The band shocked conservative middle Australia with their outrageous (for the time) costumes, lyrics, and on-stage activities, leading to seven of the ten tracks on their first album being banned from commercial radio. Much of the group's success derived from its distinctive repertoire, most of which was penned by bassist Macainsh.
Although Skyhooks was not the first Australian rock band to write songs in Australia, about Australians, for Australians (rather than ditties about love or songs about New York or other foreign lands), they were the first band to do so and be commercially successful, and the songs were set apart from much of the pop fare of the time thanks to Macainish's mordant humour.
The 'Hooks were the Australian pop success story of their era. Their first album, Living in the Seventies, rocketed to the top of the charts and stayed there for so long that it became the best selling Australian album ever up to that time, with the follow-up, Ego is not a Dirty Word, coming a close second. The band's success was also widely credited with saving the struggling Mushroom record label and enabling it to develop into the most successful independent Australian label of its time.
Both these LPs were produced by Ross Wilson, former lead singer of Daddy Cool, which had been the most successful Australian rock group of the early 1970s. Wilson championed the group, signing them to a publishing contract and convincing Mushroom Records boss Michael Gudinski to give them a recording contract.
Remarkably, the success of Living in the Seventies was mainly due to the enormous support the band were given by the TV pop show Countdown, rather than support from radio — in fact, most of the tracks on the LP had been banned by commercial radio because of their sex and drug references. Despite the ban, and as a deliberate act of provocation to commercial radio, the ABC's newly established 24-hour rock music station Double Jay chose the album's first track, the provocatively titled "You Just Like Me Cos I'm Good In Bed" as the first track played on air on its first day of broadcasting on January 19, 1975.
Over the next few years, Skyhooks gradually faded from the public eye with the departure of key members, and in 1980 the band announced its break-up in controversial circumstances. The demands for the band to reform were successful in 1983, with a record sum of money being paid for each of the original members to play a series of concerts. Further reformations took place in 1984 and then in 1990 the band finally recorded new material, "Jukebox in Siberia", which shot to the top of the charts.
"Shirley" Strachan and Red Symons both went on to successful careers in Australian commercial television. Symons was for many years a villain-cum-guitarist on the long-running TV show 'Hey Hey It's Saturday.' He was especially known for wielding the gong on the 'Red Faces' talent segment. He now works on ABC radio and writes humorous columns for the press. After the demise of Skyhooks, Starkie still plays locally, Freddie became the drummer in the later lineup of noted Melbourne rock band The Sports, and other acts such as The Bushwackers and the "Old Skydaddys". Greg Macainsh played with John Farnham, and in recent years has been a board member of both APRA and PPCA, and is currently completing a Law Degree. Strachan hosted a popular children's TV show 'Shirl's Neighbourhood' in the early 80s and went on to use his carpentry trade skills on air in various home improvement TV shows. He was also a familiar face at Hawthorn Football Club functions, of which he was a passionate supporter. Sadly, Strachan was killed in an air crash on August 29th, 2001, when the helicopter he was learning to fly crashed into Mount Alexander near Kilcoy, northwest of Brisbane. Strachan died instantly.
A Memorial was held to pay Tribute to Strachan at the Palais Theatre shortly after. Tribute were paid and Guest Vocalist and Producer Ross Wilson assisted on the night.
A Night to commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the release of the Living in the 70s album was held in 2004. It was a historic night with several different incarnations of the band performing. The only absences were Graham Strachan and Steve Hill.
The Skyhooks and Steve Hill then reformed in 2005 in Sydney for a One-Off gig. Hill had been diagnosed with Cancer and the Original Skyhooks, Peter Inglis, Peter Starkie, Fred Strauks and Greg Macainsh joined with Hill to show their support.
The name "Skyhooks" comes from an imaginary device created in the book Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator used to hold the elevator up in mid-air.
The Other Side
Skyhooks Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They wanna cut me down
They don't like my energy
They don't want me around
They think I've gone, over to the other side
They think I've cut my hair and swallowed my pride
The girl at the table is lookin' at me
She wants to get a piece of me
I ain't strong but I'm not that weak
She thinks I've gone over to the other side
She thinks I'm smilin' when I should really hide
Everybody's got their problems
Everybody's got their blues
I got my own solutions
For me and not for you
Out on the roads they're lookin' for me
They wanna shake my hand
They wanna try and relate to me
But they don't understand
That I've gone over, over to the other side
They think I told the truth but I really lied
That I've gone over, over to the other side
They think I told the truth but I really lied
Skyhooks's song The Other Side reflects on the idea that people have their own unique struggles and issues, and often resort to finding their own solutions that work for them. The lyrics describe the perspective of the songwriter who feels alienated by the people around him due to his unconventional approach to life. The 'kids on the street' represent the traditional conformist voices who reject his non-traditional energy, which is explicitly indicated in his shaved head and disinterest in adhering to the norms.
On the other hand, the songwriter finds unexpected interest and support from the 'girl at the table', who symbolizes those who are willing to accept those who are different on their own terms. The songwriter acknowledges that everyone has their own problems which they handle in their ways. The third verse describes people who are familiar with him, but they don't understand him entirely. He has gone 'over to the other side,' which in his particular case means he has refused to conform to the norms that regulate our lives. While people think that he has told the truth, he knows that he had lied not to fit in, but to present himself the way he wants to be.
The song has a powerful message that rejection and misunderstanding only underlines the importance of accepting oneself truly. People will always try to bring others down, but it is essential not to lose faith in oneself and to maintain one's individual identity.
Line by Line Meaning
The kids on the street are lookin' at me
People I don’t know on the street are staring at me
They wanna cut me down
They want me to fail
They don't like my energy
My vibe or attitude is unappealing to them
They don't want me around
They’d prefer me absent
They think I've gone, over to the other side
They believe I’ve changed and become a different person
They think I've cut my hair and swallowed my pride
They think I’ve become more modest or lost my confidence
The girl at the table is lookin' at me
A specific girl is watching me
She wants to hear me speak
She’s interested in what I have to say
She wants to get a piece of me
She desires to get closer to me in some way
I ain't strong but I'm not that weak
I’m not completely vulnerable
She thinks I've gone over to the other side
She believes I’ve changed or become someone else
She thinks I'm smilin' when I should really hide
She thinks I’m concealing my true feelings
Everybody's got their problems
Everyone has issues or challenges
Everybody's got their blues
Everyone experiences sadness or melancholy
I got my own solutions
I have my own way of dealing with my difficulties
For me and not for you
My solutions are tailored to me and may not work for others
Out on the roads they're lookin' for me
People are searching for me out in public
They wanna shake my hand
They want to greet me or show their admiration
They wanna try and relate to me
They want to find common ground with me
But they don't understand
They lack comprehension of who I really am
That I’ve gone over, over to the other side
I’ve changed or become someone different
They think I told the truth but I really lied
They believe I was honest but I was actually deceiving them
Lyrics © Capitol CMG Publishing
Written by: GREGORY J MACAINSH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Peter Vadiveloo
Oh god, the memories. When pop music was awesome. Thanks so much for posting.
M.O.B (Sweden)
Skyhooks = The Best!
Kevin Hells 7 Hells 2147
My 1st Boogie song..love it
Be A Good Doga
Thanks mate