The Fantastic Leslie
| The Fantastic Leslie | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Origin | Sydney |
| Genres | Musical comedy |
| Years active | 1999– 2003 |
| Labels | Independent/MGM Distribution |
| Associated acts |
GUD Karma County The Beautiful Girls Paul Kelly's band |
| Website | Official site |
| Past members | Bruce Braybrooke Cameron Bruce James Fletcher Tom Gleeson Andrew Hansen |
The Fantastic Leslie were a four-piece band from Sydney, Australia and was the starting point for three of Australia's popular and successful comedians and musicians.
The group formed in 1999, with Cameron Bruce, Andrew Hansen, Tom Gleeson and James Fletcher, who were all studying at Sydney University. Hansen was the guitarist, played the kazoo and was one of the vocalists, Bruce's expertise lay in the field of playing piano and vocals, Gleeson was the drummer and Fletcher played bass.
That was a band that already existed at Uni – I think they were called the Canoe Club then. The piano player left, and I was asked to join. We changed the name, and went from there – getting our first gigs and playing for free.
They released their debut and only recording, an EP, A Tiny Mark, on 1 July 1999.A Tiny Mark consisted of six tracks – five original tracks as well as "Moving Right Along", a song from The Muppet Movie. It was produced by Michael Carpenter, mastered by Don Bartley, and distributed through MGM Distribution.
Tom Gleeson left the band in September 2000 to pursue his comedy career, and was replaced by Bruce Braybrooke. Gleeson went on to perform in skitHOUSE, as well as numerous Australian Comedy Tours, Melbourne International Comedy Festivals and Adelaide Fringe Festivals.
The band recorded only two other released tracks: "The Fantastic Leslie Theme Song" and a cover of the Nick Drake song, "At the Chime of the City Clock". These were respectively released on Grow Your Own 2000 and Jeremy Flies; A Tribute to Nick Drake.
They split in about 2003, when they were beginning to actively pursue their own careers. In an interview with The Age Hansen admitted he was a frustrated musician and related to his times with The Fantastic Leslie.
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