Page 5. The 2000’s (naughties) & 2010’s (teens): Developing my capacity for recording, Angie Browning’s Greenshed Boys and the resurrection of the Avengers.
I had become interested in recording, prompted by my daughter, Ingrid, wanting to record her harp playing, and I bought some beginning equipment. A Zoom digital interface recorder included free Cubase software, and Cubase has been my Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) ever since. I’m up to version 14 now! Zoom also made a portable stereo recorder, and I’ve used that to record various live performances since. Some of these are on other parts of this website. Over the years, the Greenshed has doubled as a rehearsal space, and also a recording space. It’s not a great room, with a low ceiling and hard walls, but I’ve made some half-hearted attempts to treat it. These days I’ve got the capacity to record a full band with an 18 channel interface (Focusrite is my hardware choice). This was used to record The Avengers, The Surf Shadows, Unfinished Business and Suitcase Full of Blues among others through the 20-teens (details to come).
Angie Browning’s Greenshed Boys
Geoff McArthur lives close by. I knew Geoff over the years as a guitar player. Geoff had recorded an album with Angie Browning. Angie has a wonderful country folky voice. The album included some of Geoff’s originals. I’m not sure how it all came about (musical connections often just seem to happen through someone running into someone else who knows someone who might be interested!!), but Geoff and Angie got together with Dave Rogerson, one of Ballarat’s maestro guitarists and Dave Dahlenburg (who you have met before) and me to form “Angie Browning’s Greenshed Boys”. Geoff is a terrific guitarist and mandolin player who writes wonderful songs. Dave R plays guitar, but mainly pedal steel in this band, I was on upright bass. Noycey had made me a left-handed semi-acoustic Noyce/Howell upright, the second of only 3 ever made (2006). Dave D was on drums. We played country, folk and quite a few of Geoff’s originals.
Angie Browning’s Greenshed Boys played quite a few gigs, including 3 Maldon Folk Festivals. We called it quits circa 2014.
“The Avengers” Resume:
Don, Pud and I were musically in touch through Jack and the Flashbacks. One night, around a camp fire on the banks of the Murray River, my sister Pam and Pud got talking. Pam and her crew were planning a celebration of their 60th birthdays in 2010, and the idea was floated that the Avengers could be revived to play for it. So we did. Don and Pud from Melbourne and Oz from Mildura made the trek to the Greenshed for rehearsals. Our intention was music from the 60’s with many songs taken from our repertoire from back then. The biggest difference was that we would all sing and work on harmonies that we hadn’t attempted back in the day. Jock Carter was co-opted, and Jock came down from the Gold Coast a couple of times to join the fun. Noycey played a couple on the harmonica too.
The reunion night took place in the Mildura Workingman’s Club in April 2010. Great night, and it led to other school reunion functions that we played at over the next few years, including a memorable one at Doug Bowen’s winery in Coonawarra. The Avengers were back in the saddle!
Since then the Avengers revival has continued. We played our last live gig in November 2023–distance, ageing, other things to do. However, we have continued to record. Don, Oz and I all write our own material for recording. This included 2 albums “50 Years On” and “Game Over”. COVID got us into the habit of each recording remotely and sending the tracks around to be mixed, usually by the composer. Pud has opted out of recording drums so we use digital samples for drum backing with Pud as consultant as required. You can check our the Avengers revival material by clicking below:
Greenshed Music 