TMN's Class of '94

16 August 2010

The Music Network was born 800 issues ago in 1994. So to commemorate the occasion, we asked the music industry's movers and shakers - what were you doing in 1994?

1. John Watson, CEO Eleven Music Group
I was doing A&R and International Marketing for Sony Australian artists. Right around the time this magazine launched John O’Donnell and I signed Innocent Criminals (later Silverchair) to Sony’s brand new murmur label.

I clearly remember The Music Network starting up because the people involved meant that it was a really odd collision of different worlds for me. The two founders were John Woodruff and Anthony O’Grady. Woody was already an industry icon Anthony had edited the legendary RAM magazine that I’d read religiously as a kid. The two of them soon hired Danny Keenan who I’d worked with in a record store in the late ‘80s, so from my standpoint it was weird to have three people from such different parts of my life all working together on this brand new project.

Later in ‘94 Tomorrow was released and spent six months at number 1 and the following year I left Sony to manage the band; a memorable time in many ways.

2. Tim Kelly, General Manager, Marketing Universal .
Living in South London, I had just had my first child and was running a label for the then biggest UK indie distributer, Pinnacle, specialising in licensing US artists for the UK/Europe.

Had just signed Veruca Salt and the late Vic Chesnutt who tragically committed suicide last Xmas day. He was a special man and a unique musician. Youssou N’Dour/Neneh Cherry’s 7 Seconds was the single of the year and Nelson Mandela becoming President of South Africa which was the event of the year, in my book.

3. Danny Keenan, Managing Director, Sun Touring Co.
At the beginning of 1994 I was Promotions Manager for Brashs, I had been there for just on five years. On holidays in Byron Bay I got a call from John Woodruff and Anthony O’Grady, asking me to join them in setting up Australia’s first music industry tip sheet - whatever that was.

So after a few months of behind the scenes set-up (with Simon Moor), the first issue of The Music Network was released in May, 1994. Our first cover was an unknown called Sheryl Crow. I reckon we did alright. I left the editor’s chair on Issue 300. I also needed a haircut.

4. Craig Bruce, Head Of Programming, Austereo
I remember working with an incredible lineup both on and off the air at B105. Rex Morris, Jamie Angel, Paul Davies, David Rymer and Jessica Gale, (yes, she did coin the phrase Bris-Vegas) and the great Brian Ford in our music library managing the logs.

I remember six Black Thunders on the road everyday and a young Andrew G, (then known as Spidey) as one of the drivers. I remember Jamie Angel living off the food from the Black Thunder cage.

I remember Mr. T and Mother Thunder. I remember Keith “Wally” Williams hosting the national hour of powers. (Billy Joel told us off the air how he met Christie Brinkley whilst he was dating another famous supermodel who he was holidaying with at the same time! Guess who, don’t sue.) Good times.

5. Mark Poston, EMI Australasian Chairman
My first ‘real’ job inside the music industry was at Sony Music, Melbourne. I worked in sales and looked after Melbourne’s DJ elite and the legendary KissFM. It felt like I’d won the lottery. It felt I’d found my calling in life. I had hair.

I was kissing women and men (haha). My favourite time was Wednesday afternoons at Central Station and Polyester where I roamed through boxes of new UK and USA vinyl, overwhelmed by choice. It was the prime Britpop years.

Getting the latest issue of The Face and NME felt like Christmas. I was on Kurt and Nirvana’s side...not Pearl Jam’s. I was obsessed with Suede, Massive Attack, Bjork, Frankie Knuckles and DJ culture. I had no idea that a regular music fan from the western suburbs of Melbourne could ever be the chairman of EMI. I hope I inspire people to dream big, and follow good music.

6. Jo Grogan, Founder Echo Management.
It was a pivotal year for me professionally. I had been working in the QLD branch of Sony and was promoted to Promo Manager. This meant I could talk to media and listen to music all day and look after all the touring acts – dream come true! Lots of people I called on at radio back in those days still hold important roles in the Industry today; Guy Dobson, Irene Kanaris and Rob Logan.

Two years later I was transferred to Sydney and eventually promoted to Director of National Promo; I would spend 13 amazing years with Sony. Denis had arranged a boat for us all to be taken to a warehouse in the Harbour to see these kids perform - Silverchair. We all knew we had experienced something special that night. Tina Arena launched Chains and I recall chaining Rob Logan to a chair until he committed to playing the single.

Tina and I were put on the road together all over Queensland to launch it… what happens on the road, stays on the road!

7. John O’Donnell
Writing a book about The 100 Best Australian Albums (out Oct 30), comanaging Cold Chisel with John Watson.
As one magazine was starting (Music Network), I was departing another (Juice) and birthing the murmur label at Sony Music. John Watson and I signed Silverchair within three weeks of me joining Sony and we both learned more from that four minute record than we ever learned at school.

I stood up at my first Sony conference and quoted The Clash’s Death or Glory: “Every gimmick hungry yob digging gold from rock ‘n’ roll/grabs the mike to tell us he’ll die before he’s sold/But I believe in this and it’s been tested by research/He who fucks nun will later join the church.” Pavement’s Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain was my album of the year.

8. Colin Daniels, Managing Director of Inertia
I was the A&R Manager for the newly set up Mushroom Records UK. It was the start of Brit Pop, I was obsessed with Blur’s Parklife, fascinated by the emerging Oasis and I happily promoted Menswear as the worst signing by a record company ever.

The Mushroom office had sent me a six-packed kid named Peter Andre to make his new album (sorry everyone). The upside was, in the studio next door, I met Leftfield and signed their album for Australia.

At the Brit Awards I watched Bjork accept her awards in a cute Icelandic accent, only to hear her backstage an hour later screaming in the deepest South London slang. Thanks to the Prodigy and some dodgy friends in Brixton I don’t really remember much else.

9. Ian James, Managing Director, Mushroom Music.
Rupert Murdoch had just put money into the Mushroom group, so there was a great vibe throughout the whole company, including the publishing side which I’d been MD of since ‘86. I was able to sign a lot of writers including Christine Anu, The Truth (drummer Nicky Bomba is now with the JBT), Maurice Frawley and Billy Bragg.

Mushroom set up the office in the UK, which gave us hits with Garbage, Ash, Pop Will Eat Itself and Peter Andre. Korda Marshall, who ran Mushroom UK and now Infectious, and I struck up a great long standing friendship which included going to see many Chelsea football matches.

10. Michael Parisi, Managing Director, Michael Parisi Management.
I was Artist Development Manager at Warner Music. I was put in charge of the Interscope label, frankly because no one else in the company wanted to touch acts like Nine Inch Nails, Snoop Dogg, Primus and Dr. Dre!

This was also the time of Ice T & Body Count’s Cop Killer controversy. Chris Hanlon (Warner Managing Director) told me, we can’t put this out. I said to him, ‘you’re joking, it’s going to come in at Number One next week!’ I

remember traveling a lot around Australia with these acts, and this was how I first saw bands like Regurgitator and The Superjesus. I’d talk about them to Mark Pope (then Warner A&R director) and finally he said, Why don’t you come over to the A&R department?

11. Glenn Wheatley, Managing Director, Talentworks.
On January 1 I was on a skiing trip in Canada with John Farnham. We were at the top of this mountain at 6.30 am, and I was terrified. I said, “I can’t do this.” John told me, “After what you’ve been through, you can do anything!” A month before I’d just come off the collapse of my finances and paid off all my creditors.

1994 was a year of recovery. It was the year of John’s Talk Of The Town tour which was an amazing achievement. We broke houses everywhere. We did ten shows at the Rod Laver in Melbourne alone. It brought a focus back to my career.

At the time I was also managing tennis players and golfers and I had to juggle and something had to give, so I gave up my sporting division and returned to what I know best — music.