Ariel were an
Australian
progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. In ...
band fronted by
Mike Rudd
Michael David Rudd (born 15 June 1945) is a New Zealand-born musician and composer who has been based in Australia since the late 1960s, and who was the leader of Australian progressive rock bands Spectrum and Ariel in the 1970s.
Biography
Mi ...
and Bill Putt, who formed the band in 1973 after the breakup of their previous group
Spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors ...
(which also performed under the alter-ego Indelible Murtceps). The original Ariel line-up was Mike Rudd (guitar, harmonica, vocals), Bill Putt (bass),
Tim Gaze
Tim Gaze (born 8 August 1953) is an Australian rock and blues guitarist, songwriter, singer and producer. He was a member of several Australian groups from the 1960s to 1990s including Tamam Shud (1969–70, 1970–72 1993–95), Kahvas Jute (1 ...
(guitar), John Mills (keyboards) and Nigel Macara (drums). Gaze and Macara were recruited from seminal Australian progressive rock band
Tamam Shud
Tamam Shud is an Australian psychedelic, progressive and surf rock band, which formed in Newcastle in 1964. The initial line-up were known as The Four Strangers with Eric Connell on bass guitar, Dannie Davidson on drums, Gary Johns on rhythm ...
. The band released three studio albums and two live albums between 1973 and 1977, during which there were several line-up changes, with Rudd and Putt the only permanent members. Other members of Ariel included guitarists
Harvey James
Harvey James born Harvey William James Harrop (20 September 195215 January 2011) was an English-Australian rock guitarist. He was a member of the bands Mississippi (1973–74), Ariel (1974–75), Sherbet (1976–80, 1980–81) and the Party Bo ...
and Glyn Mason and keyboard player Tony Slavich.
History
1973-1975: ''A Strange Fantastic Dream'' & ''Rock'n Roll Scars''
Their debut album ''A Strange Fantastic Dream'', produced by
Peter Dawkins was released in Australia on
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
and in the UK on progressive label Harvest in December 1973, and reached No. 17 on the Australian charts in February 1974.
It included their most successful single "Jamaican Farewell", which peaked at No. 34, its success hampered by lack of airplay, especially in Sydney, although it impressed the industry enough to win the FACB "Single of the Year".
According to the liner notes for the CD release of the album, there were calls to ban the LP because of its psychedelic cover artwork by Stephen Nelson, which included a figure holding a
hypodermic syringe
A syringe is a simple reciprocating pump consisting of a plunger (though in modern syringes, it is actually a piston) that fits tightly within a cylindrical tube called a barrel. The plunger can be linearly pulled and pushed along the inside o ...
. Airplay for the LP was further hindered by the banning of three songs (the darkly satirical "Confessions of a Psychotic Cowpoke", "Miracle Man" and "Chicken Shit") by the commercial radio industry's self-regulatory body in Australia, the FACB.
Critical reception to ''A Strange Fantastic Dream'' was glowing. One particularly important outcome for the group was that EMI International's President, Allan Davies, who fell in love with the album saying "You know, Peter (Dawkins), I can't recall ever hearing a song about necrophilia!" Renowned British DJ John Peel also picked up both album and single and "said some really nice things about both of them".
The remastered re-release of ''A Strange Fantastic Dream'' was described as "extraordinary" by
The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
in September 2002.
Gaze and Nigel Macara left the band abruptly after a trip to Perth in early 1974, so Rudd and Putt began work on an ambitious science-fiction themed concept work entitled ''The Jellabad Mutant'', which they hoped to record. For rehearsals they brought in drummer John Lee (later a member of
The Dingoes
The Dingoes are an Australian country rock band. They were initially active from 1973 to 1979, and reformed in 2009. Initially based in Melbourne, the band relocated to the United States from 1976. The most stable line-up comprised John Bois on ...
) who in turn brought in Harvey James, thereby establishing the second lineup of the group, which lasted until early 1975. Ariel recorded a full demo of ''The Jellabad Mutant'' and presented it to their label EMI, but it was rejected. On the strength of the first LP, EMI in Britain had arranged recording time for the group at their famous
Abbey Road Studios in London, but the rejection of ''The Jellabad Mutant'' by EMI Australia forced Ariel to fall back on reworked material from Rudd's previous group
Spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors ...
, supplemented by new songs hastily written by Rudd for the sessions. Despite the problems surrounding the recording, the resultant album ''Rock & Roll Scars'' was released in March 1975 is now regarded as one of the best Australian albums of the period, although it failed to make any significant commercial impression. It was mixed in the UK by
Geoff Emerick
Geoffrey Ernest Emerick (5 December 1945 – 2 October 2018) was an English sound engineer and record producer who worked with the Beatles on their albums ''Revolver'' (1966), ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (1967) and ''Abbey Road'' ...
, who worked on many of the later recordings by
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
, and produced by Peter Dawkins.
Concerning the rejection of the ''Jellabad Mutant'' project, Rudd later said "It's interesting to speculate what might have happened had we been allowed to proceed with the Mutant with an intact budget EMI slashed the budget for ''Rock'n Roll Scars'' adding to the pressure and with the time to reflect and be creative with the raw material you hear in the demos. I regret not going in to bat for it at the time. We had a fabulous opportunity with the best technical assistance any band could have wanted. But I didn't sell the dream, even to myself."
After returning to Australia in early 1975 Ariel added a fifth member, singer-guitarist
Glyn Mason
Glyn Keith Murray Mason, 2nd Baron Blackford, (29 May 1887 – 31 December 1972) was a British businessman, magistrate, and Conservative politician.
Background
Mason was born in 1887 to Edith Mason née Affleck and William Mason (1862–1947). H ...
, formerly of
Chain, Jeff St John & Copperwine and Home. The five-piece version of the band performed for several months but recorded only one single, although unofficial live recordings of this lineup have survived. It was during this period that Rudd introduced Dawkins to newly arrived New Zealand band
Dragon. Dawkins (who had by then moved to
CBS Records CBS Records may refer to:
* CBS Records or CBS/Sony, former name of Sony Music, a global record company
* CBS Records International, label for Columbia Records recordings released outside North America from 1962 to 1990
* CBS Records (2006), founde ...
) immediately signed Dragon and went on to produce a string of Australian hit albums and singles with them in the late 1970s.
1976-1980: ''Goodnight Fiona'' and break up
After the expiration of their EMI contract the group signed with
CBS Records CBS Records may refer to:
* CBS Records or CBS/Sony, former name of Sony Music, a global record company
* CBS Records International, label for Columbia Records recordings released outside North America from 1962 to 1990
* CBS Records (2006), founde ...
for their third album ''Goodnight Fiona'', which was released in September 1976. Harvey James quit Ariel abruptly later in 1976 after he was invited to join leading Australian pop group
Sherbet, where he replaced founding member
Clive Shakespeare
Clive Richard Shakespeare (3 June 194715 February 2012) was an English-born Australian pop guitarist, songwriter and producer. He was a co-founder of pop rock group Sherbet, which had commercial success in the 1970s including their number-one ...
. James' first recording with Sherbet was their Australian No. 1 and UK Top 5 hit "Howzat". James was replaced in Ariel by keyboard player Tony Slavich.
Macara left again in October 1976 and was replaced by another former
Richard Clapton Band member, Iain McLennan. The single "Disco Dilemma" was released in April 1977, just before expiration of their CBS contract, after which they signed to local independent label Image Records. They recorded the single "It's Only Love" for their new label; the song featured lead vocals from its writer Glyn Mason.
Ariel announced its breakup in July 1977 and just before their CBS contract expired, the "Island Fantasy" themed farewell concert was staged on Sunday 21 August 1977 at the
Dallas Brooks Hall in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
. The show was recorded and released over the two albums ''Ariel Aloha'' in November 1977 and ''Live - More from Before'' in 1978. These two albums were subsequently reissued in 1980 as ''Ariel Live In Concert''.
Band members
*
Mike Rudd
Michael David Rudd (born 15 June 1945) is a New Zealand-born musician and composer who has been based in Australia since the late 1960s, and who was the leader of Australian progressive rock bands Spectrum and Ariel in the 1970s.
Biography
Mi ...
− guitar, harmonica, lead and backing vocals (1973−8/1977, ex-
Spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors ...
)
*
Tim Gaze
Tim Gaze (born 8 August 1953) is an Australian rock and blues guitarist, songwriter, singer and producer. He was a member of several Australian groups from the 1960s to 1990s including Tamam Shud (1969–70, 1970–72 1993–95), Kahvas Jute (1 ...
− guitar, lead and backing vocals (1973−4/1974, ex-
Kahvas Jute
Kahvas Jute were an Australian rock band formed in July 1970. Mainstay of the line-up was Dennis Wilson on guitar and vocals. Other founder members include Bob Daisley on bass guitar and Tim Gaze on lead guitar and vocals. Their debut album, ' ...
,
Tamam Shud
Tamam Shud is an Australian psychedelic, progressive and surf rock band, which formed in Newcastle in 1964. The initial line-up were known as The Four Strangers with Eric Connell on bass guitar, Dannie Davidson on drums, Gary Johns on rhythm ...
)
*
Harvey James
Harvey James born Harvey William James Harrop (20 September 195215 January 2011) was an English-Australian rock guitarist. He was a member of the bands Mississippi (1973–74), Ariel (1974–75), Sherbet (1976–80, 1980–81) and the Party Bo ...
− guitar, backing vocals (8/1974−3/1976)
* Glyn Mason − guitar, lead and backing vocals (1/1975−8/1977, ex-
Chain,
Jeff St John
Jeff St John (born Jeffrey Leo Newton; 22 April 1946 – 6 March 2018), was an Australian musician best known for several Australian hits, such as "Teach Me How to Fly" (1970), "Big Time Operator" (1967) and "A Fool in Love" (1977).
Early life ...
& Copperwine, Home)
* John Mills − keyboards (1973−4/1974, ex-
Spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors ...
)
* Tony Slavich − keyboards, backing vocals (1976−8/1977, ex-
Richard Clapton Band)
* Bill Putt − bass (1973−8/1977, ex-
Spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors ...
)
* Nigel Macara − drums, backing vocals (1973−4/1974, 4-10/1976, ex-
Tamam Shud
Tamam Shud is an Australian psychedelic, progressive and surf rock band, which formed in Newcastle in 1964. The initial line-up were known as The Four Strangers with Eric Connell on bass guitar, Dannie Davidson on drums, Gary Johns on rhythm ...
)
* John Lee − drums, backing vocals (4/1974−4/1976)
* Iain McLennan − drums, backing vocals (10/1976−8/1977, ex-
Richard Clapton Band)
Discography
Studio albums
Live albums
Singles
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ariel (band)
New South Wales musical groups
Australian progressive rock groups