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Friday 19 June 2009

Smacka Fitzgibbon - Smacka's Party Album




Everybody Wants To Go To Heaven/Blueberry Hill/My Little Bimbo Down On The Bamboo Isle/At The Woodchopper's Ball (Inst.)/Home/Toot Toot Tootsie (Goo'bye)/My Blue Heaven/Bill Bailey Won't You Please Come Home/Alexander's Ragtime Band/I Wonder Where My Baby Is Tonight/Honey Hush/I'm A Ding Dong Daddy From Dumas/You Oughta Be In Pictures/March Of The Bobcats (Inst.)/If I Had You/The World Is Waiting For The Sunrise (Inst.)/After You've Gone/The Adventures Of Barry McKenzie




I wasn't going to post this here but what the heck someone might be interested. Smacka was best known for his hit "The Adventures of Barry McKenzie" #21 0n the charts The album is made up of old standards jazz and rag time mainly and the backing musos are quite good check out the instrumentals there is also a different version of "The Adventures of Barry McKenzie on there as well.


Fitzgibbon was born at Mordialloc on 12 February 1930, the son of Francis (Frank) Fitzgibbon, clerk and Minnie née Mitchell (d 1989). Educated at St. Bede’s College, Mentone, ‘Smacka’ as he was popularly known began first playing the ukulele at an early age before switching to the banjo; his earliest influences were Bing Cosby and Louis Armstrong. In 1951 he began playing with “Frank Johnson’s Fabulous Dixielanders”, and later with the father of Australian jazz, Graham Bell, before forming his own band with “The Steamboat Stompers”; his first album was “Frisco Joe’s Good Time Boys”. In 1969 he opened Melbourne’s first jazz restaurant “La Brochette” (Studley Park Road, Kew) and later in June 1971 “Smacka’s Place” (Chetwynd Street, North Melbourne) which became a Melbourne institution; his recipe for an enjoyable night out was an ample supply of “good food, good liquor, and good entertainment”. Described as “plump and smiling with a warm and friendly genial personality”, Smacka was a much loved entertainer, a rare breed who left a smile on everyone’s face and a familiar face on Melbourne television shows, notably “Sunnyside Up”, “The Penthouse Club” and “In Melbourne Tonight”. In 1972, the jovial Australian jazzman recorded the title song of the unforgettable movie “The Adventures of Barry McKenzie” which became a best seller. Having had a malignant tumour removed in 1955, on 1 September 1977 Smacka collapsed during a radio broadcast on 3.L.O; in July 1979 he was told the end was neigh and died from a cerebral haemorrhage on 15 December aged 49 .
320kbps
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3 comments:

  1. Thanks for this one Deutros. I actually didn't mind Smacka when he was alive although, being a teenager then I'm sure I never told anyone LOL.

    So it'll be nice to revisit some of his work, if fot no nother reason than to hear Waterloo Road after all these years. Hang on, it in't here. Oh well, lost of other great jazz stndards anyway

    Thanks mate

    Micko

    PS Now I've worked out how to leave a comment, I'll make sure I leave more :-)

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  2. thanks for posting it just found some family history he was my great grandfather's cousin. never heard his music but going to look for it thanks.

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  3. Linked page no available? Can you please re up?

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