Heavenly Bodies

It’s Kiwi rock myth now how Chris Knox pulled Cadbury’s Chocolate factory mate, Mick Dawson, a star gazing long haired English ex-pat, into his seminal Dunedin punk outfit, The Enemy, to play bass. A group in which Dawson never quite fitted. Picture by Chris Knox.

Dawson could write a great song. He’d done so in The Enemy with I Don’t Mind, Silly Girl, 15, Swimming Pool and Cold Meat. Songs he took with him on his departure in November 1978 to The Heavenly Bodies, his part-time Dunedin 1960s covers group formed with fellow former folkie Kim Barron, London SS guitarist Myles White and drummer Neil Dobier.

The Heavenly Bodies had played The Enemy’s farewell party in October 1978 at the Coronation Hall as the BOFs reportedly “destroying The Enemy” before Dawson departed for Auckland.

That’s not how Dunedin rock writer Roy Colbert remembers it. “They didn’t blow The Enemy off the stage at Coronation Hall, Maori Hill, that was part of a Kay/Tannock vendetta against Chris Knox. The Bodies were fun, but didn’t even finish some of their songs. The Enemy blew everybody off the stage in those days including bands who weren’t even in the country.

“Heavenly Bodies I never really cared for tho Mick is a good mate. They always seemed to argue all the time and backstab each other when they came to me in the store. They never AGREED on stuff. Once I remember them deciding to cover a Stones song - they did mainly covers - and the Mick side of the band wanted to do 1960s Stones and the younger side wanted to do late 1970s Stones so they finished choosing a Stones song from in between both preferred eras. I think it was Brown Sugar. That kinda summed them up for me.”

Mick’s new mob couldn’t work the Cook, Dunedin’s biggest venue, at first, because of The Enemy connection playing instead at the Prince of Wales. They picked up a following quickly in the southern city for their hot set of Enemy songs, new originals and British rock classics and won rave reviews in Rip It Up from home town boosters George Kay and DJ Keith Tannock.

“Heavenly Bodies with old Enemy Mick Dawson in the driver’s seat recently gave an impressive performance of sixties standards, originals, and old Enemy songs. They do Enemy better than The Enemy. This band deserves to be top billed at any pub,” they gushed.

Heavenly Bodies were in Christchurch in May 1979 playing the Dux De Lux before stepping out with the rest of the new Dunedin crop at the Beneficiaries Hall. In August they entered 4ZB’s studio to record tracks for a three song maxi-single. Tracks were 15 which The Enemy had played and All Those Years, both Dawson originals.

The next month they announced they were looking for keyboard player. Bevan Hudson filled the gap with guitar in late 1979. When Dawson’s old mates The Enemy came to town as Toy Love for a week at the Captain Cook they played a showcase at the Town Hall Concert Chamber with The Same, Bored Games, Heavenly Bodies and Christchurch’s Androidss.

Heavenly Bodies were back in the studio soon after to capture Jealousy, Sophisticated, By The Sea and Inside Out.

There were mini-tours to Queenstown, Timaru and the Gladstone and Hillsborough in Christchurch. They placed third in the 4X0 Battle of the Bands in January 1980 after a popular performance and blew The Boomtown Rats off the stage in the Town Hall in May 1980. The same month playing Christchurch’s Gladstone. An indifferent B52s support followed.

Amidst onstage violence, Heavenly Bodies, split in September 1980 with Mick leaving for Sydney, Australia. Their video of Back Home still scheduled for Radio With Pictures play. Another track from the same session, You’re So Foolish, a fine Dawson stutter rocker was a standout song on the But We Can Write Songs Okay Dunedin rock n roll anthology released in 1996.

Mick was back in Dunedin in April 1981 replacing Selwyn Findley in Broken Models, who released two Mick Dawson songs also played by Heavenly Bodies, By The Sea and Inside Out ,on the Custard Records label (their own).

At their best they were a group who “provided a bridge between the ageless chestnuts of the 1960s with the vital contemporary energy of the time,” fan George Kay wrote. You’re So Foolish is ample evidence of that.

When this story was written Kim Barron was the manager of Liquorland in Gore. Myles White was an accountant at Glendermid House, Dunedin. Neil Dobier was also still in Dunedin. Mick Dawson lived in Petersham, Sydney. He never answered my letters preferring to maintain a Phil-Judd like silence. Peace Mick.

Heavenly Bodies - known recordings
15, All Those Years - 4ZB Studio, Dunedin - August 1979

Jealousy, Sophisticated, All Those Years, By The Sea, Inside Out, You’re So Foolish, Back Home - November 1979

Heavenly Bodies - Back Home - 1980

Dates (Heavenly Bodies play all shows): May ’79 - Dux de Lux. June ’79 - Mosgiel. Here Come the Weekend Punks - The Clean. Bored Games. Beneficiaries Hall. Dunedin. September ’79 – Dux de Lux. 7. 8. October ’79 - Captain Cook. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. November ’79 – Hillsborough. 7. Lion Tavern. 15. 16. 17. Captain Cook. 21. 22. 23. 24. January ’80 – Captain Cook. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. Battle of The Bands. Town Hall. 29. Downtown Tavern. 30. 31. February ’80 – Downtown Tavern. 1. 2. March ’80 – Lion Tavern. 1. Captain Cook. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Lion Tavern. 7. 8. Captain Cook. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. Hatchcover. 28. 29. 30. April ’80 – Gladstone. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Captain Cook. 19. May ’80 - Gladstone. The Boomtown Rats. June ’80 – Law Courts. 6. 7. The Clean. Captain Cook. 11. 12. 13. 14. The Clean. Law Courts. Dunedin. 21. July ’80 – Shoreline. 2. 3. 4. Captain Cook. 18. 19. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. B52s. August ’80 – Toy Love. Bored Games. The Same. Concert Chambers. Dunedin. 24. September ’80 – Captain Cook. 10. 11. 12. 13.