And having wangled an invitation to the post-concert party in Hermit Park I had the opportunity to express that opinion to the artist concerned.
Daddy Cool may have been well and truly past their heyday when they played the old Wintergarden Theatre later in 1974 but still delivered a great show which included a lengthy take on Duke Of Earl along with the predictable DC Classics like Eagle Rock, Teenage Blues, Come Back Again and Hi Honey Ho. Great fun.
And along the way I found myself at the Townsville Sports Reserve on separate occasions for shows by Buck Owens & His Buckaroos and, believe it or not, Aussie teeny-bop sensations Sherbet. Owens was pretty good, and gave me the opportunity to catch up with a number of Palm Island acquaintances, but Sherbet were, despite any reservations I might have had, pretty amazing.
Attendance at that show largely came about through the influence of my ex-flatmate Mr Dave, who’d pointed out that for all their teeny-screamy bopper appeal they actually delivered a pretty classy line in quality pop music. To the sceptical reader I’ll see your Howzat? and raise you You’ve Got The Gun or Summer Love.
In any case the experience was good enough to have us turning out for all subsequent Sherbet shows in the area.
Mr Dave was also largely responsible for persuading me to head off to see the Little River Band, who I’ve seen in concert four times. While they’re not my cup of musical tea they’ve invariably delivered a quality show on stage - good enough to have Hughesy actively campaigning to get friends and acquaintances off to see them in Home Hill in the early nineties, though the presence of special guest Warren Zevon on the bill had more than a little to do with the matter.
The later Sherbet shows were at the old Regent Theatre in Hermit Park, where I also saw the La De Das in their Kevin Borich boogie band incarnation, much to the bemusement of some of my Year Seven students in 1975.