Little River Band
Little River Band are a rock band formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975. The band achieved commercial success in both Australia and the United States. They have sold more than 30 million records; six studio albums reached the top 10 on the Australian Kent Music Report albums chart including Diamantina Cocktail and First Under the Wire, which both peaked at No. 2. Nine singles appeared in the top 20 on the related singles chart, with "Help Is on Its Way" as their only number-one hit. Ten singles reached the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Reminiscing" their highest, peaking at No. 3.
Little River Band have received many music awards in Australia. The 1976 line-up of Glenn Shorrock, Graeham Goble, Beeb Birtles, George McArdle, David Briggs and Derek Pellicci were inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association hall of fame at the 18th annual ARIA Music Awards of 2004. Most of the group's 1970s and 1980s material was written by Goble and/or Shorrock, Birtles and Briggs. In May 2001 the Australasian Performing Right Association, as part of its 75th anniversary celebrations, named "Cool Change", written by Shorrock, as one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. "Reminiscing", written by Goble, received a 5-Million Broadcast Citation from BMI in 2020.
The group have undergone numerous personnel changes, with over 30 members since their formation, including John Farnham as lead singer after Shorrock first departed in 1982. None of the musicians now performing as Little River Band are original members, nor were they members in the 1970s. In the 1980s, members included Farnham, Wayne Nelson, Stephen Housden, David Hirschfelder and Steve Prestwich. The current line-up is Nelson, Chris Marion, Ryan Ricks, Colin Whinnery and Bruce Wallace – none of whom are Australian. Various legal disputes over the band's name occurred in the 2000s, with Housden filing suit against Birtles, Goble and Shorrock.
History
1970–1974: Pre Little River Band
Little River Band formed in March 1975 in Melbourne as a harmony rock group with Beeb Birtles on guitar and vocals, Graham Davidge on lead guitar, Graeham Goble on guitar and vocals, Dave Orams on bass guitar, Derek Pellicci on drums and Glenn Shorrock on lead vocals. Upon formation they were an Australian super group, with Birtles, Goble, Pellicci and Shorrock each from prominent local bands. Birtles had been the bass guitarist and vocalist in the pop-rock band Zoot from 1967 to 1971.Goble had led Adelaide-formed folk rock group Allison Gros in 1970. They relocated to Melbourne and in 1972 were renamed as Mississippi, a harmony country rock band, where late that year Birtles joined on guitar and vocals and Pellicci on drums. They had chart success in Australia and built up a following on the concert and festival circuit. During 1971 to 1972 the original members of Mississippi had also recorded as a studio band under the pseudonym Drummond. They achieved a number-one hit, for eight consecutive weeks, on the Go-Set National Top 40 with a novelty cover version of the Rays' song "Daddy Cool".
Shorrock had been the lead singer of a pop band, the Twilights, and a country rock group, Axiom, from 1969 to 1971. Both Axiom and Mississippi had relocated to the United Kingdom to try to break into the local record market, but without success. Axiom disbanded after moving to the UK, and Shorrock sang for a more progressive rock outfit, Esperanto, in 1973. He also provided backing vocals for Cliff Richard.
In late 1974, Birtles, Goble and Pellicci met with talent manager Glenn Wheatley in London, with a view to forming a new band. After auditioning Peter Doyle as lead singer, they settled on Shorrock. With Wheatley as manager, Birtles, Goble, Pellicci and Shorrock agreed to reconvene in Melbourne in early 1975. Due to the indifferent reception they had each received in the UK, they decided their new band would establish itself in the United States. Wheatley's first-hand experiences of the rip-offs in the 1960s music scene, combined with working in music management in the UK and the US in the early 1970s, allowed him to help the Little River Band become the first Australian group to enjoy consistent commercial and chart success in the US.
File:Little_River_sign.jpg|thumb|A road sign to Little River, on a trip by the fledgling band from Melbourne to Geelong, inspired Glenn Shorrock to suggest the band name
After their return to Australia, the members began rehearsing in February 1975, still using the name of Mississippi. On 20 March 1975 they played their first official gig at Martini's Hotel in Carlton. In Birtles' autobiography, Every Day of My Life, he explains how the band came to change its name:
Little River Band had recorded their first track, a cover version of the Everly Brothers' song "When Will I Be Loved", in February 1975, at Armstrong Studios. However, Linda Ronstadt's version appeared in the following month, so LRB did not release theirs. Before the group performed, Graham Davidge was replaced by Ric Formosa on guitar, and Dave Orams by Roger McLachlan on bass guitar and backing vocals. Phil Manning was LRB's first choice for lead guitar. Manning was busy with his solo career and recommended Formosa. The latter had travelled to Australia from Canada and was working in a music store; he joined soon after.
1975–1976: early years
In May 1975 they signed with EMI Records and started recording their debut self-titled album at Armstrong Studios in the following month. The album was co-produced by Birtles, Goble, Shorrock and Wheatley. Tony Catterall of The Canberra Times described it in November as "one of those flawed creations that inevitably draws a more-in-sorrow-than-in-anger response." Bruce Eder of AllMusic observed, " an astonishingly strong debut album." Little River Band peaked at No. 17 on the Kent Music Report Albums Chart and was certified gold in early 1976. Their debut single, "Curiosity ", was released in September, reaching No. 15 on the related Kent Music Report Singles Chart. Two more singles followed, "Emma" and "It's a Long Way There".Wheatley travelled to Los Angeles in December 1975 and touted the group to various record companies until Rupert Perry of Capitol Records signed them on Christmas Eve. Little River Band issued their second Australian album, After Hours, in April 1976. It was produced by the band but was not issued in the US until 1980. After Hours peaked at No. 5 and provided the single "Everyday of My Life", in May 1976, which reached the top 30.
1976–1982: success and changes of personnel
During August 1976 both Formosa and McLachlan were replaced. David Briggs joined on guitar and George McArdle on bass guitar. According to Wheatley, Formosa was not enthusiastic about touring outside of Australia and left to work as a session musician, composer and arranger. The group had also decided to bring in McArdle to replace McLachlan, who also became a sessions player and joined the country rock group Stars in 1976. Australian music journalist Ed Nimmervoll listed the classic line-up of the band as Birtles, Briggs, Goble, McArdle, Pellicci and Shorrock. Formosa still worked with LRB by arranging and writing string parts for several tracks on subsequent albums.Encouraged by their Australian success, they undertook their first international tour. They flew to the UK in September 1976 to play a show in London's Hyde Park supporting Queen. They then opened shows in the rest of Europe for the Hollies during September and October. Birtles advised fellow Australian bands to establish themselves in Australia first before trying the UK market. In October they performed their first US concert, at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, as the opening act for Average White Band. Due to US appearances and support from FM stations, "It's a Long Way There" reached No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Little River Band's second album, After Hours, had been passed over in the US by Capitol. The label selected tracks from it and from their third Australian release, Diamantina Cocktail, to create Capitol's second US album, also titled Diamantina Cocktail. The Australian version was co-produced by the group with John Boylan – who stayed on to co-produce their next two studio albums. Due to tension between band members, Birtles, Goble and Shorrock recorded as much of their parts individually as was feasible.
The Canberra Times Julie Meldrum caught their local performance in May 1977 and described the band as "tightly disciplined" and "there was nothing that was not world class". She reviewed the album, which had no Australian references and felt they were aiming at the US West Coast scene with influences from David Crosby, Graham Nash and Little Feat apparent. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic commented on the US release, "laidback, sweet country-rock, has a similar sound to the band's debut, but the melodies are a little sharper and catchier, making a better, more fully-rounded collection".
In Australia, Diamantina Cocktail became their highest charting album, peaking at No. 2; while the US version reached the top 50 on the Billboard 200. In January 1978 it was certified gold by RIAA for sales of 500,000 copies: the first Australian band to do so. The lead single, "Help Is on Its Way" reached No. 1 in Australia. Both it and the fourth single, "Happy Anniversary", peaked in the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.
During 1977 they consistently toured, mostly in the US, headlining in smaller venues and appearing in stadiums on multi-billed shows supporting the Doobie Brothers, Supertramp and America. In August they co-headlined day two of the Reading Music Festival in the UK alongside Thin Lizzy. In November they supported Fleetwood Mac and Santana at Rockarena concerts in Sydney and Melbourne.
Early in 1978, Little River Band performed a free concert on the steps of the Sydney Opera House, drawing 80,000 people and topping the previous record of 57,000 set by Fleetwood Mac and Little River Band on their previous Australian tour.
Their fourth studio album, Sleeper Catcher, was released in May 1978 and peaked at No. 4 in Australia and No. 16 in the US. By May of the following year, it was certified platinum by RIAA for sales of 1,000,000 copies: the first Australian-recorded album to achieve that feat. AllMusics Mike DeGagne praised Shorrock's vocals, which give it "the perfect MOR sound, draping the tracks with his cool, breezy style that is much more apparent and effectual here than on the band's earlier efforts." Sleeper Catcher provided three singles, with "Shut Down Turn Off" being the highest charting in Australia at No. 16. However in the US the highest charting was "Reminiscing", which peaked at No. 3. The album's last single, "Lady", reached No. 10 in the US in early 1979.
Pellicci was hospitalised in May 1978 with severe burns due to methylated spirits igniting on a barbecue. Geoff Cox substituted on drums, rather than cancelling their next US tour. They supported Boz Scaggs, Jimmy Buffett and the Eagles. Cox remained playing alongside Pellicci when he joined the tour in August 1978; they supported the Eagles at C.N.E. Stadium in Toronto. Cox left once Pellicci had recovered.
Keyboardist Ian Mason, who was a session player on LRB's first three albums, played as a guest on some dates of their 1978 Australian tour. Mal Logan joined on keyboards for another US tour which commenced in late December 1978. Logan stayed on as a touring member until the end of 1981.
Nimmervoll observed that by February 1978, "frictions inside the band continued to brew, relieved a little by" side projects. Birtles & Goble showcased tracks rejected for LRB. They issued three singles, "Lonely Lives", "I'm Coming Home" and "How I Feel Tonight" and an album, The Last Romance. "I'm Coming Home" reached No. 8 in Australia. Shorrock's solo single was a cover version of Bobby Darin's "Dream Lover", which peaked in the Australian top 10.
Little River Band's fifth studio album, First Under the Wire, was released in July 1979. It reached No. 2 in Australia, equalling Diamantina Cocktail. It was also their highest charting album on the Billboard 200 at No. 10. In November it was certified by RIAA as a platinum album. AllMusics Mark Allan described their "mix of harmony-drenched pop tunes and unthreatening rockers" which had a wide appeal. Both singles, "Lonesome Loser" and "Cool Change" peaked in the US top 10. Briggs wrote "Lonesome Loser" and Shorrock wrote "Cool Change".
Bassist George McArdle left in late January 1979 to become a Christian minister. In July that year Barry Sullivan took over on bass guitar. He was replaced, in turn, by American Wayne Nelson in April 1980.
Backstage Pass was the first live album released by the band. It was recorded by the Australian Broadcasting Commission at the Adelaide Festival Theatre in November 1978 and released in October 1979. It peaked at No. 18 on the Australian Kent Music Report. The album was then released in the United States as a double album in March 1980, combined with the group's next live album, Live in America.
Goble was the producer for Australian pop singer John Farnham's solo album, Uncovered, which was released in September 1980. Goble wrote or co-wrote nine of its ten tracks and provided vocals. The album had other LRB alumni: Briggs, Formosa, Logan, Nelson, Pellicci and Sullivan. Farnham had signed with Wheatley's management company.
The line-up of Birtles, Briggs, Goble, Nelson, Pellicci and Shorrock recorded Little River Band's sixth studio album, Time Exposure, which was released in August 1981, with George Martin producing. The Canberra Times Garry Raffaele felt "it's easy listening, no demands, easing up, slowing down, getting older." By the time it appeared, Stephen Housden replaced Briggs on lead guitar. The album reached No .9 in Australia and No. 21 in the US; and in November it was certified gold by RIAA.
In August 1981, Nelson provided lead vocals for its lead single, "The Night Owls", which peaked at No. 18 in Australia and No. 6 in the US. Raffaele described the track as "the punchiest thing LRB has done for some time but it's still middle-of-the-road pap, hummable". Nelson also shared vocals with Shorrock on the second single, "Take It Easy on Me". According to Nimmervoll, Nelson's presence added to the conflict between band members and that Goble "agitated within the band to replace with ".