He defined the psychedelic sound of the Australian counter-culture movement and became an icon in the process. Nearly half a century later and Russell Morris is still the real thing.
In 1969, Russell released Australia’s only true, psychedelic number one hit, ‘The Real Thing’, produced by Molly Meldrum.
Still going strong as an in-demand live performer both here and overseas, Russell says the key to his longevity has been keeping his set fresh and new. “I’m interested in changing things because I’m not one of those guys that can be content to play the same set night, after night, after night, it sends me crazy,” he says.
“There’s a lot of acts around you go see, then you see them again six months later and they’re playing the same songs exactly. I can’t do that, it drives me nuts and the same thing goes for the sound; I really need the sound to change to keep me stimulated.”
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In 2012, Russell embarked on the latest chapter of his illustrious career with the release of ‘Sharkmouth’, a blues-based album telling the stories of some of Australia’s famous and lesser known historical characters.
The first in his critically-acclaimed ‘Blues Trilogy’, ‘Sharkmouth’ was followed in quick succession by ‘Van Diemen’s Land’ in 2014, and final instalment ‘Red Dirt - Red Heart’ in 2015.
This month, Russell embarks on a national tour. “I’m playing the new stuff and it’s been accepted by crowds, which is really pleasing to me because… for a while there when I tried new stuff prior to the ‘Blues’ albums, people really wouldn’t accept me doing anything new, but now it’s been fabulous.
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“I do a cross-section, because as a performer I believe I have to wear two hats. People pay money to come see me play and the last thing I want is for them to go home and go ‘he didn’t play this and I didn’t get my money’s worth’. So I tend to throw in some of the old songs, not all of them but a few; it’s mainly ‘Blues’ but to keep some people happy I throw in the old stuff.”
Russell has also found an expanding fan base in North America where he has been touring for a number of years. While here Russell is the stuff of legend, in the States he found his relative anonymity a major drawcard for securing a new generation of followers. “I enjoyed playing overseas because people there didn’t know any of my history or anything about me, so they took everything as new which was great.
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“The other thing was, there was a younger audience overseas and they don’t know who I am so they don’t have any preconceived ideas.”
With the ‘Blues Trilogy’ recounting purely Australian tales, Russell had concerns when initially performing in America that the stories wouldn’t breach the cultural barrier.
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However, he found with a touch of true-blue humour, anything is possible. “I really didn’t know what to do because I didn’t think these songs would relate,” he says. “So for one song about the wild colonial boy, Jack Doolan, I’d tell them that in Australia we had things similar to in America in that we were settled like them but the big difference is we weren’t free settlers, we were convicts.
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“So I’d tell them: ‘For those people who will be talking to the band after the show, please keep your hands on your wallets and watches’,” he laughs, “because old habits die hard.”
Russell Morris Tour Dates
Wed 6 Jul - Birdsville Big Red BashFri 8 Jul - Hamilton Hotel (Brisbane)
Sat 9 Jul - Twin Towns (Gold Coast)
Fri 5 Aug - SS&A Club (Albury)
Sat 6 Aug - Home Tavern (Wagga Wagga)
Thu 11 Aug - The Norwood Hotel (Adelaide)
