BILLY THORPE - HOME BREW RADIO TRIBUTE EXCLUSIVE!!!!!!
Thorpie at one of his last gigs
On the last day of February 2007 @ approx. 2:30am, Australia lost one of it's most iconic identities and music pioneers, Billy Thorpe (pic)*. Billy died at the tender age of 60 from a heart attack but was still rockin right up to that fateful day.
Whilst we all mourn his passing, if my interview with Thorpie is anything to go by, he would've wanted us to be celebrating his life as LOUDLY and as passionately, as possible.
I first met Thorpie over email - he'd caught HOME BREW a few times when on the road and asked us to mention his tsunami benefit gig. The deal was sealed as long as I could interview Thorpie - to which he agreed....So I rocked up to the next Thorpie gig and spent it throwing my head around (and after a good relationship with the bar staff, my body) to the legend that Is Billy Thorpe. As fate would have it, we didn't do the interview that night. Instead, Thorpie invited me into his studio in Surry Hills and gave me 2 and a half hours of his time and a six pack from his beer fridge. What a top bloke!!!
Below is one of Billy's last interviews before his untimely death. As I'm sure you'll find, he was an incredible talent with a huge heart and was an integral part of Australian music culture. He's left a big hole in many peoples lives but his legacy will never die.
