Neil Finn & Dave Dobbyn (Party Boys) - Live 1985 (aud)

The Party Boys

Wellington, N.Z.

September 18, 1985

audience recording (quality: GD+ to VG-)

01 What's the Matter With You? (cuts in)

The Party Boys with Dave Dobbyn
before Neil joined in '85

02 Devil You Know

03 Mercury Blues (KC Douglas cover)

04 Love You Like I Should

05 Me and Bobby McGee (Roger Miller cover)

06 I Got You / Pretty Woman (Roy Orbison cover) 

07 Steal Yourself

08 Can't Carry On

09 Dancing Days (Led Zeppelin cover)

10 Be Mine Tonight

11 I Walk Away

12 Petticoat Junction (TV show theme)

13 Daydream Believer (Monkees cover)

14 Not Fade Away (Buddy Holly cover)

15 Now We're Getting Somewhere

16 Fire (Jimi Hendrix cover)

17 Bliss

18 Love Me Two Times (The Doors cover)

19 One Love (+ next song intro)

20 History Never Repeats

21 Hang Onto Yourself (David Bowie cover)

ROB SEZ: Can't have a 1980s & 1990s-centric N.Z. music series without posting this one. The recording goes back to the time just after the demise of Split Enz. Neil Finn had formed The Mullanes, but not yet signed to Capitol Records or changed the band's name to Crowded House. Meanwhile, Dave Dobbyn & friends began touring in 1984 as "The Party Boys" (kind of an odd name, since Jenny Morris was a member). Neil joined for the band's tour in Sept. & Oct. of 1985. This recording's sound quality isn't up to my usual standards, but the fun of hearing these two Kiwi legends playing & singing so many classic covers — and some of their own originals — makes up for what's lacking. Please enjoy.

FLAC

MP3@320

Finn Brothers - Mood Swinging Men (live comp)

Neil & Tim Finn
'Mood Swinging Men'
fanclub-only live comp, 1995-1996
various dates & venues: UK, USA, N.Z. & Australia

soundboard recordings (quality: Ex-)

ROB SEZ: Way back when, I purchased this directly from the Finn Brothers / Crowded House fanclub, and I just sold it to help pay some bills. It's never seen a general/commercial release, and is impossible to find at a reasonable price. I ripped it before I sold it, so of course I'm sharing it here. Please enjoy this tuneful treat. (You can find another Finn Brothers share I posted at the blog a few years ago HERE.)

FLAC

MP3@320

Crowded House - Winterthur 1991 (sbd) + bonus

'Stage Time'

Albani Musicclub

Winterthur, Switzerland

Oct. 28, 1991

    

soundboard recording (quality Ex-; ripped from my original silver boot CDs)

SAMPLE: "It's Only Natural" (live 1991)

01 Tall Trees

Crowded House: then there were 4 when Tim joined

02 Something So Strong

03 Weather With You

04 Into Temptation

05 There Goes God

06 World Where You Live 

07 It's Only Natural

08 All I Ask

09 Don't Dream It's Over

10 Mean to Me

11 When You Come

12 Chocolate Cake

13 Fall at Your Feet*

14 Sister Madly (with classical solo)

15 How'm I Gonna Sleep?

16 I See Red (brief)

17 The Weeping Song (brief)

18 Better Be Home Soon

19 Throw Your Arms Around Me

20 Four Seasons In One Day

*The song "The Same Language As Me" follows "Fall at Your Feet" in the original running order. However, that performance is omitted from this share because it was officially released on the recent Together Alone album reissue.

TT: 1 hr. 33 mins.

The House got a little too Crowded when Tim joined

ROB SEZ: Recorded during the brief period in the band's history when Neil's brother Tim joined Crowded House for the Woodface album and tour. Although histories of the group say it was an awkward period for band dynamics, I think it made for some pretty great music, as evidenced in this recording, with superb sound quality. Add a couple of rare songs, and you have an ROIO to treasure.

Crowded House:

Neil Finn - vocals, guitar

Tim Finn - vocals, guitar

Paul Hester (R.I.P.) - drums, 
                   backing vocals 

Nick Seymour - bass, backing vocals

Mark Hart - keyboards, backing vocals

(Mark H. became an official member of the band after the recording of the Woodface album)

MP3@320

The Mullanes

Homestead Hotel

Brisbane, Australia 

May 26, 1985

audience recording (sound quality VG-; vocals somewhat distant & there's plenty of crowd noise — but this is musical history, people!!)

01 Recurring Dream 

02 Can't Carry On 

03 Oblivion 

04 One Step Ahead 

05 Seen You Before 

06 Breaking My Back 

07 Return (The Reels cover) 

08 That's What I Call Love 

09 Left Hand 

10 Hello Sandy Allen (Split Enz cover) 

11 Galfriend 

12 Not Fade Away 

13 improv 

15 Walking On the Spot 

16 Now We're Getting Somewhere 

17 This is Massive

18 The Creek Song*

*Track 18 = bonus track, rarely-played song, live at The Tivoli, Sydney, NSW, AUS 1985-05-29 (aud)

ROB SEZ: After Split Enz and before Crowded House, there was the short-lived Mullanes (Mullane is Neil Finn's middle name). After dismissing guitarist Craig Hooper and refining the band's sound, Crowded House was born in late 1985. In this rare recording, you hear the origins of Neil Finn's most popular musical vehicle. Mega thanks to the taper, Atlasstar and simplewisdom for sharing, and the amazing Janemusic for providing so much rare Enz/Crowdies/Finns music over the years.

MP3@320

Learn more about the music of Crowded House at 
Neil Finn's official site, the Crowded House FB page 
& the amazing Frenz fan site 

   

Crowded House - M T V Spring Break 1987

M T V Spring Break
Daytona Beach, FL 
March 28, 1987

TV audio (sound quality VG+; ripped from hifi stereo source; some distortion here & there)

01 intro by M T V veejay (fades in)
02 This Is Massive
03 When You Come
04 Mean to Me
05 World Where You Live
06 That's What I Call Love
07 One Step Ahead
08 Recurring Dream
09 Something So Strong
10 Hole In the River
11 Don't Dream It's Over
12 Now We're Getting Somewhere 
13 Throw Your Arms Around Me
14 Better Be Home Soon

TT: 59:06 mins.

Crowded House:
Neil Finn - vocals, guitar
Paul Hester - drums, vocals (R.I.P.)
Nick Seymour - bass, vocals
with Eddie Rayner - keyboards

ROB SEZ: Man, were Crowded House good! I've been a fan since almost the beginning, but I forgot just how musically sharp they were until I dusted off this vintage recording. Here's what I want to know: how on earth could this have taken place 30 years ago?!? I can still remember watching this show when it was first broadcast and thinking "Yeah, they've got it." Decades later, Neil Finn & Co. recorded some strong music in the band's post-Paul-Hester incarnation. Even though Crowded House is on hiatus after last year's big shows in Sydney, we've still got the new double-disc reissues of the albums to enjoy. Look for a hidden bonus set somewhere around here, available now, and expect more rare CH goodies in a few days...

MP3@320

Learn more about Crowded House's music

at the band's official site, FB page 
and the amazing Frenz fan site

     

Dave Dobbyn - Revolver Studio 1994 + Best Live Comp

Live TV special

Revolver Studio

Auckland, New Zealand 

November 1994

web stream, audio rip from master video source (sound quality Ex-)

Dave Dobbyn: find out why DD is a living legend in his native New Zealand

It's good to have friends like Neil & Tim Finn 
to promote your music.

01 Bell Tower

02 Don't Hold Your Breath

03 Language

04 Loyal

05 Naked Flame (with Emma Paki) 

06 Lap of the Gods

07 It Dawned On Me

08 Rain On Fire

09 Whaling

10 Protection

11 P.C.

12 I Can't Change My Name

Musicians:

Dave Dobbyn - guitar, 
                keyboard, vocals

Dave Gent - bass

Jay Foulkes - percussion

Joel Winton - drums

special guests:

Neil Finn - guitar, keyboard, vocals 

Tim Finn - vocals, guitar, shaker

Emma Paki - vocals

WANT A SAMPLE? Play this 3-song video...

ROB SEZ: I was amazed & pleased to find a master video source to snag this, my all-time favorite ROIO for New Zealander Dave Dobbyn. Don't know Dave? Suffice it to say he's a living legend in New Zealand & Australia, for good reason. The guy has a soulful voice, high-quality song writing chops, a great sense of humor ("P.C." indeed!), and knows when to get loud & when to keep it dialed back. This set comes from a live TV special featuring Tim & Neil Finn, who produced Dave's then-current album Twist. The big promotional push that accompanied the album didn't really work to get Dave known beyond Australasia. But some Crowded House & Finn Brothers fans like me were paying attention back in the 1990s, and we caught the bug. I still play Dave's 1998 album The Islander — a perennial Top 10 Album for me. Dave is making some great music this many years later, evidenced by the more recent tracks in the live radio & TV comp below...

Think of Dave Dobbyn as New Zealand's musical Yoda

Dave Dobbyn

Best Radio & TV Sessions

1999 to 2015

various locales

FM, soundboard & web stream sources (sound quality range VG+ to Ex-)

01 Blind Man's Bend (live on P.A. Radio)

02 Loyal (love songs documentary)

03 Tell the World (live on Radio NZ 2015)

04 Angelina (live on Radio NZ 2015)

05 Kingdom Come (live on 
      Radio NZ 2015)

06 Whaling (live on Radio NZ 2015)

07 Welcome Home (live on National Anthem)

08 Beside You (live on National Anthem)

Here is your clue re: the mystery bonus set

09 Mobile Home (live on NZ One)

10 Lap of the Gods (live at 
       Roundhead 2007) 

11 Waiting (live on NZ G4)

12 Pour the Wine (live 2005)

13 Whaling (live on Rockwiz)

14 Welcome Home (live on Waitangi 
       Day with Emma Paki) 

15 mystery bonus track

MP3@320

Learn more about the music of Dave Dobbyn at his official site, Wikipedia and AllMusic

   

Finn Bros - KCRW Sessions 2004 + 2007

Tim & Neil Finn
'Morning Becomes Eclectic' 
KCRW-FM
Santa Monica, CA

July 15, 2004 (Neil & Tim)
and May 3, 2007 (Tim)

FM recordings (sound quality VG+)


ROB SEZ: Given how much I love their music, it's almost shameful to realize this is the first post featuring at least one of the Finns brothers. Here, you get two for the price of none.

MY USUAL EXPANSIVE THANKS to Don and Mick (who assembled the collection & created the artwork) for making these available originally, and for giving me permission to do so here.

MP3@320

This is ASH Tuesday post #13.