JO JO ZEP & THE FALCONS

RICOCHET Cat# SV0390

Line-up:
Joe Camilleri (vocals, sax),
Wilbur Wilde (sax, vocals),
Jeff Burstin (guitar, vocals),
Tony Faehse (guitar),
John Power (bass, vocals),
Gary Young (drums, vocals).

"It was great to play together again because whatever it was that we had we still have it, either good, bad or indifferent," says Joe Camilleri of the resurrection of his famous band Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons.

Lured back together nearly two years ago for a one-off gig at the Great Southern Blues & Rockabilly festival in Narooma, the band were overwhelmed by both the audience response and the old magic that had been rekindled. Word of the sensational gig spread, everyone wanted to see the band and rumours of a possible new album surfaced. But despite pressures there were no more gigs and no recording - until now.

Earlier this year, the director of that festival, record label boss and sometime promoter Neil Mumme, decided to put up the money for a new album. He enticed the band to reform once more to promote the album and to headline again at Narooma.

"The only reason we broke up in the first place was the pressure of making hit records, if that pressure wasn't put on us I think we would have kept playing" said Joe.

It's now twenty-eight years since Camilleri originally joined the Falcons of Wayne Burt and Jeff Burstin (both ex-Rock Granite) on guitars, John Power (from the Foreday Riders and Company Caine) on bass and former Daddy Cool drummer Gary Young - to record a version of 'Run Rudolph Run' as a Christmas single produced by Ross Wilson.

Even by that stage Camilleri was a local veteran, having played with mid-60's R&B band the King Bees, then the Adderly Smith Blues Band (which allegedly sacked him for sounding too much like Mick Jagger), Lipp and the Double Dekker Brothers, The Sharks and The Pelaco Brothers (with Stephen Cummings).

After recording the albums 'Don't Waste It' and 'Whip It Out', the mini-albums 'Loud and Clear' and 'So Young' (the title of which was covered by Elvis Costello) for Oz Records, the band - and its shifting cast of players - found themselves at Mushroom Records. By this stage Wayne Burt, one of the nations' great songwriters even then, had left - to be replaced by Tony Faehse (who had played in Alvin Stardust's band) - and the composing duties were thrown over to Camilleri and his colleagues. Soon afterwards, the ebullient Wilbur Wilde, who had been an integral member of Ol' 55, also joined the band.

The label move also teamed Camilleri up with producer Peter Solley who oversaw the hit singles 'Hit & Run', 'Shape I'm In' and 'All I Wanna Do' and the albums 'Screaming Targets' (1979), 'Hats Off Step Lively'(1981) and the 'Dexterity' mini-album (1981). The band toured overseas and even got to play at the Montreux Jazz and Blues festival.

But by this stage the sound of the band was changing and by 1982's sophisticated 'Cha' album and its hit single 'Taxi Mary' it was just Jo Jo Zep, minus the Falcons and plus Jane Clifton, Joe Creighton and others. Even a tour of America (which by all accounts was a disaster) failed to stop the eventual demise of the group. Ironically, Camilleri soon got back to his roots and went on to form the even more successful Black Sorrows. A brief national tour to support the 1984 compilation saw the Camilleri/Wilde/Burstin/Faehse/Power/Young line-up appear for the last time until that famed reunion in 2001 and the brand new album!

Jo Jo Zep & the Falcons are back together with their new album, 'Ricochet' - remarkable in its ability to capture their classic sound. The band is tighter and bluesier than ever.

The music bounces out of the speakers and hits you with its freshness and vitality. There just aren't very many bands playing this sort of straight ahead R&B and Rock'n'Roll in Australia these days. Fact is that there aren't many anywhere in the world who are playing it this well. You could put Jo Jo Zep on the same stage as the Fabulous Thunderbirds and they would hold their own (matter of fact that is going to happen soon at Narooma).

One listen to 'Ricochet' and you'll agree that it is great to have them back!

Brian Wise

Contact Info:
Zep Music - (02) 4476 2996