The Fun Things

Recently I was browsing eBay and I became quite heavily depressed when I saw some great Aussie punk 7-inch singles and EPs and the prices they were going for. I knew then and there that there was probably no chance, ever, that I was going to own the original vinyl of some of this great music. A lot of this music has been reissued on amazing CDs like 4ZZZ-FM's long out of print album "Behind The Banana Curtain" and on Tim Pittman's essential 2 volume "Tales from The Australian Underground" albums. However, it is not quite the same as owning the original vinyl.

Last night on eBay, a seller offered an original copy of a 7-inch, 4-track EP by an obscure Brisbane band called The Fun Things. It was only pressed in a limited edition of 500 copies originally in 1980. It was repressed in another limited edition circa 2000, but only of 1000 copies. The auction for the record closed at 9pm last night and the winning bidder paid AU$1626.50, plus $3.95 postage. No matter how desperate I was to own this, I just couldn't justify that amount of money on a 7-inch vinyl EP.

Why is this record so sought after?

Well, for a start, the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist in the band is a guy named Brad Shepherd. This little record would probably have been consigned to the dustbins of history if only he hadn't have joined a little Sydney pub band called the Hoodoo Gurus and went on to be internationally successful within said band.

The other reason it is in such demand is that, well, the music just @#$%ing ROCKS!!! By 1980, when this was released, most of the east coast bands were still enthralled with Radio Birdman and the Saints. The Fun Things were no exception. In fact, the lead track on their only EP was called "When The Birdmen Fly", a deliberate tribute to Deniz Tek and his crew. However, what you have in the grooves is raw, unbridled, teenage angst, rebellion, sweat and passion. It's raw, unpolished, and it just plain kicks ass.

Brad would probably blush at the thought of someone gushing over his naive teenage exuberance, but let's face it, the closing track on the EP, "Savage", is one of the greatest songs ever cut in the country, bar none.

I really hope the buyer of that copy of the EP really treasures it and looks after it well. A hell of a lot of other people would love to own it, but sadly that won't be the case. Anyway, enough laments - check out The Fun Things in all their ragged glory with "Savage".

Enjoy!