The tour of Tasmania was set for mid June, with a few shows
at home leading up to it. June 6th was at Bernhardt's, the 9th
was a dance for the Hawthorn Footy Club Cheer Squad! Really! They
had been put up for this one by a friend, seeing it as (probably)
a good earner. Which it was, but the gig itself was little short
of bizarre. News played a full set to bemused silence. The football
crowd didn't know what to make of this lot. There was one more
date at Bernhardt's, 11th of June with Flying Tackle. Then John
Murphy managed to dislocate a knee while dancing at a Young Charlatans
gig. News looked doubtful for Tasmania and prepared to cancel
the dates, but John insisted on going ahead. Which they did, on
the boat and became the first punk band to play Tasmania. The
tour lasted around two weeks and got underway in Burnie (a small
town), with two nights at a pub. These nights drew about fifty
people each, some of whom had heard the single by tuning in to
Melbourne radio stations. Next up was a few nights in Launceston.
There were two University shows and a dance at a toffy girls school
that was keen to have a Melbourne band - until they found out
News were a punk band and promptly canceled them.
Many in Launceston had no idea what News were about John remembered
most of them as being universally long haired and only keen on
west coast/soft rock material. Hobart was the most fertile ground
of all. Two uni gigs were well attended, some of the crowd actually
enjoying something that was new to them. News were accommodated
in a squat while in town and there was much interest in them generally.
They were interviewed for student radio and a magazine. This tour
was largely born of the motive to take music to the people, wherever
they be. In these terms, there were mixed feelings about what
had been achieved in Tasmania. In an interview for RAM, Gavin
looked back on Tassie as "A great place to play. Very satisfying"
[5.79]. John Murphy was not as positive: "Hobart was alright,
we got curious uni students and stuff - some of them liked it,
but most couldn't relate to it". News had a short break once
home, mainly to give John's punished knee a chance to recuperate.
They saw June out with a night at Bernhardt's, supported by Carlton
outfit True Wheels. They included Ian Forrest (ex Babeez). Ian
would also surface in New Five, put together by Gavin after News.
News (mainly Gavin) were still at the helm of Bernhardt's, but July 1978 brought changes that were to derail many activities, Bernhardt's being one that didn't survive much longer. July brought some help with management from a New Zealander named Chris O'Shea, who had met a few members socially. Mass arrests at Sydney's new Gay Mardi Gras that month led Gavin to set up a benefit to raise legal costs. Hundreds attended the gig, dubbed Rock Against Repression', on the 21st at Melbourne University. News headlined, preceded by The Proles, Web, and Flying Tackle. Associates of Gavin's in the Socialist Youth Alliance objected to graphics on posters for the benefit and some manner of committee decided to expel him for it. Despite this, the political content of the News canon remained undiminished - for the moment.
At sessions in the NewsROOM at Faraday St, News were recording
demos of many new songs and reworking some oldies. contempory
demos reveal an experimental approach, even to two or more versions
of '
Hate
' and '
Nobody Wants Me
'. Pop overtones had become prevalent,
full of melody and infectious guitar lines. Dramatic change came
when John took leave of a few weeks to stand in with Crime &
the City Solution while they visited Melbourne. News recruited
a stand-in themselves, Jon Wilkinson of XRayZ. He proved barely
suitable: "We were wrong for him and he was wrong for us"
[Gavin].
John had jumped at the chance to play with Crime & the City
Solution. They were closer to where he wanted to go musically,
as he always had an experimental slant on punk. While he enjoyed
News, other possibilities exercised a strong attraction. This
was the prime reason for what was to become Murphy's exit from
the band. But there was more to it - John was frustrated by the
misunderstanding News endured, along with a blatant lack of respect
arising from the Suicide scam. He was also wary of some of the
plans Gavin had for News. One being put into motion was a tour
of New Zealand along the same lines as the foray into Tasmania.
It was shelved when John left for Sydney. If John wasn't keen
on this, he was less sold on another idea Gavin had brought up.
A tour of fairgrounds up and down the east coast, playing from
the back of a flat-bed truck.
Any contribution Chris O'Shea was making at this point was minimal. Rarely was any 'manager' as effective as Bruce Milne, who still advised and often spoke for the band. His interest continued and served News well. Gavin was still running the band: "He was very together with organization, he had plans six and seven months ahead for what News would be doing. He had incredible energy" [John Murphy]. John stayed out of decisions while in News: "Gavin, Jarryl & Julie worked together and said we'll do this or that. I wasn't really involved". John was also uncomfortable with News' overtly political aspects and some of the politicos that were anxious to bend Gavin's ear: "It was bad as well as good we got labeled as the band that would play any benefit concert. I thought they made a bit of a mistake aligning themselves with it. Towards the end of my time, there were a lot of wankers hanging around, trying to influence Gavin. I wasn't really keen on it". Back in Melbourne in August, John picked up his kit from Faraday St and (amicably) quit. He quickly set about forming Whirlyworld with Ollie Olsen.
