The Life and Times of Peter Green
Archive: 22 July - 6 August 1996
JULY 22nd
Its nice to be home-the first thing I notice is the Winter chill on the breeze. I thought about this as I sipped my cocktail under a California Palmtree..brrrr Melbourne can be cold. Despite the four seasons in one day its great to be home. It was a good tour-I really enjoyed myself and thankfully there were enough distractions to keep me busy. Mark has been looking after the office and apart from several bags of mail its functioning (dare I say this) better with me being absent!! The first thing I do with the remainder of my per diems is to pick up my Sony Playstation that has been on layby (boy do I have my priorities right-I should be paying the phone bill!!). The first game I buy is the ALIEN trilogy-very cool! Email from Johnny and Cameron in the UK. An independant label called GUT REACTION-has shown interest over one of Johnnys songs- "Comet Alice"-quirky they say. Semms I've heard that word before. Fingers crossed that this is the one that gets him signed. My car (Grey Ghost) kicks into life after ten minutes of trying-she needs to be driven and seems to have a mind of its own. Probably because I've been driving a Van on tour and she is jealous of the other four wheeled company I've been keeping.
JULY 23RD
Dean at EMI has managed to "misplace" some of my Crowdies trannis that I lent them for the Sun article. I get so pissed off when they praticularly beg you for photos etc and you explain they are "one offs" and you do the right thing by lending them and they show lack of appreciation by "misplacing" them and make you feel like you are hassling them. Well fuck you EMI- no more favours.(Maybe) Hmmm should be happy as Crowdies are #1 for the second week everywhere. Must be PMT. Notice that ENZso has dropped one spot to #5. Still two in the top 5 IS a good feeling. Stare at Rebeccas ceramic pot and am trying to be inspired as to what to do with it-colour, collage etc etc. Put it away for another day.
JULY 24th
Nice to hear Amanda's voice at Grants office-he's very lucky the office team in Sydney are really good-they work exceptionally hard and deal with some incredible pains in the bum people (like myself). Claire from EMI (UK) calls and tells me that the "Not the Girl..." release is also on glorious WHITE vinyl. There was talk about it being on Orange vinyl-but its ended up as white. Pay home morgage repayment-see just like everyone else I owe the bank! Sultana Bran for breakfast..add bananas.
JULY 25th
Greg Macainsh drops in-he's been riding that bike again. he's wearing a yellow riding outfit and I tell him he looks like someone from DEVO. he looks very healthy these days-must be all the riding. Hope Mushroom releases the Skyhooks material they have locked away in the vaults-some of Gregs songs are equal to the "Living in the seventies" period...especially one track called "Kooyong Dollar" (Kooyong is a Melbourne Suburb for all you International readers). Glenn A Baker (who works under the strange title of "Rock Brain of the UNiverse") sends me a letter. He is working on an Enz project and needs my "expertise" I am intrigued.Will call him later.
JULY 26th Australia is starting to flex its muscles at the Olympic Games-hope the womens Hockey Team does well. My Mums an old school Hockey player so I'm sure she will know how they do. Spend most of today pushing the Crowdies album and Enzso at "store level". Leanne from perth calls and the Hay Street Brashes Store is starting to look like it ONLY sells Crowdies and ENZso-the whole shop is done out. World domination at last. Make arrangements for Marks birthday.
JULY27th
Marks birthday-Hairball lets him sleep in. Calls and people all day. At 5.oo a suprise "blue black" limo. arrives at the house and heads towards the suite at an inner city Hotel. On the way it picks up various friends-Rebecca,Fran, Spock and Katie. The wolfblass is opened and JJJ bursts out of the speakers. RockN Roll party dudes!!!!! The suite is the same one weve all used before-several rooms,big spa and an incredible view of Melbourne. The trees are full of pixie lights and the city towers are covered by a luminous cloud that sprinkles a fine mist rain on the theatre crowds (is that descriptive enough). People arrive all night-the Girls(Jen and Merl), Rosemarree ,Kim and Andrew. Andrew is a friend of our crew person-Dougald and also has worked with BCO-so he's already family. Toija and Marco-its never ending. By mistake we all drink the extra hotel bottles of champayne (they too were Wolfblass) so I expect a huge room bill when we check out....a great night.
JULY 28th
We drive the Grey Ghost past the Elephant and see Spock and Rosemaree at a table so we call in. I cant remember this but we were all suppose to meet there next morning. Over the next hour friends wander in and we soon fill the tables. Becky invites me to a record launch on Thursday. leanne at Brashes Perth calls and is sending me a video of the staff with their ENZSo/Crombie Haircuts.........thats so bizarre.
JULY 29th
Im meant to be at Richard Pleasance shoot today-as A DRAG Queen. Spend yesterday "In costume" (OK I loved it!!!). Its a terrible Monday-really flooding down and the film shoot is at a laundromat at Prahran. It has these great steel machines-all chrome. Richard messes it up and overbooks extras-so I decide I couldn't be stuffed getting drowned. Maz says it was terrible. They used an Elvis and Marilyn impersonator-gee how original (yawn). Bet it doesn't do anything on the charts. So any BIG bands that require a "one day a year" drag queen-I have a vacancy (GRIN). Paul from Sony calls and the next ENZso release will be "Stuff & Nonsense". Its a radio single ONLY at this stage. The ENZSO album is nearing double platinum in NZ and there will be a presentation mid-August. Glenn A Baker calls- and we talk about his "project". Its still not confirmed and I need to speak to Grant about it-it is a great idea and it will satisfy all the ENZ fans that want ENZ related material-will kiss and tell later. Dont want to say "it" if it doesn't happen.
JULY 30th
Charts are in-bright and early. Crowdies are still #1 with "Recurring Dream", and ENZso has dropped one spot to #6. ENZso has also gone gold. We were looking at getting it gold around this date-right on scedule-we'll be able to release the FEB. ENZso Australian tour dates soon. Just "ironing out" a few tour wrinkles...
JULY 31st
Dianne tells me that the lucky 1500th person has clicked on the site-I wonder who it is.....hopefully they've printed the title page with the number on it and mailed it to us. Weve had a lot of people asking about the "Famous for Sixteen" tshirts-at this stage you CANT get them anywhere. We'll consider it-but at the moment they have been VERY limited.....its called making you beg...no not really we just want Calvin to call us and beg for one..... Mexican for dinner-discover "chocolate tarcos"-Alison and myself pig out. Mark uses his birthday coupon for a freebie.
AUGUST 1st
Jacqui-Liam and Elroys ex-Nany drops in-she's looking good and is considering a career move to hairdressing. Jacqui's great-a really good sense of humour. Noel and Sally Crombie drop in. Noels here to sign the ENZso cds. They both arrive in different cars with a seperate Crombie child in each. "Heddie" and "Grisilda" two very beautiful kids (yes with weird names-would you expect the standard name these Crombie kids have a lot to live up to). Noel has been helping a friend in the Dandenongs (Melb. mountain range)-a huge storm ripped through last night and sent very large trees crashing down on peoples homes. Noels friend ended up with a tree in their bedroom. Noel is talking about possibly creating new costumes for the ENZso tour-if the guys get their measurements to him on time! In the evning I go to the album launch with Rebecca-its at the Espy. and the first band on are "REbeccas Empire"-has two familiar faces in the band. One is Billy Miller who was in a late seventies Aussi band called The Ferrets (they had a #1 single called "Dont fall in Love"). The second person is Ex-Schnell Fenster man -Michael Den Elzin. "Rebeccas Empire" are good-they have potential. Tex Perkins was on next-I used to really like him when he was in "Beaststs of BOurbon" and even some of "The Cruel Seas" songs were good-but his solo album is too preidctable-we got bored and left. Instead of going home we called into the Duke of Windsor where Ex-Model Sean Kelly was playing. Joining him was the legendary Andrew Duffield (also of the Models),a drummer(?) and some very hip girl on a double-Bass. In walks Billy Miller (again) plugs in and has a play. A familiar shape is at the front table-her red thick coat, a foot of re-growth in her Hair and "those "glasses. Yieks its Vivienne-yes my own valerie Solaris . The girl that tried to kill me with a telephone. During the last song I go and say hi-everyone thought I was mad,but she looked a bit sad sitting by herself, and I always bring stray puppies home! We chatted and thankfully there was no telephone in sight. A good night. Home by 1.00.
AUGUST 2nd
Grant calls from L.A.-he enjoyed the Olympics and was back in work mode. He tells me there was a bombscare at the Sunset Marquis and everyone was out on the sidewalk at 10.00. He told me he saw my "mate" Morrissey sitting on the gutter-god knows what he said. I havent seen Moz for a longgggggg time.
AUGUST 3rd
FAVE BOOK-"Servant of the Bones"-Anne Rice (Time travelling Fallen Angels!)
ALBUM-"Tails" -Leisa Loeb, "REcurring Dream"-Crowded House
PERSON-Cathy Freeman (Olympic Champion)
FOOD-Neamish tarts
DRUG-Vitamin A (For computer eyes)
Fashion Piece- 3D Confederate Necklace.(Beverly centre)
CREEP(Y)-Judith Reisman & the American Family Association
MOST PATHETIC ACT-Aust.PM John Howard severly cutting back $$$ to the ABC and possibly destroying JJJ and several music related tv shows.
AUGUST 4th
Great show on the ABC on American artists-good retro. on Warhol. Breakfast with Skyhook Greg Macainsh. Lend him hippy top and granny glasses for mysterious project. Maz from Boom Crash Opera calls in-he's going to be in an upcoming issue of DRUMScene-hope he makes it onto the cover. No new BCO CD till 1997, waiting on a big name producer (hint he's worked with Crowded House).
AUGUST 5th
Grant is back in the office today-bet it helps to keep the CRowded House album at #1. The main opposition is DION and MOrrisette. Watch the debut show of "The Hub" on cable tv. Interesting report on the increasing popularity of human branding and scarification...I think my Gryphon tattoo will do fine for the time being. Nick Seymour should be home soon-notice he;s been expressing his opinion on the split to the papers....has Neil in his sights. Its a hard call-Neil has to do what Neil has to do.......
AUGUST 6th
Send out 100 signed ENZso CDS-been mailing these all day. Orders are still coming in for the CRowded House "Best Of" with bonus LIVE CD. Both NZ and Australia have now ran out of the bonus CD-the club ordered heaps-so we still have a bit of stock left. Just got our charts in- Crowdies are still at #1 thanks to Western Australia, Sth Australia and QLD. We hung in there by our fingertips-DION has made a dash for the line but fell short. A month at #1, that must make EMI happy . Hopefully the House boys will see this as a sign to give us a show or two. NOTHING is confirmed-but we are trying our best. I dont think it will happen to later this year (my guess is NOV.) In what form who knows-in fact with what lineup.....? Guess we'll know by the time the next newsletter goes out in OCT. Peter Wilmot from The Age called and wanted to run through the article they are running with this Sundays AGE (Aug. 11th). Some great honest quotes from Neil and Paul (both were interviewed). Peter used to live with Paul many years ago,in fact it was Mr Wilmot that penned the Countdown Book (the ABC-that word again... ...Music Programme). Anyway keep an eye peeled for the article this Sunday. "Everything is Good for you" still sits in the top 40-its getting closer to a GOLD award-and its only going to have an Australian release-so it will be THE collector item to swap/have later on. A good investment folks. Thats it for now, you'll all be happy to know that my "cactus finger" has gone....I think the spike is still in there somewhere (hope it doesn't start growing-like the face sucker from the Alien movie). Be good, be Safe.-Luv Peter