Johnny Devlin’s single Stomp the Tumbarumba was one of his biggest hits. Photo: National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.
Of the songs to put a place on the map, the people of Tumbarumba can thank a music producer for his eagle eyes on a journey from Melbourne to Sydney back in the 60s for the upbeat tune Stomp the Tumbarumba by Johnny Devlin.
Listeners to ABC Riverina were treated to an enlightening interview this week with the New Zealand-born singer, songwriter and musician, who 60 years ago, was selected to open for The Beatles’ only tour of Australia and New Zealand.
The then rock and roller, Devlin, now in his 80s, had pioneered the genre in his home country and was favourably compared to Elvis Presley.
By May 1959 he would move to Australia where he would easily transition to the growing rock and roll scene, supporting the Everly Brothers on tour, becoming a regular on television pop shows and where he would reshape himself as a songwriter and producer, eventually moving into artist management.
The summer of 1963-64 was the summer of surf music in Australia, enjoying one season at the peak before being toppled by The Beatles and Beatlemania.
A simple little dance called “The Stomp” was catching on faster than blonde highlights.
It was little more than two stamps of each foot with the hands clasped behind the back while shifting your weight slightly from side to side.
The popularity of The Stomp turned a minor American dance into a national Australian phenomenon.
According to the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, 45,000 people reportedly turned up to the first (and perhaps only) national championships in Lane Cove National Park in the summer of 1964.
The dance was one thing, but the song became an integral part of the surfing culture where it was common practice to add a geographical tag where there was an obvious link.
First came the Avalon Stomp from The Denvermen, followed a couple of months later by Bondi Stomp from the Dave Bridge Trio.
But Johnny Devlin was responsible for a good proportion of Australian surf music and one of his biggest hits was Stomp The Tumbarumba which he recorded for Festival Records in November 1963. His backing singers on that track were the young Bee Gees.
The connection between surfing and the small inland mountain town of Tumbarumba – a couple of hundred miles from any beach – remained elusive.
But, according to the ABC, the song came about when a music producer driving between Melbourne and Sydney saw the Tumbarumba sign and, at the next petrol station, asked how it was pronounced and thought that it sounded like a good line for a song.
But this isn’t where the story ends.
The Hoodoo Gurus still feature Stomp the Tumbarumba in their live performances. Photo: Hoodoo Gurus.
Dave Faulkner of the Hoodoo Gurus spoke to Region this week about the inclusion of Stomp the Tumbarumba in their vast catalogue, recorded as a B-side for their Miss Freelove ’69 single on vinyl.
“I purchased Johnny Devlin’s Stomp The Tumbarumba single back in the early 80s, when the Hoodoo Gurus were beginning. I can’t remember where I found it but it was either at a secondhand record store such as Lawsons, in Pitt Street, Sydney or, just as likely, from the record bin at an op shop. I found a lot of old gems there,” he said.
Faulkner said he was initially attracted by the title, having always had a fascination with The Stomp dance culture.
“It was a very primitive dance that appealed to our taste for anything primitive,” he explained, “the fact that the song used a very Australian place name in its chorus was even more alluring to us.
“I mean to say, who ever thought that ‘Tumbarumba’ would roll off the tongue? Johnny Devlin, that’s who!”
Stomp the Tumbarumba proved to be extremely popular when the Hoodoo Gurus played it live, though, says Dave, more among fans who actually bought the single and listened to both sides, “rather than just hearing our music on the radio, where they only played the A-side”.
“Among our diehard fans it’s a well-loved song, though not all of them would be aware that it was actually a cover version.”
One that keeps giving, apparently, because as recently as January 2023 at Live by the C in Wollongong, it still figured in their playlist to a spirited audience.
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