Bonus Episode 1: Phil Jamieson & Pat Davern – Grinspoon
Grinspoon. Image: Michelle Grace Hunder
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If you’re currently looking at your calendar and thinking you’ve somehow lost a few days, no, today isn’t Friday, but rather, it’s a Tuesday, which seems like as good a day as any to launch the first bonus episode of Trusty Chords.
I’m also sure right now that you’re thinking, “Hey, hasn’t this podcast only been going for seven weeks? Where do you get off putting bonus episodes into the mix?”
Well, the thing is, anyone who has ever interviewed an artist is likely well aware that musicians aren’t always available for at least half an hour, with most available for 15-20 minutes at most. Since that’s not enough time for a full chat and the Trusty Chords segment, this new series of bonus episodes exists to allow these artists to pick their Trusty Chords without the backbreaking drudgery of having a chat with me.
To kick things off, we’re talking to Phil Jamieson and Pat Davern of Grinspoon. If you’ve listened to Australian music at any point over the last few decades, then Grinspoon is definitely a name that you would know well.
Launching their career in 1995, the Lismore outfit were the first group to be Unearthed by the now-ubiquitous program of the same name from triple j. Just two short years later, they’d released their debut album, Guide To Better Living, and were heard all over the country. They followed it up with Easy in 1999, and by the time 2002’s New Detention came around, the time was right for Grinners fever to hit.
In fact, you couldn’t move for hearing a Grinspoon song. Tracks like ‘Chemical Heart’, ‘Lost Control’, ‘Rock Show’, ‘Just Ace’, and ‘Ready 1’ are just some of their massive list of singles. In fact, most bands would dream of writing songs half as good as Grinspoon. They do it because they don’t know any different.
After records like Thrills, Kills & Sunday Pills, Alibis & Other Lies, Six To Midnight, and Black Rabbits, the group went on hiatus for a few years, but the appetite for more Grinspoon never went away. Now, after a run of anniversary tours in recent years, Grinspoon are back in the saddle with a new single called ‘Unknown Pretenders’ – the first taste of whatever, whatever, which is their first new album in 12 years.
Oh, and they’re supporting it with a casual 45-date tour. Y’know, no big deal.
Needless to say, as someone whose high school, formative musical years, and – well, life, to be honest – wouldn’t be the same without Grinspoon, news of this upcoming record is pretty darn special.
On the day of their big announcement, I was lucky enough to have a chat with Grinspoon’s Phil Jamieson and Pat Davern. As always, they’re lovely folks, and I’m immensely grateful for their time.
I strongly recommend you to check out Grinpsoon’s ‘Unknown Pretenders’, and once you’re done giving that a spin, have a listen to my chat with Phil and Pat, and I’ll see you at the end of the episode for some general housekeeping.
Phil Jamieson and Pat Davern’s Trusty Chords
Phil’s One Influential Artist
Lou Reed
Pat’s One Influential Artist
The Black Crowes
Phil’s Three Impactful Albums
Billie Eilish – HIT ME HARD AND SOFT (2024)
Soundgarden – Badmotorfinger (1991)
Fred again.. – Actual Life (April 14 – December 17 2020) (2021)
Pat’s Three Impactful Albums
The Rolling Stones – Let It Bleed (1969)
Cat Stevens – Tea For The Tillerman (1970)
The Cramps – ...Off The Bone (1983)
Phil’s Five Trusty Songs
Kermit The Frog – 'Rainbow Connection' (1979)
Phoebe Bridgers – 'Motion Sickness' (2017)
Nina Simone – 'I Love Your Lovin' Ways' (1966)
Davey Lane – 'You're The Cops, I'm The Crime' (2013)
You Am I – 'Cathy's Clown' (1995)
Pat’s Five Trusty Songs
AC/DC – 'Riff Raff' (1978)
Cold Chisel – 'Four Walls' (1980)
Hoodoo Gurus – 'Tojo' (1983)
The Beasts Of Bourbon – 'Psycho' (1984)
The Johnnys – 'Motorbikin'' (1988)
