A night at Cloudland with Dr Feelgood, 1979
By Myles Sinnamon - Engagement Officer, State Library of Queensland | 10 May 2018
English rock band Dr Feelgood, best known for their song Milk and Alcohol, toured Down Under in 1979. The line-up of the group at that time featured lead singer Lee Brilleaux, guitarist Gypie Mayo, drummer The Big Figure and bass player John B. Sparks.
Dr Feelgood performing at Cloudland, Brisbane, 21 July 1979. From 29127 Paul O'Brien Collection. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Image 29127-0003-0011
Dr Feelgood performed at Brisbane's legendary entertainment venue, Cloudland on July 21, 1979. The supporting acts that evening were Dragon and local Brisbane band, The Humans. The concert was part of Radio 4ZZZ's Joint Effort series of concerts - this being No.9 in the series. Tickets were price at $4 (approximately $18.60 today) or $2 for 4ZZZ subscribers (equivalent of $9.30 today).
Dr Feelgood performing at Cloudland, Brisbane, 21 July 1979. From 29127 Paul O'Brien Collection. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Image 29127-0003-0008
In an article with the ironic and eerily prophetic title "Ripping Up Cloudland" published in the music magazine Roadrunner (Sept 1979 edition), reviewer Scott Matheson praised the band and the venue - "Cloudland is massive, about the size of a soccer field (I exaggerate only a little) and thankfully, the bouncers keep a commendably low profile...he ballroom was packed and ready to dance and dance music is what we got. Dr Feelgood turned out to be the sweatiest, greasiest band I have ever seen."
Four photographs from Dr Feelgood's performance at Cloudland are part of the Paul O’Brien Collection, a series of 800+ images documenting Brisbane’s music scene from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. These images can be found online through our One Search catalogue.
Do you have any materials (recordings, flyers, posters, reviews, tickets, films, videos, photos, letters, and other memorabilia) from Queensland’s music scene? This material has a valuable place in our music history and cultural heritage. Please contact us about any material you think should come to the library.
Further stories from the Paul O’Brien collection
- A night at Cloudland with XTC, Flowers (Icehouse) and The Numbers, 1979
- A night at Cloudland with Rockpile (feat. Nick Lowe and Dave Edmunds) and The Apartments, 1979
- A night at Festival Hall with the Ramones, 1980
- A night with Mental As Anything and Dave Warner at UQ Refec, 1979
- Early photograph from one of the Go-Betweens’ first concerts
- The Go-Betweens: Right Here documentary features SLQ images
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