28/01/2019
With Fleetwood Mac announcing yet another tour it brought back a great memory that I thought Id share.
Back in the 1970s the band turned up in Sydney on a Good Friday. In those days virtually everything was shut on that sombre Easter holiday including liquor stores, gas stations, shops, supermarkets, cafes and restaurants including the ones at the Sebel Townhouse in Kings Cross, the trendy show-biz hotel where almost every touring band stayed.
My brother Bruce called me and said, "Hey Dave, we need to find someplace for the band to eat."
I called around and found the only places open anywhere nearby were the Double Bay Steakhouse which was a bit ordinary and Bill & Tony's in East Sydney. They served basic, inexpensive Italian food such as veal schnitzel, spag bol and pretty much nothing else except bread in a plastic basket. The tablecloths were red and white checked plastic, and the wine list was, well, there was no wine list unless you brought your own and the only beverages available at the restaurant were Cottee's orange cordial or water, served in a plastic jug and drunk from empty jam tumblers. Bill & Tony's operated from Stanley Street behind the main thoroughfare William Street, up a narrow flight of stairs. Being a sophistamocated diner and with money no object, I was a regular there
I called Bill (or was it Tony?) and tried to arrange a booking. He said in a strong Italian accent, " DJ, you-a know we don't take reservations even for a regular but why don't you come and-a stand in line and wait for a seat?"
I mentioned to him that I was feeding Fleetwood Mac, a bunch of them, thinking he would give me special treatment but Bill (or it could have been Tony) said, "What's a Fleetwood Mac?"
Anyway Bruce checked with the group and they were starters so everyone piled into the limos and I met them outside the restaurant. Picture three limos double-parked in Stanley Street and there's the whole band, standing, queuing, at Bill & Tony's in Sydney in the stairwell.
And there's this wonderful memory of mine standing there in the hallway waiting in a line going up the stairs. There's Mick Fleetwood, there's Stevie, there's John and Chrissy McVie, there's four of the crew…while the Limos and drivers waited downstairs causing traffic havoc in the little street.
As soon as we walked in everyone realised who they were and whispered 'It's Fleetwood Mac!, it's Fleetwood Mac!' No-one probably could understand why one of the worlds biggest bands would be coming into a down-market restaurant where the schnitzel and spag bol combo was like 5 bucks
Bill (or it might have been Tony) goes 'David, why didn't you tell me it was-a Fleetwooda Macca ?' He had no idea who they were but because of the reaction of his staff and customers and everything he gathered they were someone important. They had a great time, one of the best nights. They actually mentioned it years later at the reunion, just about that night and what happened unexpectedly in unplanned circumstances. The bill was (expletive deleted)-all, I think it was four dollars for a schnitzel, and a spaghetti. Mick told JC the tour manager to pay the bill for everyone. It was talked about for years to come It was great. I mean it wasn't quality for them but they, troopers that they were, all just enjoyed having a meal and getting into what was going on very ordinarily around them. Remember it was a long long time ago.
