These guys really set up the Australian music industry for decades, it's insane how much George Young and Harry Vanda actually did. They were machines. I watched a great short documentary on them and I encourage anyone to look in to them further, you will appreciate how many artists they were involved with.

Hard to overestimate the massive impact Vanda & Young had on music, and not just in Australia. Apart from writing for & producing dozens of Australian acts, they also wrote hits for people like Grace Jones. According to Jeff Apter's book about Angus Young, older brother George, enjoying the growing success of The Easybeats, gifted Malcolm & Angus guitars. They would spend countless hours learning to play. As a sort of party trick, the older boys would play Angus a song or a riff on a record & say "play that." 10 minutes later he'd repeat it, note for note, exact.

Stevie Wright, the cheeky little energizer bunny! I love dancing all out to this one, with the grey hair flying!

Great start. Yep, The Easybeats were very much like an Aussie version of The Kinks, maybe with a touch of Hollies. Guitar based rock, great stuff for it’s time. Stevie Wright was a great frontman, unfortunately struggled with fame, but one anthem for Aussies is his solo song Evie Parts 1, 2, & 3. Can’t wait to hear what else turns up to follow this. Cheers, guys!

Spot on with The Kinks comparison, guys. R.I.P. Stevie Wright - LEGEND.

The studio version release is just great. Full of energy and verve.

One of Australia's greatest bands ever - absolutely love them ❤ This was voted Australia's best single of all time in an industry poll, with Daddy Cool's 'Eagle Rock' at number two and Stevie Wright's 'Evie Parts 1, 2 and 3' at number three. Some in the industry also think that Stevie was the greatest frontman Australia ever saw. All I know is that they were fabulous. Was lucky enough to meet Stevie a few years before he passed away, and what a lovely, sweet man he was. RIP Stevie (and George Young) ❤

Thank you this was great. Love Stevie Wright. You should listen to Evie pts1,2, & 3. It's amazing and also written by Vanda & Young. Great reaction. I think I like the Easybeats version better.

The Easybeats were groundbreakers for sure, as per usual, they got screwed over when they got popular overseas, and it ultimately tore them apart. Great to see this live performance, they still looked so enthusiastic. The Bowie version is awesome, he kept the heart of it intact, but Bowied it up real good, lol. Great start guys, had a great time watching.

Stevie Wright was 17 when he joined The Easy Beats.

George and Angus Young were migrants from Glasgow and Harry Vanda was from Holland. Stevie Wright the vocalist was English. They all met at the migrant camp in Sydney.

Neighbours is like Fosters in Australia.

It’s hilarious watching you guys unwittingly insulting chunks of audience. Keep up the great work. As an Inuit who has emigrated to Australia and had to get a mullet to pass the citizenship test my head is spinning.

That musical sweet spot between Beatlemania and the Summer of Love. Where I lived, there were a dozen or so bands trying to match this level of energy, talent, and originality. They fell short, but it was a marvelous time.

The Easy Beats went to England to record Friday on my mind. After the first take the producer told them that was it. He was happy and they were stunned.

The Easybeats were so good! One story that went around was when Paul McCartney first heard "Good Times" on BBC radio, he thought it was so good that he called the station to get them to play it again. It's a great song with unmistakable backing vocals by Steve Marriott from Small Faces.

Great band and awesome sound still sounds fresh today

I saw The Easybeats in 1967 or 1968. I was in junior high. It was in Sioux Falls, South Dakota USA. Radio KISD Sioux Falls was the major sponsor and brought a number of acts for 1 summer event the 2 summers I lived there. KISD SUMMER HAPPENING. They were great fun. I remember The Easybeats covered A Day In The Life (The Beatles). Other acts included Gene Pitney, The 5th Estate, The Happenings, The Beach Boys and others.. Thank you for your reaction.

In Australia, we pronounce Bowie as "Bow EE" Easybeats were great and wow with Stevie Wright when he was lucid.

Easeybeats were the local band in my town , at the local Scouts hall , they called it the Disco , well before Disco , guess that makes extremely old eh.

Wow, I’ve never heard that Bowie version before. I particularly enjoyed how he turned the chorus into an anti-climax by pulling it back slightly where the Easy Beats took off. Made it really “refreshing”.

I remember this band from UK 60s. Didn’t know they were Australian until I moved here.

Thanks guys ive never heard this live version befor ,always liked this song

Great guitar playing. One of the guys was the Young brother's big brother. They wrote and produced a lot of ACDC's early stuff.

My favourite Easybeats song is “ Sorry”.

There is a two part tv series called Friday On My Mind all about The Easy Beats.

My eldest brother is a musician and his first rock and roll band covered Friday on My Mind. I was five years old and remember vividly, dancing like crazy during rehearsal at the local church hall! That song brings it all back! I recall having puppy love for the singer (Dennis!) watching his hair swing whilst belting this out! You must watch Evie Parts 1,2 and 3 live on the steps of the Sydney Opera House. Amazing. So love little Stevie and the EasyBeats.

George Young is namechecked in Sultans of Swing as "Guitar George".

They came home from England on their first tour because of home sickness, I think Stevie was missing his girl. If they had stayed there is no telling how big they would have been because they were killing it.

They all met in a migrant hostel ….Wright and Young from UK , Vanda from Holland.

david bowie should do his own ....

Springsteen has said he heard this and wanted to write a 'Friday on My Mind' song ... he wrote 'Out on The Street' and actually references this song in the lyrics.

Great start to Aussie Week II and what a bonus track!!

Stevie Wright also sang what I consider the best Aussie song ever in "Evie"....a 3 part 11 minute epic from Vanda & Young. An absolute must for Aussie week 3.

Love this group! I've got all their albums. (Oh, and thanks to Aussie Week One , I'm hooked on Cold Chisel.)

Easybeats nearly signed up with Beatles Apple label like older Young brother's band Grapefruit

Easybeats: For My Woman, She's So Fine, Wedding Ring, Women, Sorry, Come and See Her, Sad Lonely and Blue, Funny Feelin', I'll Make You Happy, As Easy As Can Be, In My Book, Too Much, written by Stevie Wright and George Young all made the charts in Australia before Friday On My Mind. Easybeat is nice little instrumental from 1965, album track only. They churned out 100's of songs 65-69 and of course Vanda and Young wrote so many hits for other people in the 70/80's. Check out Evie parts 1, 2, 3. which they wrote for Stevie Wright, the longest song to go to No.1. Bowie's version sounds like his Laughing Gnome, what a Barry Crocker! (Aussie slang for shocker)

Boys - check out Little Stevie live at the Sydney Opera House. Amazing!

I think the comparison of The Easybeats with The Kinks was very apt indeed. Harry Vanda and George Young may have been more influential in the long run, but there's no denying just how similar their musical styles were at that time. Songs like The Easybeats "Sorry" and "I'll Make You Happy" are direct competitors/brothers with The Kinks "You've Really Got Me" and "All Day and All of the Night"! All four songs just ROCK and were basically punk before punk even existed..

First performed in 1966 and it still rates at the top of all time Aussie rock. Written by band members who wrote so many hits around the time...Vanda and Young. They also had a couple of well performed songs as Flash and the Pan..."Down among the dead men" was one. You failed to mention one of the best covers of this you will ever hear done by Bruce Springsteen at a 2014 Sydney concert..

A perfect start to Oz week!!! (really hope Chris included Evie 1, 2 & 3 in the mix🤞) Bowie's version of Friday is good, but I'm perplexed by his vocal styling choices - just too variable, I reckon. Perhaps the result of, um, substances. Still a really good version of the song. For me though, the original just holds up and Stevie is mesmerizing to watch.

I noticed the dancing too that slow dancing wasn’t normal in the 60s for a band like the Easybeats. I thought it was from another vid thrown in. I’m old enough 🥴 I remember lol

Love it

You are both right, wild dance hadn't happened. And everyone was so reserved and confused as to what to do to this new music So much happened so quickly in the early 60's. It was all new. Hard to imagine now but the culture then was so controlled. yes I was there.

Now we need Evie parts 1, 2 and 3!

Harry Vander and George Young are two of the most influential artists in music. Working with Albert's records they started a tradition of recording albums live, no overdubs. You can't polish rock music man! And that is why good Aussie rock rules the universe 🙂

Sadly, lead singer Stevie Wright's life took many tragic turns from the 1970s on. Basic details at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Wright

That's Harry (blonde) to the left of Stevie (looking from the audience) and George on the right. Keep in mind that this song is at the end of an evening's performance, so Stevie's voice is a little worse for wear. Check out the official video to get how good it could get. I hope you're going to check out the Love Ones as well. Same time as the Easybeats, and just as great, but not too well known.

that call on the Kinks was spot on

Great choice! Lots of people try their hand at music reactions, you gents however have some wonderful insights and are genuinely entertaining. Already working on my Week 3 suggestions

Stevie wright was a great frontman check out his three part Evie a massive solo hit in oz in 74, its a bloody classic.

Supposedly on hearing this song on the bbc for the first time john lennon rang the bbc and demanded they play it again

This is the perfect song to kick off Aus week 2. It definitely gets your toes tapping. Thankyou Gents. 😉

Actually it reached 6 on the charts in the UK. Don't you remember? ;) From Wikipedia: "Friday on My Mind" is a 1966 song by Australian rock group the Easybeats. Written by band members George Young and Harry Vanda,[6] the track became a worldwide hit, reaching no. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in May 1967 in the US,[7] no. 1 on the Dutch Top 40 chart,[8] no. 1 in Australia and no. 6 in the UK, as well as charting in several other countries. In 2001, it was voted "Best Australian Song" of all time by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) as determined by a panel of 100 music industry personalities.[9][10] In 2007, "Friday on My Mind" was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia registry. In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the 'most Australian' songs of all time, "Friday on My Mind" was ranked number 25 The minor-key verses of "Friday on My Mind" depict the tedium and drudgery of the work week, taking each day at a time ("Monday morning feels so bad/Coming Tuesday I feel better"). These verses are adorned with a distinctive guitar figure. The build-up to the chorus features a slowly rising vocal, culminating with a shout of "Cos I'll have Friday on my mind!", and launching into a major-key refrain celebrating the pleasures of the weekend in the city.

Classic Oz Rock👍🤘🤘

Hi guys. Countdown is 7 days until The Warning will be at the Troubadour. You will love it. Saw them in Mpls. Opening band Devora is pretty good too. Talking about the song *"Friday on My Mind" from The Easybeats.* The legendary (R.I.P) guitarist did a cover of this song back in 1987 on his excellent*"Wild Frontiers"* album.

Vanda and Young dominated the charts in Australia throughout the 70s as song writers and producers perhaps their biggest song being John Paul Young's Love is in the Air and of course Evie was another of their Australian chart toppers. Then there's Grace Jones' Walking in the Rain. Versatile and hugely talented. R.I.P. George, Malcolm, Bon and Stevie.

Great introduction to Oz week 2 Chris and great reaction and awesome analogy guys.Cheers

Good start to aussie week - it's amazing with each and every cover - the essential guitar riffs remain the stand out !

where what all begins?? this was one of their last songs. stevie wright lived in my street till he died, he had a number of health complications from doctors treatments, his woman cared for him, he was happy, respected and well liked by all the locals. RIP

The new, raw sound of mid-1960's "rock" (as opposed to it's precursor - late 1950's/early 1960's "rock and roll").

I love that you give some researched history and facts of the bands and artists. really good.... Love that it's live. They were just so popular in OZ at the time...we teenagers loved them so much. Stevie Wright was a real pocket rocket. So sad the way his life went but he was well loved. hahaha the crossover from formal dancing to go go dancing...we had to create the dancing to go with the new music. We had a ball doing it..It was really as fantastic as it looks and seems, to those who were not there yet..lol...

What has always amazed me about this track is the guitar riff. It's a very unique sound when you think about it, and fairly intricate. It's sort of surfie and Spanish sounding at the same time. It seems to have a classical guitar influence to it.

In the 80's pretty much everyone did have a mullet...🤣 and coming back in our rural towns now.

Loving Aussie week and great suggestions Chris! There’s a really enjoyable miniseries drama been made recently about the early days of the Easybeats called “Friday on My Mind” if you can get a chance to see it. I agree with your comments on the dancing, I think people were still figuring out how to break away from the old time styles into freeform.

Have never heard the Bowie version. So weird when you’ve grown up with the original 😂

Guys The Easybeats are the most underrated bands in history...They were fucking Amazing.....Songs like Heaven and Hell, Sorry, Wedding Ring, Good Times, I'll Make you Happy, She's So Fine, Women, Pretty Girl, St.Louis, The Music Goes Round My Head, Come in you'll get Pneumonia, Hello how Are You.. Are all bona fide Hits just not supported by the radio etc. I'm as serious as a heart attack boys, they really need to get the accolades they so richly deserve. Please if only for you own listening pleasure slap on the Cans and crank it up to 11, and let these Dudes Rock your World as they have done for me for 50 years Thanks my Brothers from other Mother's..love ya Work

Great start to Aussie week. Hope this means we get some thing from each decade.

Enjoying catching the Aussie series. 1966 music is not complete without contrasting this track with The Loved One by The Loved Ones. Both are still on my playlist. Edit, almost forgot to add another contrast from the summer of 1965-66 Normie Rowe's Shakin' All Over - first heard it travelling down Victoria's surf coast on a hot blue sky day and also still on my playlist.

You should take a look at another Young & Vanda composition’Evie parts 1,2 &3’ written for their ex-easybeats vocalist Stevie Wright.

The Easybeats moved to UK after winning the Battle Of The Bands in Australia. Hot single from the sixties. I hope you are going to cover Stevie Wright's Evie (parts 1,2 and 3) another classic Vanda and Young composition. Easybeats also had other great songs like Wedding Ring and She's So Fine. Vanda and Young released great music such as Down Among The Dead Men. Didn't Bowie do this version during his Pin-ups tour.

Loved it boys! Really looking forward to what you have in store this week.

La De Da's "How's the air up there"

Check out “sorry” from 1966 and the mini series on the band from 2017 “Friday on my mind”.

He looks like Davy Jones.

''Sultans' isn't based on the Easy Beats. Mark Knopfler is on record saying it was a jazz band they saw in Deptford in an dingy empty pub

Starting Part 2 off with another bang! Great stuff. Haven’t heard this in ages so I have to admit I was a pretty excited.

This regularly gets chosen as the best Australian song of all time. Some of it is inspired by J S Bach.

Fantastic start to Aus week 2 guys. You 2 are fantastically entertaining which is why I subscribe. Easybeats were fantastic live way back in the day according to my older brother. Me, a bit young for the 60's live scene. Bowie version was brilliant, I miss him.

Pretty sure there was an older Young brother, Alexander, who was in Grapefruit

Two other great Easybeats songs are St. Louis …. And Good Times.

Really fun tune, I preferred the original to the Bowie version. I fully appreciate the genius of David Bowie, it's just not on the same street I am.

Good analysis gentlemen. You're right about the stricter expectations. The real freedom began in the mid to late '70s. The majority of people in the '60s were quite conservative, especially here in Australia. Bowie's version...hmmm. Listen to the Easybeats studio version. Vastly superior.

For sure, you guys need to air/internet the Seekers, massive successful group in the sixties, that came from Australia, such as Georgie Girl or The Carnival is Over

Bowie covered it in 1973 , the Easy Beats spent a couple of years in England , recording and touring , arrived back in Australia with the grand total of 100 quid each in their pocket , that was the end of the Easy Beats , Vander and Young turned to writing and producing Stevie Wright went solo , but drugs and mental health mistreatment " experimental shock treatment " he had a hit in the eighties with a song produced by Vander and Young with the song Evie kzfaq.info/get/bejne/orammKV1m727iJc.html

Hi guys, Great music and commentary. I subscribed immediately. A quick anecdote on your mentions of the now legendary duo Vanda and Young ... George Young was indeed the older brother of the other legendary duo Malcolm and Angus of AC/DC. When the Easybeats tried their luck in the USA Harry Vanda bought a new red Gretsch G6131 Jet Firebird guitar for the tour... It was not the success they'd hoped, and on returning to Australia Harry decided to concentrate on being a producer, and gifted the Gretsch to the young Malcolm Young (not meant to be read like 'Bond James Bond') and remained Malcolm's famously recognised choice for the rest of his career and life.

If you want some interesting Bowie to react to, check out the live performances he did with Nine Inch Nails. Absolutely mind blowing!

I love the Easybeats but I have to push back on the oft repeated myth that they were the first Australian performers to have an international hit. They weren’t where it started, they were just an important milestone on the journey. Dame Nellie Melba was a pioneer of wax recording in the late 19th century and around the turn of the 20th century she had hit records in the US, UK and elsewhere. She was the most famous female singer of her day. She called herself Melba as a play on Melbourne, where she came from. And yes, the desert Peach Melba, was created for her, as was Melba toast. There were others before the Easybeats, but the Easybeats were first in the era of the top 100 hit lists. It could be argued that the first Australian hit song was Botany Bay which became popular in Sydney, Southport, and London around 1790. It is based on a much earlier English folk song. No one knows who adapted it into Botany Bay, or whether it happened in Sydney or England, but it is possible it came from sailors on ships, as there were several shanty’s known to have shipboard origins such as Bound For South Australia and the voyages were long. Curiously, the song was not written down until the 1880’s, and it had over 90 years as a purely vocal tradition with the inevitable variations that spawned. Whatever the truth about this early music it was the foundation of the uniquely Australian musical culture in which story telling of ordinary people predominates, and by its very nature, it has a certain irreverence about life and authority. You discussed the political correctness aspects of A Whole Lotta Rosie a while back, that singing about a fat girl is somehow indelicate. You have also felt that Australian music is a little different, well that kind of irreverence, and real world experience is a part of it. Rosie is real, and the Bon Scott was comfortable singing about her.

I actually would have chosen the official music video rather than the live one.

i think their song Sorry was even better! Muchly better!

omg, did you see the crowd dancing? the sixties were wasted, on the sixties!

1960’S Break beats

Dick Diamonde and Harry Vanda were from the Netherlands The other three from the UK (with Young being Scottish) They met in and around Villawood Migrant Camp which was a temp mass accomodation for new arrivals to Australia Dick's real name was Dingeman Adriaan Henry van der Sluijs. And Harry was Johannes Hendrikus Jacob van den Berg

Takes me back. American Graffti sound track. The British Invasion plus the odd group from Aussie. This was the groundwork for the new forms ie ie Jefferson airplane hair asbury all coming out with new twists on the basic rock and roll

Absolutely classical classic rock song!!! How in the heck did this fail to make Aussie week #1?!!

Fair choice, how can you not feature them? Then there's the Vander and Young connection. This song would get me pumped at work on a Friday. What's next, Johnny O'Keefe? Maybe for another time.

Heavens! You'd never heard this before? It's a legendary song. The Easybeats were precursors to AC/DC of course.

Great start. Vanda and Young were pivotal in the Oz music scene as writers and producers after the Easybeats finished. They also had a side project called Flash And The Pan who recorded a couple of classics in Hey St. Peter and Down Among The Deadmen

Great start to Aussie Week 2. I wasn't aware that Bowie had covered it. Thanks for playing it.

You could do quite a few more Easybeats songs, the early ones were very short so maybe 2 at a time. She’s so fine, Sorry, Wedding Ring, I’ll make you happy. Then later on St Louis & Good Times. You good even do people doing covers of Easybeats songs… get this - Jimmy Barnes & INXS doing Good Times, Divynls doing I’ll Make You Happy, The Saints doing The Music goes round my Head. Not to mention all the Aussie hits by people doing Vanda & Young songs in the post The Easybeats period.