Weddings Parties Anything


Weddings, Parties, Anything. were an Australian folk rock band formed in 1984 in Melbourne and continuing until 1999. Their name came from The Clash song and musicologist Billy Pinnell described their first album as the best Australian rock debut since Skyhooks' Living in the '70s.
The band was led by Mick Thomas, the only continual member throughout the group's history. The single "Father's Day" was nominated for Single of the Year as well as winning Song of the Year at the 1993 ARIA awards. They were renowned for their energetic live performances and in particular their annual Christmas shows at the Central Club Hotel in Swan Street, Richmond held in the lead up to Christmas Eve every year from the late 1980s to 1998.
The band have reunited to play live on a number of occasions since their original break up. In November 2012 the band were inducted into the EG Hall of Fame, with Mick Thomas stating that the show would be the last time the band performs.

Biography

Formation and early years

grew up in Geelong, Victoria, Australia, where he played in bush bands in his youth. In 1981 he moved to Melbourne and after a couple of years in Melbourne's pub rock scene with bands like Where's Wolfgang and Trial, Thomas formed the first version of Weddings, Parties, Anything. in late 1984. Thomas' idea behind Weddings Parties Anything was to combine that punk rock inspiration with his original love for the honest storytelling in folk music. The band was essentially based on a song he'd written, ""Away, Away"".
In early 1985 the group's original piano accordion player Wendy Joseph was replaced by Mark Wallace. Michael Thomas had placed an ad looking for an accordion player, but didn't receive any responses. He then looked through the phone book for music schools and lists of their past students. After four or five schools he came up with Mark "Wally" Wallace, who'd been playing in his dad's Scottish Club band. Wallace was also listening to rock bands such as The Violent Femmes and like Thomas he was keen to put the accordion into a modern context. Another inclusion to the line-up was guitarist Dave Steel.
With original drummer David Adams, it was this four piece Weddings, Parties, Anything. which released a four track self-titled EP on the group's own Suffering Tram label. By the time they released their version of Tex Morton's 'Sergeant Small' as a single, the line-up comprised Michael Thomas, Mark Wallace, Dave Steel, bassist Janine Hall and drummer Marcus Schintler returning to work with Thomas, after the two met at an audition as the rhythm section for Melbourne band Little Murders two years earlier. Clarke, Schintler and Thomas worked on early versions of Away Away and The River is Wide, never performing live. 'Sergeant Small' was written in the 1930s about the Queensland Railway Police, and was banned soon after its release in Australia.

First albums and success

In 1987 Weddings, Parties, Anything. released its first album, Scorn of the Women. They recorded it as another independent release, but on the strength of the group's ever growing live following, the group ended up being offered a recording contract and the album was released by Warners. Janine Hall left the band following the release of the album, and was replaced by Peter Lawler, adding a mandolin to the band's repertoire. It was that line-up that produced 1988's Roaring Days. 1988 also saw Weddings Parties Anything winning its first ARIA award for 'Best New Talent', which was followed by another ARIA in 1989 for 'Best Indigenous Release'. Dave Steel left the band following a tour of North America, citing exhaustion as the chief reason. He also noted in several interviews, at the time of his departure, that he was feeling frustrated not getting a lot of his material on the Weddings Parties Anything albums. He released his debut solo album, through WEA in 1989. He was replaced by Richard Burgman for the band's 1989 release, The Big Don't Argue, and accompanying tours. In 1989 the band won a third ARIA for Best Indigenous Release , the second such award with the nomination causing the band to boycott the awards for the second year running. In 1990 Weddings Parties Anything parted company with Warners.
The band spent a great deal of time touring over the next three years, and managed to release only one EP in 1990, titled The Weddings Play Sports , featuring cover versions of the bands The Sports, and Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons. The band resurfaced, in 1992, with the release of Difficult Loves and yet another guitarist, Paul Thomas. This line-up remained intact for another two years, producing another album, King Tide'' in October 1993, charting at No. 45, with the single "Monday's Experts" reaching No. 45. Following the world tour to promote that release, Marcus Schintler left the band for family reasons. Schintler went on to pursue a career in Government as Chief of Staff to the NSW Minister for Industrial Relations and Aboriginal Affairs. Peter Lawler left a year later to pursue a solo career.

Reformation in 1996 with new lineup

Thomas reformed the band, and by 1996, the new Weddings, Parties, Anything. lineup was ready for its first release, the independently produced Donkey Serenade. The band now included Jen Anderson, Michael Barclay , Stephen O'Prey , as well as Michael Thomas, Paul Thomas and Mark Wallace. The music style shifted somewhat from folk to a more alternative country sound. The band decided at this time to concentrate on the Australian market, and did less touring outside of their native Australia.
The band finished 1997 with a new release and what was to be its final studio album, Riveresque on a new label, and by 1998, the band decided to take a break and work on several solo projects, including Michael Thomas's musical Over In The West.
Weddings, Parties, Anything. initially gained a reputation as a hot new band through their constant touring in their early days, however they never really became a commercial success. They did however, form a fanatical supporter base, known as the "Wedheads" that continued to sustain the band for years. Upon the conclusion of the band several members continued on to other projects, with Mick Thomas embarking on a solo career and eventually settled with a new band 'The Sure Thing', which went through many different lineups. He also established Croxton Records with friend Nick Corr. Thomas has also written or co-written plays Over in the West and The Tank and is an accomplished music producer and engineer.
Jen Anderson has composed live music for the black and white silent movie Pandora's Box and to accompany The Sentimental Bloke for the Melbourne International Film Festival. Anderson has toured with Tiddas, Paul Kelly and Archie Roach, and she has also composed the soundtracks for Clara Law's film The Goddess of 1967 and the TV mini-series Simone de Beauvoir's Babies. She has performed on albums for Dave Graney, Hunters and Collectors, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and has produced recordings by Ruby Hunter and the Waifs.

Further reformations

Weddings, Parties, Anything. reformed for the Community Cup Football match on July 2005 and also performed at the Corner Hotel in Melbourne as a warm-up show two nights prior. The band reformed again later the next year for a one-off performance at the Queenscliff Music Festival in November 2006.
In January 2008, Weddings, Parties, Anything. announced March/April dates for the band's Ten Year Reunion Tour 2008, including an international performance at the Astoria in London on 25 April. They sold out four consecutive shows at Melbourne venue The Corner Hotel, adding a fifth to surpass the record previously held by the Hilltop Hoods from 2004.
In 2010, 2011 and 2012 the band played Grand Final Eve shows in Melbourne.

EG Hall of Fame induction and final show

On 20 November 2012, the band were inducted into the EG Hall of Fame. The band played at the event which was held at Billboard The Venue in Melbourne. Joined by original guitarist Dave Steel, they performed their first album ‘Scorn of the Women’ in its entirety. In the lead-up to the show, The Age newspaper reported that Mick Thomas had posted on his Facebook page stating that it would be the last time the band performs, using the show to say a heartfelt farewell to long-standing fans.

Television Performances

On 17 September 1997 the band performed on the RMITV show Under Melbourne Tonight.

Live performances and Christmas shows

Renowned for their energetic live shows, Weddings, Parties, Anything. had a handful of live songs that were nearly always guaranteed to push the mosh pit into a frenzy, particularly "A Tale They Won't Believe", the story of Alexander Pearce, a cannibal in the convict days of Tasmania. Fans would traditionally have their coins ready to throw at the band as they sang the chorus of "Ticket in Tatts", while shielding their eyes. This was in reference to the lyrics concerning being "ten cents short of a dollar".
The legendary Christmas Shows were held at the Central Club Hotel in Swan Street, Richmond in the lead up to Christmas Eve every year from the late 1980s to 1998. Due to their increasing popularity and live reputation as a band, the number of concerts increased as the years progressed, culminating with 7 nights in a row for the last year in 1998. In the liner notes for the CD They Were Better Live – a live recording of the concerts from the final year, the bands main songwriter and singer Mick Thomas stated:

Live Recording

Various songs from the last shows in 1998. The last performance was also the basis of a play, A Party in Fitzroy, by Victorian playwright Ross Mueller.

Musical style

Musically, Weddings, Parties, Anything. were a combination of Australian indie and garage rock, sixties folk, punk and country and are usually described as being a folk rock band. The audience for the band was close to a mainstream rock crowd, their folk credentials were further evidenced by Celtic influences and an affinity for traditional Australian songs, plus original songs by Thomas which drew upon a similar repository of colonial folklore. Canadian commentator , concluded that their "music is largely concerned with the connections between past and present, whether it be the bond of memory or an identification with tradition". They led what later became known as the alt-country scene in Melbourne. The band were often compared to The Pogues, though the two bands were actually contemporaries rather than one following the other; the two bands toured Australia together in the early '90s.

Members

Current
Former members

Albums