Mental As Anything
Utilising elements of rockabilly, rock and R&B combined with
an energetic live act, Australian band Mental As Anything proved a lasting,
popular live and recording outfit.
In 18 months the band went from
playing on top of a pool table in a small Sydney pub to securing
an international record deal and having their debut LP released in
Britain.
The band formed at art school in June 1976 and by April 1977
they had taken a Monday night residency at the Unicorn Hotel in
Paddington, Sydney (location of aforementioned pool table).
In
1978 they cajoled the owner of Sydney's famed Civic Hotel into an
18-month residency on Thursday nights.
 During the middle of 1979, The Mentals recorded their debut
album, Get Wet. The album achieved success, particularly
with the enigmatically titled single The Nips Are Getting
Bigger.
Their most fortuitous album, Cats And Dogs ,
saw the production smooth out the rough edges, and subsequent
albums always maintained a high standard, with single releases
constantly charting in Australia (two dozen to the end of 1990).
When British singer/songwriter Elvis Costello toured Australia
in 1982, the band persuaded him to produce the single I Didn't
Mean To Be Mean (September 1982).
Overseas, their single Live It Up gained considerable
chart success in the UK in 1987, when it spent 13 weeks at number
three. The song was also included in the soundtrack of the movie Crocodile
Dundee at the request of its star, Paul Hogan.
Martin Plaza (real name Martin Edward Murphy) has also released
solo recordings which have enjoyed high sales in Australia. In
March 1986 he reached Number 2 with a cover version of Unit
4+2's
Concrete And Clay.
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