Bob Spencer needs no introduction to most readers of this site, he has been a mainstay of the Australian rock scene since 1973, playing guitar in such bands as Contraband (Finch), Skyhooks, and The Angels. Currently he plays infrequently in an Aussie supergroup called Raw Brit. He also works with upcoming musicians and helps older musicians rediscover the joys of playing music.
Bob has achieved so much in his musical life, and as you will read in the interview, he is not done yet!
O.A.M…Hello Bob Spencer. Thank you so much for taking the time to share a little about your amazing musical career with the Only Australian Music site.
Bob…That’s cool.
O.A.M…Bob, you have done it all. Played with the biggest names in Aus Rock from the mid 70′s up to the present. Any chance of an autobiography in the future?
Bob…First, I wouldn’t say that I’ve done it all. There’s still much learning & playing to be done.
Autobiography? Hmm…. It’s been suggested a few times of late. This is possibly what happens when you make it to your fifties relatively unscathed! Though the thought of putting pen to paper is quite intriguing. Maybe.
O.A.M…You have 3 songs currently streaming on your official website. 2 of these are a lot more introspective sounding than one may have expected. Did you sit down with view to write them, or are they collections of mellower moments written over the years that you finally got around to recording?
Bob…”Introspective”? Is this just a polite way of saying “self absorbed”? Please insert smiley thingy here!
Since I was 12 or 13, I’ve never stopped writing. My problem is that I have far too much stuff & not enough time to get through it all. As I have been in “rock” bands, it was that the “rock” songs have been the ones I finish first, so that the bands can play them. Left to my own devises, this is not what I would do. My musical tastes, as my writing, are very broad & have been for as long as I remember. Well before guitar had chosen me, I was noticing Jamaican music, big band music, jazz, African music etc; I just didn’t have labels for them because I was only 6 years old. Er, back to the songs at hand…..
The two “mellower” pieces have been with me for a long time. “Delicious” came to me whilst sitting on my bedroom floor in Mozart St, Elsterwick in 1977, whilst holding my first acoustic 12 string guitar (a Giannini) & experimenting with tunings. “Scarlet” came to me through grief whilst thinking about my ex-wife’s suicide attempts, wondering what she was going through & what “saw” while it was happening. The colour Scarlet came into my head, from the colour came the chords, from the chords came the melody.
O.A.M…During the time you spent in The Angels, they were an absolute powerhouse live band, arguably second to none in the world. Why do you, Bob Spencer think The Angels didn’t get the attention they deserved overseas particularly in the USA?
Bob…I don’t think the word “deserve” is appropriate. I received many, many accolades & much praise when I was in the US with The Angels. So many things come into play when the goal is International success. Management, Record Company, Agents etc. We had some vital pieces missing. We also had dissent within our own band. Some of us wanted to work more in the States, others wanted to stay safe in Oz. Guess which camp I was in.
O.A.M…You joined The Angels prior to the Howling album, and went on to record Beyond Salvation and Red Back Fever with them. Now to my mind, Red Back Fever was not as strong an album as the previous two, and despite a massive publicity campaign was not as successful as them either. As a fan and long time follower of the band, to me it sounded like a “tired” album. Do you have any thoughts on that?
Bob…I think “Red Back Fever” is a dreadful, unfocussed, poorly produced, sorry excuse for an album.
Some members of the band felt that we should “regress” into (what I believed was) a parody of The Angels. I was not one of them. I did not enjoy the experience & felt very frustrated. Had we taken steps into the future, instead of the past, I believe we could have come up with an honorable & fitting follow-up to “Beyond Salvation”. But we didn’t. “We” instead chose the cowards’ path. That spelled the end for me.
O.A.M…You were chosen to replace Red Symons in the mighty Skyhooks way back in 1977, that must have been quite nerve racking?
Bob…No, it wasn’t nerve-wracking at all. I’ve never felt nervous about playing guitar. It was definitely weird being in such a “famous” band, but not nerve-wracking.
O.A.M…With you on guitar, Skyhooks became a lot more of a rock band. The album “Guilty Until Proven Insane” was in my opinion one of their best albums. After Red left and some of the theatrics were dropped, were you guys worried about how the new look and sound would be perceived?
Bob…I think you’d need to ask the other blokes that question. I wasn’t so worried, as I wasn’t one of the ones who’d put all the time & energy into the band in the beginning. I was (and still am) a “look forward” bloke. Mind you, a band can’t survive on that attitude alone; it needs a balance of differing forces.
O.A.M…The success of Women In Uniform must have been very welcome indeed. What did you think of the Iron Maiden version?
Bob…I thought it was awful & sounded so incredibly limp. Very funny, considering they were a “Heavy Metal” band.
O.A.M…How hard was the decision to carry on without Shirley when he left in 1979?
Bob…It wasn’t a hard decision for me, as I just wanted to play that thar banjo! But it certainly had a serious impact.
I think we were quite lost after Shirl left.
O.A.M…I heard this on the radio once, and although it may sound stupid, I have to ask. Did Skyhooks toy with the idea of recruiting Jane Clifton to replace Shirley?
Bob…I’d forgotten about that! I think so, but I’m really not sure. In retrospect, I think it would have been very cool to have a female singer. But we’ll never know now, will we?
O.A.M…The Temple Gods, the band you joined after you left The Angels, was a funky groove based rock band blessed with a fine vocalist (who’s name escapes me right now, sorry) who sounded vaguely Coverdale ish. Sadly this band didn’t last as long as hoped. What went wrong?
Bob…Everything!!!
We were five years too late for the “LA” thing. Bugger. But probably a good thing. We would have killed each other!
This band came from my frustration with The Angels. Maybe I should have just gone surfing instead!
O.A.M…What is the current status of Raw Brit?
Bob…Gigging when we are able. All the members have lots of other things to do, & it’s very difficult organising four busy grown men. It’s a fabulous band. Very, very formidable & muscular.
O.A.M…Are you still doing the Weekend Warriors program, where you help and encourage over 50′s musicians to get their mojo back and have some fun?
Bob…Absolutely. This work has changed my life.
Though it’s not really “over 50′s”. I’ve had kids as young as 16 do the program.
O.A.M…The Greater Groove program, where you help to place young musicians with other musicians you feel may compliment each other (please correct me if I got that wrong), is a wonderful concept. How is it coming along, found any potential stars out there?
Bob…This is still in its infancy, & shows great promise. Though I’m not interested in finding “stars”. We’ll leave that to those silly TV shows.
As with the Weekend Warriors, this is about helping people have fun playing music. And I love doing this!
O.A.M…You are currently recording your first ever solo album. Any estimated release date?
Bob…No! Getting the time’s the thing.
Currently I’m doing an interview via email……..
O.A.M…Will it feature any guest vocalists or will you be handling the vocals as well?
Bob…I’ll be doing the singing, I suspect. I’m not a great singer, but it’s easier than the alternative, which is working with a singer I don’t want to strangle. Oh, did I say that??
Now, if I only sounded like Broderick Smith, well, that’d be pretty sweet. I love Brod.
O.A.M…Last question, what’s your favourite Australian song…or couple if you can’t narrow it down?
Bob…”Boy, On The Run”, The Dingoes.
Some of Brod’s latest stuff almost makes me weep. Beautiful.
My favourite Australian songwriter is Mark Hoppe, from Newcastle, but you’ve never heard of him, right?!
Ah, the mysteries of the music business……..
O.A.M…Bon Scott, the man himself, expressed disappointment at your decision to join Skyhooks. I bet he would be damn proud of your contribution to Australian rock since then. Thank you so much for contributing to the site, and I wish you all the best with the new album and your future projects.
Bob…Ta mate.
