Looking For Bon | Official Website

Interviews - With Video Previews

Bob Spencer

Dave Evans

Irene Thornton

Jim Stewart

John Freeman

John Swan AKA Swanee

John Archibold Dixon Swan was born in Glasgow, Scotland on 15th March 1952. He migrated to Australia with his family in 1961 and took up residence in Elizabeth, just on the outskirts of Adelaide. When his mother remarried in the mid-1960s, he was the only child to keep the surname of his biological father, who was an adept boxer. His younger brothers Alan and Jimmy Barnes took the surname of their mother.

Swanee started playing the drums at an early age and became entranced with Blues, Soul and Hard-Rock. He left school by the age of 13 to pursue a career in music. He joined his first professional band Happiness a year later. At the age of 17 he enlisted in the Australian Army, and was later discharged after two years of service.

In early 1974 he joined The James Wright Band as a drummer, and by the end of the year he joined the Adelaide band Fraternity as lead vocalist - Fraternity, of course, being one of Bon Scott's early bands as well. Swanee's brother Jimmy Barnes joined the band and Swanee switched roles to drums, but eventually resumed his duties as lead vocalist after Jimmy Barnes left Fraternity to join Cold Chisel. During this time, Swanee played drums for Jim Keays' Southern Cross. In 1976 Swanee moved on and left both bands.

After he left Fraternity and Southern Cross, Swanee became the vocalist for Feather (Blackfeather) in 1977. The band recorded only one single with Swanee called "Girl Trouble" before he left in 1978 to establish himself as a solo artist.

In 1978 Swanee released his first solo single "Crazy Dreams". An album followed shortly after called "Into the Night". This album generated several other singles, but they were met with little commercial success.

In late 1981 his version of "If I Were A Carpenter" became a national hit, reaching No. 5. The single was a precursor to the 1982 album "This Time It's Different", which spawned the hit singles "Temporary Heartache" and "Lady What's Your Name", both of which propelled Swanee to national fame.

Swanee took advantage of this increased popularity by releasing three hit albums in succession: the live album Ready For Action (1983); the greatest hits album Days Gone By (1984); and Bushido (1985). During this time Swanee featured in an advertising campaign for West End Drought, a South Australian beer. The brewer provided financial support to Swanee's tours, and he in turn appeared in the company's TV commercials.

In 1985 Paul Christie of The Party Boys was considering a new front-man to replace Angry Anderson. The new singer needed to have, by his own admission, “the best Rock ‘n’ Roll voice in the country”. Swanee was asked and in 1987 he became the new lead vocalist for The Party Boys, a touring band with a floating membership that included Richard Clapton, Marc Hunter, Alan Lancaster and Joe Walsh, among others.

Swan's tenure with the band proved to be the group's most successful period. A cover of the John Kongos hit "He's Gonna Step On You Again" was a No. 1 hit, which was followed up by a version of Argent's "Hold Your Head Up" and the song "Gloria", both of which became Top 10 hits. Both singles were from the band's self-titled album, which reached No. 18 in the country.

Swanee's deal with the band originally meant he would only stay long enough to record the album and complete a tour supporting it, but after being briefly replaced by Graham Bonnet, he returned to the Party Boys line-up, and stayed until 1989 before going solo again.

Swanee's career slowed down during the 1990s, releasing only two singles and the album "Heart & Soul" in 1997. Swanee was still touring extensively around the country when his hard-partying lifestyle finally caught up to him and was negatively affecting his health: "I wasn't getting better and the music was suffering. It wasn't up to standard". In 2000 he made the decision to come off the road and become sober. Shortly afterwards he moved to Mt. Tambourine, Queensland, to fully concentrate on restoring his health and well-being.

In 2005 Swanee was contacted by producer Mark Moffatt to send some vocal tracks for songs he had written in Nashville. The songs were sent back and forth on the internet, with Swanee sending some of his own songs to Mark: "I started off singing with an acoustic guitar and sending the songs to Mark. It was initially going to be an acoustic album but then it started to rock a bit too much as we settled into that Nashville groove."

The result of this process was the album "Have A Little Faith". Released in 2007 and under the name "John Swan", the album was recorded with Nashville's finest musicians who have played for Garth Brooks, John Fogerty, Shania Twain, Dolly Parton, Billy Joel, and many other top acts. The album is a reflection of his past troubles and his love for the Blues.

In 2009 Swanee worked with fellow artists Ray Burgess, Tommy Emmanuel, John St Peters and Marty Rhone on the single "Legends Of The Southern Land". The rock anthem was written by John St Peeters and Michael Yule to unite all Australians and to celebrate those who have made contributions to the Nation's greatness.

In 2014 Swanee released the album "One Day At A Time", an entirely original work in collaboration with Darren Mullan from the Adelaide Recording Studio and Tony Minniecon on the song "Rescue Me".

In 2017 Swanee was recognized for his work with various charitable organizations with the Order of Australia Medal (OAM). Later he teamed up with war veteran Rob Pickersgill to form the Warrior Music Project, which uses music to improve the lives of military veterans, police officers and first responders. Currently, Swanee is a Blue Pie Records USA artist, working directly with Blue Pie founder and CEO Damien Reilly.

Swanee has remained one of Australia's best-known live acts for over half a century. He still has the same devotion to creating great music as when he was a young kid in Elizabeth, and continues recording and performing music for audiences across Australia and abroad. He has walked alongside musical giants and stood as their contemporary, both as a solo artist and with all the bands he's worked with. His paths have crossed with Bon Scott in a way, with the bands Fraternity and Blackfeather being important parts of the musical journeys of both Bon and Swanee. His perspective on the music scene during Bon's prime is one informed by the kind of experience and knowledge that most would kill to have themselves.

Les Hall

Mark Tinson

Peter Head

Peter Head got an early start in the music industry. A pro at tickling the ivories since he was 13, a member of Adelaide's first rock band known as Johnny Mac & the Macmen, and the musical accompaniment to the sexy showgirl performance at La Belle, Peter Head is no stranger to musical adventures. As a mere high school student, he would play in the same shows as the likes of Doug Ashdown, the Bee Gees, and John Farnham, across all media: whether it be over the radio, on your TV, or live! With this level of experience and expertise, it only stands to reason that he'd be confident co-founding his own band as frontman - "Headband" would serve as the punny name for his new band, and would kick off his biggest journey yet.

Headband became one of Australia’s most popular progressive blues rock bands that formed in early 1971. It featured bass guitarist Chris Bailey, drummer Joff Bateman, singer-songwriter and keyboardist Peter Beagley (later known as Peter Head), and singer-songwriter and guitarist Mauri Berg. Headband played progressive blues rock with symphonic, country, and pop influences. They had a strong work ethic, rehearsing and performing constantly, including three shows a week in high schools across Adelaide.

“We did modern jazz at nightclubs, rock’n’roll for discos, J.S. Bach for pleasure, barbershop quartet stuff for laughs, electronic music at jam sessions, blues when feelin’ low, and country and folk for interest. A combination of these influences comes out in our original material,” explains Peter Head.

The band practised “group indoctrination” in all types of music, even attending chamber music concerts together. The four-piece group have supported musical legends such as Elton John in 1971 and The Rolling Stones in 1973. They also finished third in the 1972 Hoadley’s Battle of the Sounds – a national performance competition between the best groups representing each state. The band then went on to release their debut album, “A Song for Tooley”, in 1973, which featured album artwork by internationally renowned Adelaide artist Vytas Šerelis.

Headband disbanded a year later. After Headband had separated, Bailey joined the Australian rock group “The Angels” in January 1977, he was later a founding member of GANGgajang. Berg joined a new line-up of Fraternity in late 1974, it included John Swan on drums and vocals, and his brother Jimmy Barnes (Cold Chisel) on vocals. Head formed a loose musical collective, The Mount Lofty Rangers, in 1974, which began with various musicians from Fraternity and Headband. It included Bon Scott, who left to join AC/DC before year’s end. The Mount Lofty Rangers spawned the musical “Lofty” produced by The Circle Theatre Company. By the early 1990s, the original vinyl pressing of “A Song for Tooley” became a collector’s item for psychedelic and progressive rock fans.

Peter Head has had many more adventures aside from these, including rereleasing Round And Round And Round in 1986, showing the world a hitherto unseen, much younger Bon Scott. To go in-depth on them all would cause this bio to triple in length: suffice it to say that the 2016 induction of Peter Head into the South Australian Music Hall Of Fame is well deserved. The legacy of Headband remains relevant today. His frank insight into the musical world of Bon Scott's day is a valuable perspective, both for those who were there at the time, and new historians eager to understand the origins of their favourite rock star.

Warren ‘Pig’ Morgan

How did you first take up playing piano?

The very first time? Well we were residing in WA at the time and my mother put me into a convent. I was living in Fremantle and she thought it was a good idea as she played piano and my grandfather played the piano and it was just like one of those educational moves by your parents.

I can't really remember if I was happy about it or not but I was interested in playing the piano. I'd been showing interest for a while -I think the first thing I ever played on piano was 'Twelfth Street Rag'. I heard it on the radio and it was the first thing that ever excited me. I then immediately scratched all the piano stool with a knife with excitement. I got my mother's perfume out and poured it all over the piano. I was only eight years old at the time.

I then went to school and did two years' classical training and ran into a very unusual sort of problem. Everything was OK, except I’ve got a very small little finger on my left hand and this sort of breaks all classical standard rules. I can't play correctly, especially visually - I don't use the 1ittle finger - on an octave stretch I use the fourth finger to push the little finger out of the way - it's something I trained myself to do.

At school I did two theory exams and got a hundred percent in each but they wouldn't let me sit for the piano exams – this is back in 1951 when convents and that were very, very strict in everything. They had a lot of tradition in everything, especially in music. It was classical and they said my sitting for exams would be futile.

Anyway I did two years and obviously by the theory exams I knew I could get into it but I never did a piano exam. At the state school I was at, because I became a bully, they asked me to leave, using the excuse that I lived too far away. You see before I came across from Melbourne to Perth (I was born in Melbourne) I had been to a school with about 15 kids in it. In Perth I went to this incredible huge State School and on my first day there I got smacked in the ear so in the space of a couple of weeks I became the school bully.

I was exceptionally skinny then. There's a photo that my mother's got and I'm about the width of my head. All my ribs used to stick out too. I was about 14 then.

When I had to leave the State School I moved to Wesley College (in Perth). I used to knock around with a kid whose father was a Methodist minister and who was pretty influential in the Methodist educational system so I got in.

As soon as the convent heard I was doing that they said 'Well you'll have to stop here because you'll most likely be shifting' and we did, although not initially, but it was like the Catholics were virtually saying 'This is not the scene -you're going to a Methodist school - go elsewhere'. So I gave piano away.

When I say I gave it away, it was given away. I have never been in control of my musical career you must understand. I am still not in control. I only gave it up for about two years and then my parents asked me if I’d like to learn some Modern piano. I went along to a guy in Perth named Harry Black who's pretty well known over there and I think I did eighteen months of Modern Piano although I was never particularly interested in it.

I was never particularly interested in any of the music I learnt really - I was just interested in the learning itself. It was playing piano that I really liked much more than the theoretical side - I just sat for anything they let me sit for. I'd get home and play boogie woogie after all the classical and that was my practice.

I wasn't listening to records at all strangely. I must have just heard a boogie somewhere that meant something to me I guess. I do remember hearing one boogie record by Honey Hill called 'South Pacific' or something which was a pretty typical boogie vamp. I think that influenced me but I can't remember when I listened to it.

When did you first start thinking of playing professionally with a band?

Well I never really thought of it - I had friends who played.

Actually the first band I played in was more of a fun thing – I was at Wesley College and I'd done about eighteen months of modern training during which time I didn't play anything, just used the chord structure to allow myself to expand by my own ear – getting into the trip of using the chords.

It was just helping me – all the time I was playing - I've always liked playing.

There was a group of us at Wesley College - a trumpet player and a trombone player and a few guys we knew who had never played - and we decided we'd form a band and just for the fun of it we went to a guy's place and set up. The drummer had a Scout Drum - you know the one - with ropes down the side. We played a thing called Boogie Blues by Gene Krupa and got a really good flash from it.

Then we did one of our own school’s dances at Wesley College and everything, thought we were great and fantastic - obviously we were bloody awful. We had three weeks to teach the trombone player to do one slow number which he messed up on the night.

My mother always helped me - she knew it was there – but at the time I was on a course of education -you know, a career.

It's really a funny thing to me about people and life, and how things can happen.

In April after passing my leaving I was still down the beach - just laying there in the sun I didn't have a clue about what I wanted to do. I was starting to play in bands about then - was a little bit serious - getting into clubs and sitting in. I was 19 then. Forming trios to play at wedding receptions. Also going into the country and doing football windups. It was the scene the musicians union identify with here. Nothing to do with the rock scene - nothing whatever. As a matter of fact if I drove past a hall and heard a rock group playing I'd put my foot down.

This was in 1962 and I was just leaving school. I was thinking about how I had my Leaving Certificate and what would I do with it. A friend of mine was doing a supplementary exam on geography to get into uni and he looked like getting it as it was only one subject. I decided to apply for his job at BHP, as my parents were starting to ask me what I was going to do, and sure enough he got his supp. and I got in.

I didn't have a clue what the job was - I was called a commercial trainee. One day the accountant called me up to the office and said that a condition of taking the position was that I was to study accountancy. So six years later I was an accountant.

I left BHP during the time I was studying but because of that circumstance I became an accountant, which I think is pretty funny. At that time I was really starting to play a lot as well - working night clubs until seven in the morning, playing mostly modern jazz because when you're earning money you have to pull your head in a bit especially in those days. I had to play wedding receptions and the like. I had a lot of fun though. I was playing in a trio at that time with a couple of friends. One was the son of the president of the WA Musicians Union. Consequently we got a few gigs. But we had a lot of fun doing that and some aspects of it - the freedom - the fun we had - are something which I sometimes yearn for now.

I wasn't serious because we were all working during the day - the money we earned came over the top of our salary and had the influence on us of allowing us to have a bit more money. And then the rock 'n' roll thing happened and that, like accountancy, was pure circumstance.

How exactly did you get into playing rock 'n' roll ?

Well a group of friends formed a group called the Beat 'n' Tracks and they started rocking around Perth. I still wasn't all that interested in rock 'n' roll although I got a really big flash from hearing the Beatles on radio. There was a collision course looming though, because I was playing at this place called the Hole in the Wall which was noted as a place where jazz or any new music would happen. The Hole in the Wall in Perth was only a small place but did it rock - everybody linked arms dancing about. It used to be a place where the guys from the Beat 'n' Tracks would come and listen. They had three guitars at the time in the band -sort of a Rolling Stones thing. They were all University students.

One of their guitarists came over to Melbourne to do a seminar and while he was gone the others felt they wanted to bridge the gap of the loss of one guitar - this was Christmas of 1967 - and they asked if I'd dig to play some organ with them. I'd never played any organ before - so I said OK and after two weeks they asked me to join and

Interviews - Without Video Previews

Adrian Barker

Alex Innocenti

Anne Cooksey

Barrie McAskill

Bicci Henderson

Chris Gilbey OAM

Cigarette AKA Patricia Salway

Colin John Burgess

The original drummer for AC/DC, Colin John Burgess was a central figure in the story of Australian rock music, even before joining AC/DC. Born in 1946, he masterfully played the drums for numerous noteworthy Aussie rock groups of the time, including The Untamed, The Throb, and Honeybunch/The Haze. But there's no doubt that the most remembered chapter of his pre-Akka Dakka life is his presence in Adelaide's favourite pop rock band, The Masters Apprentices in the late 60s to early 70s. His drum work with them is legendary! Colin and the Apprentices would earn chart successes with numerous top 20 singles, making it into the ARIA hall of fame in 1998.

Working alongside his bass-wielding brother Colin, the two siblings tore it up together across Australia and London, playing for Blackboard Jungle, Good Time Charlie, and His Majesty, garnering so much attention from throughout their careers that they had a documentary made about them by Carson Arts Management, named The Comeback Kings. This wave of attention continues into today, with on-off performances by the siblings' current band, Burgess Burgess. Colin is also a member of The Dead Singer Band, a tribute to dead Australian superstars, and composed of members who personally knew the artists in question, those being the likes of: Billy Thorpe, Chrissy Amphlett, Doc Neeson, Johnny O'Keefe, Michael Hutchence, Shirley Strachan, Stevie Wright, Ted Mulry, and of course, Bon Scott. You can tell that Colin and Bon were close, despite Colin only spending a few months overall with AC/DC. In fact, Denny Burgess and Colin Burgess were some of the last people to see Bon alive, as they were with him two hours before his passing.

Colin would kick off his time with AC/DC from November 1973 until February 1974. Alongside him was the original lineup of Angus Young shredding lead guitar, Dave Evans belting out vocals, Larry Van Kriedt throwing in a thick bass, and Malcolm Young strumming the rhythm on his trusty guitar. Dave Evans would be succeeded later by Bon Scott, and the band quickly picked up notoriety. While Burgess and AC/DC separated in 1974, the band would later require his drum skills once again for a few weeks, as their usual drummer Phil Rudd would prove unavailable. It wouldn't be long after that when Bon Scott would pass away, meaning that Colin was one of the last people to speak to Bon Scott before the end.

After AC/DC, Colin and Denny would continue to gain musical respect, with adventures under many names: whether you know them from The Masters Apprentices, Burgess Burgess, or His Majesty, you've probably heard them rocking in some capacity or another. One of the more interesting pieces of trivia is His Majesty teaming up with Tiny Tim of all people in 1993! The resulting falsetto cover of Highway To Hell would have put a bemused smile on Bon Scott's face had he heard it, we're fairly certain.

Dave Stevens

David “Daisy” Day

Denny Burgess

Deuel Droogan

Elizabeth Brice

Gabby D’Arcy

Glenn A Baker

Joff Bateman

John Carlini

John D’Arcy

John “Robbo” Robinson

June Findlay

Keith Brice

Loene Furler

Maria Van Vlijmen

In the early days of Bon Scott's career, he drummed in a band called the Spektors out of North Fremantle, frequenting the Medina Youth Club. At a gig in the Police Boys & Citizens Club, Maria would witness the band playing, and also unknowingly come face to face with her next boyfriend. Maria would become Bon Scott's first serious love interest, so serious that Bon would always carry a picture of the pair of them on his person!

Maria wasn't the typical party girl you might expect to end up with a guy like Bon Scott. She was Catholic, straight edge, and wished to remain a virgin until marriage. At the very most, they would only kiss. Despite this, their relationship was pretty unusual in a few ways, the least of which is that Bon Scott, the madlad known for being a fair bit of a womaniser, didn't push his luck with getting physical with Maria at all! Maria also happened to be dating 15 year old bass player Brian Gannon at the same time, which apparently Bon was more or less fine with, albeit with some tension involved. At the time, Maria didn't know of Brian's age. Maria would kiss both of them and hold their hands at the same time, but never sleep with either of them. Meanwhile, Bon was running with groups who would gang bang on the regular, also a fact beyond Maria's knowledge.

Eventually Gannon and Maria would split, and circumstances in Maria's work life would align as such that her and Bon could spend more time together. Societal backgrounds clashed, with Bon's friends finding Maria prudish, and Maria's parents seeing Bon as a delinquent. All the same, the pair would spend simple dates together, watching TV, getting fish and chips, and attending the Spektors' gigs and rehearsals together.

The pair would grow very close during the Valentines era, moving in together in Melbourne, all the way from Perth. However, it turned out it wasn't to be. While Bon did eventually propose to Maria, his tour-heavy rock and roll lifestyle proved too strenuous to maintain a relationship. There was a rule against girlfriends attending gigs as Bon moved onto more serious venues, which raised tension. Some cat-and-mouse chasing preceded this, with Maria contesting against Bon's quest for stardom, attempting to lure him back, but she had to be careful that she didn't play too hard to get, lest Bon's wandering eye be attracted to a dancer also vying for his affections by the name of Lyn. These tricky interactions combined with an overall lack of time as well as conflicting interests in the careers of Bon and Maria, and ultimately spelled the end for their romance completely.

Despite separating, Bon and Maria remained close friends until Bon's death, and Maria is able to provide a unique and personal perspective of Bon's formative musical experiences, those of course being his time with the Spektors and the Valentines.

Mark Evans

Mary Renshaw

Maureen Henderson

Rob “Ralph” Booth

Shirley Smith

Silver Smith

Steve Foster

Terry Gabrielle

Back when Bon was a teenager, he was a delinquent, his behaviour landing him in prison at one point, which would go on to serve the inspiration for the AC/DC song Jailbreak.

One of the people who helped Bon form a gang was Terry, a close school friend of Bon's who attended John Curtin High School in North Freemantle alongside the future rock superstar. The pair bonded through - what else - football, and they both played in the same under sixteen team.

Terry helped Bon get a job crayfishing out on the town's boats, which was one of the hardest possible jobs for a teenager to take. Bon rejected this after some time slaving away on the water, working as an apprentice mechanic at Avery Scales, managing the weighing machine. When he wasn't sweating in the workshop or rolling with his gang, Bon spent time with Terry, and Terry's sister Maureen. They would take in movies, go dancing, and show off their swagger in public, exuding devil-may-care confidence with a hint of danger and violence when push came to shove. This aesthetic was particularly popular thanks to the American cultural movement of rock'n'roll that had taken the world by storm at the time.

Terry was as close as you could get with Bon, and the pair got inked together - the ultimate rebellious action for teenagers of the era, along with piercing your ears. Both of the boys' tattoos read "Death Before Dishonour", however while Terry had gotten his on his arm, Bon had elected to have his tattooed right on his pubis. This proved agonising during recovery, especially due to the tight "stovepipe" jeans that were in vogue at the time. Terry and Maureen supported Bon during the weeks of pain that followed.

Terry and Bon were tough as they came as far as their neighbourhood went - they had to be. They were constantly challenged for top dog status, whether it be in a fist fight or a drag race. They were notorious among other gangs and the police, to the point that the duo were the first to blame, even for things they had no involvement in. As such, they became closer than ever, often ending up in "us against the world" type scenarios. This bond ran deep, as Terry eventually shared a room with Bon, along with two other close friends, Murry and Bicci.

Terry holds an interesting perspective of how Bon spent his leisure time. Whether it was dating girls, taking in a movie, or the hooligan activity that would eventually land Bon in jail, Terry was privy to all of it and has many a captivating tale to tell.

Vicki Dobellis

Vince Lovegrove

Vince Lovegrove first met Bon in the mid 60s, with both of them belonging to small rock and roll bands in the Perth scene, when Bon was playing drums for the Spektors. The pair had struck up a friendship, and Vince noted that Bon had a very unique, guttural voice that would serve him better if he sang more. John Collins was the current singer of the Spektors, and there was no chance of Bon having a shot at singing full time for his current band, so he and Vince struck an accord to form a new band, one where they were both lead singers. Thus, the Valentines were born. Funnily enough, Vince recalls that he didn't originally know what the band was going to be called, just that the concept is what they wanted.

Vince recalls how the Valentines were intended as an R&B based pop band, and they got caught up in the trend that was bubblegum music. They wrote all their own material, which was an important goal to them, however in order to garner a following they were required to play some songs they didn't write: the established hits of the day. While they occasionally went back to their R&B roots, the popular audiences and big payouts that came with being Yet Another Bubblegum Band were a little too sweet to ignore any more. After some reflection, the Valentines decided to amicably split up, because they felt they had lost their way by chasing what was popular. Bon and Vince would then join Fraternity together. At a future date, Vince would act as a manager, and would introduce Bon to AC/DC. Bon would replace Dave Evans as vocalist - we all know how that turned out.

The Valentines split up because they felt they weren't following their passions, and pursuing what they loved would prove to be the right move as we all know. Living through passion would lead Vince to become an AIDS awareness pioneer, especially after his second wife Suzi Sidewinder and their son Troy Lovegrove died of HIV/AIDS. He made a documentary about each one of them - "Suzi's Story" and "A Kid Called Troy". This also lead to a few written releases on this topic.

Living through passion would also become the mantra by which Bon and Vince lived their daily lives, and the tenet that would define their friendship. They bonded in similar circumstances, experienced a false image of success and rejected it together, then worked until they became the number one rock and roll act on the planet. Even to this day, the hard work of both Bon Scott and Vince Lovegrove is not forgotten and is appreciated in the hearts and minds of millions. We were extremely fortunate to get an interview with Vince before he tragically passed away in a car crash in 2012. Vince and Bon will both be dearly missed, both as rock and roll legends, and as empathetic and loving human beings.

Warwick Findlay