ONE of Australia's most enduring pop bands is on its way back to the Hunter.
Mental As Anything has been delivering the goods since it performed for the first time in 1977.
The band will crank out its long list of hits at Edgeworth Bowling Club on April 8.
The Mentals, now comprising Martin Plaza, Greedy Smith, Mike Caen, Robbie Souter and David `Duck' Barraclough, are responsible for dozens of classic hits including The Nips Are Getting Bigger, If You Leave Me Can I Come Too?, Live It Up, Too Many Times, He's Just No Good For You, Rock and Roll Music and Mr Natural. Late last year the band released the acoustic album Plucked as part of the Liberation Blue acoustic series which featured its hits recorded with guitar, banjo, ukulele, mandolin, harmonica, piano and drums.
``I think it sounds fresh because, being '80s recordings, a lot of these songs were originally done with drum machines,'' Smith said.
``Because we hadn't played them acoustically before, we went with this idea that however we first played them was how they were supposed to be.
``We sat down in our little lock- up with two microphones and recorded everything we could think of.
``A few of those made it untouched, the rest we recorded more nicely, but it was quick.
There wasn't much soul- searching.'' The band is now working on another album of new songs.
Tickets to Mental as Anything cost $15 and are available at the club.
|
