Lately, I’ve been pining for the music of my early adolescence. Settling the scene, I was a scrawny, short, awkward-looking public school kid growing up in the leafy North Shore of Sydney round the time of the Australian bicentenary of British settlement and/or invasion.
I was about to finish primary school and was on the crest of high school – Australia for the most part has only two tiers of Education (primary and secondary) prior to Tertiary education, which all makes for a big adjustment come high school time!
I was high on the celebrations of the bicentenary, World Expo ’88 and finishing primary school. I had my first case of unrequited love – she loved me but I didn’t have the same feelings for her. I was getting down with some of the great Aussie pub rock bands of the era such as the Choirboys, Jimmy Barnes, INXS, Noiseworks and Midnight Oil.
But, one group – and individual in particular, really captured my imagination. The band went by the name of Johnny Diesel and the Injectors, the lead-singer and driving force behind the band went by the moniker, Johnny Diesel. With rock-star looks, a soulful voice and angsty, bluesy songs – Johnny Diesel and his Injectors were sure to make any adolescent girl dreamy and adolescent boy envious.
Johnny Diesel – born Mark Lizotte was an American-born Perth lad who grew up inspired by music and pumping gas to make a living whilst pursuing his dream – hence the Diesel moniker. Mark Lizotte is still involved in the Australian music industry, being the brother-in-law of another Aussie rock icon, Jimmy Barnes.
Today’s clip is a live version of their 1988 hit “I Don’t Need Love” which propelled the young rock outfit onto the national rock scene. The clip is taken from the iconic TV show Hey, Hey It’s Saturday and fittingly contains dodgy audio.
Enjoy~!
Posted by elcanguro76 
