One of this country's most loved and respected rock showmen, Doc Neeson is back on the road with his newly formed band Doc Neeson's Angels.

Few people who lived in Australia through the halcyon rock days of the eighties will not have the memory of Neeson~s huge frame, unique voice and manic stage antics indelibly etched in their mind. As frontman of The Angels, Neeson rode a massive wave of popularity which saw the band release numerous chart-topping albums and singles and achieve huge success both here and overseas.

The new band combines ace players from The Angels, Dragon and The Ranch and delivers all the old Angels hits together with some fresh surprises, but in the style the fans remember - live, loud and rocking.

Doc Neeson's Angels, touring Tasmania in May.

Doc Neeson's Angels Gigs
22 April 2004

By Jim Hilbun

The Angels Box set
13 February 2004

Alberts are set to release a box set of The Angels catalogue mid 2004. It includes the ground breaking, chart topping, Face to Face album, and its follow up No Exit, as well as the rare self - titled debut album. Also included will be a bonus CD featuring out-takes of The Angels classics and previously unreleased material from 1976 -79.

A live concert, filmed and recorded at Latrobe University Melbourne in 1979, will also be released in mid 2004 as a 5.1 DVD. This long awaited, incredible film of the original lineup of The Angels performing at their absolute peak, will also contain rare footage, photographs and interviews with the band.

                                                        Stephen White Entertainment

Doc Gigs
26 February 2004

13 March - Shellharbour
19 March - Tamworth
20 March - Sawtelle
26 March - Dubbo
27 March - Griffith

By Jim Hilbun

Calling All Angels
23 February 2004

 
The dispute over the Angels’ name gets more complicated. We’ve reported earlier on singer Doc Neeson and bassist Jim Hilbun working under the name Doc Neeson’s Angels while a group featuring original members John and Rick Brewster, Chris Bailey and Buzz Bidstrup works as the Angels Band. Now former drummer and manager Brett Eccles has stepped into the picture with an injunction which says that neither act should use the name. Meanwhile, Alberts are planning an Angels box set mid 2004. It includes the hit albums "Face To Face" and "No Exit", their rare self - titled debut album, and a bonus CD featuring out-takes of Angels classics and previously unreleased material from 1976 -79.

Alberts are set to release a box set of The Angels catalogue mid 2004. It includes the ground breaking, chart topping, Face to Face album, and its follow up No Exit, as well as the rare self - titled debut album. Also included will be a bonus CD featuring out-takes of The Angels classics and previously unreleased material from 1976 -79.

A live concert, filmed and recorded at Latrobe University Melbourne in 1979, will also be released in mid 2004 as a 5.1 DVD. This long awaited, incredible film of the original lineup of The Angels performing at their absolute peak, will also contain rare footage, photographs and interviews with the band. This is a must for anyone who missed seeing the original band, or who wants to relive the experience in their home
theatre.

                                                        Stephen White Entertainment

The Complete Sessions 1980-1983
9 May 2002

    BONUS TRACKS     
    1. Back On You
    2. Alexander (early take)
    3. Hot Shit
    4. Hard Sell
    5. Staring Voices
    6. I'm Scared (live)
    7. Face The Day (single edit)
    8. Public Enemy
    9. Into The Heat

    NIGHT ATTACK (9 bonus tracks)      
      
    BONUS TRACKS      
    1. Casablanca
    2. Small Talk
    3. Back On You
    4. Chaplin's Drum
    5. Fashion & Fame (live)
    6. Talk About You (live)
    7. Dad Dream (live)
    8. Angel (live)
    9. Devil's Gate (live)

    WATCH THE RED (5 bonus tracks)     
      
    BONUS TRACKS     
    1. Breakdown
    2. Take It On The Run
    3. Say What
    4. Live Lady Live #2
    5. Let Me In

    THE BLOW    
      
    1. Don't Wanna Be No More
    2. Never Know My Name
    3. How Long Can I? 
    4. Name Dropping
    5. The Zoo
    6. Bow Bow
    7. Where Doc
    8. Electric Drill (Don't Do It Honey)
    9. Stay Away

Keep your ears open for Doc Neeson new material. Angels fans will be shocked with the new sound, but you have to move ahead. The new material still contains Doc's fine vocals, he hopes to have the songs released soon.

As Doc descriptive it "rock with influences from David Bowie and Peter Gabriel". There are definite techno sounds, but it is not a dramatic move away from anything he has done in the past.         
           

The Undercover Review

The rules of this game are quiet simple. Ask well known acts to perform songs totally opposite to their own style. The results range from interesting to downright hilarious. 

Of the international acts Stabbing Westward sing The Carpenters "Top Of The World" and actually do the song justice as a guitar acoustic piece. Canada's Barenaked Ladies give Prince a whole new dimension with their jazzed up version of "When Doves Cry". Willie Nelson doing Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is quiet haunting. Nelson had never heard the song before Andrew Denton rocked up at his hotel room with a lyric sheet and asked him to perform it. The result is the first attempt by Willie after hearing the songs only minutes before.

Some of the songs are a crack-up. Country singer Adam Brand attempts Wheatus' "Teenage Dirtbag" and what the hell were they thinking when they asked The Wiggles to sing "Walk On The Wild Side"? The Superjesus actually pull off "Can't Stop The Music" in a rock format and Something For Kate bring credibility to Christina Aguilera's "Genie In A Bottle".

But Human Nature doing AC/DC's "TNT" ... ouch! And Scandal'us on "Smells Like Teen Spirit" ...gong!

Spiderbait's "Jive Talking" is fun, Doc Neeson sounds like he's having just a little bit too much fun with Sheena Easton's "9 to 5 Morning Train" and Killing Heidi really do fit Kiss "I Was Made For Loving You" quiet well. The Living End toning it down for Bread's "Baby I'm A Want You" works and Paul Kelly's "Little Red Corvette" is an absolutely brilliant performance that I'm sure even Prince would be proud to hear.

All proceeds go to a good cause. It's all in the name of charity. Volume 1 raised over $400,000 for Mission Australia and children's hospitals across Australia. Christmas is coming. Think of this one as a Great Christmas gift if you can't inspire yourself to shout yourself a copy for your own CD player.

by Hector The Rock Dog
 

         Track Listing

      1.  Powderfinger - Sorrow 
      2.  Killing Heidi - I Was Made for Lovin' You 
      3.  Alex Lloyd - Mysterious Ways 
      4.  Barenaked Ladies - When Doves Cry 
      5.  Gina Jeffries - Kryptonite 
      6.  The Superjesus - You Can't Stop the Music 
      7.  Something for Kate - Genie in A Bottle 
      8.  Paul Kelly - Little Red Corvette 
      9.  David Campbell - Weir 
    10.  The Living End - Baby I'm A Want You 
    11.  Human Nature - T.N.T. 
    12.  Scandal'us - Smells Like Teen Spirit 
    13.  Spiderbait - Jive Talkin' 
    14.  Neil Finn - Sexual Healing 
    15.  Adam Brand - Teenage Dirtbag
    16.  Lash - Wouldn't it Be Nice 
    17.  Stabbing Westward - Top of the World 
    18.  Diesel - Sometimes When We Touch 
    19.  Bodyjar - I'll Never Fall in Love Again 
    20.  Zed - Una Paloma Blanca 
    21.  The Cruel Sea - Loving You 
    22.  Josh Joplin - Eye of the Tiger 
    23.  The Wiggles - Walk On the Wild Side 
    24.  John Paul Young - Are You Gonna Go My Way 
    25.  Mental as Anything - Smoke On the Water 
    26.  The Angels - Morning Train (9 to 5) 
    27.  Kerry-Anne Kennerley - Dirty Deeds 
    28.  Richard Clapton - I'm Like A Bird 
    29.  Willie Nelson - Smells Like Teen Spirit 
 

    Label : Sony          
 

The awards night is on February 5th at The Metro in George St, Sydney - and is an industry event not to be missed. Sip a quiet pre-dinner drink in the lounge. You are gonna need it to keep up with the veritable who’s who on stage and the after-show party. The night launches with the siren sounds of Anastasia (not the one with the leather jeans), while entrée is served. Then, on with the awards MC’d by Donté Deone… and as usual I’m sure there will be someone furious about loosing. But we’ll keep going with the awards in spite of it while you munch into the main course, prepared by the very talented team at Prudence Catering. Over dinner you will be delighted by the acoustic musical interludes performed by Craig Calhoun and an un-plugged Doc Neeson. True! Finish with desert/coffee in the dining area and then chill out or dance the night away at the after show ENTECH Awards Lounge in the reinvented Metro lobby until  3:00am , with Craig Calhoun (Bass, Vocals) and the Brothers of Oz. The lineup will feature: 

                 Mark Williams - Vocals 
                 Brendan St. Ledger - Keys 
                 Ross Middleton - Sax, Vocals
                 Rex Goh - Guitar, Vocals 
                 Con Settineri - Drums 
                 and Anastasia – Vocals

The guys have promised a smooth start and a hot climax! 

How to book dinner tickets:

1) If you have not yet registered for the show, dinner ticket ordering can be done on your ENTECH Registration form here

2) If you have already registered (or you are an ENTECH Exhibitor), and want to add dinner tickets, use this special "Dinner Only" Registration form. 

3) We can fax/mail you a form. Phone us on +61 2 9890 2111 to arrange it!           
 

It's the end of an Australian rock era... The Angels have broken up. Bass player Jim Hilbun told Undercover News that the announcement of the resignation of lead singer Doc Neeson in a women's magazine came as a complete surprise. Also surprising is that Doc's unusual resignation from the band didn't get followed up by tradition music media. No-one picked up on the fact that The Angels had broken up until now.

Jim says their was an attempt to keep the band going and at one point he was going to step into the spotlight and take over the vocal duties but now it has all just whimpered out. Doc quit the band after a car accident left him in poor mental and psychical health. Considering the legacy the band has left behind, it's a shame they went out with a whimper, not a bang. Their are no plans for a farewell tour.          
 

The annual Australian War Memorial / ANZAC Parade Open Day Open Night has been hailed an outstanding success, with 25,000 people turning up on Saturday to enjoy the fun and excitement of Open Day Open Night. The highlight of the day, the Tour of Duty - Encore! Concert featuring James Blundell, Gina Jeffreys, Doc Neeson and the Band of the Royal Military College, Duntroon, attracted 7,000 people.

From 2pm until 9pm on Saturday 3 February the Australian War Memorial and Anzac Parade will come alive with a wide range of exciting activities for all the family reminding us of the impact war has had on the development of Australia. Highlights will include displays by re-enactment groups, a parade of military and historic vehicles, and a range of aerial displays including the RAAF Roulettes and a flight of New Zealand SkyHawks. End the day with a stunning open air evening concert featuring a number of performers from the Tour of Duty concert held in Dili, East Timor in 1999.           
 

The Third Dinner
3 March 2000

But what a magnificent evening we had!  It all came together, by George! and the joint was jumping.

I can't say that I remember or saw everything but here are some vignettes of a truly memorable evening.

Warren Dickson from Canberra must have been the happiest man there. His devotion to our hero and his extensive collection make him an indispensable member of our happy band.  Warren was seated next to Jim Shepherd, whom he had never met personally, and oh my God!, why was there no tape recorder under the table?

Phillip Johnston, also from Canberra, had written to Jim Shepherd as a youngster and now enjoyed the opportunity of talking with our favourite publisher.  Phillip's contribution to our Club in his yet short membership has already made him a legend.

René White won the excellent Felmang drawing and his exultant yell of joy brought the noisy throng on Friday night in King Street, Newtown, to a momentary halt.

And Doc Neeson.  Well, what the hell can we say about Doc?  A guest speaker who doesn't speak much can be a bit of a worry... unless he sings... and has everyone else singing... and clapping and table thumping... and is accompanied by one of Australia's other greatest rock'n'roll voices (Skinny of The Poor) and a brilliant guitarist called Jason... and even brings the Tibetan staff to a standstill.

He sang Buddy Holly, he sang The Ballad of The Phantom, specially composed for the evening... it was a winner... and had all the guests joining in the jungle beat chorus with gusto. He sang a song from the Christmas concert for Aussie INTERFET troops in East Timor... one sung after the television cameras were turned off.  (Travis, aren't you glad you didn't leave for Canberra before all this?)

Indeed, Doc had a better time we think than anyone else and has expressed a desire to join us at future functions as an ordinary member.  Done!

And who won the print so graciously donated by Dietmar?  Why, our own Dr Di Dio's name came out of the rice canister.  And who was more deserving, you may ask?  Well, I'm too bitter about the result to answer impartially, I'm afraid.

The various bottles of wine from Deep Woods Estate and Langmeil Winery were gleefully and randomly disbursed and I do not believe that anyone left The Flavour of Tibet empty handed.

It really was a great night, dominated by the constant hum of happy conversation, imbued throughout with the camaraderie and selfless generosity which is becoming the hallmark of our ever growing and worldwide Club.

Can we top this one?  Hell, we won't even try. But we will be aiming to be just as good, and just as different!

Rockers have role in Timor
14 October 1999

Rock down to Skin and Bone
4 November 1998

The many stages of The Angels
4 November 1998

Angels for Maitland
4 November 1998

12th Annual ARIA Awards
20th October 1998

HIGHEST SELLING SINGLE:     
PRISONER OF SOCIETY - THE LIVING END

HIGHEST SELLING ALBUM:     
SAVAGE GARDEN - SAVAGE GARDEN

Angels keen on Tatts Tour
29 July 1998

When The Angels heard that Rose Tattoo were getting back together and the chance to play support was offered, Doc Neeson said the band jumped at the chance.

The gig at the Newcastle Workers Club on Thursday, August 6, was going be a chance to show off The Angels' latest album, SKIN & BONE, in front of a hard rock audience.

The CD is a return to the classic Angels formula of bass, guitars and drums, circa 1979 and FACE TO FACE, but with the production values of HOWLING. 'I think you'll find it has probably got that rawness and honesty but with head space,' Neeson said.

It's a testament to enduring nature of classic hard rock that 20 years after they made their names The Angels and Rose Tattoo continue to have an audience.

By TE          
 

The Angels Caught In The Act
29 July 1998

We've been over the top for a long time now. Ever since the Keystone Angels emerged from Adelaide back in the mid-'70s. Music Editor, MIKE GEE, takes coffee with a reborn Angel, Jim Hilbun.

Sitting in that famous old rock'n'roll haunt, the Sebel Townhouse, a few weeks ago with The Angels bass player, Jim Hilbun, the past did that old flashback trick, and the future seemed to rush forward at the same time. In a year marred by tragedy, further industry unease and a throw-mud-at-walls-and-see-what-sticks mentality, music remarkably took some brave steps forward. And it also re-embraced its past - not that it could really escape it.

The Angels, as lean, mean and voracious a bunch of rockers as this country ever produced, first of all took it out semi-unplugged as the fabulous Lounge Lizards sharing the stage with fellow long-servers Angry Anderson and Ross Wilson. From coast-to-coast up into the hinterlands, to the far North-West of WA and the top end ... and they sold out show after show after show.

That began the process of the comeback: not that they never really left. But let's call it one. Then they announced they'd gone indie and signed with Shock Records who were effusively delighted to have them on board. One listen to the new single, Caught In the Night - written by Hilbun, was enough to understand why.

Here was The Angels of old reincarnated; that glorious, raw, rock'n'roll beast, still lithe and feral, clapping that thunder round a song that had all the dynamics and potency that defined the very best of their vintage material.

Now they're plugged in and rolling with the horribly overlooked The Screaming Jets and the similarly talented and rocked Horsehead on The Barbed Wire Ball.

And this is no ordinary line-up; this is THE line-up: the legendary Doc Neeson on vocals, the twin axe attack of the Brewster boys, Rick and John, Jim holding down that tight but fluid bottom end, and the master skinsman (there are few better in the business), Brent Eccles. The 1982-89 crew that really did take it over the top for nearly a decade.

Hilbun's a gentlemen; thoughtful, intelligent, considerate and a musical connoisseur who might be found playing jazz, the classics, blues, world or metal. He defines both Cobain and Buckley - the great tragedies of recent times - as the young masters. But he's also a died in the wool rocker who loves nothing better than to strap it on and put it down with The Angels - now that "problems" within the band that led to his departure are just very distant memories.

"Look, I wouldn't be doing this if those problems hadn't been resolved," he says. "But people change over time. And I think we've all changed and developed. I wouldn't have wasted their time or mine unless I thought it could really work, it was fun and it was going somewhere. I am genuinely happy to be back in the band. It sounds corny but it's never been better.

"You wait until you hear the new album. It's great. I love it. I can listen to it over and over again and go 'yeah, this is good'. Why? Because everybody wants it again. You could feel it when we went into the studios. I could feel it when I returned and started playing with them again. That spirit is there and everybody is more open to ideas and trying different approaches.

"The Shock deal was also important. That was like a new beginning. But in a way it's like we were returning to somewhere where we belong. It's strange but The Angels have always been a little off-the-centre, never quite mainstream. And Shock are genuinely excited to have us - and it's been a while since we've felt that."

Hilbun also recognises the great tradition that comes with The Angels, the tradition of Australian rock born and bred in the pubs and clubs, of sweating it out day in day out for years on end, earning the right to record, to take it out there and overseas. It's a tradition now mostly lost in the economics of the music industry which have seen venue after venue close as DJs offer owners a bigger return on a smaller outlay with virtually none of the inherent problems of presenting live music.

What they forgot was that the fans of The Angels aged with the band and are rabid now as they were 20 years ago when they bust out of Adelaide with what would become their anthem Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again. And they failed to figure those fans were raising their kids on albums like Face To Face, No Exit, Night Attack, Dark Exit, Watch The Red, Two Minute Warning and The Howling to name just some of their vintage smash and grabs. Albums not only brimful of great rock motifs and buzzing guitars, but of great pop songs and a suburban reality. Of course, they weren't all perfect. The Angels like any other band who've survived two decades had their fair share of stiffs. But, to their credit, they remained Australian, rock solid, and proud of it. A distinctive voice in a sometimes indistinct melange. And their best was exceptional.

"I think that's reflected at the gigs, " Hilbun says. "The old fans are still there but there are just as many young kids down the front - and best of all, they know all the words to all the songs."

That says it all really. Rock'n'roll doesn't get much better. The tradition continues.

By By Mike Gee          
 

Angels In The Night
9 October 1997

Well, well, well. So The Angels have signed to Shock, the old bastards. Hot on the double knee jump with twist and jackhammer rhythm thunder comes their brand new revisitation to their old turf: classic rock. The Angels, punters, are back. Caught In the Night is the best slab of Angelism in ages; hell, it even got the old kneecaps creaking here at the News desk. Doc Neeson sounds like he means it, the bottom end is as tough as a Doc Marten that's been sitting in the sun for a month, the Brewster boys turn up the watts and before you know it, you're flashing back to those vintage days of anthem after anthem - Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again (with that famous refrain), Coming Down, Take A Long Line, After The Rain, Shadow Boxer, No Secrets, Face The Day, Marseilles.

We remember, in particular, an early Angels gig at the Charles Hotel in Perth sometime in '78, just after the seminal Face To Face was released. The room held 800, 900 at a push, they crammed 1500 in, there were another 600 outside. The only space was the standing place. The Angels hit a stage that would have been small for a trio yet alone a quintet. Doc - white shirt, black pants - was rubbery figure on heat, the place erupted, the sweat drenched right through the skin, as the crowd rose you rose - as they fell you fell. T'was some kind of night, some of kind of ritual, some kind of animal. Rock. Pub rock - born and bred of the hundreds of pig pen, sticky carpeted, dingy holes with shit acoustics, of slogging it out for months on end back and forth, up and down the seaboards. It was part of tradition and part of learning the craft.

Unfortunately, time, economics and cultural change have diminished the circuit, and the possibilities. the Angels stand as a reminder of what once was and could be - and they represent what it takes to last. To fight ignorance, radio stupidity, the fickle nature of fad and style, and to believe that you have what it takes: despite a bunch of know-alls trying to tell you that you don't.

So they're back - and that's a great thing. First the single, next the album - which by all accounts is a ball-tearer and has some wise old men of the industry sitting up in surprise, and a tour, The Barbed Wire Ball, which kicks off on November 17 with another band who've come to understand the nature of fighting to exist and the utter tone deafness of radio programmers, The Screaming Jets. What a show. The Jets also grew the hard way on the circuit and they've always cut it live better than many. Put 'em together and the sparks are gonna fly. Could be some damn fine jam sessions too!!!

By Mike Gee          
 

In the "strange bedfellows department, Shook have inked the Angels a long term worldwide deal. The announcement was mad on Tuesday at a press conference at Sydney's Metro Theatre by Shook managing directors David Williams and Andrew McGee. A single, 'Caught In The Night' is released on October 13, with an album out February. "I think the Angels in 1997 are a relevant force in Australian music", say Williams. Added Angels drummer and manager Brent Eccles, "We have been talking to Andrew and David for quite some and were ultimately convinced by their genuine enthusiasm for the band and project.  We know we had a great record coming, and naturally we wanted to be sure it got the best possible shot. also it's great to be in the same company as Frenzal Rhomb!" Shock is the Angels fourth label, after Albert, Sony and Mushroom.

By Christie Eliezer          
 

City gears for top shows
1 April 1997

Mugs Make Their Showing For The Archibald
10 March 1997