Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds

Last updated December 31, 2020

Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds was an annual national rock/pop band competition held in Australia from 1966 to 1972.^[1] The winners of the national finals were the Twilights (1966), the Groop (1967), the Groove (1968), Doug Parkinson in Focus (main, 1969) and the Affair (vocal group, 1969), the Flying Circus (1970), Fraternity (1971) and Sherbet (1972).

History

Australia's Battle of the Sounds was originally established by Australian tabloid magazine Everybody's in 1965 as a talent quest for new unsigned bands in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

The National Battle of the Sounds gained significant credibility and attracted many of Australia's top pop outfits when, in 1966, confectioner Hoadley's assumed sponsorship and it took the full name of "Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds" for the first time. Go-Set magazine took over the co-ordination role and local radio stations all over Australia organised local heats. This turned it into a truly national competition. Heats were held in the capital cities and country towns and bands worked their way up through semi-finals to one penultimate grand-final, held in either Melbourne or Sydney.

The valuable first prize was a full return passage to England on the Sitmar cruise line, two booked concerts in London and $1000 prize money, later upped to $2000 and return flights to Los Angeles (early winners did not get the concerts).

1969 was the peak year of the battle with over 1000 bands entering and two Grand Finals, one for full bands and one for groups and singing groups that specialised in harmony vocals. Over the years the battle would see such quality acts as The Groove and Sherbet taking out the major prize. Many other prominent outfits that would go on to greater success competed in the Battle until its conclusion in 1972.

Reception

In July 1966 Canberra-based group the Roadrunners won the New South Wales final for country groups. The judges were radio and TV representatives and the audience cheering was so loud that they had to call back the band to perform again. The prizes for winning the national final were $1000, a trip to England and a recording contract.^[2] Another ACT group, Rain, won their heat in July 1968 and flew to the national final in Melbourne – they were farewelled at the airport by two fans.^[3] The national final winner, the Twilights, performed a medley: "Bad Boy", "Satisfaction", "Yesterday", "If she finds out" and "I'm not talkin", at Melbourne's Festival Hall.^[4] The tracks were later included on their album, Twilight Time (1983), via Raven Records.^[4]

Garry Raffaele of The Canberra Times noticed that three of the better local bands did not enter the competition in June 1969. He concluded that "Much of the criticism levelled against pop music generally is that it produces groups whose main ambition is to stir up audiences made up mainly of young teenage girls. If competitions like this one tend to perpetuate these values who can blame the musicians for throwing it all up and leaving it to the bubble-gum bands?"^[5]

In June 1971 Salty Dog, which had relocated to Sydney, won the Canberra heat as they "knew how to play to a seated audience; it knew it had to wake up our interest and it made us participate. It nearly had us out of our seats. The volume was up full, lively Les [Catterall] couldn't keep still, Digger beat tempestuously at the drums, Chris Willing played bass better than before heading for Sydney and Gunther and Scotty, both on lead guitars, couldn't help but join in and show how a group plays when it is enjoying itself."^[6] One of the judges was Raffaele.^[6] The national winners, Fraternity, had their set recorded – it appeared on Complete Sessions 1971–72 (1996) on Raven Records.^[7]

Winners

National Battle of the Sounds: National Finalists: 1965

Year	Winner	Region/State	Other Finalists	Venue
1965	The Crickets	Melbourne Victoria	* Jimmy Crockett & The Shanes The Pink Finks The Showmen * The Rising Sons * Embers	Festival Hall Melbourne

Note: The first Australian battle of the bands was in 1964. It was called the Everybody’s Magazine’s ‘Big New Sound of 1964’. It was unrelated to Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds, which was a rock band contest, that commenced under the name Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds in 1966.

The winners of Everybody’s Magazine’s ‘Big New Sound of 1964’ were the Green Hill Singers, from Melbourne, with their self-penned song "The Big Land." The first prize was 250 pounds, plus an EMI recording contract.

The members of the Green Hill Singers were John McMillan (acoustic guitar and vocals), Alex McMillan (acoustic guitar and vocals), and Chris Bonett (upright bass and vocals). Jimmy Hannan was one of the judges, and the TV show final was televised nationally.

The Green Hill Singers worked in clubs and concerts in Sydney for a year or so before breaking up.

Sources: Chris Bonett, Warren Faheys Australian Folklore Unit Website, Everybody's Magazine 1964 (Mitchell Library, Sydney)

Hoadley's National Finalists: 1966-1972

Year	Winner	Region/State	Second Place	Third Place	Other Place Getters	Venue
1966	The Twilights	Adelaide South Australia	The Other Ends (Sydney N S W)	Chaos & Co (Tasmania)	* The Road Runners * The Breed * The Chosen Few * Trolls * The Modes * The Clique	Festival Hall Melbourne
1967	The Groop	Melbourne Victoria	The Questions (NSW)	The Flamingoes (Queensland)	* The Valentines * The Mystics * The Wanderers * Gus & The Nomads * James Taylor Move * J A Madison * Mickey Finn * J B J & The Originals	Festival Hall Melbourne
1968	The Groove	Melbourne Victoria	Masters Apprentices (South Australia)	Doug Parkinson In Focus (NSW)	* The Marksmen * Rain * Tol Puddle Martyrs * Shades of Blue * Beat 'n Tracks * Sect * Abstract Image * Black Orchids * J A Madison	Festival Hall Melbourne
1969 (Main Grand Final)	Doug Parkinson in Focus	Melbourne Victoria	Aesops Fables (NSW)	The Valentines (Victoria)	* The Avengers * Chain * Tin Pan Alley * Pepper Adams * Spice of Life * Sect * Limit * Proclamation * Clockwork Oringe * Chapter Three	Festival Hall Melbourne
1969 (Vocal Group Grand Final)	The Affair	Sydney NSW	Mark IV (Western Australia)	Travis Wellington Hedge (South Australia)	* The Chiffons^[8] * 1812^[9] * New Edition	Festival Hall Melbourne
1970	The Flying Circus	Sydney NSW	Zoot (Victoria)	Autumn (NSW)	* Nova Express * Axis * Sweaty Betty * Ssarb * Musick Express * Maya * Chapter III * Jug Band * Sons of Bacchus * Noddys Crew	Capitol Theatre Sydney
1971	Fraternity	Adelaide South Australia	Sherbet (NSW)	Jeff St John and Copperwine (NSW)	* Bacchus * October * Langford Lever * Pendulum * Nutmeg * Jelly Roll Big Band * Impulse * Barrelhouse	Festival Hall Melbourne
1972	Sherbet	Sydney NSW	Jeff St John and Copperwine (NSW)	Headband (South Australia)	* Headband * Brandy * Jody	Capitol Theatre Sydney

Notes

↑ Stacey, Terence J. (2002). Duncan Kimball (ed.). "Hoadley's National Battle of the Sounds". MilesAgo: Australasian Music and Popular Culture 1964–1975. ICE Productions. Archived from the original on 31 August 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2013.
↑ "The music was merely background noise". The Canberra Times . 40 (11, 511). 4 July 1966. p. 1. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.
↑ "No title". The Canberra Times. 42 (12, 058). 20 July 1968. p. 9. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.Cite uses generic title (help)
1 2 The Twilights (1983), Twilight Time, Raven Records , retrieved 20 December 2016
↑ Raffaele, Garry (28 June 1969). "Leisure – The Arts on Beat: Sounds of Musical Battle in the Air". The Canberra Times. 43 (12, 350). p. 16. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.
1 2 "Salty Dog wins sixth 'sounds heat'". The Canberra Times. 45 (12, 842). 21 June 1971. p. 10. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.
↑ > "Complete Sessions 1971-72[sound recording] / Bon Scott & Fraterity". Trove. Raven Records. 1996. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.
↑ "FIRST DAY BLUES". The Australian Women's Weekly . National Library of Australia. 30 July 1980. p. 18 Supplement: FREE Your TV Magazine. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
↑ "What's on where". The Canberra Times. 44 (12, 545). 14 February 1970. p. 16. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia. Note: the band name is styled as "Eighteen-12".

Related Research Articles

Sherbet was one of the most prominent and successful Australian rock bands of the 1970s. The 'classic line-up' of Daryl Braithwaite on vocals, Tony Mitchell on bass guitar, Garth Porter on keyboards, Alan Sandow on drums, and Clive Shakespeare on guitar provided their teen-oriented pop style. In 1976 Shakespeare left and was soon replaced by Harvey James. Sherbet's biggest singles were "Summer Love" (1975) and "Howzat" (1976), both reaching number one in Australia. "Howzat" was also a top 5 hit in the United Kingdom. The band was less successful in the United States, where "Howzat" peaked at No. 61. As The Sherbs they also reached No. 61 in 1981 with "I Have the Skill". The group disbanded in 1984. Subsequent re-unions have occurred since 1998.

Abel Hoadley was a manufacturer of jams and sauces, remembered today as the inventor of the popular Australian confectionery bar, the Violet Crumble.

The following lists events that happened during 1966 in Australia.

Glenn Barrie Shorrock is an English-born Australian singer-songwriter. He was a founding member of rock bands the Twilights, Axiom, Little River Band and post LRB spin-off trio Birtles Shorrock Goble, as well as being a solo performer.

The Twilights were an Australian rock band that formed in Adelaide in 1964. Alongside The Easybeats and The Masters Apprentices, The Twilights are widely considered to be one of the most significant Australian rock groups of the 1960s. During their run, they were noted for being on top of current musical trends, regularly covering British and American rock hits in their early repertoire. Their first hit was a cover of the Velvelettes' song "Needle In A Haystack", which made the top 10 in every state in Australia in late 1966.

Matt Flinders is a former singer and TV presenter who rose to prominence in the late 1960s in Australia. He had top 5 hit singles with his cover versions of "Picking Up Pebbles" (1969) and "Butterfly" (1971). He hosted his own variety shows, The Matt Flinders Show (1972) and Matt Flinders and Friends (1973) on ABC-TV.

Axiom were an Australian rock band formed in Melbourne, Victoria, in 1969 and included musicians, former The Twilights frontman Glenn Shorrock and Brian Cadd of The Groop

Falling Joys are an Australian alternative rock band formed in Canberra in 1985. The original line-up included Suzie Higgie on lead vocals and guitar and Stuart G. Robertson on bass guitar. By the end of 1988 Higgie and Robertson, now on guitar, were joined by Pat Hayes on bass guitar and vocals, and Pete Velzen on drums. They have released three albums, Wish List (1990), Psychohum (1992) and Aerial (1993). Both the latter two albums reached the ARIA Albums Chart Top 50. They disbanded in 1995 but reunited in 2011 and, again, in July 2016.

Fraternity were an Australian rock band which formed in Sydney in 1970 and relocated to Adelaide in 1971. Former members include successive lead vocalists Bon Scott, John Swan, and his brother Jimmy Barnes. Their biggest local hit was a cover version of "Seasons of Change" which peaked at No. 1 in Adelaide, but nationally it was overrun by the original Blackfeather version. The group won the 1971 Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds with the prize being a free trip to London. Fraternity went through various line-ups and was renamed as Fang, Fraternity (again), Some Dream and finished as Mickey Finn in 1981.

Zoot were a pop rock band formed in Adelaide, South Australia in 1964 as Down the Line. They changed their name to Zoot in 1967 and by 1968 had relocated to Melbourne. They had a top five hit on the Go-Set national singles chart with a heavy rock cover of The Beatles' ballad "Eleanor Rigby" released in 1970; but they disbanded in May 1971.

Douglas John Parkinson is an Australian pop and rock singer. He led the band Strings and Things/A Sound from 1965 The Questions from 1966 and Doug Parkinson in Focus from 1968, Fanny Adams from 1971 and The Life Organisation from 1973. Doug Parkinson in Focus's cover version of the Beatles' track "Dear Prudence" peaked at No. 5 on the Go-Set National Top 40. The follow up single, "Without You" / "Hair" (October), also reached No. 5. Parkinson also released solo material.

The Groop were an Australian folk, R&B and rock band formed in 1964 in Melbourne, Victoria and had their greatest chart success with their second line-up of Max Ross on bass, Richard Wright on drums and vocals, Don Mudie on lead guitar, Brian Cadd on keyboards and vocals, and Ronnie Charles on vocals. The Wesley Trio formed early in 1964 with Ross, Wright and Peter McKeddie on vocals; they were renamed The Groop at the end of the year.

The Groove was an Australian R&B, pop group which formed in early 1967 with the lineup of Geoff Bridgford on drums, Jamie Byrne on bass guitar, Tweed Harris on keyboards, Rod Stone on guitar and Peter Williams on lead vocals and guitar. In December 1967 their single, "Simon Says", peaked at No. 17 on the Go-Set National Top 40 Singles Chart. They followed with "Soothe Me", which peaked at No. 14 in April 1968. Also in April they released their self-titled debut album. In July that year they won the national final of the Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds competition with the prize including a trip to London. They relocated there in March 1969, and early the following year they changed their name to Eureka Stockade, they disbanded in 1971. On 13 October 2004 Tweed Harris died of throat cancer, aged 63.

Duncan Hazlett McGuire, was an Australian musician, songwriter, recording engineer and producer. McGuire was a founding member of the jazz fusion band, Ayers Rock from 1973 until he left in 1976. As a bass guitarist he appeared in several of Parkinson's groups including the Questions (1965–1968), Doug Parkinson in Focus (1968–1969) and the Southern Star Band (1978–1981). He went into music production in the early 1980s, in October 1980 he co-produced and engineered the debut self-titled album by Australian rock band, INXS. Duncan McGuire was diagnosed with lung cancer; and died in July 1989 of an associated brain tumour, aged 46.

Chain are an Australian blues band formed as The Chain in late 1968 with a line-up including guitarist and vocalist Phil Manning and lead vocalist Wendy Saddington. Saddington left in May 1969 and in September 1970 Matt Taylor joined on lead vocals and harmonica. During the 1990s they were referred to as Matt Taylor's Chain. Their single, "Black and Blue", is their only top twenty hit. It was written and recorded by the line-up of Manning, Taylor, Barry Harvey on drums and Barry Sullivan on bass guitar. The related album, Toward the Blues, followed in September and peaked in the top ten. Manfred Mann's Earth Band covered "Black and Blue" on their 1973 album Messin'.

Travis Wellington Hedge was an Australian pop rock band, based in Adelaide, that existed from 1968 to 1969. It was an early band of noted musician and composer Graeham Goble, who subsequently achieved success with Mississippi, Little River Band and Birtles Shorrock Goble.

James Taylor Move was a short-lived Australian/British psychedelic pop, progressive rock group from Adelaide. It was formed by Kevin Peek on guitar, Trevor Spencer on drums, Alan Tarney on organ, and Robert John Taylor on lead vocals and bass guitar.

Sid Rumpo were an Australian R&B group which formed in Perth in November 1971. They issued their debut album, First Offense, in April 1974 on Mushroom Records/Festival Records but disbanded by the end of that year. The band were formed by John Hood on lead guitar and harmonica ; Noel Herridge on drums ; Owen Hughes on bass guitar ; Robert Searls on lead guitar and vocals; and Ken Wallace on piano. In 1972 they won the Western Australian state final in the Hoadley's Battle of the Sounds. They appeared at both the 1973 and 1974 Sunbury Pop Festivals. According to Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, "[o]ne of the unique features of the band's sound was the use of dual, harmony guitar lines which had the effect of enhancing the natural spaciousness of the music. To top it off, Searls was one of the great gravel-throated blues wailers of the day".

The Librettos was a New Zealand pop/R&B group, active from 1960 to 1966. They were one of New Zealand's most popular bands in 1964-65, and after relocating to Sydney they gained recognition in Australia for their polished live performances and their 1966 version of the Paul Revere & The Raiders song "Kicks". Several members of the group went on to other notable bands of the 1960s and 1970s - bassist Brian Peacock co-founded the highly regarded Anglo-Australian "progressive pop" band Procession, Rod Stone joined popular Australian '60s soul group The Groove, and drummer Craig Collinge later played with Manfred Mann Chapter Three and UK 1970s "proto-punk" band Third World War.

Slow Turismo are an Australian indie pop band from Canberra, which were formed in 2015. The three Conway brothers: Sam, Max and Riley (drums), were all previously members of an indie and alternative rock quartet, Rubycon, with Reuben Styles. Slow Turismo released their debut extended play in July 2015 and have followed with singles. The group have toured Australia.

References

Stacey, Terence J (1995), The battles of the sounds, Moonlight Publications, ISBN 978-0-646-25126-4
Everybody's Magazine – 1964 to 1967 (Courtesy Mitchell Library, Sydney)
Go-Set Magazine – 1967 to 1972 (Courtesy Mitchell Library, Sydney)

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[MilesHoadleys-1] Stacey, Terence J. (2002). Duncan Kimball (ed.). "Hoadley's National Battle of the Sounds". MilesAgo: Australasian Music and Popular Culture 1964–1975. ICE Productions. Archived from the original on 31 August 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2013.

[NLA_1-2] "The music was merely background noise". The Canberra Times . 40 (11, 511). 4 July 1966. p. 1. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.

[NLA_2-3] "No title". The Canberra Times. 42 (12, 058). 20 July 1968. p. 9. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.Cite uses generic title (help)

[Twilights-4] 1 2 The Twilights (1983), Twilight Time, Raven Records , retrieved 20 December 2016

[Raffaele-5] Raffaele, Garry (28 June 1969). "Leisure – The Arts on Beat: Sounds of Musical Battle in the Air". The Canberra Times. 43 (12, 350). p. 16. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.

[Fairbairn-6] 1 2 "Salty Dog wins sixth 'sounds heat'". The Canberra Times. 45 (12, 842). 21 June 1971. p. 10. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.

[Fraternity-7] > "Complete Sessions 1971-72[sound recording] / Bon Scott & Fraterity". Trove. Raven Records. 1996. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia.

[8] "FIRST DAY BLUES". The Australian Women's Weekly . National Library of Australia. 30 July 1980. p. 18 Supplement: FREE Your TV Magazine. Retrieved 20 January 2014.

[NLA_3-9] "What's on where". The Canberra Times. 44 (12, 545). 14 February 1970. p. 16. Retrieved 20 December 2016– via National Library of Australia. Note: the band name is styled as "Eighteen-12".

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]