A segment from the long running Australian music TV series Countdown, which aired on the ABC from 1974-1987.
This particular segment aired during the Countdown episode which originally aired on August 3, 1980, on the ABC.
This clip features an interview of Australian band Cold Chisel, featuring band members Jimmy Barnes and Don Walker, conducted by Countdown Talent Co-Ordinator Molly Meldrum.
The interview begins with Molly congratulating Cold Chisel for the success of their album 'East', surpassing bands such as KISS and the Rolling Stones on the Australian charts. They then discuss Cold Chisel's possible overseas album and single releases.
They go on to discuss the technical issues regarding the recording of the 'East' album, compared to their previous album, 'Breakfast At Sweethearts'. They also discuss producer Mark Opitz' work on the 'East' album.
The then continue to discuss the band's on stage appearance and performances. They also discuss the subject matter of some of their songs, and how Walker, their main songwriter, develops those ideas. Barnes also briefly discusses his ideas.
They proceed to discuss the subject of their song 'Star Hotel'- the September 19, 1979 Star Hotel riot in Newcastle, New South Wales, where 4,000 patrons clashed with police over the closing of the Hotel.
The interview concludes with Molly regarding the band as Australia's best rock band, before it leads into a small clip of their single 'My Baby'.
Vaxfacts: Don Walker, Cold Chisel's main songwriter and keyboardist, started off on a different career path. A graduate of physics from the University of New England in Armidale, New South Wales, Walker began working in the early 1970s for the then Weapons Research Establishment (now Defence Science & Technology Organisation) at a facility near Adelaide, South Australia. Walker's research involved computer modelling of air flows around the General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark fighter/bomber aircraft, which was flown by both the United States and Royal Australian Air Forces. As the F-111 pushed the boundaries of aerodynamics, they had a tendency to crash more frequently that similar such aircraft. Walker's work was to determine what was the cause of the crashes. Walker would escape the boring grind of computer analysis by plying his musical skills around Adelaide, eventually forming Cold Chisel with Barnes, Ian Moss, Phil Small and Steve Prestwich. As a tribute to his early research days, Walker wrote a song, 'F-111', which was released on their 1994 compilation album, 'Teenage Love'.