And just for some more fun, here’s some newly discovered Easybeats footage…


Evidently it’s from Top of the Pops…

Love the Easybeats, but unfortunately their recorded output is so complex and confusing with much of their best stuff only released in Australia or unreleased at the time. If you only bought their UK releases at the time, you would have missed most of their greatest tracks. On top of this, they often had different versions of the same track released in different territories. I have a few of their Aussie only LPs, like Volume 3 and Best Of Vol 2, both of which are great. Shame Just Drained and the Raven EPs also capture some amaxzing unreleased tracks. I think they were very talented songwriters and performers and they have not been well served, remembered almost solely for their Friday On My Mind hit and not for the genuine innovators they were.

I would also add to linked releases the first My Dear Watson 45, both sides of wich were produced and played on by The Easies and both sides sound like prime Easybeats.

Yup, I agree with you there. I keep finding there are three or four versions of so many of their songs. I just came upon a true stereo version of “Land of Make Believe” on a 45, or there are songs that have versions that are fast/slow, orchestrated/non-orchestrated, instrumental/vocal, overdubs/no overdubs (We All Live Happily Together missing the overdubs is an odd one…) It’s also very true that the Australian releases showed the band in the best light. It really is a vinyl puzzle.
And in addition to the four versions of “Friends” (Canadian, UK, German —called “Holding On” in that case—-and Australian…there are two versions of The Best of the Easybeats Volume 2, the first of which is on Parlophone and the second is on Albert/Drum with…you guessed it…different covers and different versions of the same songs! It’s madness!😝
And something I just noticed…the last Grapefruit single is after the real band was done, and they just used the Grapefruit name. It was a one-off on Deram, but on the Italian picture sleeve it’s definitely Vanda and Young standing to the right and I think Alex Young is on the left…
https://www.discogs.com/release/5207242-Grapefruit-Sha-Sha-Universal-Party

Yes totally with you on this one Joe,
The Easybeats have been sorely and poorly treated on cd,i do have that Complete Easybeats set,and i have many other cd versions too.......but all are basic as they come,no fancy liners or booklets filled with photos or information,i dont even know if any of their albums on cd are even remastered or been cleaned up sonically,as for the misnomer Complete Easybeats,thats just a lie,missing a complete album entirely in Friends as you pointed out,luckily i picked up the repertoire cd version of it.

Is The Easybeats stuff owned by Vanda/Young or their estate?Theres obviously a legal issue and licensing issues that would have to be conquered through first,with different labels in different countries,who owns the publishing.....etc..wasnt Albert Productions not set up by the group?Or is it one of those minefields of ownership outwith the group?Maybe the legalities to put together a totally comprehensive multi cd box set is too much bother for labels to sort out?As the profit margin would i'd imagine be slim,so straight away that would put companies off....god knows why a group who did have success like The Easybeats,and remember it was global,not just in one or two countries,haven't been fairly treated ,when you have other groups from the same era,getting box sets.

Why oh why a talented and exciting group like The Easybeats would record some of those horrible cover versions,i mean hit the road jack.....maybe it was a publishing scam where someone within the record company had publishing rights in certain songs ,and the Easybeats may have been coerced.....or maybe i'm just making excuses for recording such awful covers,when their own songwriting was so exciting and dare i say it hip.A real mystery.

Particularly when a 2 part movie was made about their formation,and their progress from immigrants in Australia staying in temporary housing and bolding facilities,untill there was more permanent housing and bureaucracy was complete,how else was a Dutch national and a bunch of Scottish geezers going to meet and form a group?An absolute melting pot of many different european nationalities as Australia was asking for people to emigrate there.Also the movie covered their meteoric rise to fame in Australia,resulting in them being the biggest group,and it covers their rather disappointing trip to the UK,where they recorded some rather splendid songs while there.Many which appeared on the Shame Just Drained cd compilation,which feature quite a few pop/psych gems.

My favourite of theirs is Volume 3,i condsider this album to be their best most consistent bunch of songs,with no fillers or awful covers,its solid from start to finish,after that its Vigil,but god knows what album was released in what way in what country,its a rabbit warren id hate to go down,what a confusing and fuddled mess,as Vigil too has a couple of clunkers on it,it could be a masterpiece of pop and psych.

I'll be honest,i dont usually fall for this 50 odd year vinyl sounds better than cds like is made out by many vinyl only collectors,but i must agree the cd versions of their material is muddy sounding,not crisp or clear like many albums that have had the cd treatment,but cd technology has so much improved over the years...so to hear all those albums and recordings done right with the respect,would be a dream,no longer muddy sounding.

Good post Joe,a fantastic group,who deserved to be still remembered for the talent they where!!

Good to hesr from you, Stuart! Yeah, Volume 3 may be my favorite, although the Australian “Vigil” is great. They remove the “naff” tracks and add “Bring A Little Lovin’” which they gave to Los Bravos, I believe.
According the book Friday On My Mind by a fellow named Jeff Apter, George Young liked “Hit the Road, Jack” and wanted the Easybeats to show their versatility. I was surprised as well to read that, as I prefer it off the album as well. But the epics like “Hello, How Are You” were evidently the ones George Young felt were too “off-brand”, as we might put it these days.
George Young was suspicious of psychedelia, as he thought it wasn’t “rock’n’roll” enough according to that book, but a lot of bands just dipped their toes briefly in the lysergic pool.
I’m in agreement about the My Dear Watson stuff. I just listened to the second My Dear Watson single which is another Easybeats sounding affair. The third 45 is kinda country rock, and not Easybeats at all, but the first two are definitely for Easybeats fans, even the non-Vanda Young songs have the guitar and la-la-la’s…😂
The later Easybeats like Music Goes Round My Head and those Vanda-Young 45’s from the early seventies show some of their love of ska/Caribbean/blue beat stuff they heard in the clubs (again according to the Jeff Apter book), and there’s kind of a “good timey” feel to the Grapefruit dong “Sha-Sha” on that last single that bears that out. Not the best thing Vanda and Young ever did, but kind of fun.
The Easybeats are a fine topic and it’s great to hear everyone’s take. If Lou Reed liked them, that does show their global and stylistic reach. Not as hip as the Velvet Underground maybe, but they could write a catchy tune!
Great to hear from you all! 😀👍