Billy Thorpe - Melbourne

Melbourne

In August 1968 Thorpe had moved to Melbourne with Paul Wheeler (bass guitar) and Jimmy Thompson (drums), Thorpe took up lead guitar as well as lead vocals. As a trio they became the next version of Billy Thorpe & the Aztecs. By December, former Purple Hearts and Wild Cherries guitarist Lobby Loyde joined. Thorpe had recorded no new material for over two years, but he emerged after a spell of bankruptcy in 1969, with "Good Mornin' Little School Girl", a Willie Dixon cover, as a single in March 1970. With the encouragement of Loyde, Thorpe's 'new' Aztecs developed a heavier sound and established themselves as one of Australia's premier hard rock groups. By July, Warren `Pig' Morgan (piano, vocals) had joined and the band recorded, The Hoax Is Over, which was released in January 1971. Loyde left to reform Wild Cherries (later called Lobby Loyde & the Coloured Balls). After further releases the Aztecs had accrued a considerable reputation in the southern states and became known as one of the loudest acts on the local concert and pub circuit. Thorpe described the sound:

like we were standing on a pair of Boeing 747 engines. It cracked the foundations and broke windows in neighbouring buildings. —Billy Thorpe

In 1972, the band played two pivotal gigs, first was the Sunbury Pop Festival in January, which featured the debut of Thorpe's self-penned anthem, "Most People I Know Think That I'm Crazy". Thorpe now had a ponytail, T-shirt, full beard, played guitar and encouraged the Sunbury crowd to "Suck more piss". The #2 hit single returned the Aztecs to national prominence. The second major gig was their show at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl during the Moomba Festival in March, which resulted in an estimated 200,000 people filling the park, and forced police to close roads around the venue. Later that year, they released Aztecs Live! At Sunbury, which peaked at #4 in September. Ex-Copperwine blues singer Wendy Saddington had top 30 chart success with her 1972 solo single, "Looking Through a Window", which was written and produced by Thorpe and Morgan of the Aztecs. The two Aztecs combined for Downunda which was released in 1973 under the names, Thump'n Pig (Morgan) and Puff'n Billy (Thorpe); with the related single, "Captain Straightman", both album and single peaked into the top 40 of the relevant charts. Saddington had provided vocals and co-wrote a track for the album.

In March 1973, The Who's rock opera Tommy was performed as an orchestral version in Australia with Thorpe in the role of the Local Lad performing Pinball Wizard. Other Australian artists were Daryl Braithwaite (as Tommy), Wendy Saddington, Doug Parkinson, Broderick Smith, Jim Keays, Colleen Hewett, Linda George, Ross Wilson, Bobby Bright, and Ian Meldrum (as Uncle Ernie in Sydney).

After more line-up changes Thorpe dissolved the Aztecs early in 1975, as a solo artist he recorded Million Dollar Bill, which peaked into the top 40, with its top 50 single "Its Almost Summer"; and Pick Me Up & Play Me Loud in 1976. Both albums showed another change in style, they were a mix of Adult-orientated Rock, funk and country. In December 1976, he relocated to Los Angeles in the United States, although he returned to Australia periodically to tour with varied line-ups of the Aztecs.