The Easybeats were an Australian rock band that formed in Sydney in late 1964. They are best known for their 1966 hit single "Friday on My Mind", which is regarded as the first Australian rock song to achieve international success; Rolling Stone described it as "the first international victory for Oz rock". One of the most popular and successful bands in the country, they were one of the few Australian bands of their time to foreground their original material; their first album Easy (1965) was one of the earliest Australian rock albums featuring all original songs.

The five founding members, all migrants from Europe, met at the Villawood Migrant Hostel in Sydney in 1964.

1965–1966: rise to success and Easyfever

"She's So Fine", Easy and It's 2 Easy

Although "For My Woman" gained them some attention, the band felt they needed a more up-tempo song to break through commercially. Their next single, "She's So Fine", gave them that commercial success, reaching No. 3

1967–1969: decline in popularity and break-up

Following up "Friday on My Mind", Easy Come, Easy Go and the scrapped album

On 17 March 1967, United Artists released the follow-up single to "Friday on My Mind"; "Who'll Be The One". The single was a commercial failure and did not make the UK chart (although it was No. 14 in Australia). The band was against releasing the single to begin with, as they felt it was not a strong enough track to follow "Friday on My Mind". Later that month, they toured Europe in support of The Rolling Stones.

During this period, the band was filmed by Australian director Peter Clifton for a proposed documentary for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Filmed under the title Between Heaven and Hell (which was later changed to Easy Come, Easy Go), the documentary was lost for nearly 42 years. It was restored, reedited and shown at film festivals in 2012.

In May, their first album for United Artists was released: Good Friday (re-titled Friday on My Mind in the US). That same month, they returned to Australia for a nationwide tour. After the tour, drummer Snowy Fleet decided to quit the band. Fleet was unhappy at the amount of time he had to spend away from his wife and young children. Returning to the UK without a drummer, the group began several recordings with a session drummer, Freddie Smith – a Glaswegian who had played with George Young's older brother Alex (stage name George Alexander) in Bobby Patrick & The Big Six.

thumb|left|[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard advertisement for "Heaven and Hell", 15 July 1967]]

During this period, the band recorded their next single, "Heaven And Hell", which marked a turning point for the group, with its sophisticated songwriting and arrangements. Vanda and Young were influenced by the current psychedelic pop, popular in the UK and US. The single was produced by Glyn Johns, who had worked as an engineer on the Shel Talmy sessions. The band also began work on a new album with Johns, most of which was recorded and prepared for issue but was never released because of the band's complicated financial and contractual problems.

"Heaven And Hell" was released in June and, like the previous single, it also failed to make a mark on the UK chart. This was due, in part, to the song being banned by the BBC. The single also ran into problems in the US, where a censored version titled "Heaven", replaced the lyric "Discovering someone else in your bed" with "discovering that her love has gone dead". In Australia the single did much better; reaching No. 8.

After extensive auditions in London a replacement drummer was found in Tony Cahill (born 20 December 1941) who had formerly played with Brisbane band The Purple Hearts. With Cahill, the band toured the US in August, supporting Gene Pitney. During their US visit, they recorded their next single, "Falling Off the Edge of the World", in New York. The single received moderate airplay in the US, but did not chart.

Vigil

alt=A rock band of five men posing on an outdoor stairwell.|thumb|276x276px|The Easybeats on the Dutch television program ...Puntje, puntje, puntje... in August 1968. Tony Cahill, who replaced Snowy Fleet on drums, is pictured left.

The band returned to London and continued to work in the studio. Their next single, "The Music Goes 'Round My Head", again written by Vanda and Young, is considered to have been influenced by the emerging UK rocksteady/ska scene. In late 1967, Vanda and Young began writing for other artists. Two of their songs, "Bring a Little Lovin'" and "Come In, You'll Get Pneumonia", were covered by Los Bravos (and later by Ricky Martin as "Dime Que Me Quieres") and Paul Revere and The Raiders respectively. Still trying to get back into the UK chart, the band moved to a more pop-friendly sound and released the soft rock, ballad "Hello, How Are You" on 8 March 1968. That same year there was talk of an Easybeats' reunion. Wright told Juke Magazine in 1983 "we had our lawyers working out the deal" because there was a venue interested in having them "but at the last minute they tried to change the venue and we just said 'forget it'."

In 1983, there was a talk of a solo album with work done again with Vanda and Young. Wright said the album would best be described as "classy rock 'n' roll" and the songs were about "a wide spectrum of all the experiences I've been through". He said the love songs he had were optimistic. This interview gives a good idea as to how Wright worked in the studio with Vanda and Young: Also that year, Flash and the Pan's next album, Early Morning Wake Up Call, was released.

In November 1986, the original line-up reunited for an Australian tour. The tour was warmly received by critics and fans. Wright reformed the Stevie Wright Band and relaunched his live career, gigging around Australia in hotels and clubs between 1986 and 1988. In 1987, Flash and the Pan released their fifth album, Nights in France.

Vanda and Young returned to producing AC/DC on their 1988 album Blow Up Your Video.

1990s and beyond: semi-retirement

In 1992 Flash and the Pan released their final album Burning Up The Night. Wright's substance abuse problems spiralled out of control in the 1980s and 1990s and he came close to death on several occasions, but was pulled back from the brink by his partner, Faye. In 1999 journalist Jack Marx published a much-anticipated book about Wright, entitled Sorry - The Wretched Tale of Little Stevie Wright. It was critically applauded by some reviewers - Australian music historian Clinton Walker calling it "gonzo journalism at its best", while The Bulletin later referred to Sorry as "one of the most harrowing rock books ever written".

Nevertheless, Sorry earned the disdain of its subject, Wright's many fans and other critics. Internet reviewer Ken Grady (Luna Cafe, 1999) described Marx as "a self serving hypocrite" and concluded his review by observing: "The only thing that Marx has achieved is to depict himself as a very unlikeable, morally bankrupt leech."

The 2000s saw a band calling itself "The Easybeats" tour and make TV appearances around Europe. No members were in any line-up of the Australian band or played on any of the records, despite the lead singer using a similar name. In addition, another English cover band has taken the Easybeats name, while also having no members who were in the Australian band or played on any of the original recordings. In 2000, George Young produced AC/DC's Stiff Upper Lip album. It was the first time he had worked with the group without Harry Vanda co-producing.

Due to his health, Wright only performed a small number of shows in the 2000s, although in 2002 he was well enough to perform as part of the all-star Long Way to the Top national concert tour. His autobiography, Hard Road, was published in 2004. In 2007, Stevie Wright performed at the Gathering Festival in Yandina, Sunshine Coast. On 31 January 2009, Wright closed the Legends of Rock festival in Byron Bay, Australia. On 14 July 2005, the Easybeats were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame. Wright, Vanda and Snowy Fleet attended the ceremony.

Cahill died in Sydney on 13 August 2014, as the result of a brain tumour.

After falling ill on 26 December 2015, Wright was admitted to hospital on the South Coast of New South Wales, Australia. He did not recover and died on the evening the next day.

George Young died on 22 October 2017.

Dick Diamonde died on 18 September 2024, at the age of 76.

Snowy Fleet died on 18 February 2025, at the age of 85.

A cover version of "Good Times" by INXS and Jimmy Barnes was a No. 2 in Australia in 1986, and became the biggest selling single on Mushroom Records. In 1987 it became a No. 47 hit in the US after being featured on the soundtrack of the film The Lost Boys.

In 1987, Gary Moore released a cover version of "Friday on My Mind" on the Wild Frontier album that charted in Australia, Ireland, Finland, New Zealand and the UK.

Members

  • Stevie Wright – vocals (1964–1969, 1986; died 2015)
  • Harry Vanda – lead guitar, vocals (1964–1969, 1986)
  • George Young – rhythm guitar, vocals (1964–1969, 1986; died 2017)
  • Dick Diamonde – bass, vocals (1964–1969, 1986; died 2024)
  • Snowy Fleet – drums, vocals (1964–1967, 1986; died 2025)
  • Tony Cahill – drums (1967–1969; died 2014)

Timeline

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Discography

Studio albums

  • Easy (1965)
  • It's 2 Easy (1966)
  • Volume 3 (1966)
  • Good Friday / Friday on My Mind (1967)
  • Vigil / Falling Off the Edge of the World (1968)
  • Friends (1970)

Portrayals in media

Friday on My Mind is an Australian television drama mini series first screened on ABC in 2017, based on the history of the band from its formation at the Villawood Migrant Hostel in 1964 to the 1969 breakup.

Awards and nominations

ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987. The Easybeats were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005.

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| 2005

| The Easybeats

| ARIA Hall of Fame

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References

Bibliography

  • Hard Road - The Life and Times of Stevie Wright, by Glenn Goldsmith with Stevie Wright, Random House Australia, 2004,
  • MILESAGO - The Easybeats
  • The Easybeats All Music Biography