Thank you, Dean, for all of your research and hard work covering what has transpired with this fantastic band from down under. Your work here has addressed a lot of questions I had about LRB. I became a devoted fan after first hearing their songs on FM radio back around 1976 when I was living in Florida. I immediately went out and bought their debut album and played it all the time, especially Track 1, 'It's A Long Way There'. To me, that song is a rock masterpiece, particularly the guitar work. Fortunately, LRB was doing a U.S. tour around that time, and I went to see the original band in concert in Jacksonville around 1977. What a show! I recall that they had a very lively and energetic stage presence, and their vocal harmonies and musicianship were superb. In retrospect, these guys were like The Beatles of Australia. They cranked out hit after hit. But as happens all too often with gifted bands and musicians, business complications eventually hijacked the unique vibe they were creating on the music scene. Your research proves that out. But as much as I love their catalog, these days I will not waste my time or money to ever attend a concert by the current LRB cover band. Nope, I'd rather throw Side 1 of their debut album on my turntable, kick back with an adult beverage, and bask in the sweet memories of what was a simply amazing period in musical history. Cheers!
My brother John Mower R.I.P was the lead singer on the Mississippi album his wonderful rich harmonies and warm vocals on City Sunday, Day job song, Three days, Sweet world are amazing. I can't help but be disappointed that his name never gets a mention. John is the one on the right on the front cover and in the middle on the inside colour photo in the Mississippi album. John was in Allison Gross through to Mississippi. R.I.P bruv's I miss you.
Fantastic band ! I saw them here in Europe with singer John Farnham ! They blew me away. (with Nelson and Housden, the two bastards, great musicians though)
Thank you from a Proud Aussie to tell the story of the Sad Demise of the Original LRB Little River band The Music of my youth with good memories. I am old enough and fortunate enough to have seen them over many years. And was even part of there concert at the Brisbane World Expo Broadcasting it to Australia and the world. And at that performance to hear Glenn Fry say openly that he believed LRB to be the Best Rock/Pop Vocal group in the world.
And... you can hear the difference when the original creators sing it too... no one else can sound like the original founders. This is a injustice and thank you for bringing this out in a presentable way so everyone can understand.
@@ronfowlermusic When a band's line up naturally changes over time, that is accepted. When a cover band basically illegally plays other people's songs because they 'legally' own a trademark, that is different. Don't be a dick.
Great explanation of a what happened, Shorrock,Birties and Goble must be so mad, amazing song writers and stunning voices always will be the sound of the Little River Band
My biggest disappointment is that I never got to see original LRB. Found out the hard way that what’s touring is not them. To me, only the original voices can bring the songs to life.
I did get to see the band in 1981 with the Time Exposure tour. Little did I know, Glenn would be gone after the tour. I saw Farnham twice. The first time Beeb and Derrick left after the Net tour. In '84, I saw the Playing To Win Tour. That was the last time I saw the band. I always called that the "Last Man Standing" tour. Greaham was the last member of the original lineup.
@@jefffuller9918 Glenn came back in 1988. I saw him twice with LRB, 1991 and 1992. Goble and Birtles were already gone. So I guess what I saw was a partially fake band, with those wannabes Nelson and Housden, right?
@ronfowlermusic I suppose. Mike Love is still touring as The Beach Boys. The Wilson's have left or passed away. Al Jardine toured with Brian. Same situation.
So cool.😉 Thank you again for sticking with this even after receiving the cease-and-desist order. This needs to get out there so more people can both know and understand the back story. The current LRB are not the ones that brought us the hits that we know and love. If possible, could you put in links to the music that the original members released in 2022? Also, to the letter that you wrote to your congressman.
Thank you for helping us, the fans of the original and true Little River Band, understand the facts surrounding the hypocrisy of the musicians who are cashing in on the songs written and recorded by the real and true members and song writers of Little River Band. It's a mischaracter of justice and indecent for these musicians to be singing these memorable and enjoyable songs that don't belong to them. Thank you again for bringing this travesty to light.
How Housden and Nelson can sleep at night baffles me: they should be ashamed of themselves. I am a founding member of a Brisbane-based tribute band that covered LRB songs as well as Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan. I left ten years ago, but they are now the backing band for Glenn Shorrock when he tours parts of Australia. We never dreamed that we would one day actually play with the singer of one of our favourite bands.
Thank you for the detailed account of the LRB history. Troublesome to know that technicalities could have such a profound impact on the success built by the original members. Like you, I grew up with their music and and have been a life-long fan. Per your recommendation, I've just purchased and downloaded both albums you recommended from iTunes. Goble, Birtles, Shorrock, & Briggs ARE the LRB in my mind. "Anything less would be uncivilized!"
Thanks for shedding light on their history. It's mind boggling quite frankly. The music industry has certainly taken a turn with the advent of social media now. Very introspective.
Thank you so much for this untold story. I had always wondered why I haven't heard anything about the original members, and why they weren't touring. I figured that they had lost their voices, like Steve Perry, or suffered some kind of personal loss that kept them from performing. Turns out, they are all fine, still overflowing with talent and skill, and just as fantastic as ever. Like David Bowie or Tony Bennett, age had no ill affect on those awesome, distinctive voices. We've been denied their gifts simply because of ridiculous rules in US copyright law of which they were unaware, and a manager who failed to advise them about the rights to the band name. These gorgeous songs are a treasure of unparalleled worth. I think 2025 is perfect year for a new generation to be I re-introduced to singer/songwriter/musicians of this caliber, and not be forced to listen to mediocre cover band. There are still original musical giants among us! The artists who wrote and recorded that music deserve so much more!
Lesson: If you are a Director of a Company, be active in the Company, stay up with everything, oversee EVERYTHING that Managers and other employees do. Australian Institute of Company Directors can teach you.
We Two was actually during the period John Farnham was the lead singer. So as a farnham fan, it's great to see one of his songs is one of your favourites. The band was going through a bad time and when Glenn left, John took over for the next few years.
@@carolynh8866 thank you for that info! I love John. I recently was watching his live performances of You're The Voice and Help. What an amazing singer. I was glad to read that eh is recovering well from his cancer treatments.
@@SlitherWhisp thanks. John is a legend and totally loved by just about to whole population of Australia. Not just for his voice but for his wonderful personality .
@@carolynh8866 I take nothing away from John Farnham, but without Glenn Shorrock, it just wasn't LRB to me. His was the most distinctive voice that largely gave them their indelible identity.
@@travelingguy2988 I don't t disagree. The original line up of the LRB, is the quintessential sound that we all remember. It's just such a shame that the in fighting caused the end of LRB as we knew them. John added a completely different feel to the sound of the band, which I loved. But it was not LRB anymore. I was John Farmham with fabulous backing vocalists with Harmonies to die for. For LRB it was pretty much the end ..but for John it was a new beginning.
Well done for telling the true story of one of the best Australian bands that has ever been. I have been fortunate to see Glenn Shorrock live a few years ago and singing LRB songs and he sounds as good and fresh as he did in the 70s. The shame is that Americans and Australia miss out on a reunion tour of the original and best version of the band.
Thanks for a great "Behind The Music" documentary, Dean! I was going to surprise my wife with tickets to see LRB in North Myrtle Beach, SC back in 2023; so glad I decided to watch some recent live videos before I bought tickets. This is not the LRB we grew up listening to and creating memories with...not even close.
I am watching this video on August 28, 2024, the day after seeing the current LRB lineup playing at the Nebraska State Fair. Yes, it was great to hear so many songs that brought back childhood memories, but something felt awkward to me, so here I am trying to learn more about this band. I was not familiar with the band personnel throughout it's history, but I had heard that this current lineup was only one longtime member ( who I now know is Wayne Nelson) with the rest of the band consisting of newer guys. I've always associated LRB with Australia, but the first band member to speak to the audience was the keyboard player, and I noticed right away that "he sure didn't sound Australian"!! And neither did the frontman/bassist (Nelson), or anybody else in the band for that matter, because they all spoke to the audience at some point during the show. And also, as is pointed out in this video, there was absolutely no mention of any of the past band members to credit them for writing the songs. The more I'm learning about the band, the more I feel like seeing last night's show was kinda like buying merchandise from someone, but not knowing until later that it was stolen merchandise. ( Ironically, Little River Band were not the band originally chosen to play at our state fair. It was supposed to be The Guess Who, but they had to cancel because of dispute between current band members, and the original members who actually wrote the songs!!)
I'm so very pleased that you have addressed this here. Most Aussies know about this story, and you're right the imposters would not be welcomed here to play. Why listen to something that is not the real thing. Thank you, from another Aussie
And, as an American, thank you for saying this. You couldn't pay me to attend the current lineup's performance, except to throw rotten tomatoes and heckle them all night.
Thank you for such a great vlog. I saw the original Little River Band with Shorrock, Birtles and Goble back in the early 80's and I still listen to their music today, they're still one of my favourite bands ever. Memories of that concert and those times and watching this vlog has actually bought tears to my eyes.
Thank You!! The Classic line up (in my opinion) deserves it! It's a shame what the current name owners have done and are still doing. A good many of our hero's are no longer here, Glen, Beeb, Graham, deserve better
I was lucky enough to see and hear the original LRB at the San Diego County Fair many years ago. I was in heaven. John was the lead singer at the concert. I love Glenn, too. The sound, the harmonies cannot be duplicated. ❤
Thanks for that Dean! I grew up playing in Melbourne in the 60's and knew Glen Shorrock when he was in the "Twilights", Played in a band with Derek Pellicci in 1971-2 and became a friend of Beeb Birtles around Mississippi days! This whole scenario is soul destroying for any young musician, and my heart goes out to anyone that receives this treatment, when all we really want to do is make music!
Fantastic - justice needs to prevail LRB is Goble/ Birtles and Shorrock Who would pay money to see a band called the Beatles today - this band can only be John/ Paul/ George and Ringo - let the real LRB exist They still sound great - way above the cover band lead by Nelson and Houseman Don’t forget the original band also included Roger McLachlan and Ric Formosa
Exactly right. Roger was a great player and Formosa is the one who played the unbelievable lead on "It's a Long Way There", a masterpiece written by Graeham Goble.
@@ryreinhardt You'd better check where you're getting your info, because it's in error. I heard Goble say it in an interview. Definitely, Rick Formosa on It's a Long Way There. You are WRONG! Not taking anything away from Briggs, who was great too, but fact is fact.
Thank you, thank you, Dean. If nothing else, the truth is now out there and we've learned the full story. I'm an American and I will NEVER recognize or identify the current "members" as LRB. I fell in love with LRB in the fall of 1976, when I was in college, driving down the road alone with the radio blaring. "It's A Long Way There" played and it was the first time I'd heard it. My immediate reaction was, "Wow, what band is THAT?" Glenn Shorrock's voice had me mesmerized on every song they ever played from that time onward. LRB became my favorite band and I was thrilled to learn they were Australian because I had just returned from a mission trip to New Zealand and had met some Australians there, which was kind of a novel connection for me. My college roommate went to live in Australia for 2 years to do misson work. When he returned, he brought an LP that had "Home on Monday," which I had never heard til then, because it was never released in America, which I found hard to believe. It's now my all-time favorite LRB song. In 1995, I was driving down the road playing the radio and just accidentally heard that LRB was conducting their 20th anniversary tour nearby in Owensboro, KY, and told how to order tickets. I went to the nearest pay phone and immediately ordered 4 so my wife and our 8 and 10-year-old daughters could go. It was an amazing performance that night and fulfilled my lifelong dream of seeing them live. My 2 young daughters absolutely loved it, too. Ironically, Wayne Nelson was part of the group then, as was Peter Beckett, lead singer of Player. So, they also played one of my all-time favorite songs, "Baby, Come Back," that Beckett sang lead on. That night created an indelible memory which I will forever be thankful for. So, with all that connection I have with the original LRB, there is NO WAY I would EVER recognize this current bunch as LRB. Thank you again, Dean, for digging into these details and finding what's real. That research must have taken hundreds and hundreds of hours, not only to discover what happened, but then to put together a clear documentary of it so it's easily understood. You've done all of us loyal fans a great service!
A member has just posted this the fb music group ‘Australian Rock Bands of the 60s and 70s. I have shared it in a few other music groups (at least one of which is based in the States). Thank you so much for this upload. As an Aussie who was listening to these songs on the radio back then, I really appreciate this post. It’s tragic that you could not have been LRBs manager….
I went thru a similar re-discovery of the Little River Band, very similar to yours, about 3 years ago. My little RUclips channel is mainly for extended family and friends, so I don’t really “create” videos like you do (and you do a great job). It was the first time I wish I had documented my research in video form. That’s why I’m so glad you did! I still have some of the notes and photos I used to create my LRB paradigm. It took a while to get everything sorted and understood. I’m sure, like I did, you also uncovered much of the personnel dynamics: Glenn Shorrocks exit; John Farnham/Graham Goble relationship; Wayne Nelson addition; the incredible and fluid contributions of David Briggs (too often not talked about, but his guitar work was the true 4th voice of LRB); introduction of The Weasel (aka Stephen Housden); etc. I have to say one last thing…Stephen Housden is an absolute jerk and backstabbing opportunist. How that dude sleeps at night is a mystery to me. He had many opportunities to do the right thing, but money is clearly more important to him than integrity. Wayne isn’t very far behind either.
For Me,the Song,Happy Anniversary Baby,in March of 78,was my introduction to the Little River Band!Still,❤ this Stuff!When I Bought a Greatest Hits cassette,back in 88,I was playing it,some people heard it that I was hanging out with and the next day had a copy!So I Thought,I was Helping out with Royalties!Ha!Take care!Original LRB!❤
Creedence Clearwater revisited Or how about on the Motown side The spinners The temptations and The four tops so many incarnations I think the temptations are under 100th incarnation of the band know original member has been seen since like 1988
Thanks for posting this. I did know a little bit about the story, but this filled in a lot. I saw the band as a young teen in 1980. It was actually my first concert with Pure Prairie League opening. I didn't get a chance to see them again until 2000. I didn't know who was in the band in 1980 or in 2000 at the time. I went up to meet the band and pretty sure the only "older" member was Housden. I don't remember Nelson being there. I said that I hadn't seen the band since 1980 and he told me he joined the band in 1981 meaning there were no original members of the 1980 tour. I was pretty disappointed. As more stuff got put on the internet, I learned that the voices of Shorrock Birtles & Goble was the sound that I fell in love with. The current lineup - and the 2000 line up - is just a cover band and is really disappointing that more people don't know that.
Thankyou for setting the story right about my beloved Little River Band. I was raised on LRB in Australia and luckily got to meet Glenn Shorrock in my older years. This would have to be one of the biggest cons in Rock music history. Shorrock, Goble, Birtles and Briggs are the Little River Band and always will be in my mind.
@@brettthebassist I guess the 'big three" just assumed LRB would fall apart without them. The problem for this band was, to the general public, they were faceless. Casual fans didn't know their names; they weren't John Paul George and Ringo, or even Davy Micky Peter and Michael. I would think some people at least know the names Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings, and yet these no-names keep doing shows as the Guess Who. Maybe we need a law that once the lead singers and songwriters of a band leave, they should close shop.
I am SO glad you did this show. I loved LRB as the original group. I didn’t know their story either and am pleased this is coming to light. LRB will always be the original members full stop. NO one can sing and gel their voices like The original boys. What an underhanded move to not inform the maneuvers to the band. I will never spend a dime on any tours without the original members. This pisses me off.sorry. Any entertainment lawyers out there that can help ?
Thank you so much for telling this story. I'm probably one of the few Americans who actually knew most of this. Only because I've always been a huge Little River Band fan and I'm a bit of a nerd LOL and several years ago i started doing my own personal research on the band I loved and I discovered a lot of what you're talking about.
Thank you so much for doing this. I have loved what i would call Classic (original) Little River Band since my pretee--teen yrs back when their hits were originally hitting the charts. My memories attached to the voices & songs of the Founders. They are the ONLY Little River Band ❤
Great research and a story well told. Little River Band are one of my faves and now that I live in Geelong, I often drive past the Little River Road turnoff. One day, I’d like to alter the sign so it reads Little River Band. I can see a way to get around the current mess but if I post it here, that won’t help. Thanks for supporting the original members, they deserve better than getting caught up in a whole lot of corporate bs 👍
Thanks Dean great insight to the LRB story, it's an absolute tragedy what happened to the original members. I recently started listening to their music again and realised just how good they were a head of the times. I hope one day they can perform as LRB in front of their Australian fans.
Thanks for the hard work and research of this story. It’s so unfortunate that this happened to LRB. I was fortunate to see part of the original lineup twice in 1983 featuring John Farnham replacing Glen Shorrock. It’s really irks me when this kind of crap happens in the music industry. Other groups to suffer similar issues probably include Creedence Clearwater, the Guess Who, and a touring band in Canada called “Trooper” which doesn’t include a single original member. The biggest tragedy I can think of would be , Badfinger. Obviously different issues happened but sure is illustrative of the dark side of the music industry.
Thank you so much for sharing this. We just saw the fake Little River Band and were very disappointed. I started researching and found your video. Very interesting. There is no substitute for the original!
I saw them last night, and the only disappointment for me was that they basically played the greatest hits album plus two new songs. I was spoiled, because I saw the band back in the early 90's, when Glenn and Derek were still there, and they were still playing some lesser known songs like Parallel Lines, I Dream Alone, Soul Searching, Worldwide Love and Walk Together. They even started one show with an unplugged segment. The show last night was less than 90 minutes, and some of that was wasted with doing a crowd photo for their Facebook, and trying to get the crowd to sing along to Happy Anniversary.
So easy to see that they are only riding on there coat tails loved your straight forward approach and the repect you showed towards the original master's
Great Job Dean. Enjoyed the response. As a former DJ. I hated seeing concerts that were coming to my city with 1 or none of the original members. As you say a cover band
I spent my youth from junior high through adulthood listening to Little River Band, and I knew from a young age they were from Australia, of course through those years I had a dream of leaving the States and moving there, I know, foolish dreams of a teenager. I came to love those songs, and still do at the age of sixty.
This is really good. I was aware of the connection to Australia and the original band but, had NO IDEA of what had happened and the current state. All I can say is wow. I am definitely informed now, that's for sure. Well done.
This might be the very best breakdown of the situation I've ever watched. I'm sick of seeing local municipalities spending upwards of $50-60k for this cover band for their summer festivals. If you don't mind when these shows pop up I'd like to show them this!
Brilliant video and story. LRB were a big part of so many Australians' life from the 70s thru to the early 80s and we appreciate your research and respect given to these wonderful talented artists .
What a great documentary and clarification of the truth. I had only recently become aware of the current cover band, I'm sorry to say, because I heard them and thought, wow what the hell happened to the uniquely beautiful harmonies and songwriting? So I set about trying to figure it all out. This is an excellent piece of discovery and music journalism. Thank you so much for posting this!!
Living in Canada in the late 70s the Little River Band was well known. You'd see their albums in the stores, and knew their music from the radio, yet I knew no one who actually owned one their albums? including myself. It was considered older peoples music that being people in their mid to late twenties, as I was 15 lol. Looking back of course the quality of their music is beyond doubt. Like Air Supply so many many behind the scenes changes that made you wonder how much turmoil went into their music?
I got to see them back in 1976 with the Eagles in Pittsburgh Pa. Talk about a great live performance 🎉🎉🎉. The Little River band was every bit as good as the Eagles live. One of the best shows I ever had the privilege to see ❤. My friend Connie and I got tickets right beside the stage front row and they would come over and sing directly to us on the side as well. I lived in the greatest time ever as far as music goes and many other reasons.😅
I was fortunate to see the “Little River Band” in Lake Charles, LA in January this year. Truly enjoyed it! I did realize that I only recognized 1 band member (Wayne Nelson) but was ok with that. Never was aware of the original original founders, the rights, etc etc. I’m just guessing all this is about money. Just guessing. Regardless of who owns what name or songs, whatever; what I’m concerned about is listening to their music…the original songs because that’s what I fell in love with!!!
As you mentioned, Aussies know and love the original members and their rich history playing in earlier bands. Totally agree, it should be clear that the US version needs to clarify the name as you suggested. Such an affront that they cannot use the LRB name. Nice doco on the current situation.
Always loved and admired Glenn's amazing voice. When I worked at the Body Shop in Calgary as a young adult, I bought their greatest hits album and played it in the store all the time.
What an eye opener. I had no idea that all this had happened. The current so called LRB just played in our town this past summer and they were not sounding to good. Had I known this prior I would not have even gone. The original can never be duplicated.
Just saw Glen Shorrock perform his LRB hits.. together with Brian Cadd from Axiom in Geelong.. just down the road from little river.. At 80 years old he’s awesome and still brings the crowd to its feet…
Dean, thank you so much for this informative documentary… I had no idea and neither did any of my musician friends know about the legal issues with the original members of this fantastic band… You’re so right about it all… And I’m definitely writing to my congressman… And downloading the new music by the original original original members! Although I do absolutely love Wayne‘s voice… He Kicked ass on night owls… But it’s a rip off to the fans when the original guys are not touring… And it is advertised the way it is. Thank you for all of your work. I can’t wait to hear the 2022 music that I’m going to download… I’m also sharing this with all my musicians circles.
Hey ! I grew up with LRB ‘s. Hits THEY WERE HUGE IN MY DAY !! I’m 68 Canadian guy loved the originals some of the biggest bands in the states thought they were the friggin best thing in band in the world. That includes Glenn Frey and a few others don’t have to ask me I freaking loved them and I still love them frig awesome bunch of musicians and singers. Hope you guys are healthy and still around. If not, I hope you made it to heaven and you’re singing up a storm up there.😂👍👍👍👍
Very well done, Dean! I have been lucky to see the "real" LRB playing live twice back in 1980 (with Glenn on lead vocals) and in 1983 (with John Farnham). Unforgettable memories... Housden and Nelson were parts of 1983 line up I saw. Who would have thought by then that it would turn out that way later on...
Wow, you certainly did your research. Sad when business thwarts artistic talent, great musical memories etc. Thanks for your work with this, really interesting. Cheers.
Thanks for sharing this story. It upsets me every time I hear about it. More people need to know what’s going on. I can’t believe the founding members are shut out from using LRB or Little River Band. I heard The Guess Who are fighting a similar issue and found some success in US court
I have seen the original LRB many times in many venues. They are memory's of my young adult life. I have all of their original LP vinyls in my collection.
Classic case if you're not watching the money, watch out. That said, its crappy what Housden and Nelson have done to have audiences believe that this act was responsible for the music.
Thanks for this. I come from a similar place of enjoying the music but not knowing much about the band. A very similar situation with the Guess Who in Canada. Essentially a cover band performing under the guise of a Classic Rock band. Again, great work. Thanks
Thank you for this video. I knew just a little about what was going on, but not the whole story. I just went to Amazon and bought the CD set Ultimate Hits as a birthday present to myself. :) Thank you again. :)
Wow. This is a very complex history of a band we know and love. Contracts, copyrights, etc. Amazing research. They just performed at our Alaska state fair last night.
Good to know the truth about things. Get’s me a little bummed though because here I was thinking that I was seeing the original Little River Band when they came to perform in the early 2000’s in Burbank CA at the Stardust Bowl and it was a cover band instead. The songs are still memorable and beautiful. ❤
An excellent account of the machinations in this unfortunate saga. I'm an Aussie who grew up with these amazing songs. While I was vaguely familiar with the sad trajectory of the 'ownership' issues, I was completely unaware that the band themselves had no idea regarding some of the finer 'business' dealings. Glenn Wheatley must've felt remorseful about the way it all turned out for the band that he championed from the start.
I saw Glenn and Steven with the remnants of the original LRB in Biloxi Mississippi, maybe 1998 (?) … their original sound will never truly be replicated. 🕊️🌤️
This is a brilliant video. Thank you for sharing. I was always aware that there was some internal business conflict or oversight within LRB that resulted in the take over by Stephen Housden, but never really knew the nuts and bolts of it. I'll always be a fan of the true LRB. I also really dig John Farnham's contribution to the band... so I'm curiuos, where does John's tenure with the band fit in to this story?
I don't think John was ever a member of Company A or B, but I know he got the majority songwriting rights for Playing to Win. He joined when the band got the shits on with Shorrock. His time with LRB was essentially Goble and Wheatley(who managed both John and LRB) warming John up to relaunch his solo career(which made him a bigger name in Australia the LRB). Goble wrote and produced a number of John's songs.
Criminally underrated band. THE HARMONIES, my God. John Farnham had an INCREDIBLE voice . Other vocalists from LRB have SOOTHING voices similar to that of the fantastic and gravely missed Marty Balin
I just saw this band in Reno, NV and realized that it is just a cover band with no original members. Sometimes it's just about doing the right thing, and that would be giving the name back to the original and founding owners, the ones who actually wrote the songs that gave us the memories and those feelings whenever you hear their music..
Well known fact that John Farnham was the vocalist after Glen Shorrock left the band and had a further hit with "playing to win" and toured america with the band and John was also managed by wheatly who hocked his house to get Whispering Jack recorded....
I agree with a previous commenter, i never got to see the original LRB which is Birtles, Shorrock and Goble (and David Briggs). I did go see the best tribute band of Little River Band which is this current touring faux LRB band . This faux band was fantastic but did not replicate the beautiful originality of the original band. If you want to see and hear some of that amazing band harmonies and arrangements, purchase the DVD (only available for purchase from Australia) of the band " BIRTLES/ SHORROCK/GOBLE- FULL CIRCLE". Much of that concert is available on RUclips. Sad that the real LRB never got to tour in US since the 90's with the original members.
This is spectacularly good. LRB owes a debt of gratitude to Dean, for this work. He not only did an astonishingly good job, but his feelings represent 99% of LRB fans. And, it’s all too common with these acts still touring. Only in this case, the shameless version of LRB touring today is taking it to a whole separate level. LRB was an astonishingly good, and criminally underrated band, that SO MANY people didn’t realize they recognize. But, they literally have no image. It’s so odd for a 70’s/80’s band. To have that many hits, yet be strangely unrecognizable. So much so they recognize the songs but don’t realize it’s the same band. That’s an incredibly unusual. For a group of Americans to tour under that name is beyond shameless. And, Dean is 100% right about the apathy…but, that apathy is rampant throughout the entire journalism “profession” (if we can even call it that today). And, apathetic is that cesspool industry on a good day.
Thank you, Dean, for all of your research and hard work covering what has transpired with this fantastic band from down under. Your work here has addressed a lot of questions I had about LRB. I became a devoted fan after first hearing their songs on FM radio back around 1976 when I was living in Florida. I immediately went out and bought their debut album and played it all the time, especially Track 1, 'It's A Long Way There'. To me, that song is a rock masterpiece, particularly the guitar work.
Fortunately, LRB was doing a U.S. tour around that time, and I went to see the original band in concert in Jacksonville around 1977. What a show! I recall that they had a very lively and energetic stage presence, and their vocal harmonies and musicianship were superb.
In retrospect, these guys were like The Beatles of Australia. They cranked out hit after hit. But as happens all too often with gifted bands and musicians, business complications eventually hijacked the unique vibe they were creating on the music scene. Your research proves that out. But as much as I love their catalog, these days I will not waste my time or money to ever attend a concert by the current LRB cover band. Nope, I'd rather throw Side 1 of their debut album on my turntable, kick back with an adult beverage, and bask in the sweet memories of what was a simply amazing period in musical history. Cheers!
My brother John Mower R.I.P was the lead singer on the Mississippi album his wonderful rich harmonies and warm vocals on City Sunday, Day job song, Three days, Sweet world are amazing. I can't help but be disappointed that his name never gets a mention. John is the one on the right on the front cover and in the middle on the inside colour photo in the Mississippi album. John was in Allison Gross through to Mississippi. R.I.P bruv's I miss you.
Fantastic band ! I saw them here in Europe with singer John Farnham ! They blew me away. (with Nelson and Housden, the two bastards, great musicians though)
Best explanation of how founding members lost the rights to the band name I've ever seen. Excellent research.
Thank you from a Proud Aussie to tell the story of the Sad Demise of the Original LRB Little River band The Music of my youth with good memories. I am old enough and fortunate enough to have seen them over many years. And was even part of there concert at the Brisbane World Expo Broadcasting it to Australia and the world. And at that performance to hear Glenn Fry say openly that he believed LRB to be the Best Rock/Pop Vocal group in the world.
I am from Australia too. I grew up with this group and I am happy to say I enjoyed them very much
Me three 💔
And... you can hear the difference when the original creators sing it too... no one else can sound like the original founders. This is a injustice and thank you for bringing this out in a presentable way so everyone can understand.
so it seems on this channel, we accept replacements singing Guess Who songs, but not LRB.
@@ronfowlermusic When a band's line up naturally changes over time, that is accepted. When a cover band basically illegally plays other people's songs because they 'legally' own a trademark, that is different. Don't be a dick.
@@stevemurrell6167 and what you describe is exactly what the current Guess Who was doing. Don't be a richard.
Great explanation of a what happened, Shorrock,Birties and Goble must be so mad, amazing song writers and stunning voices always will be the sound of the Little River Band
My biggest disappointment is that I never got to see original LRB. Found out the hard way that what’s touring is not them. To me, only the original voices can bring the songs to life.
I did get to see the band in 1981 with the Time Exposure tour. Little did I know, Glenn would be gone after the tour. I saw Farnham twice. The first time Beeb and Derrick left after the Net tour. In '84, I saw the Playing To Win Tour. That was the last time I saw the band. I always called that the "Last Man Standing" tour. Greaham was the last member of the original lineup.
Yes I agree strongly, very very strongly only the Originals will do.
@@jefffuller9918 Glenn came back in 1988. I saw him twice with LRB, 1991 and 1992. Goble and Birtles were already gone. So I guess what I saw was a partially fake band, with those wannabes Nelson and Housden, right?
@ronfowlermusic I suppose. Mike Love is still touring as The Beach Boys. The Wilson's have left or passed away. Al Jardine toured with Brian. Same situation.
I agree with you. My disappointments include Kansas, LRB, among others...I never got to see them live. 🫤
So cool.😉 Thank you again for sticking with this even after receiving the cease-and-desist order. This needs to get out there so more people can both know and understand the back story. The current LRB are not the ones that brought us the hits that we know and love.
If possible, could you put in links to the music that the original members released in 2022? Also, to the letter that you wrote to your congressman.
Well said!!!
Shorrock , Goeble, Birtles are the real LRB. Anything else is just a tribute band .
AGREED!!! It's all about the MUSIC, who wrote and sang it to make it popular ORIGINALLY.
Well said!! ❤
So you dismiss Derek Pelicci, David Briggs, and other musicians who were in LRB during the glory years?
Songwriters and co-founders come first dude always will @@ronfowlermusic
don't forget Ric Formosa
Thank you for helping us, the fans of the original and true Little River Band, understand the facts surrounding the hypocrisy of the musicians who are cashing in on the songs written and recorded by the real and true members and song writers of Little River Band. It's a mischaracter of justice and indecent for these musicians to be singing these memorable and enjoyable songs that don't belong to them. Thank you again for bringing this travesty to light.
As an Aussie aware of all of this, thanks for highlighting the issue.
Amazing work. And a golden era in music. Let's hope justice is served
The LRB story deserves a movie
A movie which ends in 1987. All hail the real LRB.
How Housden and Nelson can sleep at night baffles me: they should be ashamed of themselves. I am a founding member of a Brisbane-based tribute band that covered LRB songs as well as Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan. I left ten years ago, but they are now the backing band for Glenn Shorrock when he tours parts of Australia. We never dreamed that we would one day actually play with the singer of one of our favourite bands.
Thank you for the detailed account of the LRB history. Troublesome to know that technicalities could have such a profound impact on the success built by the original members. Like you, I grew up with their music and and have been a life-long fan. Per your recommendation, I've just purchased and downloaded both albums you recommended from iTunes. Goble, Birtles, Shorrock, & Briggs ARE the LRB in my mind. "Anything less would be uncivilized!"
how about Derek Pelicci? Roger McLachlan? George McArdle?
@@ronfowlermusic They didn't write any music.
@@Paolo8772 so only the writers are valid band members?
@@ronfowlermusic No, but the come 1st, especially if they're the writers of the most well known songs which all come from the 70's
Thanks for shedding light on their history. It's mind boggling quite frankly. The music industry has certainly taken a turn with the advent of social media now. Very introspective.
Thank you so much for this untold story. I had always wondered why I haven't heard anything about the original members, and why they weren't touring. I figured that they had lost their voices, like Steve Perry, or suffered some kind of personal loss that kept them from performing. Turns out, they are all fine, still overflowing with talent and skill, and just as fantastic as ever. Like David Bowie or Tony Bennett, age had no ill affect on those awesome, distinctive voices. We've been denied their gifts simply because of ridiculous rules in US copyright law of which they were unaware, and a manager who failed to advise them about the rights to the band name. These gorgeous songs are a treasure of unparalleled worth. I think 2025 is perfect year for a new generation to be I re-introduced to singer/songwriter/musicians of this caliber, and not be forced to listen to mediocre cover band. There are still original musical giants among us! The artists who wrote and recorded that music deserve so much more!
Lesson: If you are a Director of a Company, be active in the Company, stay up with everything, oversee EVERYTHING that Managers and other employees do. Australian Institute of Company Directors can teach you.
My first song of theirs I loved was Reminiscing. Cool Change, We Two, Help Is On The Way, Middle Man, Lady, Take It Easy On Me... so many great songs.
We Two was actually during the period John Farnham was the lead singer. So as a farnham fan, it's great to see one of his songs is one of your favourites. The band was going through a bad time and when Glenn left, John took over for the next few years.
@@carolynh8866 thank you for that info! I love John. I recently was watching his live performances of You're The Voice and Help. What an amazing singer. I was glad to read that eh is recovering well from his cancer treatments.
@@SlitherWhisp thanks. John is a legend and totally loved by just about to whole population of Australia. Not just for his voice but for his wonderful personality .
@@carolynh8866 I take nothing away from John Farnham, but without Glenn Shorrock, it just wasn't LRB to me. His was the most distinctive voice that largely gave them their indelible identity.
@@travelingguy2988 I don't t disagree. The original line up of the LRB, is the quintessential sound that we all remember. It's just such a shame that the in fighting caused the end of LRB as we knew them. John added a completely different feel to the sound of the band, which I loved. But it was not LRB anymore. I was John Farmham with fabulous backing vocalists with Harmonies to die for.
For LRB it was pretty much the end
..but for John it was a new beginning.
Thank you for telling this story. As a teenager in the late 70's, the memories I have of their music are very special to me. ❤
Well done for telling the true story of one of the best Australian bands that has ever been. I have been fortunate to see Glenn Shorrock live a few years ago and singing LRB songs and he sounds as good and fresh as he did in the 70s. The shame is that Americans and Australia miss out on a reunion tour of the original and best version of the band.
Thanks for a great "Behind The Music" documentary, Dean! I was going to surprise my wife with tickets to see LRB in North Myrtle Beach, SC back in 2023; so glad I decided to watch some recent live videos before I bought tickets. This is not the LRB we grew up listening to and creating memories with...not even close.
I am watching this video on August 28, 2024, the day after seeing the current LRB lineup playing at the Nebraska State Fair. Yes, it was great to hear so many songs that brought back childhood memories, but something felt awkward to me, so here I am trying to learn more about this band. I was not familiar with the band personnel throughout it's history, but I had heard that this current lineup was only one longtime member ( who I now know is Wayne Nelson) with the rest of the band consisting of newer guys. I've always associated LRB with Australia, but the first band member to speak to the audience was the keyboard player, and I noticed right away that "he sure didn't sound Australian"!! And neither did the frontman/bassist (Nelson), or anybody else in the band for that matter, because they all spoke to the audience at some point during the show. And also, as is pointed out in this video, there was absolutely no mention of any of the past band members to credit them for writing the songs. The more I'm learning about the band, the more I feel like seeing last night's show was kinda like buying merchandise from someone, but not knowing until later that it was stolen merchandise. ( Ironically, Little River Band were not the band originally chosen to play at our state fair. It was supposed to be The Guess Who, but they had to cancel because of dispute between current band members, and the original members who actually wrote the songs!!)
I'm so very pleased that you have addressed this here. Most Aussies know about this story, and you're right the imposters would not be welcomed here to play. Why listen to something that is not the real thing. Thank you, from another Aussie
And, as an American, thank you for saying this. You couldn't pay me to attend the current lineup's performance, except to throw rotten tomatoes and heckle them all night.
Thank you for such a great vlog. I saw the original Little River Band with Shorrock, Birtles and Goble back in the early 80's and I still listen to their music today, they're still one of my favourite bands ever. Memories of that concert and those times and watching this vlog has actually bought tears to my eyes.
Thank You!! The Classic line up (in my opinion) deserves it! It's a shame what the current name owners have done and are still doing. A good many of our hero's are no longer here, Glen, Beeb, Graham, deserve better
I was lucky enough to see and hear the original LRB at the San Diego County Fair many years ago. I was in heaven. John was the lead singer at the concert. I love Glenn, too. The sound, the harmonies cannot be duplicated. ❤
nice to know I'm not the only person who enjoyed John in the band. Amazing singer!
Great work, Dean, you should do a piece on the Guess Who, I believe there are no original members performing when they go on tour
he defends the current Guess Who.
Thanks for that Dean! I grew up playing in Melbourne in the 60's and knew Glen Shorrock when he was in the "Twilights", Played in a band with Derek Pellicci in 1971-2 and became a friend of Beeb Birtles around Mississippi days! This whole scenario is soul destroying for any young musician, and my heart goes out to anyone that receives this treatment, when all we really want to do is make music!
Fantastic - justice needs to prevail
LRB is Goble/ Birtles and Shorrock
Who would pay money to see a band called the Beatles today - this band can only be John/ Paul/ George and Ringo
- let the real LRB exist
They still sound great - way above the cover band lead by Nelson and Houseman
Don’t forget the original band also included Roger McLachlan and Ric Formosa
Exactly right. Roger was a great player and Formosa is the one who played the unbelievable lead on "It's a Long Way There", a masterpiece written by Graeham Goble.
You forgot their lead guitarist David Briggs..
@@Gordonsmusic911wrong it was David Briggs who played lead guitar
@@ryreinhardt You'd better check where you're getting your info, because it's in error. I heard Goble say it in an interview. Definitely, Rick Formosa on It's a Long Way There. You are WRONG! Not taking anything away from Briggs, who was great too, but fact is fact.
@@ryreinhardt No. Briggs didn't join until 1977 for their third album.
Thank you, thank you, Dean. If nothing else, the truth is now out there and we've learned the full story. I'm an American and I will NEVER recognize or identify the current "members" as LRB. I fell in love with LRB in the fall of 1976, when I was in college, driving down the road alone with the radio blaring. "It's A Long Way There" played and it was the first time I'd heard it. My immediate reaction was, "Wow, what band is THAT?" Glenn Shorrock's voice had me mesmerized on every song they ever played from that time onward. LRB became my favorite band and I was thrilled to learn they were Australian because I had just returned from a mission trip to New Zealand and had met some Australians there, which was kind of a novel connection for me. My college roommate went to live in Australia for 2 years to do misson work. When he returned, he brought an LP that had "Home on Monday," which I had never heard til then, because it was never released in America, which I found hard to believe. It's now my all-time favorite LRB song. In 1995, I was driving down the road playing the radio and just accidentally heard that LRB was conducting their 20th anniversary tour nearby in Owensboro, KY, and told how to order tickets. I went to the nearest pay phone and immediately ordered 4 so my wife and our 8 and 10-year-old daughters could go. It was an amazing performance that night and fulfilled my lifelong dream of seeing them live. My 2 young daughters absolutely loved it, too. Ironically, Wayne Nelson was part of the group then, as was Peter Beckett, lead singer of Player. So, they also played one of my all-time favorite songs, "Baby, Come Back," that Beckett sang lead on. That night created an indelible memory which I will forever be thankful for.
So, with all that connection I have with the original LRB, there is NO WAY I would EVER recognize this current bunch as LRB. Thank you again, Dean, for digging into these details and finding what's real. That research must have taken hundreds and hundreds of hours, not only to discover what happened, but then to put together a clear documentary of it so it's easily understood. You've done all of us loyal fans a great service!
A member has just posted this the fb music group ‘Australian Rock Bands of the 60s and 70s. I have shared it in a few other music groups (at least one of which is based in the States).
Thank you so much for this upload. As an Aussie who was listening to these songs on the radio back then, I really appreciate this post.
It’s tragic that you could not have been LRBs manager….
I went thru a similar re-discovery of the Little River Band, very similar to yours, about 3 years ago. My little RUclips channel is mainly for extended family and friends, so I don’t really “create” videos like you do (and you do a great job). It was the first time I wish I had documented my research in video form. That’s why I’m so glad you did!
I still have some of the notes and photos I used to create my LRB paradigm. It took a while to get everything sorted and understood. I’m sure, like I did, you also uncovered much of the personnel dynamics: Glenn Shorrocks exit; John Farnham/Graham Goble relationship; Wayne Nelson addition; the incredible and fluid contributions of David Briggs (too often not talked about, but his guitar work was the true 4th voice of LRB); introduction of The Weasel (aka Stephen Housden); etc.
I have to say one last thing…Stephen Housden is an absolute jerk and backstabbing opportunist. How that dude sleeps at night is a mystery to me. He had many opportunities to do the right thing, but money is clearly more important to him than integrity. Wayne isn’t very far behind either.
For Me,the Song,Happy Anniversary Baby,in March of 78,was my introduction to the Little River Band!Still,❤ this Stuff!When I Bought a Greatest Hits cassette,back in 88,I was playing it,some people heard it that I was hanging out with and the next day had a copy!So I Thought,I was Helping out with Royalties!Ha!Take care!Original LRB!❤
I knew that none of the original members were in the current lineup but I had no idea it was this deep.
Fraudulent if you ask me!
@@MackinacMi That is what happens when ppl get sacked and others quit.
@@MackinacMi Little River Bland, a much more appropriate name for the imposters?
Creedence Clearwater revisited
Or how about on the Motown side The spinners The temptations and The four tops so many incarnations I think the temptations are under 100th incarnation of the band know original member has been seen since like 1988
Thanks for posting this. I did know a little bit about the story, but this filled in a lot. I saw the band as a young teen in 1980. It was actually my first concert with Pure Prairie League opening. I didn't get a chance to see them again until 2000. I didn't know who was in the band in 1980 or in 2000 at the time. I went up to meet the band and pretty sure the only "older" member was Housden. I don't remember Nelson being there. I said that I hadn't seen the band since 1980 and he told me he joined the band in 1981 meaning there were no original members of the 1980 tour. I was pretty disappointed. As more stuff got put on the internet, I learned that the voices of Shorrock Birtles & Goble was the sound that I fell in love with. The current lineup - and the 2000 line up - is just a cover band and is really disappointing that more people don't know that.
Thankyou for setting the story right about my beloved Little River Band. I was raised on LRB in Australia and luckily got to meet Glenn Shorrock in my older years. This would have to be one of the biggest cons in Rock music history. Shorrock, Goble, Birtles and Briggs are the Little River Band and always will be in my mind.
Thank you!
Finally, someone put it all together and answer so many questions.
Good explanation around the 19:00-21:00 mark. LRB (the original) is one of the best bands ever, from any country.
Beeb, Graham and Glenn are the little river band! PERIOD!
then they shouldn't have quit the band, which each of them did. Shorrock twice, 1982 and 1996, Birtles in 1984. Goble in 1991.
@@ronfowlermusicwell if that’s the case the band should have ended! Not someone who took it over! That’s complete fraud!
@@brettthebassist I guess the 'big three" just assumed LRB would fall apart without them. The problem for this band was, to the general public, they were faceless. Casual fans didn't know their names; they weren't John Paul George and Ringo, or even Davy Micky Peter and Michael. I would think some people at least know the names Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings, and yet these no-names keep doing shows as the Guess Who. Maybe we need a law that once the lead singers and songwriters of a band leave, they should close shop.
I am SO glad you did this show. I loved LRB as the original group. I didn’t know their story either and am pleased this is coming to light. LRB will always be the original members full stop. NO one can sing and gel their voices like The original boys. What an underhanded move to not inform the maneuvers to the band. I will never spend a dime on any tours without the original members. This pisses me off.sorry. Any entertainment lawyers out there that can help ?
Thank you so much for telling this story. I'm probably one of the few Americans who actually knew most of this. Only because I've always been a huge Little River Band fan and I'm a bit of a nerd LOL and several years ago i started doing my own personal research on the band I loved and I discovered a lot of what you're talking about.
Thank you so much for doing this.
I have loved what i would call Classic (original) Little River Band since my pretee--teen yrs back when their hits were originally hitting the charts. My memories attached to the voices & songs of the Founders. They are the ONLY Little River Band ❤
You are a good man Dean Baldwin. You did a good thing in posting this video exposing the truth!
Great research and a story well told. Little River Band are one of my faves and now that I live in Geelong, I often drive past the Little River Road turnoff. One day, I’d like to alter the sign so it reads Little River Band. I can see a way to get around the current mess but if I post it here, that won’t help. Thanks for supporting the original members, they deserve better than getting caught up in a whole lot of corporate bs 👍
Thanks Dean great insight to the LRB story, it's an absolute tragedy what happened to the original members. I recently started listening to their music again and realised just how good they were a head of the times. I hope one day they can perform as LRB in front of their Australian fans.
I am so glad you did this video to help us fans understand what happened to the LRB!!
Thanks for the hard work and research of this story. It’s so unfortunate that this happened to LRB. I was fortunate to see part of the original lineup twice in 1983 featuring John Farnham replacing Glen Shorrock. It’s really irks me when this kind of crap happens in the music industry. Other groups to suffer similar issues probably include Creedence Clearwater, the Guess Who, and a touring band in Canada called “Trooper” which doesn’t include a single original member. The biggest tragedy I can think of would be , Badfinger. Obviously different issues happened but sure is illustrative of the dark side of the music industry.
Oh yes, the story of Badfinger is beyond tragic. The members ended up with nothing at the end of it all. A truly great band.
Thank you so much for sharing this. We just saw the fake Little River Band and were very disappointed. I started researching and found your video. Very interesting. There is no substitute for the original!
I saw them last night, and the only disappointment for me was that they basically played the greatest hits album plus two new songs. I was spoiled, because I saw the band back in the early 90's, when Glenn and Derek were still there, and they were still playing some lesser known songs like Parallel Lines, I Dream Alone, Soul Searching, Worldwide Love and Walk Together. They even started one show with an unplugged segment. The show last night was less than 90 minutes, and some of that was wasted with doing a crowd photo for their Facebook, and trying to get the crowd to sing along to Happy Anniversary.
Big fan of the original band... Thanks for a very informative video.
Great documentary. I've loved LRB forever.
So easy to see that they are only riding on there coat tails loved your straight forward approach and the repect you showed towards the original master's
Great, great, great, great video!! Thanks for putting this out there.
Glad I found this video. Tragic! Love LRB (the REAL band)
Excellent video and have always been curious as to what happened. Thank you for the clarity!!!
Great Job Dean. Enjoyed the response. As a former DJ. I hated seeing concerts that were coming to my city with 1 or none of the original members. As you say a cover band
Little river band- Sleeper Catcher one of my favorites.
I spent my youth from junior high through adulthood listening to Little River Band, and I knew from a young age they were from Australia, of course through those years I had a dream of leaving the States and moving there, I know, foolish dreams of a teenager. I came to love those songs, and still do at the age of sixty.
This is really good. I was aware of the connection to Australia and the original band but, had NO IDEA of what had happened and the current state. All I can say is wow. I am definitely informed now, that's for sure. Well done.
This might be the very best breakdown of the situation I've ever watched. I'm sick of seeing local municipalities spending upwards of $50-60k for this cover band for their summer festivals. If you don't mind when these shows pop up I'd like to show them this!
Brilliant video and story. LRB were a big part of so many Australians' life from the 70s thru to the early 80s and we appreciate your research and respect given to these wonderful talented artists .
What a great documentary and clarification of the truth. I had only recently become aware of the current cover band, I'm sorry to say, because I heard them and thought, wow what the hell happened to the uniquely beautiful harmonies and songwriting? So I set about trying to figure it all out. This is an excellent piece of discovery and music journalism. Thank you so much for posting this!!
Living in Canada in the late 70s the Little River Band was well known. You'd see their albums in the stores, and knew their music from the radio, yet I knew no one who actually owned one their albums? including myself. It was considered older peoples music that being people in their mid to late twenties, as I was 15 lol. Looking back of course the quality of their music is beyond doubt. Like Air Supply so many many behind the scenes changes that made you wonder how much turmoil went into their music?
I got to see them back in 1976 with the Eagles in Pittsburgh Pa. Talk about a great live performance 🎉🎉🎉. The Little River band was every bit as good as the Eagles live. One of the best shows I ever had the privilege to see ❤. My friend Connie and I got tickets right beside the stage front row and they would come over and sing directly to us on the side as well. I lived in the greatest time ever as far as music goes and many other reasons.😅
Thank you so much Dean Baldwin for this video. Your point about the memories being an intergal part of the music is so poignant.
I was fortunate to see the “Little River Band” in Lake Charles, LA in January this year. Truly enjoyed it! I did realize that I only recognized 1 band member (Wayne Nelson) but was ok with that. Never was aware of the original original founders, the rights, etc etc. I’m just guessing all this is about money. Just guessing. Regardless of who owns what name or songs, whatever; what I’m concerned about is listening to their music…the original songs because that’s what I fell in love with!!!
Fantastic Dean, thank you for your work on this story.
As you mentioned, Aussies know and love the original members and their rich history playing in earlier bands. Totally agree, it should be clear that the US version needs to clarify the name as you suggested. Such an affront that they cannot use the LRB name. Nice doco on the current situation.
Always loved and admired Glenn's amazing voice. When I worked at the Body Shop in Calgary as a young adult, I bought their greatest hits album and played it in the store all the time.
What an eye opener. I had no idea that all this had happened. The current so called LRB just played in our town this past summer and they were not sounding to good. Had I known this prior I would not have even gone. The original can never be duplicated.
Just saw Glen Shorrock perform his LRB hits.. together with Brian Cadd from Axiom in Geelong.. just down the road from little river.. At 80 years old he’s awesome and still brings the crowd to its feet…
Dean, thank you so much for this informative documentary… I had no idea and neither did any of my musician friends know about the legal issues with the original members of this fantastic band… You’re so right about it all… And I’m definitely writing to my congressman… And downloading the new music by the original original original members! Although I do absolutely love Wayne‘s voice… He Kicked ass on night owls… But it’s a rip off to the fans when the original guys are not touring… And it is advertised the way it is. Thank you for all of your work. I can’t wait to hear the 2022 music that I’m going to download… I’m also sharing this with all my musicians circles.
Hey ! I grew up with LRB ‘s. Hits THEY WERE HUGE IN MY DAY !! I’m 68 Canadian guy loved the originals some of the biggest bands in the states thought they were the friggin best thing in band in the world. That includes Glenn Frey and a few others don’t have to ask me I freaking loved them and I still love them frig awesome bunch of musicians and singers. Hope you guys are healthy and still around. If not, I hope you made it to heaven and you’re singing up a storm up there.😂👍👍👍👍
Very well done, Dean!
I have been lucky to see the "real" LRB playing live twice back in 1980 (with Glenn on lead vocals) and in 1983 (with John Farnham). Unforgettable memories...
Housden and Nelson were parts of 1983 line up I saw.
Who would have thought by then that it would turn out that way later on...
I can remember seeing them jamming on Sunday mornings in 1975 Melbourne Australia at a regular function called Smokey’s Sunday Sippers. Amazing.😮
Wow, you certainly did your research. Sad when business thwarts artistic talent, great musical memories etc.
Thanks for your work with this, really interesting. Cheers.
Thanks for sharing this story. It upsets me every time I hear about it. More people need to know what’s going on. I can’t believe the founding members are shut out from using LRB or Little River Band. I heard The Guess Who are fighting a similar issue and found some success in US court
I have seen the original LRB many times in many venues. They are memory's of my young adult life. I have all of their original LP vinyls in my collection.
Classic case if you're not watching the money, watch out. That said, its crappy what Housden and Nelson have done to have audiences believe that this act was responsible for the music.
Awesome awesome awesome work !!
thank you for this... so damn maddening and frustrating. LRB songs live forever.
Thank you Dean, I always loved the original LRB!!
Thanks for this. I come from a similar place of enjoying the music but not knowing much about the band.
A very similar situation with the Guess Who in Canada. Essentially a cover band performing under the guise of a Classic Rock band.
Again, great work. Thanks
Thank you for this video. I knew just a little about what was going on, but not the whole story. I just went to Amazon and bought the CD set Ultimate Hits as a birthday present to myself. :) Thank you again. :)
Thank you for posting this. I only love the original little river band.
Wow. This is a very complex history of a band we know and love. Contracts, copyrights, etc. Amazing research. They just performed at our Alaska state fair last night.
You mean the band that masquerades as the LRB, right?
That was the FAKE band that performed
Good to know the truth about things. Get’s me a little bummed though because here I was thinking that I was seeing the original Little River Band when they came to perform in the early 2000’s in Burbank CA at the Stardust Bowl and it was a cover band instead. The songs are still memorable and beautiful. ❤
Thank you for voicing up about what is right 😊
An excellent account of the machinations in this unfortunate saga. I'm an Aussie who grew up with these amazing songs. While I was vaguely familiar with the sad trajectory of the 'ownership' issues, I was completely unaware that the band themselves had no idea regarding some of the finer 'business' dealings. Glenn Wheatley must've felt remorseful about the way it all turned out for the band that he championed from the start.
I saw Glenn and Steven with the remnants of the original LRB in Biloxi Mississippi, maybe 1998 (?) … their original sound will never truly be replicated. 🕊️🌤️
Great video history of the band, Dean. You did good here.
This is a brilliant video. Thank you for sharing. I was always aware that there was some internal business conflict or oversight within LRB that resulted in the take over by Stephen Housden, but never really knew the nuts and bolts of it. I'll always be a fan of the true LRB. I also really dig John Farnham's contribution to the band... so I'm curiuos, where does John's tenure with the band fit in to this story?
I don't think John was ever a member of Company A or B, but I know he got the majority songwriting rights for Playing to Win. He joined when the band got the shits on with Shorrock. His time with LRB was essentially Goble and Wheatley(who managed both John and LRB) warming John up to relaunch his solo career(which made him a bigger name in Australia the LRB). Goble wrote and produced a number of John's songs.
Some mighty fine content right here. Nice work!
Criminally underrated band.
THE HARMONIES, my God.
John Farnham had an INCREDIBLE voice .
Other vocalists from LRB have SOOTHING voices similar to that of the fantastic and gravely missed Marty Balin
I just saw this band in Reno, NV and realized that it is just a cover band with no original members. Sometimes it's just about doing the right thing, and that would be giving the name back to the original and founding owners, the ones who actually wrote the songs that gave us the memories and those feelings whenever you hear their music..
Well known fact that John Farnham was the vocalist after Glen Shorrock left the band and had a further hit with "playing to win" and toured america with the band and John was also managed by wheatly who hocked his house to get Whispering Jack recorded....
I agree with a previous commenter, i never got to see the original LRB which is Birtles, Shorrock and Goble (and David Briggs). I did go see the best tribute band of Little River Band which is this current touring faux LRB band . This faux band was fantastic but did not replicate the beautiful originality of the original band. If you want to see and hear some of that amazing band harmonies and arrangements, purchase the DVD (only available for purchase from Australia) of the band " BIRTLES/ SHORROCK/GOBLE- FULL CIRCLE". Much of that concert is available on RUclips. Sad that the real LRB never got to tour in US since the 90's with the original members.
Thank you
Outstanding... thank you! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
This is spectacularly good. LRB owes a debt of gratitude to Dean, for this work. He not only did an astonishingly good job, but his feelings represent 99% of LRB fans. And, it’s all too common with these acts still touring. Only in this case, the shameless version of LRB touring today is taking it to a whole separate level. LRB was an astonishingly good, and criminally underrated band, that SO MANY people didn’t realize they recognize. But, they literally have no image. It’s so odd for a 70’s/80’s band. To have that many hits, yet be strangely unrecognizable. So much so they recognize the songs but don’t realize it’s the same band. That’s an incredibly unusual. For a group of Americans to tour under that name is beyond shameless. And, Dean is 100% right about the apathy…but, that apathy is rampant throughout the entire journalism “profession” (if we can even call it that today). And, apathetic is that cesspool industry on a good day.
I saw the little river band the original several times i'm seventy now and I really really love him