June 14, 2024 • 9 mins
Jon Stevens of NOISEWORKS called in tell Tracey about his upcoming Sound Series shows with Deisel, OMD, Thompson Twins and Ardijah!
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Speaker 1 (00:05):
Bold Asides podcast The Stories behind Just Great Rock.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Hello, Aye, John, how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:13):
I'm good done? How are you? Where are you? Well?
Speaker 4 (00:15):
You've just been confirmed this morning for the sound series
February March next year with Omd Thompson, Twins, Tom Bailey,
diesel Ardisia. What is it like knowing exactly where you
were going to be on any given date so far away?
Speaker 2 (00:30):
I mean most of us don't even know what we're
doing next.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Week, I know, right, And usually shows that are that
far out I don't usually commit to. But you know,
I've worked with these guys before Sounds in christ Church,
and you know, they're great operators, and I'm looking forward
to playing christ Church and playing Auckland, and also playing
for the first time in Upper Hut, which is my
(00:52):
hometown where I grew up. You know, I was just
back there a few weeks ago, actually in Upper Hut
and everyone saying, when are you going to come and
play us some night? I didn't tell him. I just
said fun of these days. Because you know, obviously with
the through town, you know, it's been around for a
few years, but it's sort of like taking off now
as a proper venue. We can get thousands of people,
and you know it's great for the city of Upper Huts.
(01:14):
So to get on a great lineup like this and
come home and play, it will be great fun.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
When you do a hometown show, obviously you have a
lot of family, a lot of mates in the audience.
By time, Who do you hope is the are you
hoping there's like a few old high school nemesis, maybe
some mixed girlfriends, some teachers who told you to work harder.
Speaker 3 (01:31):
I think they're all dead, all the teachers anyway. And
then every time me to work harder, they couldn't wait
to get rid of me. Actually, but that was a
long time ago. I was just a kid. But times
were different then, real very different. We used to get
the cane, we used to get the strap. You know,
those kinds of things don't happen nowadays. So yeah, it's
a different world nowadays, but now looking forward to get back.
(01:51):
I come home all the time and I see my
old friends. So you know, I've still got my friends
from childhood and we're still in contact. We've always been
in contact. So it's like you can, you know, take
the boy out of upper heart, but you can't take
up a heart out of the boy, right.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
I love that.
Speaker 4 (02:05):
And by the time that you're here next year, it'll
be exactly two years since we last saw you. With
Sydney Lauper and Rod Stewart. Now, obviously you were old
mates with Cyndey Lauper. Is that how you came to
get on that bill?
Speaker 3 (02:15):
No, Actually, Cindy was an honor. Originally it was just
me and Rod, but you know, COVID sort of happened
to keep getting postponed, and then Rod was sort of
wasn't sure if he's going to make it, and then
all of a sudden it was back on. Cindy was
added to the bill because I think they did a
couple of shows together in America and he thought, oh well,
let's bring her down to which was great because she's
a wonderful lady and it was really lovely to see
(02:38):
her again. I met her in the eighties in Europe
when North Wrix was touring through Europe and we all
caught up when she was at the height of her career,
and you know, we hung out and she's a beautiful,
beautiful woman, beautiful heart, and it was great to see
her again. I putched her across Parles with her over
the years, but to be on tour together was fantastic.
And obviously being on tour with Rod Stuart in Australia
(03:00):
and New Zealand it was a really big thing for
me because you know, he's one of my heroes, one
of the greatest voices of all time. And the three
greatest concerts you know, Rod Shuwart was I think it
was ninety seventy eight in Wellington at Athletic Caark. It
was one of the greatest concerts there I've ever been
to to this day. And so to work with him
in standside of stage every night and see him do
(03:20):
his thing was pretty special. And you know, last year
was seventy eight years old and he was still running
around like a twenty five year old. I mean, his
energy was amazing, his voice was amazing, and you know,
it was very inspiring for a young fellow like me,
He's only been forty five years in the business.
Speaker 4 (03:37):
When you're on tour with a legend of his caliber,
do you get to spend any any time sort of
off stage with.
Speaker 3 (03:43):
Them, Yeah? Absolutely, And you know he did not disappoint.
All the stories I've heard about him over the years
has been true. You know, he's a great fella and
loves a joke, loves a drink and loves that fun,
you know. And at that age he's still kicking the
soccer balls around and moving like he's twenty five. It's wild.
It's wild to see. It's really I know what was
in the in the drinks in England back in the
(04:05):
day or Scotland, but you know, Mick Jagger and brother
Stuart and you know, guys like that kicking it.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Still got today. Oh, it's a great It was a
great tour. I came to that. You were incredible as well.
Speaker 4 (04:16):
So you're going to be doing all the Noiseworks hits obviously,
and you do a mighty fine job of the Xcess
songs as well. I hadn't actually realized until recently that
you were actually really good mates with Michael. You didn't
just take over singing the songs, but you had a
great relationship with him as well.
Speaker 3 (04:31):
Yeah, all the boys, you know, I've known him for years.
I met them when I first read Australia and actually
Noise Works manager Michael Browning started a label called De
Luche Records and his first signing was in Excess. He
had a fellow that worked form called Chris Mffy and said, Chris,
you look after this young band and I'll run the
record label. And he also had their publishing as well,
so and I met them back then when I met
(04:55):
Michael Browning, and Michael ended up managing Noiseworks a few
years later, and that whole connection was always there, you know,
Mike was saying with Noiseworks. We did a duet together
actually on the last Noise Works album, And when they
asked me to join, it was purely originally just for
them to get out of the house. And you know,
it was four years after Michael passon, just to get
out of the house and play some music because there's
(05:17):
still sort of healing from all the trauma. But music
kind of brought them back together and I went out
with them and turned into a world tours. We did
Europe and South America and North America. And I'm actually
the only other member of the band. I was a
member of an excess lego, the actual seventh member. They
called me great band.
Speaker 4 (05:36):
And I'm sure Michael would just love the way you
keep his music alive and these venues. I often wonder
whatever ever happened to our or mate JD Fortune. I
mean that it was a fun TV show, wasn't it?
If nothing else.
Speaker 3 (05:45):
I didn't really watch it. I'd already left. So it
was one of those things where, you know, four years
during around the world with them and helping them resurrect
their brand everywhere, and they got seduced by Hollywood, I suppose,
and to the detriment because in the long term they're
no longer a band because it's I think they've been
broken up for a long time now, but their music
still lives on. The music still great. And I actually
(06:06):
didn't play in excess music until Andrew Farriss, who played
keyboards and guitar and wrote all the songs with Michael
Change one of my shows and said, mate, you need
to do an excess songs. You the only one that
can do them with the only one that does them right,
and please please play some more in excess songs. So
I thought, you know, coming from Andrew, who's you know,
sitting backstage at my gig drinking my writer with a piss,
(06:30):
come on things, I'm worrying excess. Eventually, you know, a
couple of years later we decided to do a noiseres
and excess collection and just you know, and people just
loved it because of the songs. It's all about the music.
I play the music as true to the originals as
possible because I've always had a pet hate about going
to consistency my favorite artists and they play my favorite
(06:50):
song and I don't recognize it because they can't sing
it anymore, or they just get so bored with it
they turn it into something else. And I hate that
me personally, same enough anybody else does. But you know,
I like to hear the songs that I know that
I grew up with at least being out of sing
the melodies along with them, you know. So, and that's
those songs. It's a big thing along with noiseworks and
(07:11):
anexcess collection, and it's a lot of energy, and it's
a lot of fun. And that's the operative word nowadays
that at this point in my life, my career, I
do everything for fun. Music is a great equalizer no
matter what color, creed, or religion or persuasion, it's the
great equalizer. It brings everyone together. So, yeah, you mentioned.
Speaker 4 (07:30):
There being at a certain point in your career. I
feel like you must be at the point now where
you could write a good memoir. John, You've just got
endless good stories. I mean, I remember that one of
the times I interviewed, do you told me great yarn
even about the time that bond Jovi's management came in
trying to hit you guys up.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
For a hair dryer.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
I mean, you've just got so many good stories from
the road. Do you think about doing a book?
Speaker 3 (07:49):
I've been asked many times. I really have, but I
kind of I don't tell tales man. Also, it's you know,
it's too early for me. I'm still young and vital
and still I just wanted to rock everywhere. I think
too much life left in me.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
And you're still so lessly busy with gigs.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
I mean, I look at your social media. You are
constantly on the right. I saw you just did some
shows the Red Hot Summer tour with Barnsey. We all
saw his big piece on sixty Minutes about the massive
health scare at the start of the year. Now he's
setting out his tours, He's got Colchis or his fiftieth anniversary.
I mean, God, he's unstoppable as well, isn't he. Old Barnsey,
you were just mentioning those Scottish rockers.
Speaker 3 (08:24):
It's a scots Man, you know. I'm half Scottish and
half MILORDI half Scottish. I've been through the double heart
bypass operation myself, so yes, been Barnsy a lot common
as far as that's concerned. Sorry. You know, he's a great,
great made of mine, been a great supporter, and he's
just a great bloke and we've always always gotten along famously,
so yeah, I love him. Tibits and his family are
(08:46):
all kids, our babies, so we are family. Actually.
Speaker 4 (08:51):
Oh John, We're so excited to have you coming down here.
Just announced this morning the sound series late February early
March next year. Ticke us go on sale on pre
sale on Tuesday, on general sale on Thursday. We will
see you John and.
Speaker 2 (09:04):
The new year. Thank you so much for taking the
time to talk with us.
Speaker 3 (09:07):
Oh pleasure. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
Cheers definitely, thanks so much.
Speaker 1 (09:15):
Gold Asides Podcast The Stories behind Just Great Rock. If
you enjoyed this podcast, click to share with family or friends.
For Just Great Rock, listen to gold FM anytime anywhere
on iHeartRadio.
Bold Asides podcast The Stories behind Just Great Rock.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Hello, Aye, John, how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:13):
I'm good done? How are you? Where are you? Well?
Speaker 4 (00:15):
You've just been confirmed this morning for the sound series
February March next year with Omd Thompson, Twins, Tom Bailey,
diesel Ardisia. What is it like knowing exactly where you
were going to be on any given date so far away?
Speaker 2 (00:30):
I mean most of us don't even know what we're
doing next.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Week, I know, right, And usually shows that are that
far out I don't usually commit to. But you know,
I've worked with these guys before Sounds in christ Church,
and you know, they're great operators, and I'm looking forward
to playing christ Church and playing Auckland, and also playing
for the first time in Upper Hut, which is my
(00:52):
hometown where I grew up. You know, I was just
back there a few weeks ago, actually in Upper Hut
and everyone saying, when are you going to come and
play us some night? I didn't tell him. I just
said fun of these days. Because you know, obviously with
the through town, you know, it's been around for a
few years, but it's sort of like taking off now
as a proper venue. We can get thousands of people,
and you know it's great for the city of Upper Huts.
(01:14):
So to get on a great lineup like this and
come home and play, it will be great fun.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
When you do a hometown show, obviously you have a
lot of family, a lot of mates in the audience.
By time, Who do you hope is the are you
hoping there's like a few old high school nemesis, maybe
some mixed girlfriends, some teachers who told you to work harder.
Speaker 3 (01:31):
I think they're all dead, all the teachers anyway. And
then every time me to work harder, they couldn't wait
to get rid of me. Actually, but that was a
long time ago. I was just a kid. But times
were different then, real very different. We used to get
the cane, we used to get the strap. You know,
those kinds of things don't happen nowadays. So yeah, it's
a different world nowadays, but now looking forward to get back.
(01:51):
I come home all the time and I see my
old friends. So you know, I've still got my friends
from childhood and we're still in contact. We've always been
in contact. So it's like you can, you know, take
the boy out of upper heart, but you can't take
up a heart out of the boy, right.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
I love that.
Speaker 4 (02:05):
And by the time that you're here next year, it'll
be exactly two years since we last saw you. With
Sydney Lauper and Rod Stewart. Now, obviously you were old
mates with Cyndey Lauper. Is that how you came to
get on that bill?
Speaker 3 (02:15):
No, Actually, Cindy was an honor. Originally it was just
me and Rod, but you know, COVID sort of happened
to keep getting postponed, and then Rod was sort of
wasn't sure if he's going to make it, and then
all of a sudden it was back on. Cindy was
added to the bill because I think they did a
couple of shows together in America and he thought, oh well,
let's bring her down to which was great because she's
a wonderful lady and it was really lovely to see
(02:38):
her again. I met her in the eighties in Europe
when North Wrix was touring through Europe and we all
caught up when she was at the height of her career,
and you know, we hung out and she's a beautiful,
beautiful woman, beautiful heart, and it was great to see
her again. I putched her across Parles with her over
the years, but to be on tour together was fantastic.
And obviously being on tour with Rod Stuart in Australia
(03:00):
and New Zealand it was a really big thing for
me because you know, he's one of my heroes, one
of the greatest voices of all time. And the three
greatest concerts you know, Rod Shuwart was I think it
was ninety seventy eight in Wellington at Athletic Caark. It
was one of the greatest concerts there I've ever been
to to this day. And so to work with him
in standside of stage every night and see him do
(03:20):
his thing was pretty special. And you know, last year
was seventy eight years old and he was still running
around like a twenty five year old. I mean, his
energy was amazing, his voice was amazing, and you know,
it was very inspiring for a young fellow like me,
He's only been forty five years in the business.
Speaker 4 (03:37):
When you're on tour with a legend of his caliber,
do you get to spend any any time sort of
off stage with.
Speaker 3 (03:43):
Them, Yeah? Absolutely, And you know he did not disappoint.
All the stories I've heard about him over the years
has been true. You know, he's a great fella and
loves a joke, loves a drink and loves that fun,
you know. And at that age he's still kicking the
soccer balls around and moving like he's twenty five. It's wild.
It's wild to see. It's really I know what was
in the in the drinks in England back in the
(04:05):
day or Scotland, but you know, Mick Jagger and brother
Stuart and you know, guys like that kicking it.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Still got today. Oh, it's a great It was a
great tour. I came to that. You were incredible as well.
Speaker 4 (04:16):
So you're going to be doing all the Noiseworks hits obviously,
and you do a mighty fine job of the Xcess
songs as well. I hadn't actually realized until recently that
you were actually really good mates with Michael. You didn't
just take over singing the songs, but you had a
great relationship with him as well.
Speaker 3 (04:31):
Yeah, all the boys, you know, I've known him for years.
I met them when I first read Australia and actually
Noise Works manager Michael Browning started a label called De
Luche Records and his first signing was in Excess. He
had a fellow that worked form called Chris Mffy and said, Chris,
you look after this young band and I'll run the
record label. And he also had their publishing as well,
so and I met them back then when I met
(04:55):
Michael Browning, and Michael ended up managing Noiseworks a few
years later, and that whole connection was always there, you know,
Mike was saying with Noiseworks. We did a duet together
actually on the last Noise Works album, And when they
asked me to join, it was purely originally just for
them to get out of the house. And you know,
it was four years after Michael passon, just to get
out of the house and play some music because there's
(05:17):
still sort of healing from all the trauma. But music
kind of brought them back together and I went out
with them and turned into a world tours. We did
Europe and South America and North America. And I'm actually
the only other member of the band. I was a
member of an excess lego, the actual seventh member. They
called me great band.
Speaker 4 (05:36):
And I'm sure Michael would just love the way you
keep his music alive and these venues. I often wonder
whatever ever happened to our or mate JD Fortune. I
mean that it was a fun TV show, wasn't it?
If nothing else.
Speaker 3 (05:45):
I didn't really watch it. I'd already left. So it
was one of those things where, you know, four years
during around the world with them and helping them resurrect
their brand everywhere, and they got seduced by Hollywood, I suppose,
and to the detriment because in the long term they're
no longer a band because it's I think they've been
broken up for a long time now, but their music
still lives on. The music still great. And I actually
(06:06):
didn't play in excess music until Andrew Farriss, who played
keyboards and guitar and wrote all the songs with Michael
Change one of my shows and said, mate, you need
to do an excess songs. You the only one that
can do them with the only one that does them right,
and please please play some more in excess songs. So
I thought, you know, coming from Andrew, who's you know,
sitting backstage at my gig drinking my writer with a piss,
(06:30):
come on things, I'm worrying excess. Eventually, you know, a
couple of years later we decided to do a noiseres
and excess collection and just you know, and people just
loved it because of the songs. It's all about the music.
I play the music as true to the originals as
possible because I've always had a pet hate about going
to consistency my favorite artists and they play my favorite
(06:50):
song and I don't recognize it because they can't sing
it anymore, or they just get so bored with it
they turn it into something else. And I hate that
me personally, same enough anybody else does. But you know,
I like to hear the songs that I know that
I grew up with at least being out of sing
the melodies along with them, you know. So, and that's
those songs. It's a big thing along with noiseworks and
(07:11):
anexcess collection, and it's a lot of energy, and it's
a lot of fun. And that's the operative word nowadays
that at this point in my life, my career, I
do everything for fun. Music is a great equalizer no
matter what color, creed, or religion or persuasion, it's the
great equalizer. It brings everyone together. So, yeah, you mentioned.
Speaker 4 (07:30):
There being at a certain point in your career. I
feel like you must be at the point now where
you could write a good memoir. John, You've just got
endless good stories. I mean, I remember that one of
the times I interviewed, do you told me great yarn
even about the time that bond Jovi's management came in
trying to hit you guys up.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
For a hair dryer.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
I mean, you've just got so many good stories from
the road. Do you think about doing a book?
Speaker 3 (07:49):
I've been asked many times. I really have, but I
kind of I don't tell tales man. Also, it's you know,
it's too early for me. I'm still young and vital
and still I just wanted to rock everywhere. I think
too much life left in me.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
And you're still so lessly busy with gigs.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
I mean, I look at your social media. You are
constantly on the right. I saw you just did some
shows the Red Hot Summer tour with Barnsey. We all
saw his big piece on sixty Minutes about the massive
health scare at the start of the year. Now he's
setting out his tours, He's got Colchis or his fiftieth anniversary.
I mean, God, he's unstoppable as well, isn't he. Old Barnsey,
you were just mentioning those Scottish rockers.
Speaker 3 (08:24):
It's a scots Man, you know. I'm half Scottish and
half MILORDI half Scottish. I've been through the double heart
bypass operation myself, so yes, been Barnsy a lot common
as far as that's concerned. Sorry. You know, he's a great,
great made of mine, been a great supporter, and he's
just a great bloke and we've always always gotten along famously,
so yeah, I love him. Tibits and his family are
(08:46):
all kids, our babies, so we are family. Actually.
Speaker 4 (08:51):
Oh John, We're so excited to have you coming down here.
Just announced this morning the sound series late February early
March next year. Ticke us go on sale on pre
sale on Tuesday, on general sale on Thursday. We will
see you John and.
Speaker 2 (09:04):
The new year. Thank you so much for taking the
time to talk with us.
Speaker 3 (09:07):
Oh pleasure. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
Cheers definitely, thanks so much.
Speaker 1 (09:15):
Gold Asides Podcast The Stories behind Just Great Rock. If
you enjoyed this podcast, click to share with family or friends.
For Just Great Rock, listen to gold FM anytime anywhere
on iHeartRadio.
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