So as my time at Burgundys Night Club was winding down around 1998, Craig Calhoun and Jeff Duff helped me out by booking me to look after the sound at their gigs whenever they could. My first gig was with Duffo at a very expensive wedding in The Botanical Gardens overlooking the Sydney Opera House. There were $10,000 of flowers for the wedding in the marquee and it was obvious this was a high profile, high dollar wedding. Gig starts and the band is hot and everyone is getting down and don’t even notice that the song that has everyone grooving is Princes “Sexy MF”. I kind of bury Jeffs vocal a bit as I want to get out of the gig alive! Anyway, I survive my first private Duffo gig and then do a run of shows at The Hopetoun with one of his bands called The Alex Sex Gods and that was a whole lot of fun!
Within a few weeks of the Burgundys closing for bands, I was asked by Craig Calhoun to start mixing his shows at The Basement which at the time was probably Australia’s most well-known music venue. Not a big venue, but a place steeped in history with some of the best musos in the world having played there. I soon found out that musos and crews were treated very well at The Basement as the whole experience for the punters revolved around the music. Virtually every place I had ever worked at up until that point, the musicians and crew were just part of the small rings of the circus, not the main act! After soundcheck we were fed well, there was a good drink rider backstage and we were all treated with tremendous respect by staff and management.
I was incredibly nervous at my first gig, but it went well. It wasn’t a complicated system to mix on (Ramsa 24 channel mixer with Ramsa speakers and amplifiers), but like all rooms, it can sound quite different from soundcheck to show. Anyway, we got through it and band and punters were happy. By the third show, I was very happy with how I was getting the PA system sounding and even the venue manager commented me on the quality. This soon led to an interesting turn in my career. When I started at The Basement, I was there every second week with Craig Calhoun and the Brothers of Oz. Craig played bass and his band were all brilliant. Usually, the guitarist would be either Rex Goh, Peter Northcote or Eric Rasmussen. The rest of the band were also superb and they were a joy to work with. Every other week featured Doug Williams and the Black Mass and they too had their own sound operator. Likes Craigs band, Doug’s band featured some of the best musos in Australia and even had the legendary Mark Kennedy and Sunil de Silva as their rhythm section. From memory, Doug decided he wanted to pursue a new direction so disbanded the Black Mass and formed a new band that now saw Sunil on drums, Sam McNally on keyboards and two young singers up front, one of who was Prinnie Stevens. Apparently, the first two shows at The Basement did not go well and Doug was in danger of losing his fortnightly booking. Out of the blue, I get a call from Doug’s manager asking me to take over operating his sound at The Basement. Apparently, the venues manager had recommended me so from then on, I was at the venue virtually every Saturday night for a few years.
I cannot recall when, but at some point, the venues management decided to change the Saturday night format and vary the bands a bit more. So, after working with Craig and Doug, I was also working with Jackie Orszaczky occasionally, as well as Pat Powell’s band and eventually a new band from New Zealand called Revelation. The band had debuted in Australia at The Basement on a Sunday night on a long weekend and I was asked to mix the show. Management had no idea how many people would turn up for Revelations first gig and we were all stunned when they packed out the venue! As usual, there was a substantial drink rider backstage but for once, it went virtually untouched as the band were all Christians. This was the first band I had ever worked for that prayed before a gig and they even asked God to look after me and help me get through the show as they realised I was exhausted! Anyway, the show was brilliant, and they were soon given regular Saturday night spots which I mixed.
One particular show I remember well at The Basement was when the amazing English violin player, Nigel Kennedy, decided to do a Sunday afternoon show at our venue. He had finished his tour of Australia with major symphony orchestras the night before at The Sydney Opera House and decided to stay in Oz for a few weeks of holidays plus doing some small gigs. I wasn’t booked to mix his show but was looking after the night show so decide to call in early and catch Nigel’s spot. As I walk into the venue, management is horrified that he has bought his main acoustic violin that is valued at one million English pounds. He told them, he probably will not be using it during the show and is currently sitting backstage in an unlocked room. They want me to talk Nigel into locking it up in the office, but I politely decline! Anyway, Nigel and a mate come on stage and Nigel is playing an electric violin with numerous effects peddles and a Marshall amplifier! He plays everything from Hendrix to jazz to classical and is brilliant. Lots of jokes and funny stories between the songs and it is clear he is enjoying playing a small venue instead of a large concert hall. Eventually, the show finishes and as he does not have a roadie, I hop on stage and start packing up his hired backline. He pops back onto the stage and introduces himself, asks me my name and invites me backstage. I am soon a part of Nigel’s world which involves him signing autographs for fans whilst having a beer and a joint! I leave him to it, finish packing up his gear then start setting up for my show with Revelation. One of the band members is stunned when he notices that the most well-known classical violinist in the world is sitting backstage. As Nigel and his entourage are leaving, Nigel turns and tells me, “Oi Stephen, I’ve left you some fookin presents backstage”. I give him a wave as he heads off to do some busking outside the Opera House and find he has left us a case of Stella Artois beers backstage for our medicinal use!
Eventually around 2000, with The Sydney Olympic Games coming up that was going to take up about six weeks of my life, I realised I had been burning the candle at both ends for too long so decide to retire from working at The Basement. In those days, I was working a 9-5 job Monday to Friday designing sound systems for The PA People. I was also mixing bands at The Rockdale RSL on Thursday, Friday night and Sunday nights. The hours had taken their toll and I needed a break. For The Basement gigs, I would arrive at the venue to set up at 3pm, soundcheck would be around 5pm and then basically do nothing until the show started at 10pm to around 2am. Usually got home at 4am, sleep until midday Sunday and then take the wife and kids out to Lone Star Steakhouse for their lunch, my breakfast. Back then, I thought it was perfectly normal for my Sunday breakfast to consist of a Margherita with ribs! I did come back for two or three shows after the Olympics but then that was it for me, I needed a break!
And so started the next chapter in my life, the Fairfield RSL years which resulted in me working with some amazing acts including Dr Hook, Paul Kelly, David Campbell, Human Nature, Marcia Hines, Renee Geyer, Deni Hines, Anthony Callea, John Williamson, Carl Risely, Paul Young and Tony Hadley, Howard Jones, Ronn Moss, Billy Thorpe, Diesel, Steve Balbi, Dragon, Guy Sebastian plus stacks of cabaret shows. To be continued.
