Ayers Rock

Chris Brown [guitar/vocals] 1974-81
Ray Burton [guitar/vocals] 1973-74
Keith Casey [percussion] 1976
Andy Cohen [keyboards] 1976-8
James Doyle [guitar/vocals] 1973-75
Russell Dunlop [drums] 1976
Doug Gallacher [drums] 1976
Steve Hogg [bass] 1976
Mark Kennedy [drums] 1973-76
Col Loughnan [saxes, flute, clarinet, kbds, perc, vcls ]
Duncan McGuire [bass]
Hamish Stewart [drums] 1976-81
Phil Stone [guitar]
Joe Tattersal [drums] 
John Young [bass] 1977

Biography

The original members were all seasoned players, widely regarded as amongst the best musos in the country, and their musical connections were woven through a series of major bands of the 60s and early 70s:

• Mark Kennedy was the original drummer in Spectrum. After leaving that band in late 1970 he became an in-demand session player, and worked in a series of groups including King Harvest (where he first teamed up with McGuire and Doyle) and Friends
• Duncan McGuire was a real rock veteran - his first band was the Phantoms in 1959. He was a member of the Epics (1962-64), the group who backed Little Pattie live and on her early singles and first album, as well as Reg Lindsay, Johnny Ashcroft, Bryan Davies, Jay Justin and Johnny O'Keefe. From 1966-68 he was a member of The Questions (Doug Parkinson's first major band) which also included Ray Burton and Doug Lavery (Valentines, Axiom), and he stayed with Parkinson through In Focus and Fanny Adams before moving on to King Harvest and Friends
• Jimmy Doyle had been a member of the Delltones' and Dig Richards' backing groups, and later worked for a time as musical director for pianist Winifred Atwell

• Ray Burton had also been a member of the Delltones' band, was a member of well-regarded Sydney group The Executives and worked variously with Doyle, McGuire and Kennedy in King Harvest, Doug Parkinson In Focus and Friends. He also had a stint in the USA in the early 70s, which included work with Helen Reddy and the co-writing of Reddy's 1972 international mega-hit I Am Woman.

Burton left the band during 1974, and was replaced by singer/guitarist Chris Brown. Brown's credits included a stint in Little Sammy & The In People, the seminal Sydney outfit led by singer Neville "Little Sammy" Gaha (father of TV's Eden and Danielle Gaha), whose lineups included Harry Brus, Michael Carlos, Barrie McAskill, Col Nolan and Janice Slater.

With this lineup, they recorded their debut album Big Red Rock, an early critical and commerical success for Mushroom and showcased the band's considerable chops and strong material. (Taped live at Armstrong's Studio in Melbourne over two nights in September 1974, it was also a bargain for the struggling label, costing a mere $5000 to record). It featured three tracks by McGuire, including their memorable second single, the Latin-flavoured Lady Montego, two tracks each by Col Loughnan and Chris Brown, and an excellent Weather Report cover, Joe Zawinul's Boogie Woogie Waltz.

During '75-76, Kennedy also worked with Marcia Hines Band, and he finally left Ayers Rock in 1976. He was replaced by Russell Dunlop, who, like Kennedy, was a seasoned veteran, a respected session player and producer. The second LP Beyond was less successful but no less impressive, featuring pieces by Chris Brown, and including their third single, Little Kings. Recorded in L.A., it was also vastly more expensive than its predecessor, reportedly costing Mushroom a whacking $60,000. After a hiatus in the late 70s, Brown and Doyle reformed the band in 1980, and recorded a new single Lies (distributed by Polydor), followed by album Hotspell (distributed by RCA), both issued on the band's own Red Rock label.

Discography

References

• Conn, 1996, p.33, 53-54
• McGrath, p.
• Spencer, 1993, p.20
• Who's Who of Australia Rock & Roll (online version)