Doug Anthony All Stars
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Doug Anthony All Stars (DAAS) were an Australian musical comedy group comprising Tim Ferguson, Richard Fidler and Paul McDermott. The group's name refers to Doug Anthony, a country politician from the Northern Rivers district of New South Wales, who became the leader of the conservative Country Party in the 1970s and was Deputy Prime Minister under Malcolm Fraser.
Contents |
[edit] Canberra
DAAS started out in the early to mid-1980s, busking on the streets of Canberra with original member Robert Piper[1], Ferguson and guitarist Fidler. Piper left the group due to other commitments, and was replaced by Paul McDermott.
[edit] Melbourne
In 1986, the group relocated from Canberra to Melbourne, where they based themselves with a regular gig at the Prince Patrick Hotel in Collingwood.[2] Around this time, DAAS released their first album, Let It Swing, sold only at the group's gigs.
[edit] Edinburgh
After successful appearances at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and the Adelaide Fringe Festival, DAAS made their first overseas appearance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1987, where Paul McDermott legendarily exhorted the audience to burn their material possessions on a large bonfire.[3]
[edit] The Big Gig and DAAS Icon
Following their Edinburgh Fringe shows, the group enjoyed considerable success in the United Kingdom, making appearances on numerous BBC comedy shows. However, when they returned to Australia in the late 1980s, they were still relatively unknown.
This changed when they were invited to appear on the ABC's new comedy show, The Big Gig. This show lead to a rise in popularity, and the group released a book, entitled Book, which was a collection of dark short stories, quite in contrast to their lively and comedic stage shows.
DAAS' second album, DAAS Icon, was released in 1990.
[edit] DAAS Kapital
The group appeared weekly on The Big Gig until 1991, when they starred in their own TV show, DAAS Kapital, a futuristic half-hour long sitcom about their adventures in an underwater history museum. DAAS Kapital ran for two seasons, despite being critically panned. In 1992, they recorded a one-off half-hour television special for the BBC in London.[4] which was shown on New Year's Eve.
[edit] The Edinburgh Years and farewell tour
The Edinburgh Years, a film by DAAS, was released in 1993. In November of that year, Warner Reprise Video released a video and CD of one of their London shows at the New Ambassadors Theatre, entitled Dead & Alive.
In 1994, the group returned to London, and made four appearances on a TV variety show for Channel 4, ¡Viva Cabaret!.[5]
The group split up later that year, after a final farewell tour of Australia, which was recorded and released on CD by ABC Records as DAAS: The Last Concert.
[edit] After the split
In 2003, after Holly Robinson (daughter of Good News Week producer Ted Robinson) died of cancer, a special gala comedy event was held, called "For Holly". At Holly's request, DAAS performed at both her funeral and "For Holly", their first appearance as a trio for some years. They performed "Throw Your Arms Around Me", a song by Hunters & Collectors that DAAS frequently covered in their later years.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Bliss
Bliss was a very early recording sold only at gigs. With only four tracks. It is very, very rare.
[edit] Let it Swing
Let It Swing (Doug Anthony All Stars) was a very early release from the Dougs, from the late 80s. It was available at their shows, and then later through their fanclub, Hateline. It is very difficult to get an original copy, but there are a lot of bootlegged copies floating around.
[edit] Icon
DAAS Icon was released in LP, CD and cassette versions in about 1990, by DAAS Kapital (distributed by CBS Records). Its catalog number is 466852 2.
[edit] Bottle
Bottle was the single that accompanied Icon. It was in at least CD and cassette versions in about 1990, by DAAS Corp. The single contained "Bottle" and the Doug's version of "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". It was also available on green, see-through vinyl.
[edit] Hippie
This is a promo only 7" single that was sent out to radio stations when Icon was released. It is very rare.
[edit] Stairways to Heaven
This CD and video was a release from Andrew Denton's The Money or the Gun program, and it contained 25 cover versions of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven", one of which was done by DAAS with Barry Crocker.
[edit] DAAS Bootleg: Live in Edinburgh
Live In Edinburgh was a "bootleg" recorded by DAAS in the early-90s. It was available at their shows and through their fanclub.
[edit] Dead & Alive
The Dead & Alive CD (also available in video format) was recorded in London in 1993.It was released through East West and its catalog number was 4509 94179-2.
[edit] Throw your arms around me
This was a promo only single that was sent out to radio stations when Dead & Alive was released. It is very rare.
[edit] Blue
Blue was an album DAAS recorded in the early 90s, but it was never commercially released, for various reasons. Therefore, it is fairly impossible to get an original copy, but bootlegs are fairly easy to obtain.
[edit] The Last Concert
The Last Concert CD and cassette was a taping of one of DAAS's last shows in 1995.
[edit] References
- ^ Crabb, Annabel: Clinton's tsunami man, The Age, 15 May 2005.
- ^ Harris, Tim: Prince of pubs' last laugh, The Age, 29 January 2003.
- ^ History of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe: Doug Anthony Allstars
- ^ BBC Comedy Guide: The Doug Anthony All-Stars
- ^ BBC Comedy Guide: Viva Cabaret
