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The PromotersStuart Coupe Hodder, Sydney 2003. Reviewed by Lucky Oceans Its hard to imagine a better cover for this book. It shows the long lunch of 1975 that formalised the formation of the Premier Artists booking agency. Philip Jacobsen, Michael Gudinski, Michael Chugg (both with hair), Frank Stivala and Ray Evans relax around a table cluttered with goblets and wine glasses. This crew, along with some others, went on in 1979 to form the Frontier Touring Company, an agency that didnt have a losing year until 1997/98. The Promoters gives us an insiders view into the world of the folks who bring entertainers of all shapes and sizes into Australia. Stuart Coupe, who has been a journalist and a promoter for much of his life, writes mainly from the viewpoint of the promoter in this account. He starts the book in 1990, when Keith Glass contacted him about helping out on an Australian tour by Texas born singer-songwriter Guy Clark. What could go wrong? Guys one of the best and Stuart figures tour promotion is a case of contacting an artist, convincing him to play, offering him money, organizing the shows and hoping that people will turn up. Stuarts in heaven, because after the shows, Guy goes back to his house and plays his songs until the morning, but hes in hell because he loses a significant amount of money for the time and he takes ages to recover from all the long nights and hard living. Things go worse on a subsequent tour of Harry Dean Stanton, who as a musician is, well, a very good actor. No sooner has Stuart calculated that hes a rich man than hes struggling to pay the tour bills. Bad review, no crowds. But Harry, who caused all this pain, ends up being a true, long-term friend. Tour after tour is ruined by the alcohol and drug dependencies of the artists until Coupe and Glass hit it big with the previously unknown Ted Hawkins. Word of mouth builds and this amazing, soulful and unique ex-busker sells out venues everywhere. Teds more successful in Australia than anywhere else, selling 14,000 albums. A second national tour is ready to go when Stuart gets a call informing him that Ted has died of a heart attack. In a state of shock, he rings Keith who says, with characteristic understatement, I guess the tours off.
These days, Stuart says, I just write about promoting, but the book goes on to trace the early rock promoters the flamboyant and tragic Lee Gordon and Kenn Brodziak, who promoted the Beatles only Australian tour, picking them from a list of bands written on a scrap of paper because he liked their name best. Here was the deal: He paid them 1500 pounds per week for as many shows as he could book. He made a stack of money, as the Beatles had gone from unknowns to stars between the signing of the contract and the actual tour. Promoters Paul Dainty, Kevin Jacobsen and Michael Coppel are level-headed businessmen who wonder why theyve chosen such a risk-ridden profession and whose encounters with the excesses of rock and roll leave them unscathed. Coppell offers the quote thats the keystone of the book: I started off touring people that I personally really wanted to see. I realized after a while that it would have been cheaper for me to get a first-class air ticket to the United States, hire a limousine and follow them around to half a dozen shows. All you really end up doing is buying a really expensive poster to stick on your office wall. The Michaels -- Gudinski and Chugg -- emerge as larger than life figures who personify the rock and roll lifestyle. Coupe examines their falling out. Suzie Mylecharane and Alison Pearl of Ku Promotions represent the world of the smaller promoter. And the excesses of the artist are revealed in some of the demands and the riders. For instance, here are Fleetwood Macs requirements for drinks alone backstage before their concerts: 1 Quart Pimms #1 1 Quart Chivas Regal Scotch 1 Quart Jose Cuervo Tequila 1 Quart Bombay Gin 4 Quarts Stolichnaya or Smirnoff Red Label Vodka 3 Quarts Remy Martin or Courvoisier VSOP cognac 1 pint Bols Peppermint Schnapps 2 bottles Blue Nun Reisling 2 bottles Pouilly Fuisse White Wine 3 bottles Dom Perignon Champagne 1 bottle Chateau-neuf Du Pape Claret 1 gallon low-fat milk 4 quarts fresh orange juice 4 quarts fresh grapefruit juice 4 quarts Ocean Spray cranberry juice 1 case Vichy water (plain) 1 case Vichy water (carbonated) 1 case soda water 1 case Pepsi Cola 1 case Coca Cola 1 case lemonade 1 case Schweppes Tonic (small bottles) 2 pots coffee 1 large hot water container with 1 box of 24 teabags 250 large plastic cups and hot cups, and 5 dozen milkshake containers 3 refrigerators (no ice chests acceptable) 2 corkscrews Sufficient condiments such as cream, sugar, etc Sufficient utensils (spoons, knives, openers, etc.) for the above items 25 extra large white towels, toilet paper, hand towels Thirsty? And dont worry, there are more tales of excess -- of sex and drugs and general carrying on, usually by the promoters and crews rather than the artists. Sinatras legendary visits to Australia are put under the microscope. And in case anyone feels drawn in by the glamour to become a promoter themselves, Stuart relates the extraordinary competition between promoters to secure a tour, which makes potential profit margins even smaller. My only complaint is that, except for one small chapter where an unnamed shonky promoters story is told, the promoters are generally depicted as goodhearted but crazy gamblers (Why do we do this?) whose risk taking benefits all Australian concertgoers. On the other hand, the acts they tour are depicted as prima donnas, overcharging stars, or drug or alcohol addled no-draws. Nonetheless, the world depicted in The Promoters is a fascinating one that will interest anyone who has ever wondered about what happens behind the scenes to make a concert happen. Music Forum Vol 9 No 6 |
