MusicJournoGANGgajang - 80s Australian Rock
June 7th 2006 07:58
GANGgajang might not be a band familiar to everyone but they have at least one song that almost every Australian is guaranteed to have heard, 'Sounds of Then' (This is Australia).
The band came together in 1984 to write some songs for the twenty-episode mid-80s Australian TV series 'Sweet and Sour' (a show about a band called The Takeaways and their efforts to break into the bigtime). Obviously they clicked together, as they decided to continue on as a proper band. Here are the members...
Cal Callahan on vocals, he had sung previously for The Riptides.
Chris Bailey on bass and Buzz Bidstrup on drums, both came via The Angels.
Robbie Jones on guitar.
Geoff Stapleton on guitar and keys, formerly of the band The Aliens.
And Kayellen Bee and Marilyn Delaney on backing vocals and percussion.
They put together a self-titled album in 1985 which spawned five singles, including the aforementioned hit 'Sounds of Then'. It is probably for this song that they remain most remembered. In 1987 they released the followup album 'gangAGAIN', and recorded an exclusive soundtrack for a Quicksilver surf movie called 'Mad Wax' - which led to them being named 'World's Best Band' (no less!) two years in a row by the World Pro Surfers Association.
After this the band went on hiatus. They all had other things to pursue - Kayellen and Marilyn went off to work behind the scenes in the film industry. Cal released a solo album. Buzz and Chris did session work with a variety of well-known Australian recording artists. Geoff formed The Dukes. And Rob recorded a bunch of songs with Wendy Matthews.
The band reformed in 1991 (without Kayellen and Marilyn) for some fun... the shows turned out to be hugely successful and this, coupled with Channel 9 picking up the song 'Sounds of Then' for promotional purposes, led to the band deciding to go back into the studio. They've remained together to this day, playing sporadicaly whenever the urge takes them. The lineup is unchanged, they've toured Brazil three times and have built up quite a following there. Cal is now General Manager of Shock records and Buzz has managed Jimmy Little since 1999, all members keep busy with their solo projects and collaborations.
DISCOGRAPHY
'Gimme Some Loving' (1984) SINGLE
'GANGgajang' (1985) ALBUM
'House of Cards' (1985) SINGLE
'Giver of Life' (1985) EP
'The Bigger They Are' (1985) SINGLE
'Sounds of Then' (1985) SINGLE
'Dream at Night' (1986) STAND-ALONE SINGLE
'Initiation' (1986) STAND-ALONE SINGLE
'gangAGAIN' (1987) ALBUM
'American Money' (1987) SINGLE
'Luck of the Irish' (1987) SINGLE
'Lingo' (1994) ALBUM
'Hundreds of Languages' (1994) SINGLE
'Talk to Me' (1994) SINGLE
'Ordinary World' (1994) SINGLE
'True to the Tone' (1995) ALBUM
('True to the Tone' was the first two albums repackaged for Brazil, South Africa and Australia)
'The Essential' (1996) COMPILATION ALBUM
'Sounds of Then' (1997) STAND-ALONE SINGLE (re-release, re-mix)
'Nomadsland' (2000) SINGLE
'Chronologica' (2000) ALBUM
(Brazil-only release comprising material previously unavailable in Brazil)
'Oceans and Deserts' (2002) ALBUM
'Anodyne Dream' (2003) SINGLE
'Trust' (2003) SINGLE
'The Complent GANGgajang' DVD
GANGgajang website
Oh, and in case you're wondering what made me want to do a piece on GANGgajang... a friend of mine got the new Rock Singster Playstation game not long ago and it has 'Sounds of Then' on it by GANGgajang and my God - the filmclip is one of the most atrocious things I've ever seen! Worth seeing for a laugh.
GANGgajang
The band came together in 1984 to write some songs for the twenty-episode mid-80s Australian TV series 'Sweet and Sour' (a show about a band called The Takeaways and their efforts to break into the bigtime). Obviously they clicked together, as they decided to continue on as a proper band. Here are the members...
Cal Callahan on vocals, he had sung previously for The Riptides.
Chris Bailey on bass and Buzz Bidstrup on drums, both came via The Angels.
Robbie Jones on guitar.
Geoff Stapleton on guitar and keys, formerly of the band The Aliens.
And Kayellen Bee and Marilyn Delaney on backing vocals and percussion.
They put together a self-titled album in 1985 which spawned five singles, including the aforementioned hit 'Sounds of Then'. It is probably for this song that they remain most remembered. In 1987 they released the followup album 'gangAGAIN', and recorded an exclusive soundtrack for a Quicksilver surf movie called 'Mad Wax' - which led to them being named 'World's Best Band' (no less!) two years in a row by the World Pro Surfers Association.
After this the band went on hiatus. They all had other things to pursue - Kayellen and Marilyn went off to work behind the scenes in the film industry. Cal released a solo album. Buzz and Chris did session work with a variety of well-known Australian recording artists. Geoff formed The Dukes. And Rob recorded a bunch of songs with Wendy Matthews.
The band reformed in 1991 (without Kayellen and Marilyn) for some fun... the shows turned out to be hugely successful and this, coupled with Channel 9 picking up the song 'Sounds of Then' for promotional purposes, led to the band deciding to go back into the studio. They've remained together to this day, playing sporadicaly whenever the urge takes them. The lineup is unchanged, they've toured Brazil three times and have built up quite a following there. Cal is now General Manager of Shock records and Buzz has managed Jimmy Little since 1999, all members keep busy with their solo projects and collaborations.
The Essential GANGgajang
'Gimme Some Loving' (1984) SINGLE
'GANGgajang' (1985) ALBUM
'House of Cards' (1985) SINGLE
'Giver of Life' (1985) EP
'The Bigger They Are' (1985) SINGLE
'Sounds of Then' (1985) SINGLE
'Dream at Night' (1986) STAND-ALONE SINGLE
'Initiation' (1986) STAND-ALONE SINGLE
'gangAGAIN' (1987) ALBUM
'American Money' (1987) SINGLE
'Luck of the Irish' (1987) SINGLE
'Lingo' (1994) ALBUM
'Hundreds of Languages' (1994) SINGLE
'Talk to Me' (1994) SINGLE
'Ordinary World' (1994) SINGLE
'True to the Tone' (1995) ALBUM
('True to the Tone' was the first two albums repackaged for Brazil, South Africa and Australia)
'The Essential' (1996) COMPILATION ALBUM
'Sounds of Then' (1997) STAND-ALONE SINGLE (re-release, re-mix)
'Nomadsland' (2000) SINGLE
'Chronologica' (2000) ALBUM
(Brazil-only release comprising material previously unavailable in Brazil)
'Oceans and Deserts' (2002) ALBUM
'Anodyne Dream' (2003) SINGLE
'Trust' (2003) SINGLE
'The Complent GANGgajang' DVD
GANGgajang website
Oh, and in case you're wondering what made me want to do a piece on GANGgajang... a friend of mine got the new Rock Singster Playstation game not long ago and it has 'Sounds of Then' on it by GANGgajang and my God - the filmclip is one of the most atrocious things I've ever seen! Worth seeing for a laugh.
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Comment by Anonymous
Comment by PressPlayMusic
After some hiccups with supply over recent months, (due to circumstances beyond our control), we're pleased to announce our best selling greatest hits album "The Essential GANGgajang" is available again immediately from Press Play Music
Press Play Music distribute all GANGgajang products in Australia including the new release album THIS IS AUSTRALIA,
GANGgajang Titles Available
THE ESSENTIAL
THIS IS AUSTRALIA
OCEANS & DESERTS
THE COMPLETE GANGGAJANG DVD
Press Play Music provide free shipping within Australia on all products, making them the best place to buy cds online
Comment by Anonymous
It's Mark Callaghan on vocals, and Robbie
James (not Jones) on guitar.
Buzz Bidstrup no longer plays with the band, since 2010.
And the clip for Sounds of Then - each to their own, but a lot of other people have been known to love it!
PS Yes two of Mark Callaghan's kids are playing in bands around Sydney, as is Robbie's son in a band called Cupcake Conspiracy on the Central Coast, and Buzz's son is a DJ. Lots of music running through the Gang bloodlines!