If I said the following ...."Get That Jive", "Sunshine", "Are You Old Enough?" "I'm Still In
Love With You" and "April Sun in Cuba", there are almost no aussie's of my vintage who don't know who I'm talking about, of course, I'm talking, about the mighty, Dragon, what a band, seriously, they deserved more than they achieved, that's for sure, although what they achieved ain't a kick in the nuts by any stretch of the imagination......
On stage, they were brilliant, out of control, with their darker side at the forefront, sometimes all on the same night.!!...you never knew which Dragon you were gonna get, but you knew it was going to be shit hot...many's the night I was at the Maroubra Seals, the Lifesaver or Bexley North, when Marc wowed, rocked and occasionally got into a stink with the crowd...yeh, he was different alright
Marc Hunter, by any stretch of the imagination, was the focal point of the live show, and he possessed a striking presence on the boards that kept your eyes locked firmly on him –- his androgynous looks and imposing height were matched by an absolute lack of fear in front of audiences, hostile or otherwise.
Everyone has heard stories of Dragon’s rock’n’roll exploits, and tales of horrendous drug habits..just before embarking on the move to Australia, their manager at the time, Graeme Nesbitt was jailed for drug trafficking, and only two weeks after "This Time" was released drummer Neil Storey died of a heroin overdose, an event that almost had the band pulling the pin.. However they decided to go on, and Storey was replaced by Kerry Jacobsen.
At the peak of the band’s career Marc Hunter and Paul Hewson reputedly maintained $200-a-day heroin habits and remember, this was the late 70's, smack wasnt that dear, so $200 bucks a day was a habit and half.....Dragon was even mentioned in evidence during a royal commission into drugs because of links to the infamous “Mr Asia” drug syndicate.
By 1978 Dragon were one of the top five acts in the country. America was the obvious next step, CBS were behind them, and success was almost a deadset certainty
. But the group blew it big time, with a U.S tour in 1978 that was just this side of disasterous, they were supporting the Johnny Winter Band. Facing joints full of hostile blues loving nrednecks, who probably didnt enjoy Marcs stage gear, the singers unpredictable side kicked in, culminating in an infamous gig in Austin, Texas where they were bottled off the stage after Marc taunted the crowd and intimated that "all Texans are faggots", its been said that while Marc was creating his latest ruckus, Johnny Winter and his band were taking bets from the side of the stage over who would shoot hunter first.
Despite the American debacle, they were still huge in Oz and they scored another Top Ten hit in early '79, but five years of hell raising and wild living had taken its toll on the band, especially on Marc, whose voice failed. With Marc’s drink and drug use spiralling out of control, big brother Todd, now virtually, the only functional member of the band, was forced to give Marc his marching orders in 1979 in order to save him from himself. They replaced Marc with Singer Billy Rogers formerly of Perth group Last Chance Cafe and violinist Richard Lee from Melbourne band Sidewinder and recorded "PowerPlay" which flopped
Marc was shocked at the sacking and instead of giving up, cut back on the drug and booze excess's and embarked on a successful solo career in the early '80s. He scored moderate hits with the singles "Island Nights"in 1979 and "Big City Talk" in 1981, he also released released two solo albums Fiji Bitter (1979) and Communication (1986), and guested with the ever revolving Party Boys. Todd meanwhile teamed up with former XL Capris singer-songwriter Joanna Pigott to form Scribble. Todd and Joanna subsequently married, and became a successful songwriting team, with credits including John Farnham’s "Age Of Reason".
Due to an mountain of unpaid debts, Dragon were forced to do a reunion tour in the early '80s to pay them off , they decided to give it another shot and stayed together. Marc had been working with producer and multi-instrumentalist Alan Mansfield on tracks for his second solo album, so he brought Alan in to produce a the single "Rain" written by Marc, Todd and Joanna. It stormed into the Top 10 in days of release in 1984, Rain also earned Dragon their first American chart placing peaking at #88 and the song became a favourite on US college radio......
At this point they realised they had another go at the big time, so they cleaned house and gave away the bad habits of the past. This led to the departure of both Robert Taylor (replaced by Mansfield) and Kerry Jacobsen (replaced by former XTC drummer Terry Chambers)...I saw them around this time at Bankstown RSL and they blew the roof off the joint
The success of Rain secured them an album deal with Polygram’s, Mercury label, and the venture proved to be a huge success, with four other charting singles lifted from the comeback album Body & The Beat, produced by Mansfield.
Although, all the members had contributed to songs before, Marc and especially Todd were now reallycoming into their own as writers. Hewson found himself out of phase with their new direction and managed only one co-writing credit on the new album. His health was also deteriorating,(he suffered from scoliosis, and he was still using drugs heavily; he left the band just after the Body and the Beat tour in 1985. He returned to New Zealand and joined NZ group Pink Flamingos, but sadly he died only weeks later from a heroin overdose.
Terry Chambers was subsequently replaced by Doane Perry (ex-Jethro Tull), Mansfield doubled on keys and guitar, and they recruited rising star and hotshot guitarist, Tommy Emmanuel (ex-Goldrush, Southern Star Band) to play lead axe. This lineup recorded another very successful album, Dreams of Ordinary Men, produced by Todd Rundgren, and they toured Europe (billed as Hunter) with Tina Turner, to a great reception. Although they were probably at their peak as performing unit, and they put in 100%, BUT..their sucess this time was stalled by lack of product support from their label....
With varying lineups and between 30 and 40 members coming aned going, Dragon continued to record and tour occasionally into the 1990s, cutting two more albums, Bondi Road in 1989, which included the bittersweet single "Young Years" and Incarnations in 1995, which featured re-worked versions of their classic hits. Todd eventually left to concentrate on songwriting and soundtrack work, while Marc released two more albums of ‘adult contemporary’ material, Night and Day and Talk To Strangers....
I had the great, good pleasure to see the band play at Tweed Heads in 1996, although I cant recall if Marc had announced publicly the state of his health, you see, Marc, had gone to the doctor for a check-up and was diagnosed with malignant throat cancer....
Renee Geyer put together a tribute called "Night Of The Hunter," to raise money for treatment and his kids, it was held in February 1998 at the Palais Theatre in St. Kilda. It featured leading artists performing classic Dragon songs: "Are You Old Enough" by Tex Perkins and friends, Chris Wilson singing "O Zambezi", Paul Kelly and Renee Geyer singing a duet of "I'm Still In Love With You", Snout performing "Rain" and Men At Work’s Colin Hay performing a new song he wrote in Marc's honor. The finale, "April Sun In Cuba" was performed by John Farnham and his band, with Todd on bass. The house erupted when Renee Geyer led Marc onstage and he joined in his signature tune for what proved to be his very last stage appearance.
Another benefit was staged soon after in Sydney, and the 'Good Vibrations' concert proved to be an even more memorable event. The performers included Glenn Shorrock, James Reyne, Ross Wilson, Todd Hunter, Alan Mansfield, Robert Taylor and Tommy Emmanuel, and a host of other Oz music legends -- Men At Work regrouped for the first time in a decade to perform, and the remaining members of INXS performed live for the first time since the tragic death of their lead singer Michael Hutchence; Peter Garrett and Jimmy Barnes duetted on "Dreams of Ordinary Men" and "Speak No Evil". Sadly, Marc didnt attend as he was in Korea, undergoing alternative therapy to prepare for a major throat operation, but he sent a letter that was read to the crowd.
Marc spent the last months of his life with his family and friends. He died in his sleep in hospital at Berry in the NSW southern highlands on July 17 1998, aged just 44. His memorial service, held on July 29 at Sydney’s St Andrew’s Cathedral, was attended by hundreds of mourners, including many stars from the aussie music scene, and musical tributes were sung by Glenn Shorrock, Mark Williams and Wendy Matthews.....
Todd Hunter reformed Dragon in 2006 with a line-up of Mark Williams (vocals, guitar), Bruce Reid (guitar), and Pete Drummond (drums) The new line up released "Sunshine to Rain"
On 1 July 2008, Dragon were inducted by Richard Wilkins into the ARIA Hall of Fame, Dragon were joined on-stage by James Reyne and Ian Moss to perform "April Sun in Cuba" and "Rain"
During the version of "April" Marc Hunter, was incorporated into the chorus via a stirring performance video shown on a huge screen behind the band...I saw a clip of this and the crowd popped big time when Marc's section began...even in death, the man could captivate a crowd.
Discography:
Universal Radio (1974)
Scented Gardens for the Blind (1975)
Sunshine (1977)
Running Free (1977)
O Zambezi (1978)
Power Play (1979)
Body and the Beat (1984)
Dreams of Ordinary Men (1986)
Bondi Road (1989)
Incarnations (1995)
Sunshine to Rain (2006)
Happy I Am (2009)
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