by Matt Neal. Warrnambool Standard 25th Nov. 2004 - ©Copyright Warrnambool Standard 2004. All rights reserved
Peter Bird
South-West music veteran Peter Bird made it out of his sick bed and into the Warrnambool Associated Music Industry Hall of Fame on Tuesday. The producer-musician said he was feeling crook that day and didn’t think he was going to make it to WAMI awards, but he was glad he did. “I was delighted”, Bird said. “I always think other people are more worthy of getting these things than me, so it was a real surprise”. The Hall of Fame induction honoured Bird’s contribution to the South-West music industry over five decades. Bird is the (4th) person to be added to the Hall of Fame – he joins Andy Alberts, Shane Howard and Fred Reilly. Originally from Coleraine, he began playing in bands in Hamilton in the mid 1960s.
After returning from armed service in Vietnam, Bird married his wife Meg and moved to Warrnambool where he began playing in the Mod Squad. In the late 1970s he enjoyed success with Nevada whose album Sneaking Around resulted in festival performance crowds of up to 40,000 people.
In the early 1980s Bird began what would become Yelp Studios, working alongside Tony Peel who presented him with his award on Tuesday night.
He played alongside Joe Willis, Peter Brocklehurst, Mick Schack and Wendy Goyen, but it was his recording work that cemented his place in the Hall of Fame. Bird recorded Blue Heat’s “Marooned”, which won an Australian blues album of the year award, and two other albums he worked on were nominated for ARIA awards.
Bird, who still performs and records with his group Lost In Suburbia, said he loved Warrnambool’s music industry, describing it as one of the best in the country. “For some reason when you work as a muso in Warrnambool the town embraces you, but in other towns they don’t give you the credit that Warrnambool does”, Bird said. “There are world standard musicians and technicians in (Warrnambool’s industry).
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