Australian Rock and Roll "Royalty" Quiz

Answer: Back in Black

"Back In Black" (1980) is AC/DC's sixth international and seventh Australian album. It has been their best selling album and at the end of the twentieth century was one of the best-selling albums of all time (selling over 20 million copies). Though it peaked at Number Four in the US (and stayed in the top 100 for over two years; it reached Number One in Australia, the UK and many European counties.

A total of five singles were derived from the album. The tribute to Bon Scott was reflected in the all black album cover, the name of the title track (and subsequent song track) and the mournful tolling of a large bell in the introduction of the first track "Hell's Bells". The other answers are all other AC/DC albums released between 1975 and 2008.

Answer: Khe Sanh

"Khe Sanh" (1978) is one of the most popular Australian rocks songs even though when it was released as a single it only reached Number 41 nationally. Cold Chisel's keyboard player and chief songwriter Don Walker based the song on two people he knew who had returned from active duty in Vietnam.

It has parallels with Redgum's "I Was Only Nineteen" (1983) where John Schumann wrote about friends who did and did not return from the Vietnam War. In 2001, The Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) rated "Khe Sanh" at Number eight in all-time best Australian songs.

There are actually two versions recorded. The second version appeared on the International version of "East" (1980). The other answers were the three songs from the Australian version of "East" that were released as singles in Australia.

Answer: Am I Ever Going To See Your Face Again?

"Am I Ever Going To See You Face Again" was the band's first single in 1976. A ballad version and at least one rock version with characteristic riff were recorded. Undoubtedly, the infamy of the song is due to the typically Australian expletive response to the question posed in the song title that the audience (never the band) sang at concerts. It is thought the audience chant originated in Mt Isa in Queensland in 1978. The lyrics of the song are quite introspective being about grief and loss based on a discussion lead singer Doc Neeson had with a friend whose girlfriend was killed in a motorcycle accident in a motorcycle accident.
The other three options were all other hits by the Angels.
The Angels driving rock music influenced many international acts including Guns 'n' Roses. Nirvana and Pearl Jam.

Answer: Midnight Oil

Midnight Oil were one of Australia's most popular bands despite the unusual fact that they were one of the few bands of their era that did not appear on "Countdown", the national TV program about Pop and Rock Music. "Countdown" required bands to mime the words while they "played" the televised songs in the studio. Uncompromising as they were, they refused and were never accepted by the show.

Their attitude to their music was the same: uncompromising. They tackled political topics that other bands would not dare cover with powerful driving rock and take no prisoners lyrics.

They are the only act that have two songs in the APRA Top 30 Best Australian Songs of all time in 2001 with "The Power and the Passion" (1982) and "The Beds are Burning" (1987). The other answers were Australian rock bands that have been inducted into the Australian Recording Artists' Hall of Fame but have very diverse sounds: The Saints were one of the world's first (and influential) punk rock acts; Icehouse were a synthesiser driven rock outfit, and the Hoodoo Gurus were a typically Australian rock group whose live shows were more exciting than their records (but their records were still very good).

Answer: Don't Throw Stones

Aussie Crawl as they were known had a very distinctive sound: surf rock with uniquely delivered lyrics. Glenn A Baker, an Australian rock music historian, stated in 1983, "If Skyhooks has personified the bodgie larrikin, Cold Chisel the hard-drinking working man, Australian Crawl turned the bronzed lifesaver into a pop idol". "Beautiful People" was a hit from their first album, "Errol" a hit (and the only one where James Reyne was not lead vocalist) from their second album, and "Restless", their only Number One hit, came from their 1986 EP, "Semantics". "Don't Throw Stones" (1979) was a hit for The Sports whose lead singer Stephen Cummings had a similar delivery style (though not as pronounced as Aussie Crawl's James Reyne).

Answer: Throw Your Arms Around Me

By the time 1986 came around, Hunters and Collectors had released their fourth album, "Human Frailty". Compared with quite extravagant previous albums this was a pared back offering with a contemporary rock sound. Lead singer Mark Seymour (older brother to Crowded House's bassist Nick Seymour) stated the whole album was about Seymour's relationship with a "a woman I was very much in love with" and "Throw Your Arms Around Me" was the only song he wrote about the relationship where he wasn't angry.

This version of the song is the third of four versions and while H&C had many hits (all the other answers are some of their hits) and many fine albums, it is "Throw Your Arms Around Me" that will be H&C's most enduring legacy. Even well into the 21st century, it is judged to one of Australia's favourite rock songs and covered by Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam and Neil Finn of Crowded House amongst others.

Answer: I Got You

Split Enz had already had some success as a progressive rock band in the UK when Neil Finn (six years younger than Brother Tim) joined his brother's group in April 1977 after he graduated from high school. The younger Finn was responsible for a change in musical direction for the group as the complex pattens of music had to be simplified for Neil who was somewhat of a novice playing guitar.

However it was Neil Finn who penned and sang "I Got You" from their fifth album "True Colours" that achieved musical success on both sides of the Atlantic. Split Enz never looked back until Tim left the band in 1984.

They folded soon after. Neil Finn and fellow Split Enz member Paul Hester formed The Mullanes with Nick Seymour which became Crowded House, "Better Be Home Soon" (1988), being one of their early hits.

The other two songs were early Split Enz singles.

Answer: The Church

The Church were formed in Sydney in 1981 by Steve Kilbey. Whilst a progressive rock group, they have always maintained a non-mainstream component to their music: A lead singer who played bass, two intertwining guitars to lay down complex melodies and poetic lyrics with themes of myths and legends, biblical themes, drug references to visions, dreams and nightmares.

This uniqueness saw them gain some success in the US with their debut album "Of Skins and Heart" containing their second single (but first hit).

While the second album, 1982's "The Blurred Crusade" was successful in Australia, their record company refused to release it as it did not contain radio friendly material like their Australian cousins, the Little River Band. The band was horrified but did not change their music. Success continued in Australia but was mixed in the States.

In 1988, the "Starfish" album was released which brought fresh success in the US as well as a resurgence in Australia. In 2010, The Church was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.

In 2014 the 27th album was released with Marty Piper Wilson being absent on a Church album for the first time. He was replaced by Powderfinger's Ian Haug. Ol' 55 were a seventies band that played original 50s style music. Mental as Anything were a rock/pop band that played serious music with playful lyrics ("If You Leave Me, Can I Come Too" [1981]). Weddings Parties Anything were a folk rock act with a mainstream following that were successful from 1984-1999.

Answer: John Farnham

Little River Band was a supergroup made up of members from successful Australian bands such as Mississippi, Zoot and The Twilights. Certainly the harmony/guitar driven sound of Mississippi informed the early sound of the band. Perhaps the best move they made as a group was not the music but the appointment of Glenn Wheatley as their manager. Wheatley was the bass player for Australian group, The Masters Apprentices, a group that had a moderate degree of success on the international stage in the 60s.

He understood the music management business and with this acumen, Little River Band became the first Australian act to have sustained success in the US. Australia was shocked when lead singer Glenn Shorrock left the band but were even more shocked when John Farnham, a very popular solo singer and former King of Pop joined the band. Farnham stayed in the band for three years and whilst this time included a few hits, the band did not reach the same heights as when Shorrock was frontman.

After LRB, Farnham resumed his solo career in 1986 and had a Number One hit with "You're the Voice" and an album. "Whispering Jack" that spent 25 weeks at Number One in Australia.

In 2012, when Farnham sang live for the Australian Olympic Team, it was still the Number One selling Australian Album of all time. Jon Stevens fronted Noiseworks, a popular Aussie rock group and also fronted INXS after Michael Hutchence died. Angry Anderson fronted moderately successful hard rock group Rose Tattoo.

Answer: The One Thing

"Shabooh, Shoobah" was INXS' third album after 1980's "INXS" and 1981's "Underneath the Colours", both of which, with commensurate singles, were moderately successful in Australia. "The One Thing" was the single off the album which peaked at Number 15 in Australia but managed to reach the top 30 in the US.

This song was the first song INXS recorded a video clip for, for the very new MTV. Their presence on MTV undoubtedly made them more successful. After a further three world-wide successful albums, INXS became one of the most popular bands in the world at the time, certainly one of the most successful six piece rock acts the world has seen. The other options were all Australian singles (all hits) from 1987's "Kick".

There were several other hits from the two albums between "Shabooh, Shoobah" and "Kick".