{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2014}} {{Use Australian English|date=March 2014}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = Carson | image = | caption = | image_size = | alias = Carson County Band | origin = Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | genre = Blues rock, boogie rock | years_active = 1970–1973 | label = Rebel, Havoc, EMI, Harvest | website = | current_members = | past_members = }}
'''Carson''' were an Australian blues rock and boogie rock band, which formed in January 1970 as '''Carson County Band'''. As Carson, their classic lineup was Gary Clarke on bass guitar, Greg Lawrie on slide guitar and dobro, Mal Logan<!-- not geographer --> on keyboards, Tony Lunt on drums, Broderick Smith on vocals and harmonica and Ian Winter on guitar. They had a top 30 hit single on the ''Go-Set'' National Top 40 with "Boogie" in September 1972. The group released their debut studio album, ''Blown'', in November on EMI/Harvest, which peaked at No. 14 on the ''Go-Set'' Top 20 Albums. Their performance at the second Sunbury Pop Festival in late January 1973 was issued as a live album, ''On the Air'', in April, but the group had already disbanded.
Founding pianist and vocalist, John Capek had left by mid-1970 and relocated to North America by 1973 where he worked as a composer (often with Marc Jordan), record producer and keyboardist both in Toronto, Canada and in Los Angeles, United States. After Carson disbanded, Smith formed the country rock band the Dingoes in 1973 and also had a successful solo career. Broderick Smith died in 2023, aged 75.
==History== Carson formed in Melbourne in January 1970 as the Carson County Band and, influenced by United States group Canned Heat, they performed blues rock and boogie rock.<ref name="McF" /> Founders of Carson County Band were John Capek on piano and vocals, Ian Ferguson on bass guitar and vocals, Greg "Sleepy" Lawrie on slide guitar and dobro (Creatures, Chocolate), Tony Lunt on drums.<ref name="McF" /><ref name="Smith 1">{{cite web |url=http://lynx.aba.net.au/people/cs/ozblues/bands/c/carsoncountyband.html |title=Carson County Band, The |author=Smith, Craig |website=lynx.aba.net.au |date=1997 |via=National Library of Australia | archive-url=https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/19980131161737/http://lynx.aba.net.au/people/cs/ozblues/bands/c/carsoncountyband.html |archive-date=31 January 1998 |access-date=15 February 2025 }}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Other early members were Tony Enery on piano, Paul Lever on guitar, harmonica and vocals, and guest musician, Matt Taylor on guitar, harmonica and vocals.<ref name="Smith 1" /> Their debut single, "On the Highway", was issued in May on Rebel Records.<ref name="Miles" /> Capek left in mid-1970 to join King Harvest<!-- not French-American band --> and moved to North America in 1973.<ref name="McF" /> He worked as a composer (often with Marc Jordan), record producer and keyboardist both in Toronto and in Los Angeles.<ref name="McF" /><ref name="Miles" />
In October 1970 Carson dropped the County Band from their name to avoid being confused for a country music group.<ref name="Howl" /><ref name="Miles" />Ian Winter joined Carson on guitar at the beginning of 1971.<ref name="ARDb"/><ref name="Smith 2" /> Broderick Smith (ex-Adderley Smith Blues Band) joined in mid-year, providing vocals and harmonica.<ref name="McF" /><ref name="Smith 2">{{cite web |url=http://lynx.aba.net.au/people/cs/ozblues/bands/c/carson.html |title=Carson |author=Smith, Craig |website=lynx.aba.net.au |date=28 January 1998 |via=National Library of Australia | archive-url=https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/19980131151126/http://lynx.aba.net.au/people/cs/ozblues/bands/c/carson.html |archive-date=31 January 1998 |access-date=15 February 2025 }}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> The group released a second single, "Travelling South" in August on Havoc Records, which was written by Lawrie.<ref name="McF" /><ref name="APRA Travelling">{{cite web | publisher = APRA AMCOS (Australasian Performing Right Association, Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society) | title = Song Catalogue Search Results for 'Travelling South' | url = https://www.apraamcos.com.au/works-search?works=true&title=On%20the%20Highway&writer=&performer=Carson | access-date = 15 February 2025 }}</ref> Ferguson left in July to be replaced successively by Barry Sullivan and then Gary Clarke.<ref name="McF" /> Mal Logan on keyboards joined later that year.<ref name="Miles" /> Carson performed at the first Sunbury Pop Festival in late January 1972.<ref name="McF" /> On the Easter weekend, 31 March–2 April 1972, they played two sets at the Mulwala Pop Festival, supporting head-liners Canned Heat and Stephen Stills.<ref name="Miles2" /> Smith spent part of 1972 recording solo material.<ref name="McF" />
Meanwhile, Carson, with Smith returned, issued their next single "Boogie" in September 1972, which reached No. 30 on the ''Go-Set'' National Top 40.<ref name="McF" /><ref name="GoSet" /> It was co-written by Lawrie and Smith.<ref name="APRA Boogie">{{cite web | publisher = APRA AMCOS (Australasian Performing Right Association, Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society) | title = Song Catalogue Search Results for 'Boogie' | url = https://www.apraamcos.com.au/works-search?works=true&title=Boogie&writer=Smith&performer=Carson | access-date = 15 February 2025 }}</ref> This was followed in November by their debut album, ''Blown'' on Harvest produced by Rod Coe, which reached No. 14 on ''Go-Set'' Top 20 Albums.<ref name="ARDb" /><ref name="GoSet" /> Michael Foster of ''The Canberra Times'' observed, "a Melbourne group of considerable ability and inventiveness, if still needing some more joint experience. I enjoyed [Lawrie]'s bottleneck guitar and found good listening in tracks such as 'Banana Power', 'Sunday in the City' and, nostalgically, 'Boogie'."<ref name="Foster">{{cite news |url=https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110699977 |title=Turntable with Michael Foster |first=Michael |last=Foster |newspaper=The Canberra Times |volume=47 |issue=13,368 |location=ACT, Australia |date=26 February 1973 |access-date=15 February 2025 |page=16 |via=National Library of Australia }}</ref> Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, described it as a "powerful" recording, "full of free-flowing, bluesy hard rock".<ref name="McF" />
Carson also performed at the second Sunbury Pop Festival, on the Australia Day long weekend in late January 1973.<ref name="Howl" /> Ian Winter left soon after and by February, Carson had disbanded.<ref name="Miles" /> A live recording of their Sunbury set, ''On the Air'' was released in April 1973.<ref name="Miles" /> Smith was a founding member of country rock band, the Dingoes and later had a successful solo career.<ref name="McF" /><ref name="Miles" /> In 2020 Aztec Records<!-- not the British label --> issued an expanded version of ''On the Air'' with additional live tracks from performances at Melbourne club Thumpin' Tum in August 1970, Mulwala Rock Festival (April 1972) and at Melbourne's Festival Hall (November 1972).<ref name="Cashmere 2">{{cite web |url=http://www.noise11.com/news/classic-carson-on-the-air-released-on-cd-for-the-first-time-20200128.html |title=Classic Carson ''On the Air'' Released On CD For The First Time |website=Noise11.com |author=Cashmere, Paul |author-link=Paul Cashmere |date=28 January 2020 |via=National Library of Australia |archive-url=https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20200909003841/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/178078/20200909-0000/www.noise11.com/news/classic-carson-on-the-air-released-on-cd-for-the-first-time-20200128.html |archive-date=9 September 2020 |access-date=15 February 2025 }}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Broderick Smith died in 2023, aged 75.<ref name="Cashmere 1">{{cite web |last1=Cashmere |first1=Paul |title=Vale Broderick Smith at 75 |url=https://www.noise11.com/news/vale-broderick-smith-at-75-20230501 |website=Noise11.com |date=1 May 2023 |access-date=1 May 2023 |archive-date=1 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230501031658/https://www.noise11.com/news/vale-broderick-smith-at-75-20230501 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://themusic.com.au/news/aus-music-legend-broderick-smith-of-carson-the-dingoes-passes-away/X37dc3J1dHc/01-05-23|title=Aus Music Legend Broderick Smith of Carson & the Dingoes Passes Away |first=Mary |last=Varvaris |website=theMusic.com.au |access-date=1 May 2023 |archive-date=1 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230501031416/https://themusic.com.au/news/aus-music-legend-broderick-smith-of-carson-the-dingoes-passes-away/X37dc3J1dHc/01-05-23 |url-status=live }}</ref>
==Personnel== Listed chronologically:<ref name="McF" /><ref name="ARDb" /><ref name="Smith 1" /><ref name="Smith 2" /> *John Capek – piano, vocals, keyboards {{Small|(1970)}} *Ian Ferguson – bass guitar, vocals {{Small|(1970–1971)}} *Greg Lawrie – slide guitar, dobro {{Small|(1970–1973)}} *Tony Lunt – drums {{Small|(1970–1973)}} *Tony Enery – piano {{Small|(1970)}} * Paul Lever – guitar, harmonica, vocals {{Small|(1970)}} *Ian Winter – guitar {{Small|(1971–1973)}} *Broderick Smith – vocals, harmonica {{Small|(1971–1973)}} *Barry Sullivan – bass guitar {{Small|(1971)}} *Gary Clarke – bass guitar {{Small|(1971–1973)}} *Mal Logan – keyboards {{Small|(1971–1973)}} *Mal Capewell – saxophone {{Small|(1972–1973)}}
{{#tag:timeline| ImageSize = width:790 height:auto barincrement:22 PlotArea = left:110 bottom:118 top:15 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1970 till:01/05/1973 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:3 ScaleMajor = increment:1 start:1970
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}}
==Discography== ===Albums=== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" border="1" |+ List of albums, with Australian chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:12em;" | Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:16em;" | Album details ! scope="col" colspan="1" | Peak chart<br />positions |- ! scope="col" style="text-align:center;" | <small>AUS<br /><ref name=aus>{{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|edition=illustrated|publisher=Australian Chart Book|location=St Ives, N.S.W.|year=1993|isbn=0-646-11917-6|page=57}}</ref></small> |- ! scope="row" | ''Blown'' | * Released: November 1972 * Format: LP * Label: Harvest Records (SHVL 608) | align="center" | 19 |- ! scope="row" | ''On the Air'' | * Released: April 1973 * Format: LP * Label: Harvest Records (SHVL 611) * Note Live Album | align="center" | - |- ! scope="row" | ''Travelling Highway Blues'' | * Released: 2020 * Format: CD, Digital download * Label: Raven Records (RVCD-88) * Note Greatest Hits album | align="center" | - |}
===Singles=== {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" border="1" |+ List of singles, with selected chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Year ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:12em;" | Title ! scope="col" colspan="1" | Peak chart<br />positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" | Album |- ! scope="col" style="text-align:center;" | <small>AUS<br /><ref name=aus/></small> |- | 1970 ! scope="row" | "On the Highway" | style="text-align:center;" | - | {{n/a|non album single}} |- | 1971 ! scope="row" | "Travelling South" | style="text-align:center;" | - | {{n/a|non album single}} |- | 1972 ! scope="row" | "Boogie" | style="text-align:center;" | 29 | ''Blown'' |}
==References== {{Refbegin}} ;General * {{Cite encyclopedia | last = McFarlane | first = Ian | author-link = Ian McFarlane | encyclopedia = Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop | title = Whammo Homepage | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20040405231007/http://www.whammo.com.au/index.asp | url = http://www.whammo.com.au/index.asp | archive-date = 5 April 2004 | access-date = 9 April 2011 | year = 1999 | publisher = Allen & Unwin | location = St Leonards, NSW | isbn = 1-86508-072-1 }} Note: Archived [on-line] copy has limited functionality. * {{Cite book | title = The Who's Who of Australian Rock | last = Spencer | first = Chris |author2=Zbig Nowara |author3=Paul McHenry | orig-year = 1987 | year = 2002 | publisher = Five Mile Press | location = Noble Park, Vic | isbn = 1-86503-891-1 }}<ref name="NLAWho"/> Note: [on-line] version of ''The Who's Who of Australian Rock'' was established at [https://web.archive.org/web/20091015024603/http://www.whiteroom.com.au/howlspace/whoswho/aboutww.htm White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd] in 2007 and was expanded from the 2002 edition. As from, September 2010 the [on-line] version shows an 'Internal Service Error' and was no longer available. ;Specific {{Refend}} {{Reflist|colwidth=25em|refs=
<ref name="McF">McFarlane, [https://web.archive.org/web/20040823035332/http://www.whammo.com.au/encyclopedia.asp?articleid=172 'Carson'] entry. Archived from [http://www.whammo.com.au/encyclopedia.asp?articleid=172 the original] on 23 August 2004. Retrieved 28 April 2011.</ref>
<ref name="ARDb">{{Cite web | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20040319145153/http://hem2.passagen.se/honga/database/c/carson.html | url = http://hem.passagen.se/honga/database/c/carson.html | title = Carson | publisher = Australian Rock Database. Passagen.se (Magnus Holmgren) | last1 = Holmgren | first1 = Magnus | archive-date = 19 March 2004 | access-date = 15 February 2025 | url-status=usurped }}</ref>
<ref name="Miles">{{Cite web | url = http://www.milesago.com/artists/carson.htm | title = Carson | work = MilesAgo | last1 = Kimball | first1 = Duncan | last2 = McHenry | first2 = Paul | year = 2002 | access-date = 15 February 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241226201855/http://www.milesago.com/artists/carson.htm |archive-date=26 December 2024 }}</ref>
<ref name="GoSet">{{Cite news | url = http://www.sitelevel.com/query?slice_title=Entire+Site&query=Carson&crid=727d9294 | newspaper = Go-Set | title = Search results for "Carson" | publisher = Waverley Press | access-date = 28 April 2011}} Note: ''Go-Set'' published its national charts from October 1966 until August 1974.</ref>
<ref name="Miles2">{{Cite web | url = http://www.milesago.com/festivals/mulwala.htm | title = Rock Isle (Mulwala) Festival, Albury NSW, April 1972 | work = Milesago: Australasian Music and Popular Culture 1964–1975 | last1 = Kimball | first1 = Duncan | last2 = McHenry | first2 = Paul | publisher = Ice Productions | year = 2002 | access-date = 28 April 2011 }}</ref>
<ref name="Howl">{{Cite web | archive-url = https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20120726191200/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/14231/20120727-0512/www.howlspace.com.au/en4/carson/carson.htm | url = http://www.howlspace.com.au/en4/carson/carson.htm | title = Carson | last = Nimmervoll | first = Ed | publisher = Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music (Ed Nimmervoll). White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd | archive-date = 26 July 2012 | access-date = 11 February 2014 }}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
<ref name="NLAWho">{{Cite web | url = https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/2090055 | title = Who's Who of Australian Rock / Compiled by Chris Spencer, Zbig Nowara & Paul McHenry | work = catalogue | publisher = National Library of Australia | access-date = 28 April 2011 }}</ref> }}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carson}} Category:Australian blues musical groups Category:Musical groups established in 1970 Category:Musical groups disestablished in 1973 Category:Musical groups from Victoria (state) Category:1970 establishments in Australia Category:1973 disestablishments in Australia