Dave Steel

Early in his musical career Steel was a member of various Melbourne pub bands: Related Mechanics in 1976 with Iain Colquhoun, Peter Lillee, John Lloyd and Nick Reischbeth; Moonshine from 1976 to 1977, the Trouts in 1977 with Mark Bell, Stuart Crosby, Dave McNaughton and Rob Stevens; the Satellites from 1978 to 1981; Zeros in 1981; Strange Tennants in 1981 with Alex Formosa, Lawrence Maddy, Bruce Worrall; and Fire Below from 1984 to 1985.[1][2]

Fire Below had a line-up of Steel with Lloyd Campbell on guitar, Nigel Harrison on drums and vocals, Michael Kennedy on bass guitar, and Peter Myers on guitar.[1][2] They issued a single, "Walk Tall", in 1985 and provided a track, "Johnny's Tombstone", for a various artists compilation album, A Slab of Vic, in that year.[1] According to Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane they, "played a tough brand of pub rock."[1]

Steel, on guitar, vocals and harmonica, joined a newly formed folk rock band, Weddings Parties Anything, in late 1985 alongside Dave Adams on drums; Mick Thomas on lead vocals, bass guitar, guitar and mandolin; Mark Wallace on piano accordion, keyboards and vocals.[2][3] Steel is recorded on their first two studio albums, Scorn of the Women (April 1987) and Roaring Days (April 1988).[2][3][4]

Prior to their second album, Karen Middleton of The Canberra Times, described how the group, "[were] compared to Irish post-punk folk rockers the Pogues, the more mellow Bushwackers and even Redgum. Steel ignored such comparisons. 'It's a rock 'n roll band', he said."[5] Steel wrote the Weddings Party Anything tracks, "Big River", "Shotgun Wedding" and "Up for Air"; however founding mainstay, Thomas, wrote most of the group's original material.[1][3][6] Steel left in mid-1988 because of strained relations; however, according to AllMusic's Aaron Badgley, it was, "due to exhaustion."[7] He was replaced in the group by Richard Burgman on guitar and saxophone.[2][3]

Steel relocated to Sydney, where he recorded his first solo single, "The Hardest Part" (October 1988).[1][2] At the ARIA Music Awards of 1989 it was nominated for Best Indigenous Release but lost to Weddings Party Anything's Roaring Days.[8] His debut album, Bitter Street (September 1989), was produced by Graham Bidstrup (Riptides, the Party Boys, Gang Gajang) for WEA.[1][2] McFarlane observed, "Steel's concise and economical arrangements, narrative style vocal manner drew comparisons with Paul Kelly, albeit in a very positive light."[1] Badgley felt, "most of the songs are well-crafted country/folk/rock, but there is little variety. Steel cannot sustain an entire album on his own... [they] are, for the most part, pretty depressing. Pleasant melodies, but the songs start to sound all the same by the end of the disc."[7]

During 1990 to 1991 he fronted the Dave Steel Band with Bidstrup on drums, Chris Bailey on bass guitar, Wayne Goodwin on fiddle, guitar and keyboards, Peter Howell on bass guitar, Graham Rankin and Dave Sandford on saxophone.[1][2] He was also a guitarist of pop group, the Whipper Snappers, alongside Annette Crowe on bass guitar and vocals, Joy Howard on rhythm guitar and vocals, Tim Eaton on lead guitar and Frank Zaknich on drums.[1][2] That line-up provided a cover version of Russell Morris' "Sweet, Sweet Love" (February 1991), which appeared on the various artists' compilation, Used and Recovered By... RRR, in 1993.[9]

In 1991 Steel was also a sometime member of a surf rock band, the Flaming Toxins.[1] Steel found time to record and release his second solo album, Angels Never Cry (1991), with Bidstrup producing again.[1][2] His bandmates, Bailey and Goodwin, were joined in the studio by Michael Barclay on drums, James Black on keyboards, John Brewster on guitar, Peter Bull on keyboards, Mark Dennison on saxophone, Kevin Dubber on trumpet and Charlie McMahon on didgeridoo.[1]

The Last Radio, Steel's third album, appeared in August 1992.[1][2] Charles Miranda of The Canberra Times noticed, "he shows why he is a respected writer. As with his past offerings, the recording is a blend of acoustic guitar and rhythm and blues."[10] McFarlane observed, "another well-crafted set of songs competently played... It did little, however to further [his] status as one of this country's most promising singer/guitarists."[1] Also in that year he formed the Maddisons with Clyde Bramley (ex-the Hitmen, Hoodoo Gurus, Damien Lovelock's Wigworld) on bass guitar, Brent Marks on drums and Wayne Tritton on guitar and lead vocals (both ex-Pressmen).[1][2] That group released their debut EP, Just Fine, in September with Steel also producing, before they disbanded.[1][10]

In 1993 he formed Dave Steel and the Roadside Prophets with Tritton, Darren Gower on drums and Gerry Kortesgast on bass guitar.[1][2] They released an album, Cross My Palm (June 1993) and an extended play, Broken English (March 1994).[1][2] Cross My Palm was nominated for Best Independent Release in 1994, which was won by Ed Kuepper's Serene Machine.[11] From November 1994 to August 1995 he recorded his next album, Old Salt Blues (June 1996).[1][2] For the album he co-wrote two tracks with Andrew Pendlebury (ex-the Sports, Slaughtermen).[1] Steel also toured as a member of the Deadly Band (1995–97) with Archie Cuthbertson, Kerry Gilmartin, Ruby Hunter, Amos Roach and Archie Roach.[1][2] He worked as a session musician for various artists.[1][2]

The Edge of the World (May 1999), his sixth album, "featured a collection of contemporary Australian acoustic roots tunes with plenty of charm" according to McFarlane.[1][2] One of his guest musicians was folk singer, Tiffany Eckhardt.[1][2] His seventh solo album, Home Is a Hard Thing to Find (August 2002), was nominated for Best Blues & Roots Album in 2002.[12][13] Tiffany Eckhardt and Dave Steel have performed as a duo and released two albums, Sunday (2010) and Big Big Sky (2014).[1] As from January 2015 they are married and live in Franklin, Tasmania with their two children.[14][15]