Almanac Music: Our Dad banned Ted Mulry Gang, but embraced Skyhooks

 

 

Dave and Ian Goodwin have always wondered why they didn’t get free tickets when Skyhooks came to their home town of Dalby in mid-1977. Now they know. This piece investigates the phenomenon of rock bands touring country towns in the 1970s.

 

OUR DAD BANNED TMG

 

EPISODE 1

 

A Facebook post of February 2026 went as close to viral as it’s possible for a piece of historical news about the town of Dalby to get. The document posted – from the Skyhooks archive – disclosed that in 1977 the Ted Mulry Gang (TMG) was BANNED from the Great Hall of our school, Dalby State High School on Queensland’s Darling Downs.

The ban meant Skyhooks were unable to bring TMG in to perform in the last seven shows of their 1977 winter tour of Queensland and had to persist with journeyman Geoff Duff as their support act. TMG had previously performed in Dalby (alongside Sherbet) on 17 June 1976.

My brother Ian spotted the news of the ban on a Facebook group he belongs to of folk, like us, who grew up in Dalby.

Among the dwindling circle of our former schoolmates this revelation had an impact akin to the release of the Epstein files or the Warren Commission investigation of the Kennedy assassination.

The notice of the ban, dated 16 June 1977 and issued to George Bishop, Manager of Skyhooks, had several fascinating aspects. First, it mentioned that “the caretaker doesn’t mind a drink”. Second, it indicated three reasons for the TMG ban: “because of offensive language”; “because it’s a school”; and “the Principal doesn’t like young girls in the dressing room!” [note the use of an exclamation mark]. Third, the notice was issued under the authority of ’the Principal’ – OUR DAD, Mr Ken Goodwin.

Dad these days is a mild-mannered eighty-six-year-old. But fifty years ago, it seems, he flexed his muscles and took on the might of Australia’s fledgling rock and roll industry.

Ian and I were both in Queensland a few weeks ago and so we resolved to get to the bottom of this landmark incident. As people in a position to unearth previously undisclosed events, we feel we owe it to the townsfolk of Dalby (and, indeed, to our entire generation) to find out the TRUE STORY of what happened.

 

The Context – What Was Going on in Dalby in 1976-77

The short answer is “not much”, except for occasional calls for Gough Whitlam to be lynched, and a great deal of admiration for fast bowlers Jeff Thomson and Dennis Lillee. These were also years of good rainfall so plenty of flash cars were purchased at the local dealerships.

Dad is unhelpfully confidential and discrete, not to mention forgetful, these days. So to find out more we kidnapped him, tied him to a chair, shone bright lights in his eyes and injected him with truth serum. [Editor’s note – this may be a slight exaggeration.] And we did a bit of research on the good old internet. Here’s what we discovered.

In 1976 Dad was under the pump. That January he’d transferred to Dalby as the new High School Principal (from his previous post as Principal at Biloela). A fortnight into first term there was a major vandalism event. A couple of disgruntled former inmates of the school broke back into it under cover of darkness, splashed liberal amounts of glue all around and generally smashed up the place. Two months later a wing of the school burnt down, in an act of arson. Some of the school’s alumni weren’t showing a lot of regard for their alma mater. The local coppers and magistrate were being kept busy, as was the local rag, the Dalby Herald. To keep the school operational a fleet of ‘demountable’ buildings – from the Education Department’s enormous stockpile of the things – had to be trucked in to serve as temporary classrooms.

For a school principal, dealings with police and local media are de rigeuer. But complex logistics and construction/reconstruction project skills are not usually required. The first six months in a country town, under close community scrutiny and an expectation that the leader of the school will reflect its values, are always tough.

On top of all this there was the hot potato of the Great Hall commissioning. The hall was a brainwave of the previous school leadership regime, meant to showcase the talents of the surrounding Downs-folk. It was built to the same architectural plans as the Miami High Great Hall on the Gold Coast. God knows how it was funded. It occupied a large area of land in a prominent corner of the schoolgrounds. But – surprise, surprise – there was a big construction overrun. Promises had been made by Dad’s predecessor that the Hall would be available for community use.

After a hundred points of detail were dealt with, the Dalby Great Hall was ready for action, at long last, early in the second school term of 1976.

One of the first events scheduled there was a rock concert which would bring TMG (and Sherbet) to Dalby for the first time. This had the enthusiastic support of Dalby’s leading entrepreneur, who we’ll just call K. K ran the menswear store. His business was situated right next door to the local chemist shop, which rigorously enforced age guidelines on the sale of prophylactics. The word on the streets was that if you popped next door to the drapery section K would sell you a condom under the counter for a dollar a pop. On any given weekday a procession of sheepish-looking teenage boys could be observed furtively leaving the menswear store, having posed as potential socks-buyers. We never tested this system out personally as we couldn’t afford the dollar. It’s an apocryphal tale – legends like this abound in country towns all over Australia.

K had gotten himself appointed Dalby agent for TMG, Sherbet and Skyhooks, as well as Hush. He was quicker than anyone else in town to tap into the new rock and roll revenue stream.

Another character mentioned in the ban notice is the hall’s “caretaker’. We’ll call him M. Among our circles of friends, he was regarded as a good bloke. He had a broader job description – he was the school’s janitor. If a movie is ever made of TMG coming to Dalby we want M to be played by Bill Murray, Caddyshack style. He had an ‘office’ in the storeroom under Block B where the vaulting horses, mats and medicine balls were kept and we would all say g’day to him when we were sent to fetch some gear. M was a World War II veteran and had been in Changi where, it was said, he’d been involved in flag-raising and lowering rituals. Every morning at sun-up he could be seen out on our school’s front lawn raising the Australian flag. It’s true to say M didn’t mind a drink but, in view of what he’d been through in the War, our Dad saw this as something to be managed around rather than a sackable offence.

Dad shared with us that he hated it and was as nervous as hell when rock bands were in town. The Great Hall was a 900-seater and no-one was arriving by public transport. When the venue was full-up the parked cars spread right across the sports ovals and the school needed to arrange some parking attendants. There were real risks of fistfights on the schoolgrounds in the areas where cars were parked, but the concept of private security hadn’t been invented. When trouble broke out it was either “phone the coppers” (at the coin-operated public telephone) or “sort it out for yourself” – the preferred modus operandi of the local populace.

 

ANOTHER TIME, A DIFFERENT PLACE

OUR DAD BANNED TMG – EPISODE 2

 

BLOWING YOUNG MINDS – TED MULRY GANG IN RURAL QUEENSLAND, 1976-77

TMG in the mid-1970s was an incredibly hard-working band. We can glean this from the comprehensive concert history records maintained by passionate TMG-lovers on the website www.tedmulry.com. The band members were from working class backgrounds, and they relished the opportunity to tour. Before they were big they enjoyed a three-week run performing at the Chevron Hotel on the Gold Coast from 19 March to 6 April 1974. They had another series of gigs at the Chevron (in Surfers Paradise), and at ‘Streakers’ Restaurant in Brisbane, over the two weeks from 1 to 11 January 1975.

TMG were back in Brisbane, mainly at ‘Streakers’ from 4 to 13 April 1975. On the night of 11 April, they performed at ‘Streakers’ from 10.30pm to midnight, then stepped over to the Cloudland Ballroom in Fortitude Valley for a second gig of the night, coming on stage after Bootlace, Wizid and Tramway had finished up. At Cloudland, TMG played from 12.30am onwards.

As their popularity grew with the release of ‘Jump in my Car’ and ‘Darktown Strutters Ball’ in the second half of ‘75, they decided to reach out to rural audiences. TMG’s management developed a new formula: nightly concerts in different towns along the highways of NSW, Victoria and South Australia.

TMG were also up for ‘big day out’ type events and outdoor country gigs. Two examples illustrate this. They were one of the featured bands at a concert held at Memorial Drive Park in Adelaide on 24 January 1976, appearing with Sherbet, Hush, John Paul Young and AC/DC. AC/DC performed all their hits in a nine-song set – T.N.T., High Voltage and It’s a Long Way to the Top, as well as Live Wire and The Jack. This event must have presented some interesting crowd management challenges as an Australia v West Indies cricket Test Match was played at the neighbouring Adelaide Oval from 23 to 28 January 1976. (Australia won by 190 runs!)

On 8 March 1976 TMG performed at the Korumburra football ground in Victoria in the ‘Mother Rock’ concert. There, they shared the stage with Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, AC/DC, Hush and Little River Band, among others.

Up to the turn of 1976 TMG’s tentacles hadn’t yet extended into the conservative back-blocks of Queensland. But, in a sign of things to come, they introduced themselves to country Queensland with two big gigs. The first, on New Years Eve 1975/76, was at Toowoomba, at the St Stephens Hall, where they appeared with the bands Val Halla and Sunjammer. Then, on the night of 1 January 1976 they performed at the Federal Hotel in the sleepy town of Maryborough. These were no doubt huge, celebratory evenings – on 28 December 1975 they had appeared on Countdown and ‘Jump in My Car’ went to Number 1 on the charts, where it remained for six weeks.

On 2 January 1976 TMG performed in Brisbane at Festival Hall. They backed this up with gigs on the 3rd at Alexandra Headlands Surf Club on the Sunshine Coast and on the 4th on the Gold Coast, at the North Kirra Surf Club.

Along with Sherbet (who had just released their greatest hit ‘Howzat’), TMG now set their sights on blowing the young minds of central, northern and western Queensland. Sherbet launched their ‘Around Australia in 80 Days’ tour, and TMG performed with them on the Queensland leg.

During the month from 24 May to 20 June 1976 these two bands unleashed themselves on young audiences in Queensland’s country towns. Their unsuspecting parents and the ruling Country Party would not have known what was about to hit them. TMG jumped in their car and hit the road, delivering the following performances:

• Toowoomba, Harristown High School Hall, 24 May
• Stanthorpe City Centre, 25 May
• Kingaroy Town Hall, 26 May
• Nambour Civic Centre, 27 May
• Bundaberg, Crest Theatre, 28 May
• Appearance on Countdown Episode 62 via video link, 29 May
• Rockhampton Municipal Theatre, 29 May (then Sunday off!)
• Mackay Theatre Royal, 31 May
• Ayr, Home Hill Memorial Hall, 1 June
• Ingham Shire Hall, 2 June
• Innisfail Shire Hall, 3 June
• Cairns Youth Centre, 4 June (performing 3 short shows)
• Townsville, performing at the Dean Park Sound Hall, 5 June
• Appeared again on Countdown (via video link) in Episode 64, 6 June (host: Mark Holden)
• Mackay Theatre Royal (an encore performance), 7 June
• Mount Isa Civic Centre (2 short shows), 10 June
• Mount Isa, Barkley Hotel, 11 and 12 June
• Longreach Civic Centre, 14 June
• Charleville Town Hall, 15 June
• Roma Hibernian Hall, 16 June

 

There are smatterings on Facebook from people who attended these gigs when in their early teens. Consistently they describe these concerts as life-changing experiences.

Consider the logistics involved in meeting the demands of this schedule. The small gang of roadies needed to break down the sound equipment, instruments and other gear straight after each show, load up their truck and then begin the drive to the next town on the schedule at about 2am. On arrival in a new town the unloading of the truck would begin. Then they acted as trouble-shooters during each performance. The poorly-paid and sleep-deprived lifestyle of rock and roll roadies on country tours (in Western Australia) was profiled in a short documentary ‘Playing Second Fiddle’ broadcast on the ABC TV program A Big Country in 1977. The band members would have followed along several hours later in a separate car after snatching a few hours’ sleep in a motel once their adrenaline levels subsided.

On 17 June 1976 Sherbet and TMG performed at the Dalby High School Great Hall. This is where things must have gotten interesting. Young girls, it seems, might have made their way into the dressing rooms of the Dalby Great Hall, on the schoolgrounds. Perhaps this was facilitated by that caretaker who didn’t mind a drink. It’s likely TMG had adequate stocks of whisky in the tour truck to induce cooperation. A side door may have been left ajar.

TMG finished up their frenetic four-week Queensland sojourn on 20 June 1975. On the 19th they were back in Brisbane at Festival Hall, performing with Ol’ 55 as their backup band. That same day they were on television channel TCN9, on Bandstand – part of a Sherbet special. (They had pre-recorded a performance of the song ‘Crazy’.) Next day, 20 June, they went to air on Countdown episode 66 performing ‘Help Me Out’ (with Skyhooks’ Shirley Strachan hosting).

Over the course of the next twelve months, TMG reprised their Queensland country circuit twice. They were in Brisbane on 24-25 September 1976 (during which time they appeared on Countdown Episode 79), then they hit Toowoomba Showground on the 26^th during its ‘Carnival of Flowers’. There was then a rapid-fire tour of Nambour (27^th), Kingaroy (28^th), Maryborough (29^th – performing at the ‘Pensioners League Hall’), Bundaberg (30^th), Gladstone (1^st October), Rockhampton (4^th), Mackay (5^th), Ayr (6^th), Cairns (7^th), Innisfail (8^th), Townsville (9^th), Mt Isa (12^th), Longreach (13^th), Charleville (15^th) and Toowoomba (16^th) – but NO DALBY!

TMG’s Spring 1976 tour of Queensland was rounded off with a performance at the Gold Coast at the Miami State High School Great Hall on 17^th October. This was the hall that was built to a design identical to Dalby’s.

It should be noted that TMG were in Brisbane again for a big concert at Festival Hall on 21 December 1976 – the ‘Sherbet/TMG Christmas Spectacular’.

Their next visit to Queensland was for another three-week country tour: from 29 October to 16 November 1977. This kicked off at the Miami High School Great Hall (29^th), followed by a performance in Brisbane at the ‘Rocktober Concert’ (at the Botanical Gardens) on the 31^st. The caravan then rolled on into November, with appearances at Maryborough (1^st),  Bundaberg (2^nd), Gladstone (3^rd), Mackay(4^th), Townsville (5^th), Innisfail (7^th), Cairns (8^th), Ayr (9^th), Rockhampton (10^th), Kingaroy (11^th) and, on the 12^th, Toowoomba (this time at the Indoor Bowls Centre). This tour was rounded out with 3 final gigs – at the Playroom at Tallebudgera on the Gold Coast (13^th), Nambour (15^th) and Ipswich on the 16^th at the High School Hall. Once again – NO DALBY!

In mid-1977, as the records maintained at www.skyhooks-music.com show, Skyhooks were on the march. In June 1977, tracing the trail TMG had blazed, they performed gigs at a series of Queensland country venues during their ‘Live at the Party’ tour – Mackay (8^th), Ayr (9^th), Townsville(10^th), Cairns (11^th), Rockhampton (13^th), Bundaberg (14^th), Maryborough (15^th), Roma (17^th), Toowoomba (18^th), and Nambour (23^rd), as well as the Playroom at the Gold Coast (25^th). They were also in Brisbane for a 4IP free concert at the Botanic Gardens.

AND, on 16 June 1977, Skyhooks performed at the Dalby State High School Great Hall.

During parts of their Queensland rural tour their support act was Geoff Duff, hardly a household name. Could it be that Skyhooks was trying to reel in TMG to be their back-up act for the last seven gigs of this tour? Did that prompt the steadfast Dalby High School Principal to implement his ban with his written communique of 16 June 1977?

This became our working theory for our interrogation of Dad.

Where were TMG at this time? They were in South Australia from 8 to 12 June 1977 where they performed at Mt Gambier, Murray Bridge, Port Pirie, Adelaide and Port Lincoln. It is conceivable they were in negotiation to up-stumps from Adelaide on 13 June and fly to Brisbane, then drive to either Maryborough or straight to Dalby.

As things turned out, TMG ended up in Melbourne for gigs in Springvale on 16 June, Preston on the 17^th and Laverton on the 18^th. These were the kinds of venues that could accommodate performers becoming available at short notice.

And the band were spared from having to face up to any Dalby farmer parents – protective types – who, having learned of events a year earlier, might have arrived at the Great Hall with pitchforks and shotguns.

Dad is emphatic that he heard enough about the carryings-on of TMG on the night of 17 June 1976 for him to be certain he did the right thing by banning them. It’s what the community would have expected. (But he kept all the details to himself.)

There was no centralised register of grievances against rock bands performing on schoolgrounds in those days. So TMG kept performing at venues like Harristown High in Toowoomba and the Miami Great Hall. It was the ’70s! It was another time and – most definitely – a different place.

 

 

 

To read more by Dave Goodwin click here.

 

 

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