DerekD

Hi all, I've heard for years that bream can get educated but it was not till yesterday that I realised how significant that piece of knowledge actually was. Went to Cottage point yesterday for lunch with a couple of friends. While sitting upstairs overlooking the water I dropped a piece of banana bread down on the usual school of bream sitting by the structure. There were some super large bream in there and there were a lot of them too. Bread was smashed by several fish and didn't last long. My bird's eye view made it very easy to see them and how they moved. A little later a competition style fishing boat complete with electric motor came into the area. The two gents were expertly skimming plastics into the area. Someone pointed out where the school was and a shrimp type white plastic lure was promptly flicked into the water above the bream. I saw the fish swarm and then a bream race off with the lure in its mouth. The gent hooked up and made an easy show of bringing the bream out. It happened to be one of the smaller specimens of around high twenties. On releasing the bream he had a couple more flicks into the same section of water. Not a single bream went for the lure this time. In fact I couldn't see a single bream there. It really highlighted the importance of covering new ground when chasing bream. On a downside, unfortunately I also dropped my favourite Shimano fishing cap in the general area and by the time I realised I wasn't going to be driving back. Looks like a trip to the fishing store is in order. Regards, Derek

Hi @Ragnar, Congratulations on cracking the half meter on a bass. 53cm will be a struggle to beat but the record on Fishraider is 58cm so they are out there. Looking forward to seeing your PB increase incrementally. I enjoyed the report and thank you for sharing. Regards, Derek

Hi Faker, Not sure where you are getting your data from. I wasn't aware of any line that is 0.006mm. The Berkley x5 in 4lb I like to use is 0.06mm or PE0.6 and as per packet below has a maximum breaking strength of 14lb. For people concerned about breaking strength I get them to try and break the line before cutting themselves. In a decade of demonstrating this I haven't had anyone succeed. Not to say it can't be done but the force required to do so is well beyond the claimed limit. The PE to mm conversion is a funny one as there does not seem to be an agreed standard for this and can be dependent on the material. As a quick dirty guideline I just multiply the PE by 10 to get the strength in pounds. BTW in the absence of a strength testing rig, a micrometer and a whole lot of time testing line breaking strengths I take the writing on the packet at face value then look at and feel the line. Has worked for me to date. I also know there should be a safety factor in the ratings to compensate for the reduced strengths of knots. Last summer I set up a 7 foot 8 inches outfit (I blame @Little_Flatty for introducing me to the Crucis Elite rod) purely for sandflats fishing light lures. I matched it with a Shimano Nasci 1000 for casting distance (line has less distance travel when coming off the spool) and had it packed to just below the lip (the shop spooled it twice to nail it and I appreciated the care they took for it). I set it up with the skinniest braid (Olltolos PEWX Finesse Shangrilla) they had in the shop, PE0.5 which still had a maximum breaking strain of 12lb. I can tie an FG knot with this line and for my needs it has not let me down. The line is susceptible to nicks so I have to fish it with a bit of care. Best fish to date was a 73cm flathead which was released. Skip the knot part and first check your braid for breaking strength by gradually loading it up. Then repeat with the knot. You get a feel for it over time. Regards, Derek

6lb braid or 6lb leader? Highly unlikely if it is 6lb braid. It will likely have a real breaking strength of around 12 or 14lbs. Just load it up gradually to cinch it in place and test it. Snapping your hands apart to test a knot does not simulate a real world scenario. As hard and as fast as a fish hits the working end of the line the initial shock is partially taken up by the stretch in the leader and mostly by the rod tip flexing.

Where to next with your light lure outfit...?? I’m a huge fan of plastics as I find them so versatile and the bang for buck is excellent. For $20 I can buy a bag of 15 berkley power minnows and 5 TT jig heads to match. With those I can chase fish throughout the water column. That same $20 is about mid range for a hard body lure. If you feel you have mastered plastics then consider hardbody lures. Each year I try and grow my fishing skill sets by trying a new niche area. I’ve done pretty well on the sugapens earlier and a few summers ago I got into bream on top water (thanks to a gentleman called @Niall on Fishraider). This expanded out into hard body lures in general. Before I start this, the way you retrieve a lure has a huge impact on how well you are going to do. There are lures with built in action (e.g crank baits) but a one speed retrieve is not necessarily the best way to work them. When you are shopping in your local supermarket for food you sometimes walk quickly down the aisle if you know where you are going and then meander when you are just looking. Fish are also not one speed or one direction. Learn to throw pauses in, change the length of the pause, skip the lure forward or crawl the lure forward. Watch how a baitfish or prawn moves along and try and imitate that movement. Don't be afraid to mix it up even in the same retrieve. A little skip forward might be just enough to trigger that strike. I teach people one retrieve which seems to work for all the topwater lures I've used. I'm hoping to do a video on it but essentially I shake my arm (rather than working the lure from my wrist) from side to side so I get the rod tip oscillating about 5 to 8cm side to side. I now turn 90° to the line and thus lure and then add in a stuttering wind to bring in the slack on each pulse. That straight line contact with the lure now nudges the lure forwards a few cm each pulse and then starts it flipping from side to side. Once I can walk the dog tightly then I can throw the pauses in as required. Here is me working a Sugapen with pauses This is the article from Niall which got me into it: https://community.deckee.com/topic/90391-bream-on-topwater-lures/ This is the video he linked to which got him started on the topwater bream: This was the follow up from Niall when he’d gotten far better at it: https://community.deckee.com/topic/92780-article-surface-fishing-for-bream-2021-update/ There are plenty of locations in Sydney where they are an effective tool. Think the bays in the inner west. The sand flats at Gunamatta bay, Sans Souci,Fairlight, Clontarf and the Northern beaches. Usually places where there are oysters or prawns or yabbies or baitfish in the shallows. It is where the larger predators will also visit. Please note that they fish far more effectively and consistently in the summer. When fishing them the general rule is to cover ground. Recommended starting point on topwater lures is the Bassday Sugapen in 70mm (there are about 4 sizes) and my preferred colours are CT287, CT394 & HF119. Bream, whiting, salmon, tailor, kingfish and other species. Price range $28 to $23 if you look around. https://products.bassday.com.au/products/category/JMSBCGBR-surface/SP70F-HF119--sugar-pen-70mm-floating There is a channel called Sandflats Fishing Australia that has done a number of videos on these: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTzKm4ZfNio&t=131s Unfortunately he has pulled off the videos but hopefully he brings them back. I'll leave the reference in just in case. If you can get your hands on some I do recommend 70mm MMD splash prawn. It can be fished subtly to imitate a cruising prawn or aggressively to imitate a fleeing prawn. About $23: https://mmdfishing.com.au/collections/70mm-splash-prawn Video of the MMD splash prawn in use: For some of these topwater walk the dog lures people like to swap out hooks (smaller treble on the belly and assist hooks on the tail). See this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2g95DezFfaU I don't recommend doing this because for some of the smaller lures the off the shelf assist hooks are long enough so that they have a tendency to catch on the belly trebles reducing the effectiveness of the lure and cutting into fishing time as you disengage the hooks. Furthermore, there are several off the shelf options which already have the assist hooks and are better price (when compared with original lure then assist hooks then smaller belly treble): Jackson Ebi Panic Prawns (I own several of these and apart from problem with the assist hooks catching on the belly hook as mentioned above, I really like them). In action: Daiwa Infeet Slippery Dog in 65F or 80F (these come with smaller length assist hooks and rarely catch on the belly hook). Problem is that if tailor around then it can get expensive having to replace the assist hooks. In action: Ecogear PX55 (preferred) or PX45: PX55 in action: If you’ve had your tax return or won lottery and really want to spoil yourself look at the OSP bent minnow (my preferred colour is G-28 Ghost shrimp). In action: If you are on a budget then Berkely do a cheaper copy called the Pro-tech Bender which also swims pretty well and the hooks look stronger but feel less sticky meaning they are less likely to hook up on a slashing attack: https://berkley-fishing.com.au/product/bender-76-100/ Popper type lures also work well for freshwater bass as well as saltwater fish. I’ve been playing with the Bassday Backfire which casts really well: Bang for buck I’ve been pretty impressed with the Gladiator Smash Popper (used to be $12.95). When paused the head drops nicely down to make a tempting target for a bream: https://gladiatortackle.com.au/products/smash-popper-colour-007 Another one I've done well on this last summer is the Zipbaits skinny pop junior. Slim profile and casts a long way. Last of all crankbaits. At its simplest it is cast and just wind back. You can get shallow or deep divers. Floating, suspending or sinking. There is a Sydney local called Shroom who has done some nice videos on this. Check out The go to brand is usually Jackall Chubby in shallow https://www.jackall.com.au/?page_id=28 or deep https://www.jackall.com.au/?page_id=796 Atomic do some better value ones (Hardz crank) https://products.atomiclures.com.au/products/category/SIMRRFAA-crank which can often be found at the bigger adventure stores and your local tackle shops. For all the lures I’ve mentioned above look around. There are some specials (relatively speaking) to be had. Check the specials bins at times. There are plenty more I can add to the list but wanted to inspire you a bit. There are a lot of links there but if you only watch one then the first link from Shroom is a great starting point. Both of his videos were at inner west bays here in Sydney and I fish them both pretty regularly when I can. Better on the upper half of the tide. I strongly recommend checking the wind and tides before you head out. Also check out each of your locations when we have a super low tide for structure and channels. Over time you will learn which areas to fish in which conditions. High tide and strong westerly then fish X, Y and Z. North easterly then maybe fish A, B and C. When heading home I can pass over the Anzac bridge or the harbour bridge. I look at the direction the flags are blowing at that helps me decide where I'm going to fish that afternoon. Little things but little things can make a big difference. Regards, Derek

Whatever you buy check it for damage while in the store. Rods are a mass produced, bulk shipped, item and transport damage is a possibility. Make sure the guides are all there (especially the top one), aligned and not bent. Make sure the blank does not have any cracks. Ensure the reel seat locks smoothly. I know of several people that have been caught out by this and have had to argue later that it was not them that damaged the rod. If you find something wrong then please advise the store so the next person does not get caught out. Same goes for a reel. Get it out of the box. Visually inspect then wind it fast and slow with stops and starts to check for rough spots or sound that shouldn't be there.

I own several Raiders (bream, snapper, travel (in bream and snapper) and Barra travel) and bang for buck I am still happy to recommend them. I have switched over to the ArrowZ for my outfits in the 2 to 10lb range. I own 3 of their light rods and also have the 7 foot outfit (which has been relegated to kayak duties) you are talking about and the 9 foot version which I really love for shore based fishing as I can just hit the 100m mark with a metal, skinny braid, a tail wind and an extra strong flick at the end of the casting stroke. I can switch the reels between the 7 and 9 foot rods depending on what I am doing. Difficult call as I have no issue recommending either rod. In your case as the Raider rod is rated 20g - 60g lures versus 10g - 50g of the ArrowZ I'd be seriously advising you to look at the Raider for the larger lure choice. The 10 inches extra length doesn't hurt either as in theory it should increase your casting distance. The ArrowZ has stainless guides (but they do get some surface rust if not cared for) and I'm not sure what the Fuji guides of the Raider are made of. The arrowz will probably be lighter but in the rod class you are talking about it probably won't be a big enough difference to affect your selection. Pick both up and sit the reel on them and see what you think of the balance and how it feels. In your place I be very strongly leaning towards the Raider for the above points and it turns out it is less expensive too. I do a lot of fishing from the shore (structure more than rock fishing) and have done very well over the years in Sydney Harbour with the Snapper type outfits. I also take them on the kayak.

Both good options based on length, line rating and in particular lure rating. I have the ArrowZ you mention but I use the Raider Snapper 762 instead of the one you mention. It may sound silly but head to head I'd rather use the Raider over the ArrowZ because the ArrowZ has a square butt whereas the Raider (older series) has the rounded butt. The reason why is based on my way of working lures. Rather than do everything through the wrist (and then have to deal with the resulting strain on my wrist) I rest the butt of my rod against my body to create pivot point and then use my arm (rather than wrist) to create the sweeping movements I like. The square butt of the Arrow digs into my stomach or chest. Square butt end Round butt end If you are not sure of what I am talking about with resting the butt against your body to retrieve watch the video of Rob (one of the people I mentored) casting and specifically retrieving the lure with a Shimano Raider Snapper. The butt of the rod rests against the left side of his chest for this particular retrieve.

BTW if you want to spool up properly and have the time then: Strip all line off the spool Put all braid on spool Put backing over the top of the braid till it finishes 1-2mm below inner lip of spool Strip everything off and then end for end the line so the backing goes on first this time Ideally join the two lines with an FG knot so it sits flush. Will only notice it when you finally get close to backing. Alternatively, take it into your local tackle shop. As they spool reels frequently they will have a pretty good feel for it.

Definitely an alloy spool. There will be no issue with putting braid on it.

The FB series Nasci https://www.shimanofishing.co.nz/products/reels/spinning/nasci-fb/specifications

Something is probably not right then. All the spools for the Nasci should be an alloy (at least all the ones I've come across). Do the spools look like the photos in the link I sent you? It might be an FB series but they were also alloy spools. I can't find anything about the FA series but the Nasci were intended to take technology from the Stradic series but at an affordable price point. Can you please upload some photos from various angles including any writing on it. In particular the spools. It sounds like something has been mix and matched.

I'm surprised at that. They should be braid friendly, especially these days with more and more people using braid. Simple thing is if it is an aluminium or alloy spool it should be be braid friendly. Braid would crush the old plastic spools. On a side note I have the Nasci 1000 and the Nasci 5000 and they are both spooled up with braid. PS From the Shimano website they have the capacity ratings for PE/Braid on the Nasci reels: https://fish.shimano.com/en-AU/product/reels/spinning/a075f000035yx1uqaa.html

Hi Albert, Also consider getting one of the larger sugapens (they do a 120mm). Firstly, they are a great lure to work on your walk the dog technique. Secondly, the kings will hit it in the summer when the bigger schools are around. Regards, Derek

Hi @Little_Flatty, Congratulations and very well done. It was only a matter of time. Technique and determination were there. The luderick is a great little weed fly taker once you've found the schools. Burley is usually not critical to success. It only gets easier from here on in but please leave my record luderick on fly standing for a little while longer. 😀 Did you use one of the strike indicators I made or use your own? When that indicator suddenly pops below the surface it is very clear that there is a luderick on the other end of the line. Looking forward to discussing further and hearing of more successes. Regards, Derek

Actually there is... I use a Nokia phone for the majority of my calls (it is compact, battery life is great (think I last charged it back in 2022) and almost indestructible as I drop my phone usually once every 3 to 6 weeks). My smart phone has been known to sit out of use for over a year at a time. In fact I only started to use it for check ins during Covid. Yes it is a computer in your pocket but I like technology to make my life better not to stress me out as my smart phone seems to do. Unfortunately with the 3G network closing at the end of the year I don't have much of a choice. PS. I'm also someone that would rather deal with a cashier at the shops or McDonalds. It is often faster and I like the human contact and banter, it keeps a person employed and if there is an issue they can resolve it on the spot. On occasions I've had to call for assistance multiple times (3 times is my record) at the self checkout because the weighing machine had an issue with what was being put down after being scanned in. I also use cash as often as not as I get annoyed with the additional fees that slip in when using a credit or debit card. Not that I can't afford it but the extra expense after you have a agreed to a price irritates me for some reason.

What is this about only being able to buy tickets online?? Just found out that they are not selling tickets on the day at the box office. I would have been extremely p1$$ed off if I'd rocked up as usual and tried to pay at the door. Now think I'm going to skip it this year.

As others have said. Work within the rod ratings for line and lure and you shouldn't go wrong. Something else to think about. It is shock loading which is more likely to snap a line rather than lure weight. If that bail arm flips over on an aggressive cast then that crack of the line snapping is usually impressive. When casting however the flex in the rod stops the shock loading and you should be able to cast heavier lures without snapping the line as long as it loads up smoothly. It does however bring some other concerns into play such as snapping a rod tip. BTW with braid most of them will overtest and often significantly. That 6lb braid is more likely to break at 10lb or even 12lb so there is a safety factor in line strength.

Hi Mate, To be honest, while I think it is an excellent thought exercise I wouldn't put too much stock in it. There are hundreds of variables on any particular day which might impact where you are catching fish. Moving 5m or casting 20 seconds later or earlier can often be the difference in a bite. You are trying to put human guidelines onto fish. Having said that there are some learnings which are pretty consistent indicators for what is likely to be happening. Over the years I've seen people looking for the days when the ocean temperature reaches 22°C or even better 24°C as we start to see some of the bigger predator species off Sydney. What food is available at particular times of year is also worth watching and @wazatherfisherman did a beautiful article on this. See the second post in this article There are species I target more often in winter (such as Luderick) but that is because I can catch them more consistently in the colder months than the fish I prefer to target. I picked up several nice luderick on the fly rod in the Mosman area over the weekend without using burley as I knew where they were likely to be and what they would hit. My advice would be to fish as often as you can and cover ground and learn how to mix it up through each session. Regards, Derek

True but I also think it is a shame that you (generalising rather than "you" specifically 😀 ) don't give certain music a chance because it is not in your preferred genre(s). While taste is personal, what makes good music is probably less personal (a bit of music philosophy which I can hopefully get into suitable words to convey where I am coming from). A good beat is probably the first thing which gets us. We have percussive bands which make a career of this. The Australian band Taikoz playing the Japanese Taiko drums are fantastic to watch especially when they combine it with the visual aspect https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGCsp2Glyms . While living in the Netherlands I walked down the street with a Brazillian drum band coming the other way. The walls and windows of that street reverberated to the sound and the whole atmosphere blew me away. Then next thing is throw in a good melody (which dances between the beat) and an amazing voice and things start to come together. There is a fun scene in the Zac Effron movie We are your friends where he explains as a DJ how he can get people dancing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bP_llT3Fl4o . A good voice will resonate with most people and if you can get two of those together then magic happens. I still love and think I will to my dying day Freddy Mercury and David Bowie with Under Pressure. The backstory behind how they made it together made me smile and it is a shame they never played together in concert but someone combined some clips to bring them together in this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HglA72ogPCE . Old Blue eyes (Frank Sinatra) and Bono of U2 came together really nicely with Under my skin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pL3ZVzWdaS4 The cross generation blending of Nat "King" Cole and his daughter Natalie Cole for the song Unforgettable https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhpmxjRXneY . Then there is this version of the RadioHead song Creep sung by two sisters (their parents are music teachers) in the German version of The Voice by Kids https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wC64ZPJXMGU My music taste is pretty mainstream and I find what I like is what a lot of other people like so I use them as a filter to find new stuff. Top 40 charts are an obvious sample but less obvious are social venues such as restaurants. The mix tapes are either put together professionally or by the staff playing stuff that appeals to them. The music shouldn't scare the customers away but there is some leeway in what can be played. I came across the album Erykah Baduh Live because it played in one of my favourite eateries in Haarlem. The song Tyrone just caught my attention https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YY2-mrsXgMM so I asked them what the CD was (this was in the late 90s). Recently I came across Jaz Lund (slow down with me) and the related Spotify playlist while at a work farewell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdPSkHtm7s8 The phone application Shazam has been a game changer. Like a song then hold the phone near the speaker and find out what that song is. Now there is also stuff I think is genuinely garbage and I can't find a single way to give it any musical benefit. The worst song in my extensive CD collection is Rice Path by saxophonist Hans Dulfer which can be found on Spotify. I want you to think of the most discordant experimental jazz you can think of and then amp it up. To be fair Hans Dulfur is a very good musician. I've been a fan of his daughter Candy Dulfer since the early 90s. She was good enough to play with many major artists such as Prince and David A. Stewart (of Eurythmics) on the song Lily was here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypbjIwbTR8c Hans was one of a group of musicians in the Haarlem area of the Netherlands that jammed together at the various nightclubs and at the annual Haarlem jazz festival. I liked his music enough to grab as much of his discography as I could. There is a lot of his stuff I enjoy but Rice Path is the one musical equivalent for me of dragging your fingernails down the wall. On a side note, I intend to go through every music link fellow Raiders have suggested in this post in case I can find some more music which resonates with me so thanks to everyone that contributed. Thanks for sticking with me if you got this far. Regards, Derek

Just some interesting viewing on the Daiwa Bait Junkie jig heads... I've got some but haven't spent a lot of time fishing them yet.

This was the final list I submitted as I wanted to get it done before the weekend. Couple of ones above that I missed and a few ones added to the list at the start of this post Hi L, I enjoyed putting this together as it gave me the chance to go down a musical memory lane. In Youtube you can create folders and if you create one along the lines of Australiana then you can save the ones you like as you go along. Being born in 1994 and growing up on the other side of the world there is a lot of music which came and fell out of the charts before you ever had the chance to come across it. As we have some overlapping tastes I’d like to see if I can add to your music library and take you on a bit of a journey at the same time. I’ve got several parts in mind but I’d like to start with Australiana which is essentially Australian and New Zealand music. Yes they are two distinct countries but there has been a lot of cross pollination over the years. Crowded House (worth going through their discography when you get the chance) is one of the big ones you have heard of but is it really a New Zealand band when it was started in Melbourne, Victoria by two Kiwis and two Ozzies. Still up for debate. During the 70s, 80s and 90s the pub scene was a great starting point for many musical talents. Bands such as INXS, Midnight Oils, Cold Chisel, Men at Work, The Divinyls, Australian Crawl, etc. put in a hard slog to make it to the top of the charts. Many a kid built up their music collection listening to the radio and hitting play on the tape recorder when their favourite song came on. Records were still popular in the shops and you could get singles and LPs (Long Plays) to listen to at home. Video music also became more popular. The first song I’m going to introduce you to is not actually a song but it had a lot of air time. We had a comedy circuit which was pretty popular. Some comedians like Rodney Rude liked dropping the F-bomb for a reaction and others were a little more clever. There was a gentleman known as Austen Tayshus who managed to squeeze a huge amount of Australian references into a skit titled Australiana. I’ve included the original to air version (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StcXGhuliRk) and then the lyrics which you might have to say out loud to get it (https://genius.com/Austen-tayshus-australiana-lyrics) just in case you missed all the references. While we are discussing comedy, there was an international hit called Bitch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ivt_N2Zcts )by Meredith Brooks which was redone as Bloke (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-IPcVaif3Q ) by an Australian called Chris Franklin. Now into the music. There are several songs that I feel have distilled the essence of Australia into music. In no particular order: Down Under by Men at Work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfR9iY5y94s Great Southern Land by Icehouse https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mkidP2OUCk Solid Rock by Goanna https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSNxFGW09Mo Sounds of Then by Gangajang (I love the details in the lyrics such the description of the block of land and the walls of the home) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML9h3I5Uktw which was later used for a Coca Cola ad and you can feel the heat and humidity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSVrNHJIKNk Several of the songs by the politically vocal Midnight Oil but let’s start with Blue Sky Mining https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ofrqm6-LCqs or Beds are Burning https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejorQVy3m8E While I’m at it Yothu Yindi was the first predominantly Aboriginal band to score an international hit with the protest song Treaty https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf-jHCdafZY For more information see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_(song) Not so much a genre but some songs tell a story of everyday life. Hoodoo Gurus - a very prolific band with a few top 40 hits but let’s start with 1,000 miles away https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boN94tAFqZM Also worth looking at Bittersweet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srrqURBhWv8 Miss Freelove 69 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsk6WyYAjp8 Cold Chisel also worth looking at their other songs but have a look at Flame trees https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8KgP2aOXcA Then for some other ones look at Choir Girl https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uO4lvUHr-r0 Saturday Night https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lelsyP9qL2I Paul Kelly – To her door (the Silvertop in the song refers to the Greyhound silvertop buses) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6FF3-SWwsE Eurogliders (I still love this song after many, many listenings) Heaven https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ps8g0Y89An0 Mondo Rock – Come said the boy (your first time) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gujdbZ1csng Moving Pictures – What about me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzQKECQgjW8 Kids in the Kitchen – Change in Mood https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tQdk79q7N4 Weddings, parties anything – father’s day https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYKNqftCkSQ Vietnam War (anti) songs: Redgum did a song called I was only 19 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGDhzVi1bqU ) for which it is worth reading the back-story https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Was_Only_19 . They also did the more upbeat I’ve been to Bali too https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVOIg_lHRzk Cold Chisel did Khe Sanh https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTjvG4WJD_A Edgy Rock – punchy vocals with a great lead singer Baby Animals with lead singer Suze DeMarchi burst onto the scene in the early 90s with several hit songs including One Word https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGSgAT9nP80 Painless https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DRg7jK-_RA Rush you https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfSBCgix5O0 and the depressing but moving Lights out at eleven https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNFKVWeAx-k The Divinyls lead by the deceased Chrissy Amphlett with their occasionally sexualised vocals including I touch myself https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wv-34w8kGPM , Pleasure and Pain https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5boYiMktOvs, the catchy Boys in Town https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnOXYcO4zjg Screaming Jets Better https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KbLoVKc8dE and Helping Hand https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtJGLPuJVVo Boom Crash Opera with the awesome Dancing in the Storm https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-mmg4egLtM The Best Thing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBQCbPbPS8E Great Wall https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkE0n1z6V_Y Get out of the house https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-SsZJX4A1o Onion Skin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2FPE1Y5_4o Max Q. This band did make it on the European charts. Michael Hutchence of INXS took some time off and collaborated with Ollie Olsen and some other underground musicians to create this album. Way of the world https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgRWJP1Ktww Sometimes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh0TV2ArBS8 Concrete https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsaX-KZxRUU Johnny Diesel (and the injectors) Tip of my tongue https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePWpolxEKiw Cry in shame https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwLVHsg6OhM Come to me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMZal4qIwLU Noiseworks (turn this one up) with Touch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQsXk3B-LGE Take me back https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCc3Qift_KY Choirboys (turn this one up too) with Run to Paradise https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hxYDqhy2Vc Hunters and Collectors Holy Grail https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQI5fdVCvlU True tears of joy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGBSBoWcH6s Throw your arms around me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-hDK76bIps The Angels - Am I ever going to see your face again (with the audience responding "No way, get .... effed, ...Eff off") https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZJxSN_I2o8 Big Pig burst the mould with 8 or 9 drummers at time. Some of their bigger hits were Breakaway https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vllIofWpnk4 and Hungry Town https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOQfmSIEs5k There are several bands where the singer or backing singer went on to have a successful solo career afterwards Do Re Mi – Man Overboard https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDO5KwDBgy8 The lead singer Debora Conway went on to release the album Bitch Epic with my favourite song of hers called Alive and Brilliant https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDiq7bN8WAk Kate Ceberano started singing with I’m Talking when she was 14 years old. My favourite is Trust Me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hp3byP05xlQ She then went on to release several albums both in popular music and the jazz set. I’m still not sure what Bedroom Eyes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVStfVu_Q8A ) are but it still charted well. From the same album came Brave (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5Mf4oq5X_Q ) but I preferred her later ones including See right through https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-Oj5rvopqw She did a beautiful remake of Calling you https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jyB5qvjXHc Wendy Matthews sang with both the Models (Barbados https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TsPz2bJkw10 ) and Absent Friends (I don’t want to be with anybody but you https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgmFI_PIy3Y ) She then went on to do some songs which charted internationally including The day you went away https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zfqusp7s5o0 Let’s kiss (like angels do) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8k_2LpUI5M Friday’s Child https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43oZb2M3Z14 Darryl Braithwaite was with the 70s rock band Sherbet but did internationally well with a remake of the Rickie Lee Jones Ballad song The Horses (with Margaret Urlich on backing vocals) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnigc08J6FI I also like his very upbeat One Summer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVfA9r-AVOg Odds and Ends: Max Sharam released Million Year Girl in the 90s with two songs that did well. I love the way the piano keys dance in the last third of Be Firm https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3g8qFlHbbg Coma https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dh3-1IPrVG0 Australian Crawl put together a catchy song about the early life of Errol Flynn titled Errol https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpxgn01rwjE They also had the slower paced hit Reckless (don’t be so) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIrUqsB-0vw Killing Heidi. Weir https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01aq2JWk3d0 Mascara https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCfM4zuKmM8 Black Sorrows. Chained to the wheel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YD5yAo4HQY Never let me go https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLQmwMhj4GA Harley and Rose https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjIyDEjYpZI Jenny Morris. She has to be loved https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cx15q7vF_os You I know https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYKVfEGQmj4 Tash Sultana. Jungle (the bedroom recording sessions) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn8phH0k5HI&t=257s Frente Ordinary Angels https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STWQo0BXrbI Bizarre Love Triangle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISKQDCLpDSY The very bubbly Accidently Kelly Street https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRMVfqqw-xw The vocally talented but unfortunately recently deceased Margaret Urlich. Escaping https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YVkCKlj2XM Number One (remember when we danced all night long) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8BpzBwVE7A One of my favourites is Boy in the moon https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSWPjzdJawY Vanessa Amarossi first hit the charts with Absolutely Everybody https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rco1QQShM1Y then followed up with Shine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aWGDrye6HM and Have a look https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVzOCvKKytw My favourite in which her voice almost seems to purr is Perfect https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJdVnOOL1p8 Bachelor Girl doing a song about everything men don’t understand about women with the song I’m just a girl (video clip makes me smile though) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRvzSqanbWk Things of Stone and Wood – Happy Birthday Helen https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1Y1Wf78RQ4 The Church - Under the milky way https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtThVRs0u8k Mental as Anything – Live it Up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5B8AFvWk8Y If you leave me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSGtg26-TpU The nips are getting bigger https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVnLJQIJw2Y Dragon – April Sun in Cuba https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3C6DjkZJ4o In the jazz circuit we had the amazing and prolific Vince Jones (great to see live but paranoid as hell) When you get to the city https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCl3J_dyWl8 Jettison https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-AgTHvnCOg Budgie https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCwSpTNu2Lg My baby comes to me https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGX4sQrM6es Easybeats. Probably the Australian equivalent to the Beatles in playing style. Friday on my mind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnqxbdnzlhw Taikoz (An Australian band who learned to play the big Taiko drums while in Japan – save some time for this one) Pearl live at Phoenix park https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA86MTUNFI4&t=1025s More into the dance side of music Paul Mac (electro pop musician). Sunshine Eyes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jT7XqevNNU The sound of breaking up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IC1T_ksliWw Just the thing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6r8VXAsguE Madison Avenue - Don't call me baby https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1kEjj3Ej68 Sneaky Sound System - Pictures https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4zmkhuT4Zg and Goodbye https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQEkByDkcCI Rogue traders (featuring Natalie Bassingthwaite) Voodoo Child https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrlhLaNClgw versus INXS with One of my kind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-gK1MqM-7s Euphoria – Love you right https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdynaMn8qm0 In my household dad was more into jazz and classical, I liked mainstream and my brother was into independent artists (he was into RHCP and Nirvana before they cracked the top 40 charts). As a result I ended up listening to a broad selection of music. I picked up some of the following from him. Falling Joys – Lock it (a love song in which they don’t actually use the word love) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLKmcWOaFp8 Cruel Sea - The honeymoon is over https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVTds3za_5g Black Stick https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr7sCQ1W-ks Orleans Stomp https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ndtua-6lkBc Clouds – 4pm https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XULDzwfW5TE Beasts of Bourbon – Cool fire https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaY67m_btg0 John Butler – Ocean https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdYJf_ybyVo Ratcat went to the same high school as me but were a few years ahead. They had one song that went international but was overplayed. That ain’t bad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEEmhcs9cMs I prefer their song The End https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wjr3r-KYddM We’ve had several TV Soapies which you would have seen such as Home and Away or Neighbours but many more which finished long ago such as E-Street, A Country Practice, The Flying Doctors, Sons and Daughters, etc. There have been some actors which made the cross over into the music industry and some have done very well and some of the others less so. Some of the following music has not aged well and some of the lyrics are sad but if you get the chance watch each once and decide for yourself. At the least I hope it puts a smile on your face. Kylie Minouge (Neighbours) – done very well and no need to put any links here Jason Donovan (Neighbours) – I won’t go there. Did pretty well off the collaboration with music producers Stock Aitken and Waterman Dannii Minouge, the younger sister of Kylie started in a musical TV series called Young Talent Time but then went into Soapies later. Didn’t seem to do well on the charts but did have I begin to Wonder https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YblCV3Iz2k Tina Arena was also part of the Young Talent Time crew. Went solo and did well. I love the song Chains https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jC9Insyzgc Sorrento Moon is also nice https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IBR6mHtgqk Delta Goodrem (Neighbours) who is actually a very talented singer, pianist and song writer and worth looking at some more of her songs. Let’s start with Born to try https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTBOJ71ypRw Believe again https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPNhnhUphwM Natalie Imbruglia (Neighbours) with the world wide hits Torn (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VV1XWJN3nJo ) and Big Mistake (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Jg4VSp7GG0 ) Craig McLachlan (Neigbours) with his band Check 1-2 and the song Hey Mona https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2ZW_uTlhEQ Melissa Tkautz (E Street) with Read My Lips https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_FswLkbHUY Toni Pearen (E Street) with In your room https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OEg6mIXT1E Holly Valance (Neigbours) with Kiss Kiss (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3wS2tdlZtE ) which seemed to be a copy of a song by Tarkan (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wN4Rbc6HSPY ) but with English lyrics Natalie Bassingthwaite who is actually talented and who did several songs while keeping incognito. Have a look at Rouge Traders in the dance music section I’m also going to throw Collette in here as she was a model that started a short lived trend for bicycle shorts with the boppy Ring My Bell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC88T2ZIHSI

Dang. Realised some others I forgot Skunkhour (seems I knew some of the band members). Up to our necks in it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2CsoNCDvjE Matt Corby (JJJ hottest 100 winner a few years back) Brother https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpFG7DdjTbo Silverchair Tomorrow https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZD982yrmx4

Hi @JonD @JustJames @zmk1962 @AlbertW @Ganguddy Goodoo @XD351 and @Blackfish Thank you to all of you for giving me some other directions to look. I've now got enough information for an Australiana part 2 if part 1 goes down well. I've had fun doing this modern mix tape as it has given me the chance to pull some songs and memories out of the electronic cupboard. Will probably finish up the list tonight for emailing before the weekend. Once again I appreciate all the input. Regards, Derek

Ok. Flight of the Conchords (probably Business time) to be added. Black Sorrows to be added. Chained to the wheel (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5C5JjwUgnFg, Harley and Rose, Never let me go The Angels - Am I ever going to see your face again (with the audience responding "No way, get .... effed, ...Eff off") Church Under a milky way Cruel Sea The honeymoon is over Kids in the kitchen - Change in Mood Dragon Mental as Anything Live it up Moving Pictures What about me Sneaky Sound System Pictures and Goodbye Madison Avenue Don't call me baby Falling Joys - Lock it Beasts of Bourbon I'm staying away from Slim Dusty as it is not what I consider mainstream but there are artists such as James Blundell that made the hop-over from country. I'll post the full list again once I've had the chance to review.