The Musick Express — “Jackie’s Thing”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — February 16, 2023

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

733) Musick Express — “Jackie’s Thing”

The Musick Express’ wonderful one and only A-side reached the top 100 in Australia in ’70 and sounds soooooo Bowie-esque! It’s a Jackie thing, you wouldn’t understand!

Kimbo tells us that:

Forming in Adelaide in the late 60s, The Musick Express became very popular with their South Australian audiences. A group lucky enough to be around when the Adelaide scene was still at its peak. . . . [they] played at most of the top venues during the late sixties including The Scene. They appeared on many TV shows, gigged extensively in Melbourne and toured throughout Australia.  They headed to Sydney as house band for the controversial stage production of Oh Calcutta!  The band rehearsed the show for a month, however, Mr Justice Little in the Supreme Court described the show as “filth” and granted an injunction. What would have been the first production of the show outside the United States was closed before it opened and 80 cast and crew were dismissed.  This proved to be the end of the group. They released one single on the Columbia label ”Jackie’s Thing” in 1970 written by their guitarist Trevor McNamara.

Their only single “Jackie’s Thing/How Does Paternity Suit You” reached the Top 100 in 1970 but they quit soon afterwards. . . . [McNamara] then recorded enough material for a solo album, ‘Yeah Captain’ which was finally released in 1971 on the little Nationwide label and was highly touted by those who have heard it.

http://historyofaussiemusic.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-musick-express.html; http://historyofaussiemusic.blogspot.com/2013/09/trevor-mcnamara.html

As to Trevor, Kimbo says that:

[His] career started in the 1960s Adelaide group Five Sided Circle. During that time he also wrote “H.M.S. Buffalo”, picked up by psychedelic band Inside Looking Out for their last single. He left after two years and formed Musick Express.

http://historyofaussiemusic.blogspot.com/2013/09/trevor-mcnamara.html

And the liner notes to the CD reissue of Yeah Captain relate that:

[Trevor] . . . . played in a band called 5 Sided Circle which was considered unique and ahead of its time in the ‘mod era’ of music. He left after two years and formed a 4-piece band called Musik Express. . . . He left Musik Express to stage a rock opera called ‘Piano’ which he wrote. After ‘Piano’, Trevor was urged to record, and the album ‘Yeah Captain’ was made – Trevor was then 19. His work had been featured on many recordings, film scores, opera and a wide range of commercials in Australia. . . . ‘Yeah Captain’ was made in 1969, and was the first album of its type produced in Australia. All songs were written and performed by Trevor McNamara. . . . [and he] sang and played all instruments . . . . The albums was a milestone in Australia, but Trevor never liked it.

Here is Trevor McNamara’s solo version:

Here is Inside Looking Out’s “H.M.S Buffalo”:

I have added a Facebook page for Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock! If you like what you read and hear and feel so inclined, please visit and “like” my Facebook page by clicking here.

Pay to Play! The Off the Charts Spotify Playlist! + Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock Merchandise

Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).

The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.

When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.

Just click on the first blue block for a month to month subscription or the second blue block for a yearly subscription.