Thank you, Dean, for all of your research and hard work covering what has transpired with this fantastic band from down under. Your work here has addressed a lot of questions I had about LRB. I became a devoted fan after first hearing their songs on FM radio back around 1976 when I was living in Florida. I immediately went out and bought their debut album and played it all the time, especially Track 1, 'It's A Long Way There'. To me, that song is a rock masterpiece, particularly the guitar work. Fortunately, LRB was doing a U.S. tour around that time, and I went to see the original band in concert in Jacksonville around 1977. What a show! I recall that they had a very lively and energetic stage presence, and their vocal harmonies and musicianship were superb. In retrospect, these guys were like The Beatles of Australia. They cranked out hit after hit. But as happens all too often with gifted bands and musicians, business complications eventually hijacked the unique vibe they were creating on the music scene. Your research proves that out. But as much as I love their catalog, these days I will not waste my time or money to ever attend a concert by the current LRB cover band. Nope, I'd rather throw Side 1 of their debut album on my turntable, kick back with an adult beverage, and bask in the sweet memories of what was a simply amazing period in musical history. Cheers!
My biggest disappointment is that I never got to see original LRB. Found out the hard way that what’s touring is not them. To me, only the original voices can bring the songs to life.
I did get to see the band in 1981 with the Time Exposure tour. Little did I know, Glenn would be gone after the tour. I saw Farnham twice. The first time Beeb and Derrick left after the Net tour. In '84, I saw the Playing To Win Tour. That was the last time I saw the band. I always called that the "Last Man Standing" tour. Greaham was the last member of the original lineup.
@@jefffuller9918 Glenn came back in 1988. I saw him twice with LRB, 1991 and 1992. Goble and Birtles were already gone. So I guess what I saw was a partially fake band, with those wannabes Nelson and Housden, right?
@ronfowlermusic I suppose. Mike Love is still touring as The Beach Boys. The Wilson's have left or passed away. Al Jardine toured with Brian. Same situation.
My brother John Mower R.I.P was the lead singer on the Mississippi album his wonderful rich harmonies and warm vocals on City Sunday, Day job song, Three days, Sweet world are amazing. I can't help but be disappointed that his name never gets a mention. John is the one on the right on the front cover and in the middle on the inside colour photo in the Mississippi album. John was in Allison Gross through to Mississippi. R.I.P bruv's I miss you.
Fantastic band ! I saw them here in Europe with singer John Farnham ! They blew me away. (with Nelson and Housden, the two bastards, great musicians though)
Thank you from a Proud Aussie to tell the story of the Sad Demise of the Original LRB Little River band The Music of my youth with good memories. I am old enough and fortunate enough to have seen them over many years. And was even part of there concert at the Brisbane World Expo Broadcasting it to Australia and the world. And at that performance to hear Glenn Fry say openly that he believed LRB to be the Best Rock/Pop Vocal group in the world.
And... you can hear the difference when the original creators sing it too... no one else can sound like the original founders. This is a injustice and thank you for bringing this out in a presentable way so everyone can understand.
@@ronfowlermusic When a band's line up naturally changes over time, that is accepted. When a cover band basically illegally plays other people's songs because they 'legally' own a trademark, that is different. Don't be a dick.
So cool.😉 Thank you again for sticking with this even after receiving the cease-and-desist order. This needs to get out there so more people can both know and understand the back story. The current LRB are not the ones that brought us the hits that we know and love. If possible, could you put in links to the music that the original members released in 2022? Also, to the letter that you wrote to your congressman.
Great explanation of a what happened, Shorrock,Birties and Goble must be so mad, amazing song writers and stunning voices always will be the sound of the Little River Band
Lesson: If you are a Director of a Company, be active in the Company, stay up with everything, oversee EVERYTHING that Managers and other employees do. Australian Institute of Company Directors can teach you.
Thank you for helping us, the fans of the original and true Little River Band, understand the facts surrounding the hypocrisy of the musicians who are cashing in on the songs written and recorded by the real and true members and song writers of Little River Band. It's a mischaracter of justice and indecent for these musicians to be singing these memorable and enjoyable songs that don't belong to them. Thank you again for bringing this travesty to light.
Thanks for shedding light on their history. It's mind boggling quite frankly. The music industry has certainly taken a turn with the advent of social media now. Very introspective.
Well done for telling the true story of one of the best Australian bands that has ever been. I have been fortunate to see Glenn Shorrock live a few years ago and singing LRB songs and he sounds as good and fresh as he did in the 70s. The shame is that Americans and Australia miss out on a reunion tour of the original and best version of the band.
I'm so very pleased that you have addressed this here. Most Aussies know about this story, and you're right the imposters would not be welcomed here to play. Why listen to something that is not the real thing. Thank you, from another Aussie
Thanks for a great "Behind The Music" documentary, Dean! I was going to surprise my wife with tickets to see LRB in North Myrtle Beach, SC back in 2023; so glad I decided to watch some recent live videos before I bought tickets. This is not the LRB we grew up listening to and creating memories with...not even close.
Thank you for the detailed account of the LRB history. Troublesome to know that technicalities could have such a profound impact on the success built by the original members. Like you, I grew up with their music and and have been a life-long fan. Per your recommendation, I've just purchased and downloaded both albums you recommended from iTunes. Goble, Birtles, Shorrock, & Briggs ARE the LRB in my mind. "Anything less would be uncivilized!"
Fantastic - justice needs to prevail LRB is Goble/ Birtles and Shorrock Who would pay money to see a band called the Beatles today - this band can only be John/ Paul/ George and Ringo - let the real LRB exist They still sound great - way above the cover band lead by Nelson and Houseman Don’t forget the original band also included Roger McLachlan and Ric Formosa
Exactly right. Roger was a great player and Formosa is the one who played the unbelievable lead on "It's a Long Way There", a masterpiece written by Graeham Goble.
@@ryreinhardt You'd better check where you're getting your info, because it's in error. I heard Goble say it in an interview. Definitely, Rick Formosa on It's a Long Way There. You are WRONG! Not taking anything away from Briggs, who was great too, but fact is fact.
We Two was actually during the period John Farnham was the lead singer. So as a farnham fan, it's great to see one of his songs is one of your favourites. The band was going through a bad time and when Glenn left, John took over for the next few years.
@@carolynh8866 thank you for that info! I love John. I recently was watching his live performances of You're The Voice and Help. What an amazing singer. I was glad to read that eh is recovering well from his cancer treatments.
@@SlitherWhisp thanks. John is a legend and totally loved by just about to whole population of Australia. Not just for his voice but for his wonderful personality .
Thank you so much for doing this. I have loved what i would call Classic (original) Little River Band since my pretee--teen yrs back when their hits were originally hitting the charts. My memories attached to the voices & songs of the Founders. They are the ONLY Little River Band ❤
Thanks for the hard work and research of this story. It’s so unfortunate that this happened to LRB. I was fortunate to see part of the original lineup twice in 1983 featuring John Farnham replacing Glen Shorrock. It’s really irks me when this kind of crap happens in the music industry. Other groups to suffer similar issues probably include Creedence Clearwater, the Guess Who, and a touring band in Canada called “Trooper” which doesn’t include a single original member. The biggest tragedy I can think of would be , Badfinger. Obviously different issues happened but sure is illustrative of the dark side of the music industry.
Thank You!! The Classic line up (in my opinion) deserves it! It's a shame what the current name owners have done and are still doing. A good many of our hero's are no longer here, Glen, Beeb, Graham, deserve better
Creedence Clearwater revisited Or how about on the Motown side The spinners The temptations and The four tops so many incarnations I think the temptations are under 100th incarnation of the band know original member has been seen since like 1988
For Me,the Song,Happy Anniversary Baby,in March of 78,was my introduction to the Little River Band!Still,❤ this Stuff!When I Bought a Greatest Hits cassette,back in 88,I was playing it,some people heard it that I was hanging out with and the next day had a copy!So I Thought,I was Helping out with Royalties!Ha!Take care!Original LRB!❤
This might be the very best breakdown of the situation I've ever watched. I'm sick of seeing local municipalities spending upwards of $50-60k for this cover band for their summer festivals. If you don't mind when these shows pop up I'd like to show them this!
Thanks Dean great insight to the LRB story, it's an absolute tragedy what happened to the original members. I recently started listening to their music again and realised just how good they were a head of the times. I hope one day they can perform as LRB in front of their Australian fans.
I am SO glad you did this show. I loved LRB as the original group. I didn’t know their story either and am pleased this is coming to light. LRB will always be the original members full stop. NO one can sing and gel their voices like The original boys. What an underhanded move to not inform the maneuvers to the band. I will never spend a dime on any tours without the original members. This pisses me off.sorry. Any entertainment lawyers out there that can help ?
@@brettthebassist I guess the 'big three" just assumed LRB would fall apart without them. The problem for this band was, to the general public, they were faceless. Casual fans didn't know their names; they weren't John Paul George and Ringo, or even Davy Micky Peter and Michael. I would think some people at least know the names Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings, and yet these no-names keep doing shows as the Guess Who. Maybe we need a law that once the lead singers and songwriters of a band leave, they should close shop.
This is really good. I was aware of the connection to Australia and the original band but, had NO IDEA of what had happened and the current state. All I can say is wow. I am definitely informed now, that's for sure. Well done.
What a great documentary and clarification of the truth. I had only recently become aware of the current cover band, I'm sorry to say, because I heard them and thought, wow what the hell happened to the uniquely beautiful harmonies and songwriting? So I set about trying to figure it all out. This is an excellent piece of discovery and music journalism. Thank you so much for posting this!!
Thankyou for setting the story right about my beloved Little River Band. I was raised on LRB in Australia and luckily got to meet Glenn Shorrock in my older years. This would have to be one of the biggest cons in Rock music history. Shorrock, Goble, Birtles and Briggs are the Little River Band and always will be in my mind.
Classic case if you're not watching the money, watch out. That said, its crappy what Housden and Nelson have done to have audiences believe that this act was responsible for the music.
Thanks for a fantastic insight to these issues I must say I totally agree with you and as LRB were my favorite band (the originals) for some time I've wondered what happened regarding the ownership of the band name etc. Great work and appreciated so much😉
Brilliant video and story. LRB were a big part of so many Australians' life from the 70s thru to the early 80s and we appreciate your research and respect given to these wonderful talented artists .
I was fortunate to see the “Little River Band” in Lake Charles, LA in January this year. Truly enjoyed it! I did realize that I only recognized 1 band member (Wayne Nelson) but was ok with that. Never was aware of the original original founders, the rights, etc etc. I’m just guessing all this is about money. Just guessing. Regardless of who owns what name or songs, whatever; what I’m concerned about is listening to their music…the original songs because that’s what I fell in love with!!!
I spent my youth from junior high through adulthood listening to Little River Band, and I knew from a young age they were from Australia, of course through those years I had a dream of leaving the States and moving there, I know, foolish dreams of a teenager. I came to love those songs, and still do at the age of sixty.
This is a brilliant video. Thank you for sharing. I was always aware that there was some internal business conflict or oversight within LRB that resulted in the take over by Stephen Housden, but never really knew the nuts and bolts of it. I'll always be a fan of the true LRB. I also really dig John Farnham's contribution to the band... so I'm curiuos, where does John's tenure with the band fit in to this story?
Great research and a story well told. Little River Band are one of my faves and now that I live in Geelong, I often drive past the Little River Road turnoff. One day, I’d like to alter the sign so it reads Little River Band. I can see a way to get around the current mess but if I post it here, that won’t help. Thanks for supporting the original members, they deserve better than getting caught up in a whole lot of corporate bs 👍
Great Job Dean. Enjoyed the response. As a former DJ. I hated seeing concerts that were coming to my city with 1 or none of the original members. As you say a cover band
Very well done, Dean! I have been lucky to see the "real" LRB playing live twice back in 1980 (with Glenn on lead vocals) and in 1983 (with John Farnham). Unforgettable memories... Housden and Nelson were parts of 1983 line up I saw. Who would have thought by then that it would turn out that way later on...
Living in Canada in the late 70s the Little River Band was well known. You'd see their albums in the stores, and knew their music from the radio, yet I knew no one who actually owned one their albums? including myself. It was considered older peoples music that being people in their mid to late twenties, as I was 15 lol. Looking back of course the quality of their music is beyond doubt. Like Air Supply so many many behind the scenes changes that made you wonder how much turmoil went into their music?
Thanks for sharing this story. It upsets me every time I hear about it. More people need to know what’s going on. I can’t believe the founding members are shut out from using LRB or Little River Band. I heard The Guess Who are fighting a similar issue and found some success in US court
Always loved and admired Glenn's amazing voice. When I worked at the Body Shop in Calgary as a young adult, I bought their greatest hits album and played it in the store all the time.
I got to see them back in 1976 with the Eagles in Pittsburgh Pa. Talk about a great live performance 🎉🎉🎉. The Little River band was every bit as good as the Eagles live. One of the best shows I ever had the privilege to see ❤. My friend Connie and I got tickets right beside the stage front row and they would come over and sing directly to us on the side as well. I lived in the greatest time ever as far as music goes and many other reasons.😅
Not a lawyer by any stretch. However, couldn't the original members simply trademark The Little River Band? And then just have the "The" super small in any ads or promos? I mean how many of us already say The Little River Band instead of Little River Band anyway?
An excellent account of the machinations in this unfortunate saga. I'm an Aussie who grew up with these amazing songs. While I was vaguely familiar with the sad trajectory of the 'ownership' issues, I was completely unaware that the band themselves had no idea regarding some of the finer 'business' dealings. Glenn Wheatley must've felt remorseful about the way it all turned out for the band that he championed from the start.
Hey ! I grew up with LRB ‘s. Hits THEY WERE HUGE IN MY DAY !! I’m 68 Canadian guy loved the originals some of the biggest bands in the states thought they were the friggin best thing in band in the world. That includes Glenn Frey and a few others don’t have to ask me I freaking loved them and I still love them frig awesome bunch of musicians and singers. Hope you guys are healthy and still around. If not, I hope you made it to heaven and you’re singing up a storm up there.😂👍👍👍👍
Criminally underrated band. THE HARMONIES, my God. John Farnham had an INCREDIBLE voice . Other vocalists from LRB have SOOTHING voices similar to that of the fantastic and gravely missed Marty Balin
Wow, you certainly did your research. Sad when business thwarts artistic talent, great musical memories etc. Thanks for your work with this, really interesting. Cheers.
Wow. This is a very complex history of a band we know and love. Contracts, copyrights, etc. Amazing research. They just performed at our Alaska state fair last night.
Thanks for this. I come from a similar place of enjoying the music but not knowing much about the band. A very similar situation with the Guess Who in Canada. Essentially a cover band performing under the guise of a Classic Rock band. Again, great work. Thanks
Thank you for this video. I knew just a little about what was going on, but not the whole story. I just went to Amazon and bought the CD set Ultimate Hits as a birthday present to myself. :) Thank you again. :)
Just saw Glen Shorrock perform his LRB hits.. together with Brian Cadd from Axiom in Geelong.. just down the road from little river.. At 80 years old he’s awesome and still brings the crowd to its feet…
I am watching this video on August 28, 2024, the day after seeing the current LRB lineup playing at the Nebraska State Fair. Yes, it was great to hear so many songs that brought back childhood memories, but something felt awkward to me, so here I am trying to learn more about this band. I was not familiar with the band personnel throughout it's history, but I had heard that this current lineup was only one longtime member ( who I now know is Wayne Nelson) with the rest of the band consisting of newer guys. I've always associated LRB with Australia, but the first band member to speak to the audience was the keyboard player, and I noticed right away that "he sure didn't sound Australian"!! And neither did the frontman/bassist (Nelson), or anybody else in the band for that matter, because they all spoke to the audience at some point during the show. And also, as is pointed out in this video, there was absolutely no mention of any of the past band members to credit them for writing the songs. The more I'm learning about the band, the more I feel like seeing last night's show was kinda like buying merchandise from someone, but not knowing until later that it was stolen merchandise. ( Ironically, Little River Band were not the band originally chosen to play at our state fair. It was supposed to be The Guess Who, but they had to cancel because of dispute between current band members, and the original members who actually wrote the songs!!)
This is spectacularly good. LRB owes a debt of gratitude to Dean, for this work. He not only did an astonishingly good job, but his feelings represent 99% of LRB fans. And, it’s all too common with these acts still touring. Only in this case, the shameless version of LRB touring today is taking it to a whole separate level. LRB was an astonishingly good, and criminally underrated band, that SO MANY people didn’t realize they recognize. But, they literally have no image. It’s so odd for a 70’s/80’s band. To have that many hits, yet be strangely unrecognizable. So much so they recognize the songs but don’t realize it’s the same band. That’s an incredibly unusual. For a group of Americans to tour under that name is beyond shameless. And, Dean is 100% right about the apathy…but, that apathy is rampant throughout the entire journalism “profession” (if we can even call it that today). And, apathetic is that cesspool industry on a good day.
I have seen the original LRB many times in many venues. They are memory's of my young adult life. I have all of their original LP vinyls in my collection.
Well known fact that John Farnham was the vocalist after Glen Shorrock left the band and had a further hit with "playing to win" and toured america with the band and John was also managed by wheatly who hocked his house to get Whispering Jack recorded....
Please do some research and get your facts right. You talk about the original line up in 1975 but fail to mention Ric Formosa (Lead guitar) and Roger McLachlan (Bass Guitar) who both played on the first two LRB albums.
Roger, when they sacked their front man in 1982, that really was the beginning of the end. Pushing the blame on Steve and Wayne isn't 100 percent accurate.
@@BigDave_Wannabe I don't think anyone is blaming Steve or Wayne for Glenn being asked to leave the band in the early 80's. He was back by the late 80's
@@RJRKM Understood. I was only making a general statement about the situation as it relates to the video. They were a very talented group of performers, especially in the late 1970s. After 1982, they lost their spark, probably for a lot of reasons, my opinion.
Shorrock was asked to re-join the band in 1998 and refused. I heard he was even offered a option to buy the band name and ownership. He quit and was given a payout. Goble quit and was given a payout. Beeb wasn't even part of the group in 1988 when they re-structured the band. Stevie didn't "buy" the name as you keep saying. Everyone else who was in the 1987 agreement quit, leaving him the only owner. This has been in the courts and Stevie won every time, even to the point of getting reimbursed for his court costs. If you don't like the current lineup, don't go see them.
@@gizmotron8679 But have you lost sight of the fact that after Sharrock was let go 1982, it was basically the beginning of a long ending. Who sacks their front man?
I saw a video today of the current lineup, and out of curiosity, checked out their website. Based on their information, you would think the band started with Wayne Nelson in 1980. On the top of the 'About' section, the opening begins with: "The Eagles founding member, the late Glenn Frey, knew what he was saying when he dubbed Little River Band “the best singing band in the world.” The current lineup of LRB takes that accolade to heart each and every time they perform." (For the record, they don't even come close.) Absolutely no mention the founding members by name. I don't begrudge Nelson making a living as a gigging musician. I think Housden was a fine guitarist. As human beings though, they give off the vibes of snake oil salesman. It's nice to know they don't own the songs, but that is cold comfort. They are playing on the public's ignorance. A damned shame. I know a certain portion of the public might not care, but I think those that are aware of the facts beforehand, might be less inclined to shell out money for a ticket. As someone stated below, it is very reminiscent of The Guess Who situation. Many years ago, I walked into a small club where they were playing. The only original member was the drummer. Excellent presentation. More people should see it.
Good to know the truth about things. Get’s me a little bummed though because here I was thinking that I was seeing the original Little River Band when they came to perform in the early 2000’s in Burbank CA at the Stardust Bowl and it was a cover band instead. The songs are still memorable and beautiful. ❤
I saw Glenn and Steven with the remnants of the original LRB in Biloxi Mississippi, maybe 1998 (?) … their original sound will never truly be replicated. 🕊️🌤️
By law in the U.S., the band can use “THE LITTLE RIVER BAND featuring Birtles, Shurrovk, & Goble” as long as they maintain the rights to their own music.
No they can't unfortunately, They already tried this. Stephen Housdin filed suit against BSG in the Australian Courts. The case went all the way up to the Australian Supreme Court which ruled in favour of Housdin, blocking Birtles, Sherrock, & Goble and also any concert promoters in the US from attempting to associate themselves with the LRB name whist preforming in the US. This ruling is the main reason why any concert promoters in the US will not back BSG financially, due to the restrictions on how they could be billed as. Now, your argument would have merit if Beeb Birtles, Glenn Sherrock, and Graham Goble were US citizens as courts in the US could then intervene in the matter, but because they're not US citizens, that's why they have to obey the rulings from the Australian Court since they could be breaking the law there by going against their rulings.
So easy to see that they are only riding on there coat tails loved your straight forward approach and the repect you showed towards the original master's
I agree with a previous commenter, i never got to see the original LRB which is Birtles, Shorrock and Goble (and David Briggs). I did go see the best tribute band of Little River Band which is this current touring faux LRB band . This faux band was fantastic but did not replicate the beautiful originality of the original band. If you want to see and hear some of that amazing band harmonies and arrangements, purchase the DVD (only available for purchase from Australia) of the band " BIRTLES/ SHORROCK/GOBLE- FULL CIRCLE". Much of that concert is available on RU-vid. Sad that the real LRB never got to tour in US since the 90's with the original members.
What a disappointment. I was in college. A hit song on the local rock station. I had to have that elbum. I had not once read up on them till today April 18 2024. I am totally in shock. How can such an awesome group of people have so many problems. I am still back in 1980 and will stay there every time I play the full elbum!
Good grief how horrible for the original and members and thank you for uncovering the truth. I’ve been waiting for LRB to come close to my hometown for years and finally got tickets for this October. How can I go now knowing they are frauds….I’m just sick. But I will purchase the real LRB’s music. Thank you.
I remember a radio interview with Glenn Shorock decades ago. The DJ asked how they came to be called Little River Band. He said the band were driving around looking for inspiration but couldn't find any then they saw a sign saying Little River so called themselves that. Glenn said it was just as well because if they went any further they'd be called Wrong Way Go Back 😂
25:00 Pfft! Not one ticket would be sold. And they know this. If this gets more views, I guarantee you the impostors wouldn’t book any more gigs in the U.S. I have no interest in hearing those hits with anyone else. Especially the Shorrock-led ones. That would piss me off to get to the venue and hear any other voice than his. No one sings like that guy. You’ve given his face and voice a name, and I hope more people get hip to the charade. I think All LRB fans would care very much about seeing and hearing the TRUE originators singing those hits live. If only more of them knew the score.
