospective reviews have been less kind to the album. Pointing out the short comings of the demo recordings. AllMusic's Ritchie Unterberger noted that " The least successful songs are the forced rock &roll boogies,with overwrought vocals from lead singer Stevie Wright. The more pensive tracks,like the title tune,have an oddly compelling,hollow feel of resignation bordering on gloom that starkly contrasts with their more well-known mid-'60s material." [2]
All songs written by Harry Vanda and George Young under the pseudonym Brian Russell. [3]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "St. Louis" | 3:13 |
| 2. | "Friends" (sung by George Young on the Australian release and Harry Vanda on the UK version which is titled "Who Are My Friends") | 3:43 |
| 3. | "Watching the World (Go By)" | 2:36 |
| 4. | "Can't Find Love" | 3:29 |
| 5. | "Holding On" | 3:40 |
| 6. | "I Love Marie" | 2:38 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Rock 'n' Roll Boogie" | 2:30 |
| 2. | "Tell Your Mother" | 5:22 |
| 3. | "The Train Song" | 3:31 |
| 4. | "What Becomes of You My Love" | 3:18 |
| 5. | "Woman You're on My Mind" | 4:34 |
On the European release Holding On "What Becomes of You My Love" and "Woman You're on My Mind" are switched around.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 16. | "Peculiar Hole In The Sky" (Australia only single) | 03:00 |
| 17. | "Gonna Make It" (Instrumental. B-side to the "I Love Marie" single) | 03:17 |
| 18. | "H.P. Man" (released on The Best of The Easybeats Vol. 2.) | 02:44 |
| 19. | "Down to the Last 500" (released on The Best of The Easybeats Vol. 2.) | 02:41 |
| 20. | "My Old Man's a Groovy Old Man" (released on The Best of The Easybeats Vol. 2.) | 02:24 |
| 21. | "Such A Lovely Day" (released on The Best of The Easybeats Vol. 2.) | 03:15 |
| 22. | "Who Are My Friends" (The Harry Vanda version of "Friends". Released on the U.K. release of Friends) | 03:14 |
| 23. | "Look Out I'm On the Way Down" (The Harry Vanda version of "Friends". Released on the U.K. release of Friends) | 02:36 |
| 24. | "Little Red Bucket" (Central Sound demo.) | 02:46 |
| 25. | "Remember Sam (Alternative Mix)" (stereo remix) | 02:38 |
| 26. | "Pretty Girl (Alternative Mix)" (stereo remix) | 02:32 |
The Easybeats were an Australian rock band that formed in Sydney in late 1964. They enjoyed a level of success that in Australia rivalled The Beatles. They became the first Australian rock act to score an international hit, with the 1966 single "Friday on My Mind", as well as one of the few in Australia to foreground their original material.
Johannes Hendrikus Jacob van den Berg, better known as his stage name Harry Vanda, is a Dutch Australian musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as lead guitarist of the 1960s Australian rock band the Easybeats who with fellow member George Young formed the 1970s and 1980s songwriting and record production duo Vanda & Young.
George Redburn Young was an Australian musician, songwriter and record producer. He was a founding member of the bands the Easybeats and Flash and the Pan, and was one-half of the songwriting and production duo Vanda & Young with his long-time musical collaborator Harry Vanda.
Stephen Carlton Wright was an Australian singer, songwriter, and musician. Called Australia's first international pop star, he is best known for being the lead singer of the Easybeats, who are widely regarded as the greatest Australian pop band of the 1960s.
"Friday on My Mind" is a 1966 song by Australian rock group the Easybeats. Written by band members George Young and Harry Vanda, the track became a worldwide hit, reaching No.16 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1967 in the US, No.1 on the Dutch Top 40 chart, No.1 in Australia and No.6 in the UK, as well as charting in several other countries. In 2001, it was voted "Best Australian Song" of all time by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as determined by a panel of 100 music industry personalities. In 2007, "Friday on My Mind" was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia registry.
"Evie" is a rock song performed by Australian singer and former frontman of the Easybeats, Stevie Wright. It was written by Harry Vanda and George Young and released as a single in 1974. It has been suggested that it is the first 11-minute song to chart at #1 anywhere in the world.
Easy is the debut studio album by the Australian rock band the Easybeats, released on 23 September 1965.
It's 2 Easy is the second studio album by Australian rock band the Easybeats. Released on 24 March 1966, the album featured four hit singles; "Wedding Ring", "Sad and Lonely and Blue", "Women " and "Come And See Her".
Volume 3 is a studio album by the Australian rock band The Easybeats, released on 3 November 1966. It was the third and final album from the group recorded in Australia before relocating to England.
The Best of The Easybeats + Pretty Girl is the first compilation album by The Easybeats featuring a selection of songs recorded by the group between 1965 and 1966. The album was originally released in Australia and New Zealand under the Parlophone label under the then current licensing arrangement by the band's production company Albert Productions.
Vigil is the fifth studio album by Australian rock band The Easybeats, released in May 1968. This would be the second and final album by the band released on the United Artists Records label.
Vanda & Young were an Australian songwriting and producing duo composed of Harry Vanda and George Young. They performed as members of 1960s Australian rock group the Easybeats where Vanda was their lead guitarist and backing singer and Young was their rhythm guitarist and backing singer. Vanda & Young co-wrote most of the Easybeats' later hits including their international hit "Friday on My Mind" and they were the record producers for the group from 1967. Young was the older brother of Malcolm and Angus Young of the hard rock band AC/DC and also the record producer behind several of the band's biggest albums. The "Guitar George" and "Harry" who are mentioned in the Dire Straits hit song "Sultans of Swing" are George Young and Harry Vanda.
Hard Road is the debut solo album from Australian singer Stevie Wright. The album's first single "Evie " was hugely successful and the title track was later covered on Rod Stewart's 1974 album Smiler. The album itself reach #2 on the Australian albums charts in 1974 was the 16th highest selling album in Australia that year. The compact disc is currently out-of-print and has become quite rare. A digital edition was available on iTunes as of June, 2014.
Good Friday is the fourth studio album by The Easybeats, released in May 1967. It was the first album released after the band signed an international recording deal with United Artists Records. The original UK album was released in May 1967. Although "Friday on My Mind" was a big single in the UK, the album failed to make the top 40.
Friday On My Mind is the first North American album from The Easybeats. The album was released as Good Friday in Europe, in the same month. This version omitted "Hound Dog" and replaced it with "Women" from the Australian It's 2 Easy album.
"The Music Goes 'Round My Head" is a 1967 song and single by Australian rock group The Easybeats, which was written by band members George Young and Harry Vanda.
"For My Woman" is a song by Australian rock band the Easybeats, written by singer Stevie Wright and guitarist George Young. The Easybeats had formed in Sydney in 1964, quickly garnering a following in clubs, with a sound inspired by the Pretty Things and the Rolling Stones. After signing with their manager Mike Vaughan, he introduced the band to producer and businessman Ted Albert, who liked the band enough to sign them to his company Albert Productions in December 1964. The song was recorded in January 1965 at the 2UW theatre in Sydney as a demo together with three other songs.
"St. Louis" is a song by Australian rock group the Easybeats, which was released in June 1969. It was co-written by its members Harry Vanda and George Young and recorded as their first single after signing to Polydor Records.
"Land of Make Believe" is a 1968 song and single by Australian rock group the Easybeats, which was written by band members George Young and Harry Vanda. It was also released on the band's fifth album Vigil.
Falling Off the Edge of the World was the North American version of The Easybeats album Vigil. It was issued in October 1968 with a different album cover and running order from the UK release. This version was pared down to 12 songs from 14, omitting "Sha La La" and "We All Live Happily Together". A different recording of the title track replaced the more common version from the Australian and UK/European releases. This version of the album has also been released on CD, paired with Friday On My Mind on the Collectables label.
