Billy Baxter (song)

"Billy Baxter" is a song by Australian rock group Paul Kelly and the Dots, released on 20 October 1980 as the lead single from the album Talk (1981). It was written by band members Paul Kelly and Chris Langman. It peaked at No. 38 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart. The song was produced by Joe Camilleri (from Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons) for Mushroom Records. In early November the group performed the track on national pop music TV show, Countdown – it was Kelly's first TV appearance. The song's subject, Billy Baxter, is an Australian musician and was a long term member of Coodabeens Footy Show on ABC Radio National.

"Billy Baxter"
7" single label
Single by Paul Kelly and the Dots
from the album Talk
A-side"Billy Baxter"
B-side"Hard Knocks"
Released20 October 1980 (1980-10-20)
Recorded1980
AAV Studios, Melbourne
GenreRock, ska
Length2:43
LabelMushroom
Songwriter(s)Paul Kelly, Chris Langman
Producer(s)Joe Camilleri
Paul Kelly and the Dots singles chronology
"Seeing Is Believing"
(1980)		 "Billy Baxter"
(1980)		 "Midnight Express"
(1981)
Audio sample
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Background

Paul Kelly and the Dots had formed in August 1978 in Melbourne from the remains of High Rise Bombers, the Dots underwent line-up changes prior to the release of "Billy Baxter".[1] Their debut single "Recognition" was issued in 1979, under the name The Dots, on an independent label, but had no chart success.[1][2] "Recognition" line-up were Kelly (vocals), Chris Langman (guitars), Chris Worrall (guitars), Alan Brooker (bass guitar) and John Lloyd (drums). More changes occurred, they signed to Mushroom Records and released "Billy Baxter" on 20 October 1980, which peaked at No. 38 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart.[3] In early November that year, Paul Kelly & the Dots performed "Billy Baxter" on national pop music TV show, Countdown – it was Kelly's first appearance on television.[4]

Their debut album, Talk followed in March 1981 and peaked at No. 44 on the related albums chart.[1][3] Kelly was later dissatisfied with his earliest albums: "I wish I could grab the other two and put 'em in a big hole".[5]

The subject of the song, Billy Baxter, is an Australian vocalist (ex-Ghetto Blasters, Big Fans of Jesus, The Hollow Men and solo). He was a Disc Jockey on Melbourne community radio station 3RRR[6] and is a long term member of Coodabeens Footy Show on several Melbourne radio stations since 1981 (3RRR, several versions of ABC and 3AW). Kelly said, "Billy is a very entertaining person. I used quite a bit of him in the song, but it was never meant to be accurately biographical of Billy."[7]

The B-side to the single, "Hard Knocks", was featured in the soundtrack[8] of the 1980 AFI Award nominated film of the same name.[9]

On the Australia Day (26 January) long week-end in 1982, Kelly performed the song at the Mushroom Evolution Concert backed by Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons. The concert celebrated Mushroom Records' 10th anniversary and was held at the Myer Music Bowl.[10] The song appeared on both the triple LP and the video release of the concert of the same name.

Composition and recording

"Billy Baxter" is a ska-influenced song of two minutes and forty-three seconds. It was written by Paul Kelly and Chris Langman.[11][12] From 1977 to 1978 Kelly and Langman had shared a house in the Melbourne suburb of South Yarra, where according to Kelly, "Chris and I sat around for hours, days playing guitars ... I played him my new songs as they kept coming and we made up tunes together".[13] Kelly and Langman also co-wrote "Leaps and Bounds", which appeared on Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls' album Gossip (1986).[13] According to the lyrics, Billy Baxter's attributes include: lost limitations, imitations, a thousand faces, a lover, a gambler, a lesson for all the crew, a hungry heart, love to burn, in love with abandon but never loses control, walks right through disaster and still whole, plays pantomimes.[14]

Kelly had met Joe Camilleri (from Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons) when the latter was looking for someone to co-write songs with, Kelly gave Camilleri "Only the Lonely Heart" (aka "Only the Lonely Hearted") and "Hand Me Down".[13] Camilleri recommended Kelly to Mushroom Records and put up the money to produce the group's debut album, Talk. The song was produced by Camilleri for Mushroom Records.[12] Kelly remembered "I'd done my back badly and couldn't stand or sit for any length of time, so I had to do my vocals lying on the floor... If I could gather up every copy of that first record and bury them all in a big hole, I would. But that's no fault of Joe's".[13] The B-side, "Hard Knocks", was produced by Trevor Lucas (of United Kingdom folk group Fairport Convention).[15]

Reception

Reviewed at the time of release in Roadrunner, the song was deemed, "Unlistenable. A sort of reggae David Watts/Billy Hunt, it reeks of a calculated attempt at commercial success."[16]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Billy Baxter"Paul Kelly, Chris Langman[11]2:43
2."Hard Knocks"Kelly[17]3:54

Personnel

Paul Kelly and the Dots members

  • Paul Kelly – vocals
  • Paul Gadsby – bass guitar
  • Chris Langman – guitars
  • John Lloyd – drums
  • Chris Worrall – guitars
  • Chris Dyson – guitar, vocals
  • Tony Thornton – drums
  • Alan Brooker – bass guitar
  • Tim Brosnan – guitar
  • Michael Holmes – guitar

Recording details

  • Producer – Joe Camilleri ("Billy Baxter"), Trevor Lucas ("Hard Knocks")
    • Remixer – Camilleri ("Hard Knocks"), Jim Barton ("Billy Baxter")
  • Engineer – Jim Barton
  • Studio – AAV Australia, Melbourne

Charts
Chart (1980) Peak
position
Australian (Kent Music Report)[18] 38

References
  1. McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'Paul Kelly'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. St Leonards, NSW: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  2. Holmgren, Magnus. "Paul Kelly". Australian Rock Database. Passagen.se (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
  3. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1970 until ARIA created their own charts in mid-1988.
  4. Carney, Shaun (July 1994). "Kelly Country". Rolling Stone. No. 498. ACP Magazines. OCLC 259372869. Archived from the original on 8 February 2004. Retrieved 17 December 2016 – via Dumbthings: Official Paul Kelly Website.
  5. Jenkins, Jeff; Meldrum, Ian (2007). Molly Meldrum presents 50 years of rock in Australia. Melbourne, Vic: Wilkinson Publishing. ISBN 978-1-921332-11-1.
  6. Brown, Jenny (27 September 1985). "Billy Baxter in the 3RRR Groove". The Age. Fairfax Media. p. 34. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
  7. Tracee Hutchison (1992). Your Name's On The Door. Sydney: ABC Enterprises. p. 20. ISBN 0-7333-0115-0.
  8. "Hard Knocks". Australian Television Memorabilia Guide. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
  9. "Hard Knocks (1980) Awards". IMDb. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
  10. "Mushroom Evolution Concert". Australian Rock by Memorable Music. Little Acorns Publishing. 2007. Archived from the original on 17 October 2008. Retrieved 5 March 2012.
  11. "'Billy Baxter' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  12. "'Billy Baxter' / Paul Kelly-Chris Langman ; [performed by] Paul Kelly & The Dots. 'Hard knocks' / Paul Kelly ; [performed by] Paul Kelly & The Dots". Trove. National Library of Australia. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  13. Kelly, Paul (21 September 2010). How to Make Gravy. Camberwell, Vic: Penguin Books (Australia). pp. 40–41, 276–283. ISBN 978-1-926428-22-2.
  14. Talk (LP liner). Paul Kelly & the Dots. Mushroom Records. 1981. p. 2. L37512.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. Blanda, Eva (2007). "Paul Kelly – Discography – Part IIb – The Recordings of Paul Kelly with Bands". Other People's Houses (Eva Blanda). Archived from the original on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  16. John Doe (April 1981). "Albums". Roadrunner. p. 28.
  17. "'Hard Knocks' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  18. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 164. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
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