Still Rockin' It - Cheryl Lee
Still Rockin' It - Cheryl Lee
What has Rai Thistlethwayte been up to lately? OR Is there room for a female GOAT?
Join Cheryl Lee - That Radio Chick on STILL ROCKIN' IT for news, reviews, music and interviews with some of our favourite Australian musicians.
Rai Thistlethwayte, frontman of Thirsty Merc and founding member of The Fabulous Caprettos, joins us for an engaging conversation about his latest musical adventures.
From sharing the stage with the Goo Goo Dolls on their electrifying Summer Anthem Tour across Australia to reminiscing about his acid jazz roots with early band The Box, Rai lets us in on the stories behind the music.
He also opens up about his collaboration with Delta Goodrem, including a memorable festive performance and a creative songwriting camp escapade in Bali. Dive into the unique sounds and cultural influences that have shaped Rai's musical journey, drawing parallels with icons like Jamiroquai and Brand New Heavies.
Meanwhile, we explore the evolving career of legendary musician Russell Morris, who now prefers performances closer to his heart and home. Evergreen and energetic Joe Camilleri and the dynamic Wendy Matthews has joined the tour, bringing fresh energy and to the mix.
We celebrate the synergy Wendy adds to the group, harkening back to past collaborations and her memorable contributions at events like the Don Spencer Children's Music Fund show.
As we chat about embracing change and honoring the contributions of artists both seasoned and new, you'll discover how the music scene continues to thrive with vibrant, fresh talent.
What has Rai Thistlethwayte been up to lately? Let's find out!!
Get out when you can, support local music and I'll see you down the front!!
Visit: ThatRadioChick.com.au
That Radio Chick Cheryl Lee here. Welcome to the Still Rockin' it podcast where we'll have music news, reviews and interviews with some of our favourite Australian musicians and artists.
Cheryl Lee:We have spoken to members of the Fabulous Caprettos before, the greatest of all time, Dave Gleeson from the Screaming Jets and previously the Angels, Russell Morris, Jack Jones from Southern Sons and Rai Thistlethwayte from Thirsty Merc, and today we're catching up again with Rai. To find out all the gossip, to catch up on podcasts from other favourite artists, simply go to thatradiochick. com. au. You're with Cheryl Lee that Radio Chick and I'd like to welcome into the Zoom room today Rai Thistlewayte from the Fabulous Caprettos and Thirsty Merc. Of course, we've got some great news to talk about some changes to your boy band. If we can talk about those in a minute and perhaps start with what you've been up to lately.
Rai Thistlethwayte:I just did a gig with the Goo Goo Dolls last night. In where were we? We were in Newcastle last night and then played at the Sydney Horton Pavilion the night before that, and then, being in Canberra Tomorrow, I'm going to Brisbane with those guys and then going to Adelaide, then going to Melbourne and then that's that run wrapped up. I'm just doing bits and pieces of Thirsty Merc stuff touring around and basically just being a working musician, though having a good time as well.
Cheryl Lee:Yeah, I noticed that you were special guests of the Goo Goo Dolls Summer Anthem Tour. Had you worked with them before?
Rai Thistlethwayte:No, this is the first time actually, but they're really lovely guys and everybody's really cool and the crew and really really good organised project and, yeah, it's been fun.
Cheryl Lee:So get onto the Google-o-meter, because the Adelaide date is still to come. I saw recently a clip you and Delta Goodrum at the Christmas special doing Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree. That was so good.
Rai Thistlethwayte:It was fun. I think that wasn't filmed last year, it was the one before. Right was so good, it was fun. I think that wasn't filmed last year, it was the one before right. Yeah, I just reposted it because it was just. You know, it's probably the most Christmassy thing I've got. It also sounds and looks, you know, nicely presented and Delta's also just an absolute legend and I love her. Yeah, it was really cool it was beautiful.
Cheryl Lee:I really loved it. Thank you for posting that had you worked with Delta before or since.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Well, I had worked with her more in a songwriting sense really. I attended a thing in Bali, of all places, we were both at the same sort of songwriting. It was almost like a camp. Everybody kind of went over there and set up in studios and collaborated with everybody, and it was a nice vibe.
Cheryl Lee:I read about that. Actually Does that happen very often, Because I hadn't heard of that sort of thing before.
Rai Thistlethwayte:That sort of thing's happening all around the world quite often, but you know, a lot of places like Nashville, which are known for their songwriting scenes, will host things like that. This was more of an LA guy who, yeah, had people from Sweden and UK and US and a few Aussies, of course, as well. In fact, there was a Scottish guy I did a song with as well there, which was pretty cool. Yeah, it was a good vibe, Awesome.
Cheryl Lee:Now, what else have you been up to? At the end of last year you toured a little bit with your first ever band, the Box.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Oh my God, yeah, just like catch-up gigs around the place sometimes. Just, you know, basically we've got a guitarist that lives overseas. When he comes back we just sort of put a few gigs in the book and just we use those opportunities as a way to play. But also, you know, because it's a chance to get together, we end up spending an extra day having a rehearsal and then just turns into a bit of a hang and a party and you know, that's kind of it's fun, it's a really good vibe. It's a lot of groove and a lot of we. It just gives us a chance to sort of check in with a very, a lot younger version of ourselves when we were sort of, you know, just coming up through the ranks. And yeah, it's nice to be able to do that every year.
Cheryl Lee:So just an excuse to hang out. Really, it's described as acid jazz, funk, jam band grooves. What's acid jazz?
Rai Thistlethwayte:Oh, look, if you look up the classic sort of Acid Jazz, it was probably like a combination of funk, disco, jazz sort of, but it had elements of improvising and elements of danceable grooves, but they weren't really in that sort of jazz swing sort of sense. They were more in a kind of a modern fusion sort of sense. But some of the instrumentation was borrowed heavily from jazz and some of the elements of improvisation borrowed heavily from jazz. But really it's sort of a crossover between funk and groove music. Really we had a an element of jam band stuff in there because we were sort of mixing that with a fusion of other things. You know slightly sort of psychedelic lyricism and things like that, and our lead singer kind of brought that to the the front. But I think, yeah, like it's just a thing that was basically also going on in the UK in the 90s.
Rai Thistlethwayte:I guess the most well-known band that had pop crossover appeal from that time was Jamiroquai. Yeah, also bands like Brand New Heavies and those sort of things. It's got some of those elements. Sonic, it's the kind of music that you'd hear a lot in venues in the 90s when you'd go out to like a residency show. You know there'd be that sort of music going on on stage, you'd have a lot of, you know, trumpets and saxophones and a lot of groove kind of element in there it's just a product of the time, really and you played in um Brisbane.
Cheryl Lee:Ever any chance of bringing that around down south to Adelaide?
Rai Thistlethwayte:maybe I mean we actually yeah, myself and the singer from that band, richie we ended up hanging out in Melbourne pretty recently and we thought maybe a few gigs around Melbourne could be something to talk about. And that's not too far away from Adelaide, so maybe we can do a little jaunt Adelaide and Melbourne would be kind of fun.
Cheryl Lee:Sounds good, so keep an eye on your Facebook page for details on that.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Yeah, of course, if anything comes up, I'll be posting that
Cheryl Lee:Well, the life of me, I can't find audio of a song with Rai and his first band, the Box. So let's have a hit from the Goo Goo Dolls. They're touring buddies at the moment. Their song from 1998, Slide. And then we're back to speak some more to Rai from the Box, from Thirsty Merc, from the Fabulous Caprettos, et cetera, et cetera. Something else I noticed on your socials which I just have to ask you about. I know I'm a cow.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Oh my God, I've been doing silly little parody songs just for fun.
Cheryl Lee:So that was the Cat Stevens song, Father and Son, with a little bit of a change of words. You're very clever.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Well, it was half that song and it was also half a One Direction song, I think, or it might have been a Five Seconds of Summer song, it might have been One. Direction. Yeah, I can't even remember which of those two bands. It's kind of half and half of both those songs, with different lyrics, of course.
Cheryl Lee:Very funny, very clever.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Just for fun, I mean, sometimes I have the idea.
Cheryl Lee:I wake up in right and I do love that. You know you do share your silliness with us and let us laugh along with you.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Yeah, why not? That's what it's all about.
Cheryl Lee:The big news that you did last year. I read the headline Thirsty Merc singer joins Joe Santorini and Sammy Hagar from Van Halen in International Supergroup. How was that?
Rai Thistlethwayte:That was great. Yeah, had a really cool run with those guys. It was like a 10-week run around the US Some very large venues and very large crowds and obviously playing a lot of the Van Halen catalogue and Joe Satriani doing some legendary guitar playing, feeling the almost impossible to fill shoes in beautiful style of eddie van halen, but just did fantastically. And you know sammy's a really great guy, really generous, lovely guy. You know he's in his 70s and sings great, unbelievable. So yeah, I was really, really lucky and fortunate to be part of that group. We're actually going to vegas to do three weeks as a residency soon, actually leaving at the end of april. So I'll be doing that until mid-May and then back for some Aussie work again. So, yeah, kept in touch with those guys. That'll be fun.
Cheryl Lee:I saw a little bit of footage of you guys and you look like you're having an absolute ball.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Yeah, I mean it's always fun to play the large crowds and those large stages and everything. So that was it's a real show, it's really fun and there's an album out.
Cheryl Lee:Is it g3 reunion life album that's actually more.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Joe Satriani and his guitar collaborators are really sort of the headline artists in that whole thing. But yeah, I was singing on a few things that they used from live footage and things with down tracks and stuff like that. So yeah yeah, that's a whole family of musicians that are sort of in that world, and I've been lucky enough to sort of get to know a few of them over the years, which has been cool.
Cheryl Lee:Awesome. Did you get any royalties?
Rai Thistlethwayte:I don't know if I will get royalties from that sort of stuff, because they're just playing a lot of their old material and I think that they're all their own compositions.
Cheryl Lee:Probably pleased to be, you know, involved a little bit. It's cool to be on stage with those guys. Yeah, yeah, still rocking that podcast with that radio chick, cheryl lee. I don't care how cool you are, you will never be as cool as playing on stage with Joe Satriani and him breaking song to play you happy birthday, including a cake and candles to blow out. The performance was in Cincinnati last year, includes a solo from Brian Beller and is courtesy of Joe's YouTube page. Then we're back to speak to Mr Cool himself, Rai Thistlethwayte. Now you know I said before we had a birthday in the house.
Cheryl Lee:Oh yeah, mr Thistlet, this is where you are getting away with this. You know what I'm saying. I mean, it's not every day somebody turns 144.
Cheryl Lee:We'll talk about the tour that's here when you get back from the us, which is the live in 25 to July/ August tour for the Fabulous Caprettos, now this boy band. You've had a line-up change. Have you ever worked prior to when he guested with the Fabulous Caprettos last year? Have you ever worked with Joe Camilleri before?
Rai Thistlethwayte:Not exactly in a formal sense. No, I hung out at his studio one time and I've seen him on the same bill a few times and I've watched the Black Sorrows a bunch of times, but I've never really sort of been in the band with him. Obviously he did guest on a few things with the Fabulous Caprettos already. But yeah, really looking forward to it. He's a great, great guy and really huge high-energy performer. Actually, once he starts those kind of grooves the band just kind of kicks to a new level, I find.
Cheryl Lee:No, stopping him.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Yeah, he's that kind of guy and he's got that sort of forward momentum in his guitar playing that I've always admired. And he plays saxophone too and he's a cool guy.
Cheryl Lee:Well, the tour starts on 11th of July and goes through until the 2nd of August here in Adelaide, july 25, at the Hindley Street Music Hall. We'll look forward to seeing you down the front there. The departing member, Russell, the legendary Russell Morris.
Rai Thistlethwayte:He's too busy. Well, I think Russell will actually guest on a few things if we're close to his house. But I think he's sort of getting to the point in his career where you know he's been doing stuff since the late 60s really and he's just getting to the point where the travel he wants to pick and choose and really sort of say, look, if it's something I can go down the road, if it's a major event that I want to sort of go to here and there, he'll jump on the plane and do whatever. But I don't think he wants to get to that routine where it's like, you know, get up, check. I think. If I'm sort of in I'm 75, 76, I hope I've got the bandwidth and the resources to pick and choose and I hope everyone would respect that if I said that to them as well.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Of course, huge fan of Russell and we'll have him back anytime. But been a real honor to actually work with such a legend who's been around for so long and still crushing it. Yeah, I think that it was getting to that thing where you know, when you're getting a whole month of, you know, a tour book which is just leaving hotels and getting in vans and driving hours to this place and going to the next place. I sort of you know, I can understand why he might want to sit out for certain shows these times, but obviously we won't be hearing some of the legendary hits. But I know that we've got a few other people coming on board which are going to more than make up for it and I think it's good to kind of keep a bit of you know, a bit of freshness in the project with some new people as well. There's so many Australian legends who've been around and it's really nice to actually be collaborating with some different artists as well oh yeah, a change is as good as a holiday.
Cheryl Lee:We're looking forward to it. You can still catch Russell in Darwin and Cairns and your Tasmanian shows as well, and for the rest of the tour we've've got Wendy Matthews.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Absolute legend as well. Yeah, I met Wendy first time when I was working at a. There was a Don Spencer Children's Music Fund show that was on at the State Theatre in Sydney and I'd never really hung out with Wendy Matthews before. She was in one of the backstage rooms and we just started chatting and I just thought, my gosh, she's got such a beautiful energy. By the end of the gig there was a big you know, russell Crowe was there with Danielle Spencer at the time and a lot of people were there because it was a beautiful music fund sort of fundraiser. I guess is what the gig was, and Don Spencer's a lovely bloke and he put a sort of item at the end of the night where everyone who was involved in it went on stage. I think I actually sung one of my songs, 20 Good Reasons, as a collaboration with Ian Moss. Yeah, I think that's on YouTube somewhere.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Anyway yeah, we all ended up on stage basically for the last song. By that stage I'd been chatting with Wendy Matthews that much that we were almost like two little silly little school kids like standing there next to each other, like giggling at each other, just like, oh, let's sing this song, you know, and I just thought this girl's like got that energy that reminds me of you know, like when I was at music school or something, and you'd end up be put in the same like school music, theater production or something, and she just had that energy that I just, I just love that sort of like cheeky, childlike vibe of like just the love for music. You know, it reminds me of why I started music and she's really got that vibe and but she's just a beautiful soul, I think, and great, great artist too, so I think. And plus, she's got some pretty stonking big hits too. So I think it's the audience is gonna have a great time with her involved.
Cheryl Lee:let's have one of those big stomping hits from Wendy Matthews now I don't want to be with nobody but you. And then we're back to say goodbye to Rai. You know, when Joe guested last year, some of us were like ooh, what's going on? And ultimately Joe has become a goat. So is there a possibility of Wendy being your first female goat?
Rai Thistlethwayte:Well, certainly, on these shows she'll be more than just a guest, because she's actually at least from what I've heard from the promoter uh, she'll be singing backing vocals for the whole show, so it's not like she just comes on and does a few songs and then we back her. It's going to be that kind of thing where I think she might stay on for the entire show and and sing backing vocals and things. So, yeah, well, I mean we're yet to do the final rehearsals, but we are pretty, uh well versed in getting things together at a fast speed and making it sound great. So I think we're going to be able to pull it all together very nicely and she's going to be a great addition. You know, the blend of her voice in there as well is going to be a nice addition that we haven't had before, so it'll be really, really good you're all such you know seasoned professionals that you guys don't even need to be in the same room.
Cheryl Lee:now you can rehearse remotely and make a fabulous show.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Yeah, it's good to get together a few days here and there and just nut out what we're doing. And you know, sometimes songs, you think something's going to work and then you try an alternate song. You know, Sometimes you've got two songs that were both well-known in the public sort of sphere and one of them, for some reason, when you get together with a certain bunch of musicians, just seems to find a home quicker and easier.
Rai Thistlethwayte:So you know, it's all about that kind of thing rehearsals. It's not as if we're worrying whether we can cut the mustard in terms of making a performance work. It's more making the set list work really well for the audience. I think we do think about that a lot and I think the audience is finding that it's got a good flow to it. Well, we're looking forward to catching up with you at our Hindley Street Music Hall. Have you performed at that one before? I haven't actually. No, I do a lot of shows with my own band at the Gov and I've played at the Thebby Bridgeway Sorry, which one?
Rai Thistlethwayte:And the Bridgeway yeah. I've played at places like Norwood. You know quite a few shows around and some stuff up in Gepps Cross and a few other things as well, and then I've done small jazz things at the Wheat Sheaf as well. Yeah, yeah, yeah, there's some great venues, but I've been hearing more about the Hindley Street Music Hall now.
Cheryl Lee:So yeah, it's been renovated. I think you'll like it.
Rai Thistlethwayte:So it's been there a long time, has it?
Cheryl Lee:Yeah, yeah, it's quite nice. I think you'll enjoy playing there there.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Yeah, cool, we're looking forward to it. It's nice to play somewhere a little different as well. Sometimes we do the gov and those sort of venues, but um, yeah, it'll be really, really cool to check it out we look forward to seeing you then.
Cheryl Lee:In the meantime, have a great tour overseas with Joe Satriani, and we'll see you and your boy band when you get back yeah, sounds good.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Thanks for the chat and have a great rest of the day you too was there anything haven't covered, Rai, that you wanted to mention at? All, I think you've gone very, very comprehensive coverage there.
Cheryl Lee:I will let you fill up your petrol tank and get to your mum.
Rai Thistlethwayte:Yeah, I'll do that. Yeah, we've got to take her up to the bank.
Cheryl Lee:Thanks so much for your time All right, no worries, thanks, cheryl.
Rai Thistlethwayte:See you later.
Cheryl Lee:Still Rockin' It podcast with that radio chick cheryl lee time, I think, for one of Rai's songs, thirsty merc with 20 good reasons, and I'm off to try and find his version with ian moss, one of my other favorites. I need to know. Yeah, you're with Cheryl Lee, that radio chick. Thank you so much for joining me on the Still Rocking it podcast. Hope to catch you again next time. Get out when you can support Aussie music and I'll see you down the front.