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Timeless Aussie rocker, Diesel, looks back now on the golden days of the legendary 1980s pub scene with a certain fond regard.
Coming to Dubbo for a fan-inspired “By Request” performance of hits, classics, and covers at the Regional Theatre on Friday, February 6, he is on a nationwide one-man tour. The show will display the full virtuosity of his career over four decades from his early days with his band, The Injectors, to the present.
“I feel like I was very fortunate, I caught the last wave of that period of great bands from the late seventies to the late eighties when there was a phenomenal amount of music all around Australia,” Diesel said.
“It was such a culture, some of these bands made it very big overseas, but they were all such fantastic live performers,” he added.
Real name, Mark Lizotte, he and his American parents settled in Perth after an around-the-southern-continent trip after which he found a love and music at an early age.
“Bands like Poison and ZZ Top were real rock ’n roll outfits. I also remember a poster of The Clash, dressed in these uniforms, taken out in the jungle somewhere.
“They were wearing these outfits, part combat, part punk, part rockabilly, I loved it!”
Even now, he recalls his maiden live performance with a bunch of mates, with a wry sense of humour.
“I remember my first gig, it was at a YMCA band afternoon in Freemantle, and we were this little group of friends from Year Eight.
“We called ourselves, ‘The Angles’ in tribute to ‘The Angels’, which showed the type of stuff we played,” he laughed.
In those days before the internet, Spotify, online music channels, and international markets, however, the west seemed a long way from the action.
“As I got into my teenage years, I thought ‘I have to get out of here’. In Perth, back then, you really felt the isolation.
“If you viewed your career with any seriousness, you had to be prepared to ‘get over the other side’, that’s how it was.”
This was a time when the Aussie pub rock scene was one of the most vibrant in the world with literally hundreds of different bands playing at venues in our major cities every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night.
“For me to be able to see bands like INXS and Midnight Oil at my local pub, and then to later support these type of bands, was fantastic.
“There were Sydney venues like ‘The Four in Hand’ at Paddington; I ended-up living next to it with The Divinyls and Rose Tattoo performing and then, to be able to play there myself all the time…”
His By Request tour, he adds, provides a unique opportunity for fans to enjoy a show that is different at every venue on every night, as he plays a variety of his hits and old-time favourites.
“How it works is, with the ticketing, fans take a survey on what they would like me to play,” Diesel explained.
“I love the spontaneity and the challenge of it at the same time. With a good gig you get a good feeling, and then the next night, maybe not so much.”
While most bands have only a set list of songs they can competently play live, the full range of numbers on offer plus open suggestions shows Mark’s level of musical expertise.
“You often have songs you record in the studio over and over, and soon as it’s done, you think, ‘I’ll never play that one again’!
”But I’ve got close to 50 numbers that they can choose from, everything from Rihanna to ‘Moon River’ and everything in between, and I’m performing solo, though I also have a double bass for some songs,” Diesel explained.
No ravaged rocker in the Keith Richards mould, he credits family for his near-ageless looks, career longevity, and continuing bright outlook on the industry.
“My mother and father had good genes and good skin, while the secret to being in the shape I’m in, is my wife, Jep, and our healthy, low-stress lifestyle,” Mark revealed.
“I’ve also got my niece, Voh on tour, managing and performing. She stops me from being too jaded and cynical.”
• Diesel performs at the Dubbo Regional Theatre and Convention Centre (DRTCC) on Friday, February 6. Tickets are available from the DRTCC box office or website.
