Sep
The Chosen Few
Posted in Australia, Chosen Few, Go!!, Nurioopta, South Australia | No Comments »
Band Members:-
Mike Siegele – Vocals & Organ
Bob Van Amstel – Lead Guitar
Dan Schubert – Rhythm Guitar
Rod Schubert – Bass Guitar
Brian Fechner – Drums
Record Releases:-
Is This A Dream/Let Me Down Easy (GO!! G-5044) 12-66
Just A Little Bit (unreleased live track) c.66
I’ll Go Crazy (unreleased live track) c.66
Yet another band of this name, not to be confused with the Newcastle Upon Tyne group or the American outfit, or even the other Australian band of the time in Canberra, A.C.T.
The Chosen Few started as the Outcasts in the South Australian town of Nurioopta, during 1965. They took on their new name in 1966, with a membership of Mike Siegele (vocals, keyboards), Bob Van Amstel (lead guitar), Dan Schubert (rhythm guitar), Rod Schubert (bass), and Brian Fechner (drums). The quintet regularly played clubs like the Octagon and Big Daddy’s in Adelaide, but neverr settled in the City of Churches. Influences were The Zombies, The Animals, James Brown, Wilson Pickett & The Spencer Davis Group, which the band played many covers off.
During the summer of 1966, they competed in a Battle of the Sounds in Adelaide, and didn’t win but did get a deal with the Go!! label for a single, which was a cover of the Zombies’ “Is This A Dream,” issued at the end of the year. The record, despite a tremendously energetic and bracing performance with lots of ’60s punk power, failed to chart outside of Adelaide, and the band broke up in early 1967. A live recording of I’ll Go Crazy from the Battle of the Sounds was issued with another track, Just A Little Bit on the Raven issued Live At Big Daddy’s Discotheque in 1986.
