Richard Arnold Pleasance is an Australian

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

ian and producer. He was a founding member of Boom Crash Opera on guitar, bass guitar, vocals and as a songwriter in 1985; they released three albums before Pleasance left in 1992. Their hit

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...

(ARIA) singles, "Great Wall" (No. 5, 1986) and "Onion Skin" (No. 11, 1989) were co-written by Pleasance, who also co-produced their second album, '' These Here Are Crazy Times'' (No. 10, 1989). His debut solo release, ''Galleon'' received four nominations at the

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

for

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

. Pleasance composed the theme music for Australian television series, ''

SeaChange ''SeaChange'' is an Australian television program that ran from 1998 to 2000 on the ABC and in 2019 on the Nine Network. It was created by Andrew Knight and Deborah Cox and starred Sigrid Thornton, David Wenham, William McInnes, John Howar ...

'' (1998–2001), for 2006 feature film ''

Kenny Kenny is a surname, a given name, and a diminutive of several different given names. In Ireland, the surname is an Anglicisation of the Irish language, Irish ''Ó Cionnaith'', also spelt ''Ó Cionnaoith'' and ''Ó Cionaodha'', meaning "descendant ...

'' and more recently he composed the theme music for the prison drama series ''

Wentworth Wentworth may refer to: People * Wentworth (surname) * Judith Blunt-Lytton, 16th Baroness Wentworth (1873–1957), Lady Wentworth, notable Arabian horse breeder * S. Wentworth Horton (1885–1960), New York state senator * Wentworth Miller (born 1 ...

''. Pleasance is married to Michelle and, as from May 2009, he was living in

Hepburn Springs, Victoria The traditional land of the Dja Dja Wurrung, Hepburn Springs is a resort town located in the middle of the largest concentration of mineral springs in Australia, situated in Victoria, 48 km northeast of Ballarat. At the , Hepburn had a pop ...

where he has a recording studio.

Early years

Richard was born in Park Orchards and attended Mitcham High School. His nickname at school was Polly. He was the founding guitarist for Melbourne-based band Government Drums in 1980 with Steve Bell, Michael Davis, Barbara Hogarth and Willy Zygier. After they disbanded in 1982, Pleasance joined Serious Young Insects in 1983 when founding bass guitarist, Michael Vallance left. Alongside Pleasance were Peter Farnan on guitar and vocals and Mark White on drums but the group soon disbanded. Pleasance stated in a radio interview on 21st Sept 2021 (ABC Melbourne) that he was never a member of Serious Young Insects - but would liked to have been. Pleasance then formed Bang in 1983 which included

Karen Ansel Karen Ansel is a visual effects specialist in the United States. Previously an Australian musician, she was an influential member of the Australian band The Reels. In 2001, the title track " Quasimodo's Dream" from their album '' Quasimodo's Dre ...

, Carol Hitchcock, Laurie McRae, Tim Rosewarne,

Nick Seymour Nicholas More Seymour (born 9 December 1958) is an Australian musician and record producer. He is the founding bass guitarist and a mainstay of the rock group Crowded House, and is the younger brother of Mark Seymour, singer-songwriter-guitar ...

, Ren Walters, Oleh Witer and

Sherine Abeyratne Sherine Yvonne Abeyratne is an Australian singer. She and her identical twin sister, Suzanne "Zan", were born in 1961 in London, and raised in Australia. They often sang together as backing singers of a number of groups including Models, INXS ...

, and disbanded in 1984.

1985-2009: Boom Crash Opera

Pleasance teamed up again with Farnan in 1985 to form rock music group Boom Crash Opera with Dale Ryder on lead vocals, Peter Maslen on drums and Greg O'Connor on keyboards. The band signed to

Warner Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

Australia and in 1986 released their debut single "

Great Wall The Great Wall of China (, literally "ten thousand Li (unit), ''li'' wall") is a series of fortifications that were built across the historical northern borders of ancient Chinese states and Imperial China as protection against Eurasian noma ...

" co-written by Ryder, Pleasance and O'Connor. The single reached No. 5 on the Australian

Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July ...

Singles Chart. Their self-titled debut album, '' Boom Crash Opera'' was released in 1987, and featured follow up singles "

Hands Up in the Air "Hands Up in the Air" is a song by Australian rock band Boom Crash Opera. It was released in 1986 as the second single from their self-titled studio album. The song reached number 16 in Australia. Track listing 7" single (0.258620) # Hands U ...

", "

City Flat "City Flat" is a song by Australian rock band Boom Crash Opera, released in 1987 as the third single from their self-titled studio album. It was written by the band's two main songwriters: guitarist Peter Farnan and bass player Richard Pleasance ...

" and "

Her Charity "Her Charity" is the fourth single by Australian band Boom Crash Opera, released in 1987. It was the fourth single to be released from the band's self-title album. It peaked at number 32 on the Kent Music Report. The song is about Miss America ...

" —all co-written by Pleasance. In 1989 they released "

Onion Skin Onion skin may refer to: * onionskin Onionskin or onion skin is a thin, lightweight, strong, often translucent paper. Though not made from onions, it superficially resembles their thin, papery skins. It was usually used with carbon paper for ty ...

" which peaked at No. 11 on the

(ARIA) Singles Chart in June. It was released ahead of their Top 10 album, '' These Here Are Crazy Times'' which was produced by Pete Smith and Pleasance, and mixed by

Nick Launay Nicolas Launay is an English record producer, composer and recording engineer. He is one of the most sought after record producers in the world due to his success with recent albums by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Anna Calvi, IDLES, Black Reb ...

. The album spent 40 weeks in the ARIA Albums Chart and achieved double platinum sales. "

" was followed by Top 30 singles " Get Out of the House!" and " Dancing in the Storm". Boom Crash Opera released '' Look! Listen!!'' in 1990, it featured remixed versions of songs from their first two albums plus two new songs and peaked into the Top 50. Soon after its release, Pleasance was diagnosed with

tinnitus Tinnitus is the perception of sound when no corresponding external sound is present. Nearly everyone experiences a faint "normal tinnitus" in a completely quiet room; but it is of concern only if it is bothersome, interferes with normal hearin ...

and while he took time off he was replaced on bass guitar by Mick Vallance. During his break from the band, Pleasance released his debut solo album, ''Galleon'' in 1991. In 1991 the band released an

Extended Play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP), '' Dreams on Fire'', with both Pleasance and Vallance on bass guitar. The EP reached Top 50 on the ARIA Singles Chart and featured the track "Holy Water". In 1992 they travelled to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and began work on the next studio album. Soon after they began writing and recording Pleasance made his decision to leave the band. He was temporarily replaced by Dorian West and then Ian Tilley. Boom Crash Opera recorded an acoustic album entitled '' Dancing in the Storm'' in February 2009 with Pleasance guesting on bass, guitar, mandolin, sitar and Oud; he also produced the recording as part of the Liberation Blue series which was released in May.

1991-present: Solo years

Pleasance had solo success outside Boom Crash Opera, his 1991 album ''Galleon'' featured the singles "Sarah I Miss You" and "Don't Cry". The album's personnel included

Paul Hester Paul Newell Hester (8 January 1959 – 26 March 2005) was an Australian musician and television personality. He was the drummer for the band Split Enz for a short time in 1984, and co-founding member and drummer of the rock group Crowded House ...

and

Deborah Conway Deborah Ann Conway (born 8 August 1959) is an Australian rock singer-songwriter and guitarist, and had a career as a model and actress. She was a founding member of the 1980s rock band Do-Ré-Mi with their top 5 hit "Man Overboard". Conw ...

. ''Galleon'' was critically acclaimed and went on to earn four nominations at the

for

. Pleasance then toured the album, as a support act for

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...

. Also in 1991 Pleasance co-produced and performed on the highly successful debut album for

, '' String of Pearls'' and co-wrote, "King of Jordan", with Conway. Pleasance has also produced, arranged, played and written with other acts,

Archie Roach Archibald William Roach (8 January 1956 – 30 July 2022) was an Australian singer, songwriter and Aboriginal Australian, Aboriginal activist. Often referred to as "Uncle Archie", Roach was a Gunditjmara and Western Bundjalung people, Bundjalu ...

, Paul Kelly,

Suzanne Vega Suzanne Nadine Vega ( Peck; born July 11, 1959) is an American singer-songwriter best known for her folk-inspired music. Vega's music career spans almost 40 years. She came to prominence in the mid-1980s, releasing four singles that entered the ...

James Reyne James Michael Nugent Reyne OAM (born 19 May 1957) is an Australian rock musician and singer-songwriter both in solo work and, until 1986, with the band Australian Crawl. Biography Early years Reyne was born in Lagos, Nigeria. His father, Ro ...

Jon Stevens Jon Stevens (born 8 October 1961) is a New Zealand singer, best known for his work with Noiseworks and ''Jesus Christ Superstar''. Biography 1980–1986: career beginnings and ''Jezebel'' Stevens was born in Upper Hutt, New Zealand, and is o ...

Nick Barker Nicholas Paul Barker is an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist who formed a rock, power pop band, Nick Barker & the Reptiles, in March 1988. Their cover version of Cockney Rebel's "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" reached the top ...

Seven Stories Seven Stories, the National Centre for Children's Books is a museum and visitor centre dedicated to children's literature and based in the Ouseburn Valley, Newcastle upon Tyne, close to the city's regenerated Quayside. The renovated Victorian m ...

and

Augie March Augie (sometimes spelled Auggie) is a nickname for variations of the name August, which derives from the Latin name Augustus. It may refer to: People *Augie Auer (1940–2007), meteorologist *Augie Galan (1912–1993), Major League Baseball play ...

. In 1996, Pleasance formed Felt with fellow singer-songwriter Wendy Morrison on piano and they released the self-titled album, ''Felt'', on Gotham and BMG Records. Pleasance supplied vocals, guitar, bass guitar and keyboard and produced the album. Pleasance wrote and produced the theme for the popular Australian television series ''

'' (1998–2001). He started a band, Pleasantville, which included his wife, Michelle, which released their debut album ''Hill of Beans'' in 2004. He composed the theme music for 2006 feature film ''

''. As from May 2009, Pleasance was living in

where he has a recording studio. In May 2018, Pleasance recorded the original motion picture soundtrack for the film ''

Brothers' Nest ''Brothers' Nest'' is a 2018 Australian comedy-drama thriller film directed by Clayton Jacobson and starring him and his brother Shane Jacobson, reuniting the two after 2006's ''Kenny''. Plot synopsis One cold morning in Victoria, brothers Terr ...

''. In August 2021, Pleasance released "Crooked River", the lead single from his forthcoming third studio album of the same name.

Discography

Studio albums

Soundtrack albums

Singles

Engineer, producer or session musician

Pleasance has been an

audio engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, ...

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

and/or

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

. *1991 – ''String of Pearls'' –

*1991 – ''

Electric Digger Dandy ''Electric Digger Dandy'' is the third solo studio album by Australian singer/songwriter James Reyne released in June 1991. The album was released in the United States as ''Any Day Above Ground''. The album peaked at number 3 on the ARIA Charts ...

'' –

*1992 – ''

99.9F° ' (''Ninety-Nine Point Nine Fahrenheit Degrees'') is the fourth album by American singer and songwriter Suzanne Vega. Released in 1992, the album marked a departure for Vega, as she embraced a more electronic, experimental sound. It peaked at No. ...

'' –

*1993 – ''Everything You Want (Nothing That You Need)'' –

*1994 – ''Happy Man'' – Barker *1996 – ''Shop Front Window'' – The Jaynes *1998 – ''

Waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wa ...

–

*2000 – '' Sunset Studies'' – Augie March *2001 – ''Resonate'' – Jimmy Little *2002 – ''Cooinda'' –

Kutcha Edwards Kutcha Edwards is an indigenous Australian singer and songwriter. He was born in Balranald, New South Wales, in 1965. A survivor of the Stolen Generations, he was removed from his parents at the age of 18 months. He is a Mutti Mutti man. He was ...

*2002 – ''

Sensual Being ''Sensual Being'' is the fourth studio album by Australian singer songwriter Archie Roach. The album was released in July 2002 and peaked at number 59 on the ARIA Charts. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2002, the album was nominated for Best Adult ...

'' –

*2003 – '' Won't You Come Around'' – Paul Kelly *2005 – '' All the Pretty Boys'' –

Sophie Koh Sophie Koh is an Australian singer and songwriter. Biography Born in New Zealand, Sophie Koh grew up both there and in Singapore. She got her LMusA (Licentiate in Music Australia, a diploma) when she was just 16 years old and spent her early ...

Awards and nominations

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are held in Australia and New Zealand by the

Australasian Performing Right Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwr ...

to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually. ! , - ! scope="row" rowspan="2",

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, ''Emerald Falls'' , Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie , , , - , "

Episode 14 Episode 14 may refer to: * "Episode 14" (''Primeval'') * "Episode 14" (''Twin Peaks'') * "Episode 14" (''Ugly Betty'' episode) {{disambiguation ...

" from ''

City Homicide ''City Homicide'' is an Australian television drama series that aired on the Seven Network between 27 August 2007 and 30 March 2011. The series was set on the Homicide floor of a metropolitan police headquarters in Melbourne. The main characte ...

'' , Best Music for a Television Series or Serial , ,

ARIA Music Awards

The

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions of ...

. ! , - ! scope="row" rowspan="5",

, ''Galleon'' ,

ARIA Award for Best Male Artist The ARIA Music Award for Best Male Artist, is an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It is handed out by the Australian Recording Indus ...

, , rowspan="5", , - , ''Galleon'' ,

ARIA Award for Breakthrough Artist – Album The ARIA Music Award for Breakthrough ArtistAlbum is an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It is handed out by the Australian Recordin ...

, , - , "Sarah (I Miss You)" ,

ARIA Award for Breakthrough Artist – Single The ARIA Music Award for Breakthrough Artist – Single was an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards. It was presented from 1989 through to 2009 and 2011. This, and the ARIA Award for Breakthrough Artist – Album was merged in 2012 t ...

, , - , Richard Pleasance ,

ARIA Award for Producer of the Year The ARIA Music Award for Producer of the Year, is an award presented within the Artisan Awards at the annual ARIA Music Awards. The ARIA Awards recognise "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", and have been given by t ...

, , - , Richard Pleasance and Ross Hipwell for ''Galleon'' ,

ARIA Award for Best Cover Art The ARIA Music Award for Best Cover Art, is an award presented within the Artisan Awards at the annual ARIA Music Awards. The ARIA Awards recognise "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", and have been given by the Aus ...

, , - ,

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

, ''The Very Best of SeaChange'' , Best Original Soundtrack , , ARIA Award previous winners. , -

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pleasance, Richard APRA Award winners Australian audio engineers Australian record producers Living people Musicians from Melbourne Year of birth missing (living people)

Early years

1985-2009: Boom Crash Opera

1991-present: Solo years

Discography

Studio albums

Soundtrack albums

Singles

Engineer, producer or session musician

See also

Awards and nominations

APRA Awards

ARIA Music Awards

References

External links