 Wishing Well arrived on the New Plymouth band scene in the Spring/Summer of 1993. Starting off as resident band at the now defunct Shooters night-club, Wishing Well quickly developed a reputation for a tight knit sound, good harmonies & playing songs everybody knew. Originally formed in Auckland in 1991, the whole band was supposed to move to New Plymouth in 1993, but however only 2 members of the line-up, drummer Greg Madden & guitarist Billy Tyler, opted for the shift. Not wanting to be away from the music scene for too long, Greg & Billy quickly recruited vocalist Brynley Smith and bass player Les Robinson. Soon their reputation spread to such an extent, that they also very quickly added to the Shooters residency, with another at The Duke of Devon, later renamed The Crown & Rose, followed by yet another residency at The Mill playing before The Mill’s main band The Zarzoffs. The summer of 1993/1994 were heady days, often playing 3 gigs a night, The Mill, The Duke of Devon, then the late show at Shooters. Wishing Well was also building a very strong following in the area, with fans often walking from 1 gig to the next and the next. This was not to last as by the end of April 1994, the residencies at The Mill and The Duke of Devon had ceased. May was to see further changes, as first original guitarist Billy Tyler returned to Auckland. Local guitar wizard Darren Broughton replaced him. This was then followed by the loss of the residency at Shooters. A Friday night gig at The White Hart Hotel was followed up a week later by a new residency at The Glasshouse, now known as The Icons Stadium Bar. The reputation Wishing Well had built up ensured good crowds turned up every night. May also saw the introduction of a dedicated sound-man with Dave Craigie working the mix and light show. But the winds of change were again going to strike. September saw guitarist Darren leave to join The Zaroffs. Another former Auckland guitarist Matt Lithgow replaced him. Also a 5th member, Luke Gordon, was added to the line-up, originally to help Matt, but as he was also able to play the trumpet and trombone, was kept on to add that brass sound to the mix. As well as the residency at The Glasshouse, Wishing Well played a couple gigs at The Soul Kitchen now known as The Grapevine, plus a one off midnight bash at The Crown & Rose formerly The Duke of Devon. However things were now on a bit of a down turn. Thursday & Friday nights at The Glasshouse were still bringing in good crowds, but Saturday night had dropped away to just about nothing. The management at the Crown & Rose had being impressed enough at the midnight bash that they were starting to make approaches to Wishing Well to return as resident band. With the residency at The Glasshouse up for renewal, it was decided to make a return to The Crown & Rose in November. There did however, turn out to be a week’s difference between the ending of the Glasshouse residency, and the start of The Crown & Rose residency. So gigs were arranged at The White Hart Hotel & The Stony River Hotel in Okato, to cover. Now back at The Crown & Rose, Wishing Well embarked on a residency that would last through until mid 1997. The only time away from The Crown & Rose would be a short tour to Auckland, playing at The Empire, and the Alamos night-club in December 1994. This was also followed by a one off return to The Glasshouse for a private function, and another private function at The Fitzroy Hotel, now known as The Jolly Fitz. Also a couple of early evening gigs at Butlers Reef Hotel in Oakura, before their main band started at New Years 94/95, again in 95/96 and in 96/97, before heading in to play at The Crown & Rose. While the main venue would remain the same, the line-up would again under go several changes. The first was to occur only a month into the residency. The current 5 piece line-up was expanded to 6 with the introduction of Kelly Strachan on female vocals, harmonica and guitar where required. This was tempered somewhat by the announcement that Brynley would be leaving the band at the end of January 1995 heading for Australia. Originally it was decided to replace Brynley with another male vocalist, but after nobody suitable was found, Wishing Well reverted again to a 5-piece line-up, with Kelly taking over the main vocal role. Les and Greg took up more of the male orientated songs. This necessitated some other changes around on stage, with Les getting to sit behind the drums while Greg was singing and Luke moving on to bass while both Les and Greg sang. 1995 was a return to the heyday of the summer of 1993/1994. There were only 2 places to be on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, and that was either The Crown & Rose, or The Mill featuring rivals, The Zaroffs. If you weren’t at either venue early enough, you would normally have to queue to get in. The only change during 1995 was in the background, with soundman Dave Craigie leaving to be replaced by Mark Leuthard. Mark, or Marty as he was known, also brought another new dimension to the band. Not only was he mixing the sound, but he could also sing, play guitar, bass, trumpet and drums. It didn’t take long before he would leave the comfort of the sound booth, and clamber up on stage to sing a couple of songs. 1996 saw things continue on in the same vein as 1995. February saw Wishing Well again playing away from The Crown & Rose for a night. This time it was as a support band to top New Zealand reggae act, Herbs, who were playing at The Bowl of Brooklands in New Plymouth. It was also to be the only time that Wishing Well were to front a full brass section, with Marty playing trumpet, guest Alana Cleland on sax, and Luke to trombone. May was to see another line-up change with the departure of lead guitarist Matt & vocalist Kelly. Original guitarist Billy Tyler, back from Auckland, and vocalist Tasha Nixon replaced them. Shortly after that, soundman Marty left. His replacement, Scott Lister, brought another new dimension to the sound with the addition of keyboards as well as vocals. As 1996 rolled on, the number of bars in the central New Plymouth area was growing. By the end of 1996, the effects were starting to be felt as crowd numbers slowly began to dwindle. 1997 was to be the year of major changes for Wishing Well. As the number of new bars continued to grow, so the competition for the customer dollar grew. Numbers were continuing to fall at the 2 main venues of the last few years, The Mill and The Crown & Rose. Wishing Well’s main rivals in the resident band scene, The Zaroffs whom were at The Mill, were the first to go. By mid year, The Crown & Rose had been sold, and the new owners informed the band that their services as a resident band would no longer be required. However, they would like Wishing Well to continue playing at The Crown & Rose, mostly on Friday nights when needed. The good news to come out of all of the big shake up, was that Wishing Well were now free agents and were able to play for whoever wanted them. Another plus was the fact that they were also now able to play for private functions. This had been restricted in the past due to the residencies. But on the negative side, it was to see Scott leave the band due to the extra costs involved in having a sound-man. The role of sound-man was taken on by Les. This fact that Wishing Well were now free agents, was not lost on 2 of the new bars, The Thirsty Bull, now known as Areebar, and The Mayfair. Both bars booked up gigs, which quickly filled the gaps, along with regular Friday night work still at The Crown & Rose. Another venue to take advantage of the change in the band’s status was The Stony River Hotel in Okato. October saw another line-up change. Drummer Greg decided that the time was right for a break away from the music scene. After much deliberation, and a couple of auditions, it was decided that Les would move back to the drums full time. Former sound-man, Marty came back into the line-up, ostensively as a bass player, but with his other abilities, it meant that Luke would get to play more bass. Also to depart at the same time, was vocalist Tasha. Again much deliberation occurred, before finally it was decided to take a risk and go with a total unknown in Nikki Parsons. Nikki’s only previous singing experience was singing at karaoke bars. 1998 was to follow a similar pattern as the end of '97. As no one was looking at a resident band, it meant that Wishing Well were mostly travelling around the different venues in Taranaki. Regular work was still forthcoming from venues such as The Crown & Rose, The Thirsty Bull, The Mayfair, & The Stony River Hotel. By midyear, the list would also include 2 new venues, the Crowded House in New Plymouth, and The Doo Duck Inn in Eltham. The number of private functions was also on the increase resulting in the band keeping busy. The highlights of the year were to come in September with Wishing Well playing for the Kiwis vs. New Zealand Resident XIII rugby league match, followed the next night by the Taranaki vs. Canterbury rugby match. Both events being televised live. While this was the high point of the year, it also marked the last gigs that Les was to play for Wishing Well. Chris (Motley) Whitmore replaced him, with Marty taking on the sound-man’s role. It was also to mark the start of another decline in the number of venues taking live bands. The Crown & Rose, The Thirsty Bull, The Mayfair, The Stony River Hotel, Crowded House and The Doo Duck Inn by this stage had stopped booking live bands. The Thirsty Bull and The Doo Duck Inn had both closed, while the other venues had turned to having discos. Again the decline of patronage and the entertainment dollar due to other available leisure activities, which were increasing, was the reason. The loss of these venues were partially offset by Wishing Well picking up work at The Dom in Hawera, Peggy Gordons, The Jolly Fitz and The Breakwater Tavern, all in New Plymouth. Also with Christmas and New Years fast approaching, there were a lot of private functions as well. 1999 and the year kicked off at The Central Hotel in Eltham. This was the first time that Wishing Well had played a New Years Eve gig away from The Crown & Rose. With regular work coming from Peggy Gordons, The Breakwater Tavern and The Dom, things were still ticking over. It also saw a return to The Mill for some Thursday nights. The odd private function helped to fill in the remaining gaps. March was to herald another line-up change. Guitarist Billy and bassist Marty decided the time was right for a change in scenery. Brett Devine was quickly brought on board to replace Billy on guitar. Brett was also a good vocalist and sound-man, so was able to cover some of Marty’s work as well. The problem of who to replace Marty was a slightly different kettle of bourbon all together. It was eventually decided to revert back to a specialist bassist rather than an all rounder who could play various instruments. With that in mind, Billy Dickson was recruited to the line-up. The addition of Billy meant that Luke reverted back to just guitar and brass, but now also picked up a bit more vocal work. The change in line-up was also to see another round of venue changes. With a change of management, The Breakwater Tavern stopped booking bands. However two new venues, The New Commercial in Stratford and The Railway Hotel in Inglewood, were now booking Wishing Well on a regular basis over the winter months. The end of winter saw Wishing Well secure their first residency since mid-1997. It was only on a Thursday night but it was at least a start. The venue, The White Hart in New Plymouth. The residency was also quite timely as The New Commercial and The Railway Hotel bookings had wound down due to the end of winter. Another new venue towards the end of the year was Jazoo. The end of the year also saw Wishing Well venturing further afield, playing for private functions in Patea and Wanganui. 2000 and the new millennium kicked in at The White Hart. While the year started with a bang, it was also to see Nikki leaving the fold. With no new vocalist forthcoming, it was decided to revert back to a 4 piece all male line-up. It also saw the end of bookings at Peggy Gordons and Jazoo. All was not lost, as it saw the return of Wishing Well to Areebar (formerly The Thirsty Bull) and to Butlers Reef Hotel, which also saw the return of Nikki for a one off gig. Plus another new venue for the year was The Stables Café & Bar at Bell Block. Wishing Well was spreading it's wings even further with a trip to Palmerston North. While the 4 piece line-up was working well, it was discovered that several upcoming private functions would required Wishing Well to revert back to a 5 piece with a female vocalist. Luck was to play a major part in what happened next. A Thursday night regular suggested the band try a friend of hers. She was told to get her friend to come along one Thursday night, and if she knew anything from the band’s song list, she could get up and have a sing. The friend duly showed up, jumped up on stage, and sang a couple of numbers. We were impressed with what we had heard, and immediately asked if she was available to help out at some up and coming gigs. She said yes, and Nicky Spence was brought on board as vocalist, initially as was required, but as of late, a full time member of Wishing Well. Nicky has also shown her versatility, as she can also drum and play guitar. While the beginning of the new millennium was quite quiet booking wise, it allowed the band to bring Nicky up to speed rather quickly. The next few months saw the band mainly playing at The White Hart and The Dom (Hawera), with a few private functions thrown in to keep things ticking over. With Nicky now familiar with the old songs, new songs were been added to the play-list very quickly. All this was to come in handy as bookings began to build over August/September, especially in the private function area. August was also to see the return of Wishing Well to another old stomping ground, The Mill, on a monthly basis. Things were on the up for the band as most weekends up to the end of December were fully booked. November however saw fate throw another spanner in the works. Nicky decided to leave Wishing Well due to personal circumstances. Nicky's departure left the band in a precarious position. No suitable replacement was available at short notice, and with the band fully booked, not much time could be allocated in to breaking in a new singer. So it was decided to revert back to the 4-piece all male line-up for the time being. December saw another new venue, The Waitara Services & Citizens Club, hiring Wishing Well. December also saw one of the busiest times ever for the band, playing 8 gigs in 11 days culminating in a New Years Eve gig at The White Hart. 2001 saw the return of Wishing Well to Peggy Gordons with what was regarded as one of the best weekends the band has played at the venue. With no suitable person having come forward as a possible replacement for Nicky, it is looking like a challenging year ahead for the remaining 4 members. As to the future, only time will tell. Ten years and numerous line-up changes have not detracted from the fact that Wishing Well is still alive and rocking, and will be for some years to come. Acknowledgements Wishing Well would like to thank all the publicans, the various organisations, social clubs, sports clubs and individuals that have supported the band over the years. But the biggest thanks have to go to those people who have turned up to the gigs, some week in and week out. Without your support, Wishing Well would not be here today. |
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