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While in 2003 it’s a rare occurrence to catch this
collection of talented and musically varied musicians performing
together under the Professor Ratbaggy name, the 1999 album
put out through EMI Australia under the same tag was one
of the most critically acclaimed and popular releases of
the year. Professor Ratbaggy was the title claimed by Paul
Kelly (one of our country’s best loved songsmiths)
and three regular members of his band – Peter Luscombe
(drums), Steve Hadley (bass) and Bruce Haymes (keyboards),
who could usually be found around their hometown of Melbourne
playing as a trio called The Casuals.
With a mainly instrumental set that draws deep from the worlds
of dub reggae, funk and R&B (that’s along the lines
of The Meters, War, Booker T. and The MGs, Augustus Pablo
etc), the Professor Ratbaggy crew spent over 18 months jamming
and writing in between touring and recording for their regular
day gigs. Kelly used Ratbaggy as an opportunity to spread
his extensive talents in an entire new musical direction,
and it worked spectacularly: built “more from the bottom
up – bass and drums – than from the top down” as
their press reads, tracks such as “White Trash”, “Can’t
Fake It” and “Please Myself” found themselves
flogged on stations such as Triple J as well as across other
networks, the musicians hitting the live circuit for some
exclusive gigs back in 2000.
Still playing together in various incarnations, the Professor
Ratbaggy incarnation might well pop up again in the future – and
you’ll hear about it here first.
Tourdates
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