Sons of the Vegetal Mother
| Sons of the Vegetal Mother | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Melbourne, Australia |
| Genres | Rock |
| Years active | 1969—1971 |
| Labels | Independent |
| Associated acts |
The Pink Finks The Party Machine The Rondells Daddy Cool Spectrum Mighty Kong Mondo Rock |
| Past members | Wayne Duncan Ross Hannaford Ross Wilson Gary Young |
Sons of the Vegetal Mother (also known as The Vegetals to fans) were an Australian "esoteric special-occasion progressive band", formed in late 1969, with a floating line-up based around the nucleus of Ross Wilson and Ross Hannaford. A side-project of the band, formed in 1970 was Daddy Cool, which played 1950s doo-wop music plus some originals. Daddy Cool were to eclipse their parent band when their debut single "Eagle Rock" reached No. 1 on the Australian National charts.
Sons of the Vegetal Mother brought together the four musicians who subsequently became Daddy Cool, Ross Wilson and Ross Hannaford (both ex The Pink Finks, The Party Machine) and singer-drummer Gary Young and bassist Wayne Duncan, who had both been members of veteran Melbourne band The Rondells, who are best known as the backing group for pioneering beat duo Bobby & Laurie.
In early 1969, Wilson had been invited to go to the UK and join "progressive pop" band Procession. That band (which had evolved from Normie Rowe's backing group The Playboys) had relocated to Britain in 1968 but their career had stalled and they were trying to revitalise the group and find a new direction, to which end they invited Wilson to come to London to join the band. Having just received an insurance payout for a road accident he had suffered in his teens, Wilson broke up his band of the time, The Party Machine, and flew to London to join Procession.
"I received a phone call from Brian Peacock in the UK. They were having a line up change and felt a front man might be a good idea. I had to pay my own way there but had just scored an insurance payoff from a traffic injury and was eager to escape Melbourne and see the world."
Wilson arrived in London in April 1969 and the revamped Procession gigged sporadically over the next three months. During this period, they got the opportunity to record some new material at Olympic Studios in Barnes. and three tracks were cut at these sessions—Mick Rogers' "Surrey" and Wilson's "Papa's in the Vice Squad" and "I Wanna Be Loved", all of which were consigned to the vaults and are yet to see the light of day. By this time, Procession's music had taken on a new direction, with Wilson adding a more theatrical feel thanks to his interest in Frank Zappa. One of the new songs incorporated into the set (but never recorded by the band) was "Make Your Stash".
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