The EasyBeats

The Easybeats
The Easybeats in 1966
Background information
Origin	Sydney, Australia
Genres	Rock, pop
Years active	1964–1969, 1986
Labels	EMI, Parlophone, Albert
Associated acts	Vanda & Young, Flash and the Pan, AC/DC
Past members	Dick Diamonde Harry Vanda Stevie Wright George Young Gordon "Snowy" Fleet Tony Cahill

The Easybeats were an Australian rock band which formed in Sydney, Australia, in late 1964, and disbanded at the end of 1969. They were the antipodean echo to the style and sound of the Beatles in Britain, and the first rock and roll act from Australia to score an international pop hit with the 1966 single, "Friday on My Mind".

All five founding members were from families that had migrated to Australia from Europe: lead singer Stevie Wright and drummer Gordon "Snowy" Fleet were from England; rhythm guitarist George Young was from Scotland; lead guitarist Harry Vanda and bassist Dick Diamonde were from the Netherlands.

The band formed at the former Villawood Migrant Hostel, later renamed the Villawood Detention Centre. The families of the band members spent their first years in Australia housed at the Villawood Migrant Hostel in the early and mid-sixties.

The Easybeats began their career in late 1964 at the little-known teen hangout, Beatle Village, located in the basement of a pub at Taylor Square on Oxford Street, in Darlinghurst, Sydney. The band was inspired by the "British Invasion" spearheaded by the Beatles. The Easybeats quickly rose to become one of the most popular groups in the city. Real estate agent turned pop music entrepreneur Mike Vaughan took over as their manager. Through his efforts, they were signed to a contract with Albert Productions, one of Australia's first independent record production companies. The company was established by Ted Albert whose family owned J. Albert & Sons, a prominent music publishing company. Albert signed the band to a recording contract with EMI's Parlophone label. The group recorded a number of songs at the abandoned 2UW Theatre, owned by the parent company of Albert Productions, J. Albert and Son. They chose the bluesy "For My Woman" as their first single. It was picked up by local radio Sydney radio and proved to be a minor hit, reaching #33 on the charts.