Music in Gayndah
A History by those who were there
A conversation with Bob Spencer held near Gayndah, 26/07/22.
Geoff
This is a recording of a conversation with Vin Bob Spencer held at his home outside Gayndah on the twenty-sixth of July, 2022. Bob would you mind letting us know what year you were born in and where your were born.
Bob
I was born in Gayndah in 1943 in November and I am still here. They reckon I have no ambition but I’m still here. Its a pretty good town.Geoff
Geoff
Not a bad place to come from and living out here, it is a very pleasant area that you are living in.
Bob
Yes it is. I went to quite a few schools beaches my dad was a share farmer. I went to Gayndah, Norwood, Woodmiller.
Geoff
And there would be none of those schools around not.
Bob
No. Only the State School.
Geoff
They were only one teacher schools?
Bob
Yes they were. I always say the only high school I went to was a little school on high blocks.
Geoff
And when did you start getting into music?
Bob
Back in 1955 on the farm we had no electricity, Dad bought a wind up gramophone and I used to play the seventy-eight records and I thought that was great. In 1858, we shifted to a farm with electricity and I bought a radiogram and I though that was great, with the forty-fives. I thought that was the bees and ees. Then in 1959, Vinnie Schmierer said to me “Why don’t you join the town band?” I said “Alright” so I went to see them and I wanted a small instrument like a cornet or something. They said “The only thing we have is a trombone.” “Yea OK I’ll try it out”. After practising I got a bit better I thought it was a great instrument. One of the best instrument there is. We used to play in the main street, I don’t know whether it was Friday of Saturday night and we attracted quite a crowd. They used to take the collection plate around to get some money. Then after about a couple, we used to play at the Orange Festival, at the Monto Dairy Festival. Then Vinnie and I joined the Rockets dance band asn we played at the dances for a couple of years probably.
Geoff
Who originally taught you to play the trombone?
Bob
I sort of taught myself mostly but the town band really taught me. But then again I was only taught treble clef. The band only played treble clef. So I still played treble clef in the dance bands. It was when I started going to the school to help the school kids I had to learn bass clef. And that was interesting. I used to pick up a bit of music and I used to play the bass part. And it fitted n really nice and you never had to transpose either because you just played what the note said. So it worked pretty good. The band master for the school, he was a trombone player and that is why I joined. I used to go there every Wednesday night. Some kids were good. He used to go to Monto too, to the school up in Monto. He took me up there once and I liked it so I used to go up there every week to Monto.They a big band, a pretty good band. And I learned a lot there too. Greg Aitken, he was the guy I brought my trombone from, he used to go there and have classes now and then. He used to play trombone too and I really learned a lot.
Geoff
Was it a concert band, clarinets and saxophones rather than a brass band?
Bob
Yes. They never had a lot of saxophones, maybe one because it was only a small town. They had clarinets, flutes. Some were quite good,
Geoff
Mostly school kids?
Bob
Yes. There were some adults. They brought adults in too. I think we played at the Monto Dairy Festival with that band too. But getting back to our town band, the double bass player said “I am glad I play the double bass because I we ever play at a party and they only pay us with the group we can put in out instruments, oh boy I’ll be right”.
Geoff
Have to have a decent sized car to carry it around in
Bob
That’s right. The cornets wouldn’t get much to drink. Hs name was Doug Bennett. I thought he was quite good. When the other bandmaster, Norm Langtree, Doug Bennett sort of took over.
Geoff
So the first bandmaster’s name was?
Bob
Norm Langtree. Well he was here a couple of years before I joined and a couple of years after. Then Doug Bennett took over. He was the dozer driver for the council. He is dead now. When our band de-functioned, see the council owned all of the instruments, so Monto wanted the instruments so they sent them all to Monto. They were stored in a house attic and the house burned down so no more instruments. I thought to myself I should have kept my trombone.
Geoff
So the council actually purchased the instruments.
Bob
Yes they owned the instruments.
Geoff
How often did you practise in the town band?
Bob
Generally once a week.
Geoff
And what night was that. Do you remember? And Where Abouts?
Bob
It was at the School of Arts, across the road from the Museum where the homestead is now. The old School of Arts, we used to practise there. The used to practise there years before that when they had the old bandmaster, Mr Wilkie. And behind there was a little hut where they used to teach boxing. My brother used to learn boxing and I used to go there and watch.
Geoff
Did you go away on any of the trips that the band went on.
Bob
I only went to one, that was the Maryborough Band Contest. That must have been in 1960 I think. We stayed at the Showgrounds. Its not there now, its the retirement village. I remember Doug Bennett was the Bandmaster then. It is always in June, cold weather you know, I remember he said, “I wish I brought a jug, I am trying to shave with cold water”.
Geoff
And what did you stay in? Did you have caravans of tents?
Bob
I can’t remember that. We stayed somewhere. We were the B grade band I think because we were’t good enough to be the A grade. I can’t remember if we won the B grade section.
Geoff
Enjoyable trips?
Bob
Yes very enjoyable. I was on the farm then and I got time off. But when they had the band contest in 1962/3 I think, I couldn’t go because I had to work that Saturday. I was a cream carrier. They wouldn’t let me off. They were going to come and pick me up. Norm Langtree said “We will come and pick you up. The I got a telegram that said “No we rented a player.”
Geoff
That was a common thing in those days, players would go from band to band.
Bob
Yes. He might have been better than me, I don’t know. When I first started there was no trombone player in the area so it was hard to really learn the sounds. I used to play records like Tommy Dorsey. I reckon he has the sweetest tone there is. Glenn Miller was a good player but a better arranger. I still have a few of Tommy Dorsey’s records.
Geoff
Did you ever have anything to do with James Morrison?
Bob
I saw him. When I was at the Monto band he played at Biloela and we went up there. It was interesting how he could change from a trombone to a trumpet. We he first came out he would hit those high notes straight off. I though to myself, I though you had to lead up to it. He must practise.
Geoff
He played Saxophone really well to. I originally had some CDs on which he played Sax.
Bob
He must be getting up in years now too. He got less hair than I’ve got.
Geoff
Getting back to the bands in Gayndah
Bob
In that band there was Ronny Shay, he played the sax and then he left, then Ian Gordon, we called him Snow, he played guitar and he was there for a year or so and before that there was a trumpet player, Terry Jones. He was a good player.
Geoff
Which band was this?
Bob
Rockets. He was in the town band too. Terry Jones was a good player but he died of cancer. We used to play sometimes at the Townhall, the Showball on Thursday night. That was the only night that they didn’t show pictures.
Geoff
Oh they used to have concerts on Thursday night.
Bob
Well yes if there was one available, that was the only night you could have one.
Geoff
So they wouldn’t have had dances in the hall would they?
Bob
Yes. It was a ball. So there was the Townhall, the RSL Hall, Woodmiller hall, Reids Creek Hall, around the Gayndah are. The you have found Mun dubbera, the Boyne, the Riverlee, and the Townhall there.
Geoff
Did you do the rounds of them?
Bob
Well yes, more the Boyne. It was a good place the Boyne. We used to go up in the car, one car with all the instruments in the hood rack. When it rained the hood rack cm off and just start on the ground.
Geoff
How many people were in that band, the Rockets?
Bob
Bob and Beryl , they started the band. Beryl was the piano player. I don’t know how she played some of those pianos they were so out of tune. Oh she had to bash on keys to get a tune out of it but she did. Bob ??? Was the drum player, I was the trombone player, Vinnie was the trumpet player and Ian Gordon was the guitar player. That was the main ones really for a few years.
Geoff
Did you have a bass player?
Bob
No. I think the guitar was playing a bit of bass. No bass player at all.
Geoff
And what sort of parts did you play on the trombone? Did you get a B Flt book and just read from the B flat book?
Bob
Mostly I just played the straight melody. If I had a bit os sense then I probably would have learnt a bit more like improvising. I did a bit afterwards but then I didn’t. I was a bit young. One day, up at the Boyne I think it was, Vinnie didn’t go and I hd to play it all by myself. That was a big night. You’d get a good lip but.
Geoff
I you were playing every week you lip would get pretty good.
Bob
Oh sometimes two nights a week. Your lip was perfect. We used to start at about 8 and play till about 11 and then cup of tea time. Some of those country dances, didn’t they put a big spread on. Some of those ladies there had tarts, they had sandwiches an all. And after that we would go back and play till sometimes two in the morning. Then we would come home.
Geoff
You wouldn’t feel like work the next day. You were working on the farm then?
Bob
I was then but I joined the Butter Factory as the cream carrier and went around all the farms. I was there at five in the mornings. You would start at five and by the time that you picked up the bread and the meat and everything it is half past five and you would be on the run. Sometimes I would get hoe at lunch time and be out light a light.
Geoff
Then you have a job that night.
Bob
Yes. Some weeks we didn’t have any but not that often. But then another and started up then. It was Bobby N??, Meryl Robertson and myself. I can’t think who the other one ewe. We only started for a while but we didn’t function much. We went to Kingaroy once. I don’t know whether Vinnie was there, I think he might have been. I didn’t function real well. It wasn’t any good. Ollie Robertson was in charge of it and he made us join the musical union. We only played a couple of times and four or five years later I got a bill for $100. I went to the solicitor and it was cut down to $50 but his fee was $50. So after that I didn’t like unions after that.
Geoff
I was around in Bundaberg at the time and it was a big issue. The traditional dance band musicians were loosing their job to rock n rollers. That was the time in Bundaberg when the Musicians Union started pushing their weight around.
Bob
That probably would have been the late sixties. With the Rockets, we used to go out Bobby Yapp’s farm out there once a week to practise. Bobby App is not around any more but Beryl is still around. She is not too good. She taught me a few things. She is in a home in Goomeri I think. Somewhere over there. She was a cutie and a lovely person. Nothing ever phased her. We used to play at the cabarets. It was discos after that. But we did pretty good at cabarets.
Geoff
What sort of equipment did you have. Did you have amplifiers or PA systems?
Bob
If you had a guitar player, it was just amplified but before that if he wasn’t there we had no amplifiers at all.
Geoff
So you didn’t sing?
Bob
Vinnie sang afterwards. The I never learned to dance. I can do the gypsy tap, anybody can do that. I learned afterwards really
Geoff
I can’t dance
Bob
I love it. I can do it now but there is no dances around now. In Brisbane they reckon they get one every week.
Geoff
I did look into seeing if we could start an old time dance around here but there didn’t seem to be much interest.
Bob
There was a guy in the council, Ken Corbet. He was in the RSL and they were going to have a charity night at the RSL hall. Vinnie and I played there. I don’t know who else played. Might have bene Merv Augustine probably. At any rate we played there and almost nobody came. It was a loss. We only charged them a couple of dollars. So we didn’t charge much at all.
Geoff
Did you find it financially worth while, playing in the band.
Bob
We used to get three pound and a ball was four pound. I thought it was pretty good.
Geoff
Did you have family at the time?
Bob
No. When you get married and the kids come along, everything stopped. You don’t get time to go play at a dance. Vinnie started up another one, the Crescendos I think it was. There was him, Owen Turner, Keven Embury. Might have been Ian Gordon. But I wasn’t in it. My kids were growing up and I didn’t worry about it. Vinnie married after me.
Geoff
I see advertisements of Vinnie and Jean in a band at the Orange.
Bob
Jean used to sing too. I would like to do it over again because I enjoyed myself. I am cranky that I don’t practise now.
Geoff
Do you think it made much difference to the community
Bob
Intros days, nobody went away in cars because in those days you couldn’t buy a car really. The bank wouldn’t loan you money for a car. They used to be crowded out. Woodmiller Hall was crowded out. Fast out getting anyone from town into the dance hall.
Geoff
I guess that was an important place where people met their partners
Bob
When you go there and ask a girl to dance and you enjoyed their company.
Geoff
How did alcohol effect what you did?
Bob
They used to go outside and in the car to have a few drinks. It never effected it too much. Not at dances. There were not many fights, they were very rare. Might be outside a bit. I remember when Bobby Appy, there was Bobby Bobby too, would get together. Three Bobs, and they are not worth two bob.
Geoff
They wouldn’t get that joke any more
Bob
What’s two bob?
Geoff
So there weren’t any pubs near any of the dances you used tp play at
Bob
No. In fact even the RSL didn’t serve alcohol in the dance hall. Only what they took themselves. No there were no pubs there. Only in the cabarets.
Geoff
Did you play at the Orange?
Bob
Yes. At the Bon Acord bridge down there, there was an Italian family who built the bridge. The boss’s name was Tadio. I don’t know what his other name was but he was a big man. We were playing at the Orange and you get people that want to sing. Tadio got up, I thought he sounded like Slim Dusty. He didn’t want the mic, and he sang Edelweis without the mic, his voice was so powerful. Even the drunks didn’t say a word. Didn’t he have a voice. Most Italians had a voice. If they haven’t got a voice they are not Italian. Same with Irish. Irish have a good vice too. There was a lot of good singers coming on.
Geoff
I looks like there had been a lot of music coming out of Gayndah Gayndah in the past.
Bob
Being an old town. When you go away sometimes people say “Oh I remember Gayndah”. Its amazing how many people know Gayndah. Old guy who is dead not Bill Davis, he is dead now, back around the turn of the century, there was the upper class and the lower class. The lower class couldn’t dance with the upper class. It was very strict. They had a white chalk line there and you couldn’t cross that line to the other class. One woman got up, she was a bit of a character and she said “I am rubbing the line out” and they danced together then. That was it then. Back in the old days the upper class was pretty cliquey.
Geoff
They must have found their way here from the old country.
Bob
Yes the UK. Well the UK brought the rabbits here and they brought the foxes just for sport.