All I Wanted to Do Was Play the Guitar, and Then This Happened….

By Joe Mandica and Steve Ludwig

I had my first formal guitar lesson in 1972, in my hometown of Melbourne, Australia, when I was eight years old.

Since then, I’ve spoken to Ringo Starr (who gave me a poke in the chest while talking to me), shared photographs backstage with Ringo’s fellow member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Ricky Nelson, and co-wrote and co-produced an album of songs with the multi-award-winning producer, musician, and songwriter, Preston Glass.

I wouldn’t have had those opportunities had it not been for the people who’ve helped me navigate my musical journey, and who mean the most to me.
My family and friends.
I love music.
I love making it, I love hearing it, I love feeling it.
“Write it down.”
I’ve heard that more than a few times from friends and family.
“Write a book, Joe.”
So I’m giving it a go.
And I’d love to share with you some of the stories and events that have allowed me to make a living in music.
I’ll bet some of the stories will bring a smile; a few may make you sad.
You’ll also probably know some of my friends and family.
Maybe not personally, but they’ll remind you of people who’ve helped shape your life, who have helped you realize your dream, as my friends and family have for me.
So, are you all set?
Good! Allow me the honor.
One…two…three…four!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: May 24, 2023
• ISBN: 9798369491430

Book preview

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD

THE COUNT-IN

1. MUM AND THE GUITAR

2. MIDNIGHT SUN

3. MEMORIES OF BROADMEADOWS TOWN HALL

4. OUR BEATLES FAN CLUB

5. THE SECRETS’ FIRST GIG

6. RICKY NELSON

7. THE ORIGINAL LEGENDS TRIO

8. JASON, LEGENDS KEYBOARD PLAYER, AND ARGENTI’S RECEPTIONS…ON MY MIND

9. THE BABY

10. MEETING DARYL ROBERTS

11. DARYL & JOE’S MISADVENTURES AT THE WONTHAGGI WORKERS’ CLUB

12. NYE 1999 AND THE POWER OF SUGGESTION

13. THE TALE OF J.P.

14. GEOFF BROWN, IN THE ZONE

15. THE GOOD FORTUNE OF MEETING FORTUNATO

16. MEETING RINGO ALL I’VE GOT IS A PHOTOGRAPH…

17. RECORDING SURVIVE

18. RED OR WHITE AT BOA IN L.A.

19. THE ANGELIC VOICE OF STEPHANIE ANGELINI

20. MY JOURNEY TO THE …TOP OF THE WORLD

21. WITH THE BEATLES

22. BEYOND

DISCOGRAPHY

FOREWORD

When I first heard of Joe Mandica, it was courtesy of his fellow Australian, Geoff Brown. Geoff and his wife, Tracey, were visiting the U.S. They were attending a party for a mutual friend of ours, Evan Ginzburg, in New York City, celebrating the premiere of Evan Ginzburg’s Legends TV Show.

At one point in the evening, Geoff handed me a music CD called The Initiative, the brainchild of this book’s author, Joe Mandica.

I listened to The Initiative in my car, on my drive home to New Jersey.

I was pleasantly bewildered.

Who is this guy, and who were his fellow performers on the CD?

As many of you are, I’m a fervent music fan. How could I not have heard of Joe Mandica before Geoff had handed me his CD?

It stayed in my car’s CD player for at least a few days, until I finally brought it into the house and played it there.

My wife Sue asked, Who’s this?

Some guy from Australia, was my reply. That was pretty much all I knew about Joe.

But I wanted to know more about him and his infectious pop music, and Joe was kind enough to grant me an interview on my classic pop culture podcast.

That led to what has become an enduring harmony between us.

We’ve exchanged birthday and Christmas gifts, wondering why it takes so long for a package to get from Australia to the United States.

Every so often, I’ll receive a surprise email from Joe with a file of a song he’s working on.

What do you think of this one, mate?

It’s always a great song.

Our discussions go beyond music.

His friendship is one I cherish.

When Joe offered to share with me the manuscript that became this book, I knew I’d finally get clues as to how and why he’s the brilliant songsmith he is.

I mean, I couldn’t just ask him, Gee, how did ya become so darn great, Joe? could I?

He’s too humble to tell me, anyway.

The book is so much fun to read.

The stories within tell of a man from Melbourne who rose in the music business to meet and work with famous people.

But at its core, it’s the story of a guy who reached for, and took hold of, his dream.

Joe’s persistence is an inspiration.

I promise you’ll laugh at the stories he shares with us.

A few of the accounts will be sobering, too; such are life’s lessons.

You’ll also get that special chill you feel when you know you’re reading about a good man and his just-as-goodhearted partner, Mirella.

Every so often in the book, Joe will allude to a particular incident and follow with, …but that’s another story.

He does that a few times.

So, if I’m reading Joe correctly, he’s probably half-way through Volume Two.

Steve Ludwig, U.S.A.

Host of Steve Ludwig’s Classic Pop Culture and The Beatles Hour with Steve Ludwig

THE COUNT-IN

I had my first formal guitar lesson in 1972, in my hometown of Melbourne, Australia, when I was eight years old.

Since then, I’ve spoken to Ringo Starr (who gave me a poke in the chest while talking to me), shared photographs backstage with Ringo’s fellow member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Ricky Nelson, and co-wrote and co-produced an album of songs with the multi-award-winning producer, musician, and songwriter, Preston Glass.

I wouldn’t have had those opportunities had it not been for the people who’ve helped me navigate my musical journey, and who mean the most to me.

My family and friends.

I love music.

I love making it, I love hearing it, I love feeling it.

Write it down.

I’ve heard that more than a few times from friends and family.

Write a book, Joe.

So I’m giving it a go.

And I’d love to share with you some of the stories and events that have allowed me to make a living in music.

I’ll bet some of the stories will bring a smile; a few may make you sad.

You’ll also probably know some of my friends and family.

Maybe not personally, but they’ll remind you of people who’ve helped shape your life, who have helped you realize your dream, as my friends and family have for me.

So, are you all set?

Good! Allow me the honor.

One…two…three…four!

CHAPTER 1

MUM AND THE GUITAR

Joe Mandica on stage with his GIBSON S-1 guitar - circa 1984

Even when I was a young kid, I loved music. There are family photos of me holding 45-rpm records, even though, at times as a very young music lover, I had trouble actually playing those little vinyl records. I also loved tape recorders, Sam Madaffari, my brother-in-law, had one of those tape recorders, the one with the reel-to-reel tapes, which he would bring over and make recordings; just the smell of those tapes would excite me!

Dad’s favourite type of music was country, and Gene Autry was his favourite singer.

My dad played the guitar, and we’d have singsongs at the Mandica home, so music was quite a part of life growing up. I have such pleasant memories of hearing guitar strings being strummed…

I’d watch Dad form the chords while he played.

You’d think my dad would have been the one to teach me how to play the guitar, and although I did learn plenty from watching him, I signed up for guitar lessons.

I started my lessons when I was about eight years old, at the Herbert Ford Music Shop in Moonee Ponds, in Melbourne.

My sister, Melina, would take me to my lessons on Saturday mornings, when they would offer lessons to students.

In the front of the music shop was the actual store, with the records and musical instruments on display, and in the back were the music classes.

I remember sitting with about fifteen to twenty other students, ready to learn all about the guitar: the names of the strings, and the chords I’d watched my dad play; things like that. Different kinds of guitars, mostly acoustic with nylon strings and such, adorned the room.

There was a kid there who struck me as being pretty well-off, always dressed nicely, had great blonde hair and wore a sailor suit…

He had an electric guitar, which was unusual, because most of us had these old, acoustic hand-me-down guitars.

I had a couple guitars from Joe Sofra, my brother-in-law (an established musician), who had them lying around. These were the kind of guitars whose strings were hard on your fingers; it wasn’t uncommon for my fingers to bleed after a session. We recently found one of these guitars, and it now hangs on my wall (minus the blood stains on the strings, of course).

But this young rich kid with the electric guitar (but without an amp) would be there with his sailor suit on, ready to learn.

Also in the back room was David Olivieri, who eventually wound up in my first band; I didn’t know him at this time, though.

Our teacher was a Scottish gentleman whose name I can’t remember…Scotty, maybe?

Scotty’s method of teaching wasn’t from the traditional guitar book with the names of the notes and the strings; we were taught using the Songs by Creedence Clearwater Revival Guitar Book. Now, I had no idea who Creedence Clearwater were, but we all had to buy their guitar books.

When I opened the CCR book, I noticed that the notes and chord charts were all printed very big, like a beginner-type book should be.

So we all strummed away, making a racket, learning the A and E7 chords, and Travellin’ Band and Green River, along with other Creedence songs I’d never heard of.

This unconventional way of learning to play was, in fact, a fantastic way to learn, because the Creedence songs didn’t have a lot of chords, so I could go home and really play songs!

So, adding in from what I’d learned from watching Dad play, and what brother-in-law Joe played, plus with Scotty and Creedence, I learned quite well how to be a guitarist.

Because I was playing so ably, I graduated to a better acoustic guitar.

But what I really wanted was an electric guitar like the one Mike Nesmith played on the Monkees TV show, which I would rush home from school to watch every day at 4:00 PM.

However, no guitar was more thrilling for me than the one when I was around fourteen years of age; I went shopping with Mum to Highpoint West Shopping Centre, to a store that sold records and instruments – Brashs.

And in that window of Brashs was a Gibson S1 bullet-neck electric guitar…wow! I had seen Peter Frampton use a similar one, in the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band movie.

But the biggest reason I wanted it was because Jeff Lynne played that model guitar in the Electric Light Orchestra video