Marty Rhone

Marty Rhone was born as Karel (or Karl) Lawrence van Rhoon on 7 May 1948 in Soerabaja, Dutch East Indies (later named Surabaya, Indonesia).^[A] His father was Eddy Emile van Rhoon (born Soerakarta, Central Java, 1 July 1917), a clerk and former flying navigator in the Dutch East Indies navy during World War II.[1][2] His mother was Judith Olive (née Bagshaw, born Sydney, 1 January 1929).[1][3] She was a singer and actress, who met Eddy through the Sydney jazz scene; he was a visiting pianist while on leave.[2] The couple married in 1947 and Judith accompanied Eddy to Soerabaja.[2] The family migrated to Australia on 21 April 1950 and briefly lived in Sydney and Brisbane, and then moved to Darwin.[1][2] Eddy worked as a Communications Officer for the Department of Civil Aviation; he was stationed in Darwin from March 1951 until July 1957.[1] The family remained in Darwin until mid-1960, by which time Rhone had a younger sister, Kymn Dale (born 1958) and brother, Martin Richard (born 1960).[2]

Rhone was taught piano by his father but he preferred singing.[2] In August 1959, aged 11, he first performed publicly at Darwin's Mitchell Street Town Hall in Around the World in 80 Minutes – a charity variety concert – alongside his father on piano and his mother.[2][4] After he finished primary school, the family moved to Sydney, where he attended Crows Nest Boys High School.[2]

In mid-1961, Rhone appeared on a talent quest segment of ATN7-TV series, Tarax Show, and was offered a singing spot on a children's show, Kaper Kabaret.[2] In late 1965 he formed a band, The Blue Feelings, and they auditioned for an appearance on Saturday Date, a teen music show.[5][6][7] After the audition Spin Records owner, Nat Kipner, signed Rhone to a recording contract and the label issued his debut single, "Nature Boy", in February the following year.[5] For his next two singles, "Thirteen Women" (April) and "I Want You Back Again", Rhone was backed by Spin Records label mates, The Soul Agents, a beat pop group.[5] They had formed in 1964 and by 1966 consisted of Jerry Darmic on bass guitar, Roger Felice-Andrews on drums, John Green on guitar and Barry Kelly on organ.[5]

Rhone's fourth single, "She Is Mine", included the self-penned B-side, "Village Tapestry",[8] which appeared in September.[5] None of these singles charted on the Go-Set National Top 40, however Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, described "Village Tapestry" as being "highly regarded among 1960s aficionados".[5] In Iain McIntyre's book, Tomorrow Is Today: Australia in the Psychedelic Era, 1966-1970 (2006), the track was listed by Ian D. Marks as one of the 'Top 7 Proto-Psychedelic Australian Tracks from 1966'.[9] Marks described it as "completely out of left field. With a gentle, almost medieval lilt, autoharps a-strumming and a charming spoken word verse—there was nothing like this released in Australia at the time. Melodic, evocative and delicate".[9] During 1966 Marty Rhone and The Soul Agents supported The Rolling Stones on the United Kingdom rock group's tour of Australia.[6][7] They also performed on the bill of the P.J. Proby Show at the Sydney Stadium with Wayne Fontana, Eden Kane and The Bee Gees appearing.[6][7] Rhone moved to Melbourne and issued five more singles on Spin Records but had "limited success".[5][6][7]

In March 1970, Rhone was conscripted for National Service until 1972.[5][6] During his service he attended the Royal Military College, Duntroon, as a member of their band, for 18 months.[10]

From April 1972 to July 1973 he acted in the Australian stage version of Godspell at The Richbrooke, Sydney with Rod Dunbar, Peita Toppano and John Waters.[5][11][12] The Australian cast soundtrack album was issued as Godspell: a Musical Based on the Gospel According to St. Matthew on His Master's Voice.[11] He attended the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and in July 1973 he released a new single, "Goodbye in May".[5]

He composed the music for Ruzzante Returns from the Wars, which starred Ivar Kants and ran at the Parade Theatre, Kensington from May to June 1974 as a one-act play.[13] It is based on the text of Angelo Beolco's Il Parlamento de Ruzante, originally written in Italy during the mid-16th century.[13] As a double bill at the same venue, Rhone performed the music he had composed for La Mandragola, a satirical play by another 16th-century Italian, Niccolò Machiavelli.[14] It had roles by Reg Gillam, Pamela Stephenson and Ingrid Mason.[14] Rhone followed with appearances on TV soap operas, Number 96 (1974) and Class of '75 (1975).[5][6]

By mid-1975 Rhone had signed with M7 Records and issued his next single, "Denim and Lace", which peaked at No. 2 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart.[5][15] It was promoted on the Class of '75 soundtrack album.[16] It was co-written by L Lister (aka Jack Aranda) and F Lyons (aka Shad Lyons).[16][17] Lister and Lyons also produced Rhone's debut album, Denim and Lace, recording at Alberts Studio 139.[16] At the end of the year "Denim and Lace" was the second highest selling single in Australia.[5] His next single, "Star Song", reached the Top 50, the next two were less successful, while the last one for the year, "On the Loose" reached the Top 40.[15] Of the four singles, "On the Loose (Again)" – co-written by Brian Dawe and Steve Groves (ex-Tin Tin)[18] – was used by Rhone to win the 1976 Australian Popular Song Festival.[5] In June 1977 he had another hit with "Mean Pair of Jeans", which reached No. 11.[5][15] In July that year he issued his second album, Marty Rhone.[5]

In July 1978 Rhone relocated to London. In June 1979, Rhone took the role of Lun Tha in the London Palladium presentation of The King and I alongside Yul Brynner and Virginia McKenna.[19] By September 1981 he had returned to Sydney.[20]

In 1987 Rhone became a business manager for a trio of brothers, the Australian boxers: Dean, Guy and Troy Waters.[19] In May 1988 Festival Records issued a ten-volume album series, Festival File, including Village Tapestry: The Festival File Volume 9 by Marty Rhone and The Soul Agents.[21] Stuart Coupe reviewed the collection for The Canberra Times, "Never a big pop star, Marty Rhone will be remembered for a number of outstanding singles, a number of which were very advanced in style and production".[21]

In December 1988 Rhone organised the "Battle on the Beach" for January 1989 with Dean Waters, as Australian heavyweight champion, to fight New Zealand's title holder; and Guy, who had been stripped of his Australian light heavyweight title, due to fight another New Zealand champion.[22][23][24] Meanwhile, Troy was waiting for an opportunity at the world IBF junior middleweight title in February.[22][23][24] From October 1988 to March 1993 Rhone promoted at least 16 boxing events.[25] However, by August 1990 the Waters brothers had walked out, he complained "I've made a three-year investment in three fighters and they want to leave when two are on the brink of world titles ... I will demand substantial compensation in court and a seven-figure sum is a possibility".[26]

Commencing in 2007, Rhone has performed a repertoire of tracks by Cliff Richard; a gig at the Crown Casino, Melbourne, in late 2008 was filmed and broadcast in February the next year as Marty Rhone: A Tribute to Cliff Richard and The Shadows.[27][28]

In 2009 he worked with fellow local artists, Ray Burgess, Tommy Emmanuel, John St Peeters and John "Swanee" Swan to release a single, "Legends of the Southern Land".[29] From April to July 2009 he continued the Richard tributes with The Dream Tour, which had Dean Bourne as US singer Roy Orbison;[30] then in May 2011 on the Cliff & Dusty presentation he performed with Sheena Crouch as UK pop singer Dusty Springfield;[31] and in June 2012 with his own "musical theatre fantasy" covering Richard's and The Beatles' material in Cliff Joins The Beatles.[27] In August 2016, Rhone released 50th Anniversary Album, a career spanning compilation album.

In March 2017, Rhone released a new single titled "Graceland on the Line", commemorating 40 years since the death of Elvis Presley.[32]

In January 1976 Marty Rhone married Rosa Merola; the couple have two sons.[2]