Entertainment scene ’Dudelmania’

Press, 2 August 1979, Page 15

Entertainment scene ’Dudelmania’

By

NEVIN TOPP

Look out Papanui High School, next Tuesday you are on the list for a taste of “Dudehnania.” Th’ Dudes, the commercially successful top New Zealand rock group will finish their national tour of 27 secondary schools at Papanui High School next Tuesday. The tour started at Takapuna Grammar, Auckland, on June 12. According to Charley Gray, Th’ Dudes’ manager, the secondary school tour has been highly successful, and the reaction to the band excellent. At some secondary schools the reactions resembled “Beatlemania,” girls have come backstage after the show, weeping and clutching pens and paper for autographs, said Charley Gray.

When it was suggested that some high schools might not like the possibility of pupils reacting in such a fashion, he replied, with a smile, “put ‘mild hysteria’ then.” Charley Gray sees the reaction in terms of students searching for heroes. “They look at a guitarist and say, ‘Gee, I wish I could do that*. “My object is to present Th’ Dudes as heroes; that is the way they look,” he said. The 45-minute shows are professionally organised, taking the road crew of four at least two hours to set up. The admission price is $l, of which 25c goes to the high school and 75c to the band. However, Th’ Dudes are making nothing from the tour because they support 10 people — six musicians

and four road crew — plus $40,000 worth of hired equipment and three trucks to move the gear from venue to venue. In fact, without the promotional help of the ANZ Bank, the tour would not have gone ahead. Th’ Dudes make their money playing at hotels and concerts during the week-ends. Last week-end in Christchurch they played at the DB Lancaster Park Hotel. Charley Gray estimated that 700 people passed through the door on Friday night, and almost as many on Saturday night. Th’ Dudes prefer to work independently of promoters, where possible, so that they get the whole door take themselves. “Promotion companies don’t do anything that we cannot do ourselves,” said Charley Gray. ... ,

In spite of an album riding high in the charts at present, Th’ Dudes are not resting on their laurels. A new single Will be released in three weeks. The A side will be “Walking At Night,” which is not on the album, “Right First Time,” while the B side is an album cut, “Bad Boy BiUy.” Plans are under way to send the band to Australia, probably next February, “unless we get an offer we can’t refuse,” which Charley Gray translated to mean money., A videotape of a Dudes’ show will be shown on the Australian national television rock'n’roll show, "Countdown,” and the single from the album, “Be Mine Tonite,” will also be released across the Tasman.