Song of the Day: All My Friends Are Alcoholics by Mike Noga

This also included in today’s post is huge playable list of Noga’s bands, side-projects, guest spots etc. so he’s not just The Drones old drummer! Starting with one of the greatest song titles of all-time and maybe, his most well-known solo songs? I remember, seeing him live around 2011 for The Balladeer Hunter album promo tour and he played it and I did think where the hell is this song on that album but I think, it’s been around even earlier? But it only appeared on the King album of 2016, it was long wait for this song to be recorded! King was produced by Something For Kate’s Paul Dempsey who also played on it with Noga, pretty much doing everything themselves. Aussie actor Noah Taylor is “The Narrator” too, including the full album:

So since Mike passed away last month and kind-of following this post, I’ve try to put together a bit of a discography of Mr. Micheal Noga:

Tongue In Geek by Puppyfat of 1996 was his debut album which was a self release eight track album recorded Hobart, Tasmania so looks like it would be very, very hard to find these days?

Next would be Parking Like A Fuckhead by Legends Of Motorsport of 1997, first eight songs were originally released on cassette tape which another done in Hobart before moving to Melbourne:

In 2001 seems to be his earliest recording after that move from what I can tell? He played drums on the lead single Follow Me by Kirsty Stegwazi but I’ve included the full album Jailbirds:

Threaded Into The Night by Sandro of 2003, also played on both The Blood Plums EP of 2000 and Christmas EP of 2002 but is the final gig recorded live at The Rob Roy Hotel in Fitzroy, Victoria. On his The Balladeer Hunter album in 2011 MN cover Walk With Me:

Guest player on Road To Hell and Treble And Bass from Devil And Daughter album by Stu Thomas in 2004:

Dirty Three’s Mick Turner ‎solo with Mike released Japanese only tour Don’t Tell The Driver EP in 2005 which recorded live on PBSfm in Melbourne. NOT too be confused with Turner’s solo album of 2013 with the very same title with three other different drummers. Here’s the title track and song called Montana:

Small Sips‘ The Morning Ripples album of 2006 is a very cool side-project of Karl Smith from Sodastream with Matthew Aulich and Matthew Bailey from The Paradise Motel and Laura Macfarlane who could be most well-known as the original Sleater-Kinney drummer but it’s Mike on drums and percussion:

Glimjack by Glenn Richards who’s Augie March’s singer-songwriter debut solo album of 2010. Which I’m including the video clip to song Long Pigs which is behind the scenes of the recording of that album:

Self-titled by The Ukeladies in 2011 which is Amanda Roff of Time In Dreams, Harmony and sometimes Don Walker’s backing vox and Maylise Dent who’s also worked on Dan Kelly’s albums/band. This cover song album has not one but four drummer types doing some kind-of percussion including Pete Luscombe, Brett Poliness, Clare Moore and Mike Noga plus co-producer by The Drones’ Dan Luscombe, yeah Dan and Pete are brothers:

I Am Not Ashamed by Ben Salter from his debut solo album The Cat of 2011 is co-written with Noga, The Drones’ Gareth Liddard co-producer that album at his own home studio at the time too:

In 2016-7 both Mike and Gareth played back-up to a couple of Joel Silbersher 7″ singles Flappin’ On A Hook re-recording and No Teeth here’s b-side cover of I Don’t Want You On My Mind by Bill Withers:

Only including three The Drones songs, the very first MN Drones recording released was Hoodoo You Love Bo Diddley cover by way of Hoodoo Gurus VA tribute album entitled Stoneage Cameos of 2005:

The next MN Drones was Crowned cover originally by These Immortal Souls, written by Rowland S. Howard and for other VA tribute simply called A Tribute To Rowland S Howard of 2006 which recorded live at Fitzroy Universal Theatre, Melbourne. I will not included every single cover he played on but these couple are epic:

Gala Mill album was recorded in early 2005 but not released until the tail end of 2006 but was The Drones’ Tasmania album thanks to Mike, I guess? Recording was done in the middle of nowhere, inside that old mill which was build by convicts hundreds years before which is where the album title come from or name after. Today I’m including Words From The Executioner To Alexander Pearce which re-recorded Gala Mill track taken from the A Thousand Mistakes DVD of 2011:

Off course, The Drones did Havilah in 2008 and I See Seaweed in 2013 plus they released a whole pile of live recordings on Bandcamp earlier this year, almost all of it’s Mike as The Drones drummer. His own solo albums Folk Songs in 2004 and The Balladeer Hunter in 2011 please check them out, if you never check out or if you have? I’ve embedded way too much already but have linked almost all those albums too! Then it’s King album which is back tooo the top of this post. Maybe, I’m still missing some of his stuff?

MN all in white in 2016!

MN b&w at the time of recording Gala Mill back in 2005!

Cheers!

Advertisement