John Robinson-Blackfeather Interview

Founding member of the heavy pysch outfit Blackfeather, Robinson was part of the heavy sound coming out of Australia in the early 70s. Having released the legendary LP ‘At The Mountains Of Madness’ on Infinity Records, Robinson would later go on to work with acts such as Duck, and Electric Guitar Orchestra throughout the 70s. Blackfeather shared the stage with many of the greats back in the day including Aussie legends Buffalo. I spoke to John Briefly about his life as a musician that spans nearly 50 years and what he’s up to now a days. Enjoy!

When and where were you born?

1949, Blayney NSW  

Are you originally from Australia?

Yes.

When did you first begin playing music and was it always the guitar?

 At age 9 years at Beverly Hills NSW, yes always guitar.

What was growing up like for you?

 Middle class.

Who were some of your influences early on?

Mainly jazz guitarists, and film music.

Where would you go to see shows in your community and what performances stood out to you the most?

I did not see a lot of live shows but television was all the rage in the 1960s and there was a lot of great content on there.

Can you tell me about the Dave Miller Set? How did you initially meet your fellow bandmates, Leith Corbett, Mike McCormack, and of course Dave Miller?

Leith and Mike were not the original bass player and drummer.  Bob Thomson and Ray Mulholland played on the first three singles.  Leith and Ray played on “Mr Guy Fawkes” and, Leith and Mick on the last single.

What was the first outfit you were involved in prior to Blackfeather?

Dave Miller Set.  Prior to that, Monday’s Children.

Can you tell me about the success of the hit single 'Mr. Guy Fawkes' which was a cover that got into the top 30 on the Go-Set charts?

A cover of “Eire Apparent”, an Irish group produced by Jimi Hendrix.  It was very long so we cut it down for radio play.

What led to you breaking away from this group in early '70? Did you guys play shows, or have any success before starting Blackfeather?

Dave wanted to go solo so he disbanded the DMS in April 1970.  Leith, Mick and I kept on going, rehearsing at my flat in Epping.

With Blackfeather coming together in April of '70 with members of the DMS, what was the first order of action?

To find a vocalist.

How did you guys meet Neale Johns, the lead singer?

Leith met Neale at Caesars Inn Place, Central in Sydney.

With the name Blackfeather deriving from two novels, was literature something that influenced your creativity outside of playing music?

No, the name came from a book of band names that a friend of mine had.  He was the drummer in the band called “Flake”.  There was no Blackfeather but there were names “Heavy Feather” and “White Feather” in this book.  I modified those two names to become Blackfeather.

What were the reasons for Corbett and McCormack leaving the group and later being replaced with Alexander Kash and Robert Fortescue?

Basically, no money coming in. Dave Miller offered Leith to produce his solo LP and, Leith left because of that. I do not know what happened to Mike. Neale found Bob and Al at Caesars Inn Place again, at Central.

How did you guys meet them?

Introduced by Neale.  The changeover was relatively easy because we already had developed a repertoire and original material, before the arrival of Al and Bob.

How did your deal with Infinity Records come about?

I sent a press kit to both Festival and EMI when Bob and Al joined.  We had done a demo at Hornsby Police Boys Club with John Zuliaka.

Did they sign you before you wrote the material on the album, or did this all come after?

Half the material was written before, the rest came afterwards.  In fact, some were still being written when were in at Festival studios recording the initial lot.  The first two tracks we recorded were “Long Legged Lovely” and “The Rat Suite”.  Both had had their start on stage with the Dave Miller Set.

Can you tell me what the band's process was like writing the music and lyrics?

“Long Legged Lovely” and “The Rat Suite” had Neale writing the lyrics and when I read them I was not particularly impressed as they sounded very sophomoric.  By the time the last tunes were written, I had taken over writing the lyrics.

What were some of the influences behind the songs? How did you guys come up with the title for the band's debut LP, 'At The Mountains Of Madness'?

The title is from a novel by H.P. Lovecraft called ATMOM. Influences ranged from Led Zeplin heavy riffing to sound track music from western movies, particularly the Italian Spaghetti Westerns.

Who did the album art?

 Unsure, there was no credit.

The album sees the Go-Set charts as well at number #7, something you are familiar with at this point. What did this feel like to be making great progressive music just as you had done with DMS?

I felt normal but very happy because we had a very strong ready-made following built-up from the DMS.

In late '70 you reached out to the guys from Fraternity to be featured on the track 'Seasons Of Change'. What made you want to include outside assistance with this particular number?

Bon Scott and I were great friends and, he offered to play the recorder on the song.  He and John Bisset, organist, also featured on the “The Rat Suite”.

Can you tell me about the sort of politics that Blackfeather and Fraternity went through over this track that following year in March of '71?

The bass player in Fraternity, Bruce Howe, approached Festival with myself, with a view to covering “Seasons of Change”.  This had come about through Bon Scott’s association with Blackfeather.  It was agreed that Fraternity could release a cover of the song whilst Blackfeather’s version should only be on the LP.  Of course, when their version became a hit in South Australia, Festival reneged and released Blackfeather’s version in opposition.  It was against my wishes.

Can you tell me about the process of recording the LP?

Recording began late 1970 and continued into early 1971 at Festival Records in Pyrmont.  First recorded were “Long Legged Lovely” and “The Rat Suite”.  The next two would have been “Seasons of Change” and “Manco’s Theme”.  The last two were “On this Day that I Die” and “The Main Title”.  By this time, I was writing the lyrics as well as the music as I had the most advanced literacy.

What was that experience like being in the studio?

I had been in the studio many times during my time with the DMS.  Mr Guy Fawkes was recorded in the same studio and I was familiar with all the equipment.

How long did it take, and can you run me through the songs and their individual process?

Too long to cover here today.  It took around three months all up.

By August of '71 the group had some line-up changes as well some conflict within the group. Can you tell me about the band's chemistry and energy at this point?

There wasn’t any.  We had devolved into a boogie 12-bar blues band.

What set this chain events in motion exactly?

Lack of money and time.

You and Neale both decided to lead your own versions of Blackfeather. Can you tell me about that? First, how did you initially meet Peter Conyngham of Nova Agency?

Nova booked the DMS.   The boss had registered “Blackfeather” as a business name.  I wanted to change agencies to Michael Chugg but, could not do this.

What do you think he saw in Johns' variation of the band that he may have not seen in yours at the time?

Money perhaps.  There were no distinct details of what and who created the tracks on the recording and so Nova did not know who exactly was responsible for the compositions.

What were you doing during this period? Were you working on new material, or making attempts at separating yourself from Neale's version of BF?

I had had enough by this time, I had been touring for five years and so I disbanded the group and took a job playing guitar at Jonathan’s Nightclub on Broadway, Central.

Can you tell me about the chemistry between members Brus and Webb at that point but it all dissolved? When did you decide to discontinue the group and what was going through your mind around this time?

By the time Harry and Steve were members, we were playing no music from ATMOM at all and were just another Blues band.  

How can it be that a group that you started, and had such great potential, seemingly be hijacked in a way from you?

Yes, for all the above I felt it did not have any future because I did not own the name anymore. 

Can you tell me about working with the group Duck in '72?

Duck was formed from the house band at Jonathans.

What was your involvement with the band?

Playing guitar and I did a few arrangements for the LP we produced.

Can you tell me about recording your solo LP, 'Pity For The Victim' in '74? What was the process like recording and making a record alone?

It was good but very drawn out.  It took over two years to complete the album.  Luckily Festival kept me employed doing arrangements for the likes of “Jeffrey St John”, “Barry Leef” and, Sister Janet Meade.

Can you tell me about the songs that are featured on the record?

Too long and involved at this stage.

What did you want to express, or get across specifically with this work?

To me, it was just another record I was involved with.  I did have the intention of putting a band together to promote it but it would have meant hiring Jeff St John who already had his own band.

What have you been up to during these rather strange times? Are you working on any new material, or projects?

Yes, I’m working on about 20 songs presently.  Some originals and some adaptations.

Can we expect anything from you in the near future both creatively and non-creatively?

Yes, within the next year or so creatively.

Is there anything else you would like to further share with the readers?

No.

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Dakota Brown