Best known for their 1971 hit version of
"This Wheel's On Fire", Sydney band Flake is remembered by those who
saw them as one of the most accomplished and versatile ensembles of
the period, capable of performing the latest pop hits or the music
of Jefferson Airplane with equal assurance.
Flake came to prominence at a time of change,
both in Australia and internationally, as "pop" was diversifying
into distinct new genres like heavy rock and progressive rock. As a
result, their repertoire covered an extraordinarily wide of
contemporary styles, from melodic pop, through blues, soul and R&B
to psychedelia, 'prog' and heavy rock.
The group began in late 1968 when drummer Wayne Thomas quit Sydney
band Plastic Tears to form his own group. He recruited four other
players he knew - singer Geoff Gray and bassist Laurie Sinclair (ex
The Eli) and organist Rob Toth and guitarist Lindsay Askew (ex The
Seen).
The new band rehearsed solidly for three months
but Laurie Sinclair was forced to drop out before their first gig
due to the fact that his father died, his house burned down, he
split up with his girlfriend and he had been called up for the Army,
all in the space of one week!
Thomas called in Plastic Tears bassist Mick Gaul to replace
Sinclair, and the new line-up was completed when Wayne's friend
Steve Williams introduced the band to singer Sharon Sims. She had
done some guest spots with Steve's band The Good Intents and he was
hoping to further her career by getting her a spot in the new group.
Needless to say, Sharon's scorching soul voice blew them away and
she joined in time for their first official gig at Shrublands Hall
in Marrickville on 14 November 1968.
The band's name had been decided only three weeks
earlier, and it was taken from the classic 1968 Small Faces LP
Ogden's Nut Gone Flake. It was not, as is sometimes claimed,
inspired by the well-known brand of chocolate bar of the same name
(which in fact did not hit the Australian market until about a year
later).
Flake quickly rose to prominence in Sydney was at its peak, both
musically and in popularity during 1969-70. They entered the 1969
2UW "Bands To Watch" competition, and defeated forty other local
groups to take out first place, beating runners-up Daisy Roots by
just one point.
There were several changes of personnel during 1969. Mick Gaul left
the band and was replaced by Denis Moore (recently returned from the
USA) who was known to Thomas from his time with Sydney band Him &
The Others. Not long after, Lindsay Askew and Rob Toth both left due
to the difficulties of balancing work and band commitments, all the
members somehow managed to hold down day-jobs, and Toth subsequently
joined Samael Lilith.
Askew and Toth were replaced by Dave Allen (flute, sax) and Ross
Jeffries (guitar), both from Fred Karniss Army, but Jeffries was not
'in synch' with Flake's style and bowed out after a few rehearsals.
Through Denis Moore, the band recruited guitarist John Russell (ex
Amber). Next to leave was Sharon Sims, who had been lured away to
another band, so Thomas 'pinched' another member from Fred Karniss,
singer Denise Caines.
Not long after Denise joined Sharon Sims returned after her other
venture went 'belly-up'. After some negotiation it was decided to
expand the group to seven-piece. Fortunately Denise and Sharon got
on well, and their distinctive but complementary vocal styles
enabled Flake to tackle an even broader range of material. Now
boasting a unique three-voice frontline, Flake was capable of
tackling a remarkable breadth of material.
Sharon's soulful voice was ideal for classics
like "River Deep, Mountain High" and "Respect", while Denise
excelled on songs like Jefferson Airplane's "Somebody To Love" and
"White Rabbit" and Flake was of the only Sydney band at the time
that could pump out note-perfect renditions of this and other
challenging like Traffic, Spooky Tooth, Jethro Tull, The Moody
Blues, Rotary Connection, Vanilla Fudge and Deep Purple.
Flake's only LP How's Your Mother? was finally released on Erdman's
Violet's Holiday label in December 1971, although the double
pressures of touring and maintaining day jobs gave the band little
time to record, so there was not much new material and the album was
filled out by tracks from the earlier Singles.
By the end of the 1972 Flake had split up, with Wayne Thomas going
on to to form a new band, Mr Madness, which was effectively a
reunion of most of the original Flake -- Lindsay Askew, Mick Gaul
and Rob Toth -- plus Roy Ritchie on guitar.
In early 1973 a new Flake lineup was formed by Billy Taylor and John
Russell, with Ted Atkinson (bass) and Jim Penson (drums, ex
Blackfeather, but by mid-year the line-up had changed to include two
other former Blackfeather members, bassist Warren Ward (ex Flying
Circus) and singer Neale Johns.
This new Flake recorded one hard-rock single,
"Scotch On The Rocks", which was released on Festival's Infinity
imprint in February 1974. This last version of the group broke up at
the end of '74, with Taylor subsequently joining Neale Johns in a
new formation of Blackfeather in 1975.
1. This Wheels On Fire
2. You’ve Got Me Thinking
3. Story
4. Dream If You Can
5. See The Light
6. Under The Silent Tree
7. Where Are You
8. Say Goodbye
9. Reflections Of My Life
10. Life Is Getting Better
11. To Be The One You Love (Sharon’s solo)
12. Where Are You (Sharon’s solo version)
13. Teach Me How To Fly
14. Quick Reaction
15. Down In Rio
16. How’s Your Mother
17. Breadabane
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