Shark Attack
. Fora town of2ooo people, Raglan has a lot going for it. Maori activist Eva Rickard’s winning back of the golf course was a major early victory in Maori land claims. A local surfer Glen Campbell is a national champ. Then there’s Clarrie Cress well and his legendary Mudsharks.
“Mudshark Monday” is the night when local musos come out of the bush for a bash at the Harbourview Hotel. Musicians like Midge Marsden, Dave McArtney, Liam Ryan and Dave Maybee. The leader, Clarrie Cresswell, is a 73-year-old jazz pianist and saxophonist with more tunes and tales than grains of black sand on the beach.
“Raglan is a special place in the world — I won’t ever desert it,” says Midge Marsden who, although now “temporarily residing in Auckland” has had a house there since 1981. “As soon as I drive down there, I’m home. There’s a great cross-section of people, Maoris, musicians, surfers, and people passing through. And they respect your privacy. I never had anyone knocking on my door looking fora party.” The parties were in the Harbourview, as you can witness in Raglan by the Sea, a documentary on the town and the Mudsharks on TV One, Tuesday June 14 at B.oopm.
The Mudsharks came about through Dave Maybee and Sid Limbert (guitar and bass) who knew Cresswell. “Clarrie loved it,” says Marsden. “Finding younger guys who knew how to play his older style of music. He can play standards for hour after hour. I brought him up to Auckland for a gig at the Gluepot, he said ‘Ooooh — big time!’ I hope I’m still like that at his age, still entertaining people.”
Of course, Marsden is still entertaining people, with his new band, the nine-piece Giant Killers, an R&B revue which features the talents of Billy Kristian and Mike Farrell. “Billy’s an awesome player, he’s an idol of mine, and I finally get to play with him.”
Dallas Cowboys . Another idol Marsden has been making music with is Stevie Ray Vaughan, featured in the Europa ad along with ex-Underdog Murray Grindlay. The ad brought Marsden back to New Zealand from his six-month visit to the United States. He was based in Dallas, where he flatted with former All Black Paul Quin (there’s a large Kiwi rugby playing contingent. in the South, apparently)/ He washed dishes, sold 'Christmas trees — and got involved in the local music scene.
“It was bloody hard, getting off the ground again, showing people what you do. But I wanted to prove it to myself, that I could take an Australasian repertoire and start from scratch again — and I did. It was nice to be accepted; once they heard you play, they dug it.”
Marsden played with two groups, the High Tops and the Joy Drops, and from the stage of the Outback pub he’d take advantage of the current fashion for Ockers in the US. “Australia is huge over there. You should see it — the blue plague [Fosters] is crossing
America! I’d ring up the pub and say ‘Gid-c/aj/ — you gotta use the accent — call the crowd ‘a bunch of bastards,’ and they’d love it.”
Southern Blues How was visiting the South after 25 years devotion to the blues? “Sitting on the banks of the Mississippi is tears-to-the-eyes stuff. But I was quite comfortable there. I could understand where it all comes from. Your interpretation of the blues changes — before, there’s no colour involved, it’s just an art-form. But it’s how you always perceived it, your own blues fantasy — you still do find a guy playing guitar on a stoop." Coming back to New Zealand, Marsden was disappointed to see the downturn in the live scene here. “The economics of this business are a worry to everyone. Radio isn’t supportive, but moves into old hits and memories. At one time, for every five ads you booked you used to get one free. There’s no incentive. The punter carries all the costs. Why don’t the breweries put on special deals, such as cheap beer, Joseph Khutze for $2 a can, all night? Or keep the door prices down? By the end of the night, the punter is SSO out of pocket. The consistent supporter is paying for everything: PA, lights, roadies and heavy bar prices. Bands live off what’s on the door, whereas in Dallas or Sydney, bands work on a fee.” Even teetotallers, poor things, are getting hit: the Gluepot, where a can of local beer is $3.30, now charges 50 cents for iced water. Chris Bourke
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/RIU19880601.2.14
Bibliographic details
Rip It Up, Issue 131, 1 June 1988, Page 8
Word Count
754Shark Attack Rip It Up, Issue 131, 1 June 1988, Page 8
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