Straight in a Gay Gay World
Straight in a Gay Gay World was the third studio album released by Australian rock band, Skyhooks. The album was released on 23 August 1976. With the exception of "Million Dollar Riff", it was recorded at The Record Plant in Sausalito, California, after the band's first tour of the United States earlier in the same year. The title and songs are a sort of view the band had on their experience in the States. Like the band's first two albums, Living in the 70's and Ego Is Not a Dirty Word, Straight in a Gay Gay World was produced by former Daddy Cool leader Ross Wilson. The album was released by Mushroom Records. It peaked at No. 3 on Australian charts.
| Straight in a Gay Gay World | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 1976 | |||
| Recorded | The Record Plant, Sausalito and Armstrong Studios, Melbourne "Million Dollar Riff" recorded at TCS Studios, Melbourne | |||
| Genre | Glam rock | |||
| Length | 37:46 | |||
| Label | Mushroom Records | |||
| Producer | Ross Wilson | |||
| Skyhooks chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Straight in a Gay Gay World | ||||
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At the Australian 1976 King of Pop Awards the album won Best Cover Design.[1]
"Million Dollar Riff" was released as a single in late 1975 before Skyhooks toured the States and reached No. 6 in Australia. Two further singles were lifted from this album, "This Is My City" / "Somewhere In Sydney" and "Blue Jeans" / "Mumbo Jumbo", both in 1976. These peaked at No. 32 and No. 12 respectively on Australian charts.
"Million Dollar Riff" contains musical quotes and lyrical allusions to other hit songs. It includes the guitar riffs from Skyhooks' own No. 1 hit "Horror Movie", plus the worldwide hits "Satisfaction", "Smoke on the Water", "Sunshine of Your Love", "Day Tripper", "Gloria", and Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode".[2] It also includes lyrical allusions to Berry's "Little Queenie" ("Meanwhile, I was still..."), and Sam Cooke's "Chain Gang" ("Ooh, Ah. Ooh, Ah").
Reception
Reviewed in Australian music magazine RAM at the time of release, it was called, "methedrine power rock. It's jingle-jangley and crazy-tempered with guitar that shrill jackhammer like giant mosquitoes – dive-bombing into rhythms that are playing epileptic leap-frog around your stereo speakers." The song "Crazy Heart" was complimented for being "sweetly mellow" compared to the rest of the album.[3]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Million Dollar Riff" | Greg Macainsh | 3:50 |
| 2. | "Is This America?" | Macainsh | 4:32 |
| 3. | "Blue Jeans" | Macainsh | 2:30 |
| 4. | "Somewhere in Sydney" | Macainsh | 3:46 |
| 5. | "The Girl Says She's Bored" | Macainsh | 3:33 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "This Is My City" | Macainsh | 3:40 |
| 2. | "Straight in a Gay Gay World" | Macainsh | 4:29 |
| 3. | "I'm Normal" | Macainsh | 3:15 |
| 4. | "Mumbo Jumbo" | Red Symons | 3:24 |
| 5. | "Crazy Heart" | Macainsh | 4:47 |
Charts
| Chart (1976) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart[4] | 3 |
Personnel
- Shirley Strachan – lead vocals
- Red Symons – guitar, backing and lead (9) vocals, keyboards
- Bob "Bongo" Starkie – guitar, backing vocals
- Greg Macainsh – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Imants Alfred Strauks – drums, backing vocals, percussion
References
- "Australian Music Awards". Ron Jeff. Retrieved 16 December 2010.
- Conomy, Trevor (August 2015). Down Under. ISBN 9781925344332.
- Anthony O'Grady. "Skyhooks Straight in a Gay Gay World". RAM. Sydney, NSW: Soundtracts Publishing Pty Ltd (August 1976).
- Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book Ltd. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. NOTE: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until ARIA created their own charts in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.
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