THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,682) Gene Pierson — “Matchstick in a Whirlpool”
This New Zealand-only B-side by Venice-born immigrant to Australia Gene Pierson — in NZ to escape being drafted — is a soaring pop rock confection.
Kimbo writes of Pierson:
Gene Pierson was born Giancarlo Salvestrin . . . in Venice . . . . [H]is father . . . migrated to Australia and in January 1950, when Giancarlo was four, Pierson and his mother followed, settling in Griffith. In 1963 Pierson, under the stage name Gene Chandler, won a talent quest at Skelseys Hotel, singing “Mashed Potato”, in the western suburbs of Sydney . . . . He was given a regular solo spot at the hotel, where he was approached by guitarist Graham Ford to [join] . . . The Inturns. . . . Pierson was then offered a six-month resident spot at The Bowl nightclub in Pitt Street, Sydney. In December 1965 Pierson received news that his father . . . had a brain tumor and meanwhile Pierson was due to be conscripted into the army to serve in Vietnam. . . . [F]ollowing advice from The La De Das [see #216, 846, 946] guitarist Kevin Borich, he travelled to New Zealand . . . . Running low on cash in Auckland, he bluffed his way into the Galaxie nightclub, saying he was Gene Chandler, a top performer from Sydney, and would do a guest spot for free entry. In the audience was Eldred Stebbing who managed and recorded Ray Columbus [see #1,014] , Max Merritt & The Meteors and the La De Das on his Zodiac label. Stebbing was impressed and ended up managing Pierson encouraging him to change his stage name as there was already a US singer named Gene Chandler [see #347, 1,062] . . . . He . . . appeared regularly with Wellington group, Cheshire Katt. Pierson had success with a Bobby Hebb song, “Love, Love Love”, which become a #1 hit on the Radio Hauraki charts in October 1967. . . . followed by “You Got To Me” which reached the #2 spot. This was first time anyone had done a cover version of a Neil Diamond song outside of the US . . . . In 1968 Pierson released, “Toyland” [with today’s song on the B-side] originally recorded by UK group The Alan Bown [see #1,213, 1,414, 1,583] . . . which was then followed later that year by “If You Only Loved Me” . . . neither of which had the same success as the earlier singles. . . . He was working four nights a week, regularly appearing on television and touring with artists including Tommy Adderley, Larry’s Rebels [and] Shane . . . . Pierson learned of his father’s death and returned to Australia for the funeral. He quickly leveraged his New Zealand success, signing with Festival Records and releasing a psychedelic make-over of the Four Tops [see #1,148, 1,429] song “Reach Out” . . . . However, a long-standing disagreement between radio stations and record labels put an end to the song’s journey up the charts. It did peak at #12 on the Sydney chart. Record companies were refusing to supply free new release records unless radio stations agreed to pay a new royalty, resulting in a six-month radio ban on airplay for Australian and British recordings released by major labels. . . . . [After h]e . . . ended his contract with Festival [he] went on to co-host the nationwide weekly pop gossip programme the Today Show . . . . The same year, he also hosted his own weekly segment, Today Pop, on Channel 7’s Today Show and wrote for Go-Set pop paper. . . .
https://historyofaussiemusic.blogspot.com/2013/09/gene-pierson.html
Grant Gillanders adds that:
By late 1966, Gene was on the brink of Australian pop stardom. He was offered a permanent gig at Sydney’s Bowl nightclub, owned by Ivan Dayman who also ran the Sunshine record label. Gene’s music and family world came crashing down in with one phone call from his mother in early 1967. Not only had his father been diagnosed with a brain tumor, but an Army conscription letter had arrived by post that instructed Gene to report to the nearest Army base – in seven days. Pacifist Gene was shattered and . . . . realized quickly that he had to avoid conscription at all costs. During this period, draft age males in Australia couldn’t travel abroad without an Army exemption form. The one exception to this was to New Zealand. Twenty-four hours later Gene arrived in Auckland with $200 in his pocket and made a beeline to the Galaxie nightclub where he approached owner Eldred Stebbing and introduced himself as one of Australia’s biggest pop stars. The Layabouts were on stage so Stebbing invited him to sing a few numbers with them. A suitably impressed Stebbing signed Gene to a two-year recording contract. . . . The subsequent release of the single “Love, Love, Love” . . . brought instant success for Gene. The record received healthy airplay via a supportive Radio Hauraki in the top half of the North Island where it made the No.2 spot on the Auckland and Hawke’s Bay charts. Gene flirted with danger, and on several occasions returned home to see his parents, who were being constantly hounded by the Australian Military Police. On one such visit home his parents’ home was raided. Gene avoided arrest by passing himself off as the famous New Zealand pop singer “Gene Pierson” and just by chance he had a dossier of press clippings and records to prove the point. . . . Gene returned to Australia in September 1969 to attend his father’s funeral and even though he was still a fugitive he decided to stay . . . safe in the knowledge that as “Gene Pierson” he could remain undetected until the political climate changed. This was a hard decision as Eldred Stebbing had already started planning an album for Gene on the back of the nationwide tours that had brought Gene to a wider audience than the top half of the North Island – a stronghold for Gene. . . . Gene eventually reinvented himself as a pop music reporter for magazines, newspaper and television before becoming booking agent for the up-and-coming AC/DC then moving into a long and lucrative career as a promoter, agent and artist manager, which continues to this day.
Here is the original by Greenwich Village’s Roman Numerals (the A-side of their only single (’67)). Thanks to Lego Blockhead for turning me on to the original. DennisG-tb1kx tells us that:
[T]he group was called The Roman Numerals They were a Clive Davis pick and also one of his first as he became President of Columbia The lead Singer, John Marci was also the songwritter Tthe baritone was Al Canecchia, the 2nd tenor was Danny Marsi and the 1st tenor was Dennis Genovese
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