The Angels

THE ANGELS - 50 NOT OUT

It's Saturday night, I've waited so long... this is it, folks - The Angels' 50th birthday!

As the book The 100 Best Australian Albums highlighted, "The Angels can lay claim to being Australia's longest-lasting band."

And 2024 marks 50 years since the band's first gig. To celebrate this remarkable milestone, The Angels will be doing a series of one-off shows in each capital city on Saturday nights in June and July.

For Angels fans, each show will be an unforgettable one-night stand, featuring classics, rarities and surprises. This is The Angels - 50 Not Out.

And to make a big night even bigger, joining the band will be very special guests Mi-Sex, who have had a long association with The Angels. Founding member Murray Burns will never forget seeing The Angels for the first time, at Paddington Town Hall at the end of the '70s. "The place was jam-packed and their high-energy performance was a revelation to us," Murray says. "Watching that show was a crucial beginning to reshaping the energy of what we were doing on stage."

It's no surprise that The Angels have decided to mark their five decades with a series of shows. "Playing live is the perfect way to celebrate our 50th birthday," founding member John Brewster says.

"Our relationship with the audience means everything to the band," co-founder Rick Brewster adds. "In fact, it's the reason we're still going."

Fifty years has delivered a catalogue of classics, songs ingrained in the hearts of every Australian rock fan, including Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again, Who Rings The Bell, Devil's Gate, Take A Long Line, No Exit, No Secrets, Shadow Boxer, Marseilles, Shoot It Up, Comin' Down, Let The Night Roll On, Mr Damage, After The Rain, Night Attack, Dogs Are Talking and We Gotta Get Out Of This Place.

No wonder the legendary American critic David Fricke called The Angels "a guaranteed great time anywhere".

The Angels story started in 1974 when the much-loved Adelaide group The Moonshine Jug and String Band went electric, debuting their new outfit, The Keystone Angels, at the Modbury Hotel. Rick Brewster put down the washboard, picked up the electric guitar and Australian music would never be the same.

As Jimmy Barnes declared, The Angels are "a band that changed Australian music forever".

The new band's first big gig was supporting Cheech & Chong at Adelaide's Thebarton Theatre. The audience threw Minties at them, but the band was undeterred. They then jumped in John Brewster's EH station wagon and hit the road, "doing gigs wherever we could get them"

They played at Sunbury, toured as Chuck Berry's backing band, supported AC/DC on a South Australian tour, played with Ike & Tina Turner, and released a single, Keep On Dancin'/Good Day Rock & Roll, sung by John Brewster and written by what would become the famous Brewster-Neeson-Brewster songwriting combination.

After being urged by Bon Scott and Malcolm Young, the legendary Vanda & Young signed the band to the iconic Albert's label and when producer George Young suggested dropping "Keystone" from the band's name, the classic Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again became the first release by The Angels.

The rest, as they say, is history.

"It's been a hell of a ride," John Brewster smiles. "I liken it a bit to a rollercoaster - there have been lots of twists and turns and ups and downs. But when you look at the whole trip, it's just been great."

And The Angels remain an ongoing creative force - as well as the 50 Not Out shows, 2024 will bring new music from the band.

John and Rick Brewster, singer/guitarist Nick Norton, and John's sons Sam (on bass) and Tom (drums) have been busy in the studio. "We can't wait for fans to hear the new songs," Rick says.

Continuing the cricket analogy, this is a band with no plans to declare. For The Angels there is no finish line.

As Jimmy Barnes notes, "Every night the songs come to life on stage thanks to the Brewster Brothers. And every night people walk away shouting, 'This is it, folks, over the top!' I hope they do it for many years to come."

That's the plan

The 50 Not Out shows will be a time for both reflection and celebration - not many bands last 50 months, let alone 50 years.

"And we're thrilled that Mi-Sex can come along for the ride," John says. "This is a celebration of our journey, and Mi-Sex have been a part of that journey." Mi-Sex became one of Australia's most popular bands after relocating from New Zealand in 1978, scoring nine Top 50 hits, including Computer Games, But You Don't Care, People, Space Race, Castaway and Blue Day. Their old manager Bob Yates wrote the official Angels book with Rick and John, and in 2016 Mi-Sex joined The Angels for the Hardwired tour in Australia, and the Clash Of The Titans in New Zealand.

Opening the 50 Not Out shows will be young Brisbane band DIAL, who recently released their self-titled debut EP.

Fifty years in the making, this tour will be a celebration of everyone who has played with The Angels and everyone who's attended an Angels show.

"The Angels is bigger than any one of us," Rick Brewster says. "It's a band that's all about the songs and the power of the guitars."

Let the night roll on!

Persons under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a paying adult.  Please note money debited from your account when purchasing tickets will appear on your statement from 'Fringe Innovations (iwannaticket), not Hornsby RSL Club