Original MusicPeterBest

(Cast)David Attrill Band MemberCharles Camilleri Band MemberEddie Fisher Band MemberKeith Holder Band MemberRobert Lewis Band MemberMargaret McCudden PianistGary Richards Band MemberChristopher Turner Band MemberRobert Wilson Band Member

Song Producers Mark Mofffatt and Ricky Fataar

"I Learnt To Forget"Composer: Cowboy Bob PurtellPerformed by: Cowboy Bob Purtell

"It Had To Be You"Composers: Jones/KannPerformed by: Jan AdelePublisher: Alberts Music

"Memphis Tennessee"Composer: Chuck BerryPerformed by: Frankie J. HoldenBack up Vocals: Judy Davis, Monica Trapaga,and Toni ScanlonPublisher: Jewel Music Australia

"Johnny B Goode"Composer: Chuck BerryPerformed by: Frankie J. HoldenBack up Vocals: Judy Davis, Monica Trapagaand Toni ScanlonPublisher: Jewel Music Australia

"Body To Body"Composed and Produced by: Peter BestPerformed by: Glyn MasonBack up Vocals: Chris McNutty and Blazey Best

"Bad Times:Composed and Produced by: Peter BestVocals: Peter Best, Chris McNutty and Blazey Best

"Love is Pain", "The Promise""This is Where It All Began"Composers: Baxter/StanleyPerformed by: The Hollow MenCourtesy of Rampant Records

Additional Music"On the Land" - Wayne Smith"Ghetto Man", "Working Wife", "Parting","Dancing In The City" - Allen Cook"Looking Through Your Eyes" - Kim Cheshire"The Last Tide"Richard Woollett, Simon Long, Nick Long"Hey Lawdy Mama" - The Harry Rose Singers

"Dark Eyes" by Bob DylanCopyright © 1985 Special Rider Music: "Dark Eyes"The Bob Dylan Performance of "Dark Eyes"can be found on the album "Empire Burlesque"

There is a good deal of music within the film, to the point where some reviewers regretted that Gillian Armstrong hadn't made another musical in the style of Star Struck, or requested that she make another musical in the not too distant future (a plea that wasn't answered).

Frankie J. Holden gets the performed music underway by racing through a couple of Chuck Berry covers in a style befitting Lester, a NSW clubs circuit Elvis impersonator. Holden was a better singer than that, and he would turn this first outing as a performer in a drama into a precursor for some other solid performances, perhaps most notably in DOP Ray Argall's directing debut, Return Home.

Holden is too well known to list in detail here. He has a relatively detailed wiki here, and he can be found lurking in numerous spots on the internet, including YouTube.

(Below: Holden as he appears in the film).

Jan Adele was also predominantly known as a singer. The Sydney Morning Herald published this brief obituary on 28th February, 2000, when she was found dead in her unit at the age of 64 (Adele also has a brief wiki here):

The singer, actress, dancer and comedian Jan Adele has died aged 64 at her unit in Allawah, in Sydney's south.

The body of Adele, a mother of two and a grandmother, was found yesterday by her friend, fellow comedian and stage performer Lucky Grills.

Details of the cause of her death were not released by police last night.

Adele made her first appearance in a Melbourne department store pantomime aged three.

Her professional career began at 14 as a dancer in a vaudeville troupe. Known for her powerful jazz singing, she was a regular performer at the Don Burrows Supper Club at The Regent Hotel and was also a Variety Club performer.

In 1986 she received an AFI Award best actress* nomination for her role in the Gillian Armstrong film High Tide. (* best supporting actress).

She appeared in the 1970s TV soap Number 96, on Channel 9's Mike Walsh Show and on Graham Kennedy's Tonight show.

In 1987 she wrote in an article for The Times on Sunday of her ambition to still be a performer at the age of 95 … "I hustle my own work. I choose my own

material, I select my songs ... I design my own gowns. I'll always be a working performer."

(Below: Adele as she appears in one of her singing numbers in the film).

The role of Country Joe was also played by a regular singer, "Cowboy" Bob Purtell.

At time of writing, Purtell was still selling CDS of his work, and had a website dedicated to him here, which provided this CV for him:

Born in West Wyalong New South Wales Australia on the 10th September 1937 a sixth generation European/Australian, nurtured and raised by Grand Parents Robert Leonard and Linda Sarah (nee Humphries) Elbourne. Bob was educated in West Wyalong leaving school at age 14 years and 6 months to enter the bakery trade. Industrial dermatitis ended that first career path. Bob then took on the hard work as a labourer and seasonal worker till 1958-9 when he settled in Sydney where he started a gardening business with the proceeds of his last cane cutting job.After three years in the gardening sector Bob became a truck driver till entering the Country music business in 1969 with the help of Bill Kelly, Bob tells me his mentor back then was Kevin King. Bob first experienced television with thanks to Reg Lindsay at QTQ9 Brisbane on Reg's Country Music Show after which Bob made another 9 appearances. In 1974 Bob made his first album released on the Festival label and recorded in the Col Joye Studio. His first radio show was on the John Burles 2KY program in 1975, after these appearances and the success of the first single Bob won a Gold Guitar at the Tamworth Country Music Awards in 1976.Things really started to move for Bob with air play on South Australian radio, then interviewed on Sydney radio 2UE. October 1981 Interview with Phil Hunter 2KY's "KY Country" then with Nick Erby Radio and TV in Canberra for a pilot show "Town & Country" followed by another album "Cross Country Cowboy" at Smokey Dawson's Ranch, next "The Frank Ifield TV Show", followed by the release of yet another album "Black Sheep" recorded on the Nev Nicholls Nicholls 'N' Dimes Label released through RCA Victor. Bob's wife Elaine now owns all tapes and the rights to the "Black Sheep" album. Bob has worked on stage with Laurie Allen who also produced Bob's "Cross

Country Cowboy" album, co-writer of songs on album and award winning single A side "Motivation Day", B side "Truckers Lullaby".Others to have helped Bob's career were; Comedian Tommy Mac, [Tim McNamara's brother] live shows, Mike McClelland [ABC TV Queensland] Tim McNamara who had the first Country Music radio show which was on Radio 2SM Sydney The "Singing Kettles" Ross & Bill from Tasmania, Heather McKean of the McKean Sisters Donita Dey who Bob says was always offering encouragement, Ben McCauley of the McCauley Raiders, Geoff Quinton, Kenny Kitching Great steel guitarist, Bill Mostyn, Gordon Parsons, and Greg Parsons of the band Country Shuffle. Others to help along the way were; Revel & Doug Towers, Ian B McLeod both live shows, Jan Kelly with backup vocals. Col Joye & Kevin Jacobson ATA recording, Lee Britton (Good Companions' Hotel Tamworth) ten years of vocals and guitar, Journalists who have helped, Mort Fist (Blues Harp), Monica Allan, Jazza Smith and David Latta.Reg Lindsay has been a part of Bob's career from the very early days when Bob used to buy all his stage clothes from Reg Lindsay Country Stores at East Concord & Parramatta. Bob has always believed that stage appearance was an important part of any act and he surely did dress that part. Suits, Shirts, Hats and Boots all came from Reg. One of Bob's suits has quite a history, when after appearing on Reg's Country Music Show at QTQ Brisbane and in a hurry to return to Sydney Bob hung his suit on the hand rail at the rear of the studio, raced back inside to get something he had forgotten then off he went only to realise later he had left his suit hanging over the hand rail. There was one good thing about it all, just about everyone knew the suit belonged to the smart dresser Cowboy Bob Purtell so it found its way back to Sydney and a very relieved Cowboy Bob. That same suit now resides in a museum in Tamworth. Bob says "I loved that suit so much I had a replica made which I still have (its a cheap copy). Bob did a couple of movies and some advertising and says Thanks Reg for the smart gear I think the movie people and advertising gurus only wanted me for my clothes. Somehow Bob, I don't think that would be right. NC.Some great information found in a country music book of a few years back is a must for re-print here.Discribed as "The notorious rootin', tootin', shootin' Cowboy Bob Purtell. At age 31, with a marriage busted over trucking, he lost his truckers' licence and went on the dole; that was the turning point."I locked myself in a garage for 6 weeks, painted the whole thing black and just listened to Hank Snow, Hank Williams, Slim Whitman and Bob Dylan - yeah, I reckon he's country. I felt I had to wipe the first part of my life and rethink.Motivatin' Day, his first single, was written by esteemed Country Music songwriter Laurie Allen and won him a Golden Guitar at Tamworth, where he sings every year with mate Lee Britton. (Below: Purtell with his Bat Masterton cane, and as he appeared in the movie).

Finally, Judy Davis, as well as appearing in the trio of backing singers for Elvis impersonator Lester, also has a moment drunkenly singing a Bob Dylan song in the caravan park shower and toilet block.

(Below: Davis in Dylan mode, enhanced by Dewar's)

Composer Peter Best:

Best's score for the film for the film is one of his better ones, within the context of a soaring mournful guitar and piano music of the kind frequently favoured by weepie movies.

Unfortunately it doesn't seem to have been released on LP or CD, and so can only be heard in the context of the movie.

Peter Best cut his feature film teeth as a composer by working with feature film producer Phillip Adams on the low budget experimental 1970 drama Jack and Jill: a postscript.

Best went on score the two Barry McKenzie films, produced by Adams.

Best would become one of the major contributors to the revival of screen music in Australia, with scores for films such as Muriel's Wedding, the first two Crocodile Dundees and Bliss. He has also had a successful career in the advertising game.

He did several scores for Tim Burstall's films, starting with the score for Burstall's The Child episode of the four part portmanteau feature Libido, followed by Petersen and then End Play.

Best had taken a break from composing for the screen after doing the SAFC telemovie The Sound of Love in 1978, but after doing We of the Never Never in 1982, he followed with Goodbye Paradise, the Alex Stitt animation Abra Cadabra, Rebel, The More Things Change, Bliss, and then in 1986, Crocodile Dundee, followed by the sequel.

Best has a short (at time of writing) wiki here, and he should not be confused with the original drummer for The Beatles.

Because of rights difficulties, Best was asked to whip up a replacement song

for the strip tease act performed by Judy Davis. This featured his daughter Blazey, who later became known as a stage and screen performer.

(Below: Peter Best)

(Below: Best as he appears in the DVD 'making of' for We of the Never Never)

(Below: Best's daughter, Blazey, who can be heard on a couple of the songs in the film).