Initially at least, Gavin was not entirely happy with the results: "The recording wasn't all that brilliant. Tony Cohen was a bit vague on the recording process and the mix down". Although some improvement may have been possible, 'That Girl / I'm So Confused' will stand as a classic of it's own time and ahead of its time musically. In the discussions over which two songs to use, 'Andrea' was elbowed: "It was consensus law, so I lost ' Andrea '. But ' That Girl ' and ' Confused ' were very dynamic songs" [Gavin]. Much of the remainder of June was spent planning an extensive tour up and down the East coast, as far as Brisbane! Pushing News a little closer to prominence, they played a 3RRR Live-to-air. Also in June, Hearts were booking them frequently and Premier offered a few supports. While recording had become more important to News, it was still not their first string: "We were a live band as a priority. There was no focus on recording" [Gavin]. The live front at this stage, as for the first News, was about projecting a good time - without becoming light weight! Technically News' live sound was now much better, but still dogged by problems. Audio Engineers were usually difficult: "We often had people who didn't like us, maybe belonged to another band; or people who just weren't very good that were looking for a way into the industry" [Gavin]. To Graham Lewis' frustration, it was usually the keyboard sound that suffered most in live settings.
After much planning and no little expenditure, the East Coast
Tour took off with a gig in the last days of June, then it was
onward to Queensland. Their first date there was 4th July, at
the Surfair hotel in Mijimba, supporting Jo Jo Zep & the Falcons.
On the following days, News headlined over The Apartments (Cleveland
Sands Hotel), and supported Jo Jo Zep again at the Cloudland Ballroom
(now demolished). While these gigs were satisfactory, it was the
next date (7th) at the Hotel Brisbane that was to stand out -
News were supported by the Riptides and although the right crowd
showed, News were met with 'polite' reservation. The punters began
reacting after a News roadie gave them some personal / political
abuse in the break. The gig ended well, but the night finished
on a sour note. As the audience began leaving, a contingent of
Brisbane police showed up: "As soon as we left, they brought
in a big van. Where the audience were coming out of the pub's
front door, they were marching people straight into the van. They
would have taken thirty or more people" [Gavin].
For well over a year then, police had clamped down on the city's
punk population, usually descending on gigs etc in force and making
mass arrests on charges such as drunk & disorderly. "In
our case, the police waited until after the show was over; but
local bands seldom got through their first set" [Gavin].
Instances were reported of them using undercover cops against
the punk peril! That night at the Hotel Brisbane, there was no
apparent reason for any arrest.
