Brotherly harmonies and reveries of the golden age

THE Robertson Brothers are returning to the Tweed with a nostalgic night of entertainment, paying tribute to musical giants in their 1960s Variety TV Show.

With cheekiness and charm, the brothers and their guests present a golden era of TV through the music of The Beatles, Petula Clark, Del Shannon, The Beach Boys, The Hollies, The Bee Gees, and The Everly Brothers.

The Roberstons spend much of the year on the road, and driving from Adelaide to Mount Gambier. Ben Robertson spoke from the motorhome he shares with his partner and their family cat.

Jayco has sponsored the band since 2018, which now crosses the country in a production convoy.

“There’s the 10 of us plus family on tour,” he said.

“My brother Geoff has the big motorhome with his wife and two kids, our other brother Stuart has the 12-seater with the band, and our sound guy has his truck.”

The Robertsons’ show now focuses on a decade of music that continues to retain its eternal appeal.

“People still love it, and what we try to do is take them back to when they were teenagers,” he said.

“You know when you play a song, and you are reminded instantly of where you were at the time – and we take the mickey a bit, and they love it.

“It’s cool to just get out of this crazy world for a couple of hours.

“They’re also just really great songs, and it’s what we grew up listening to with Mum and Dad.”

It wasn’t ever thus, and the uniquely talented brothers with an exquisite vocal blend had success and rocky roads, and signed to several major record labels in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Their melodic harmonies were heard everywhere, performing

at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games opening ceremony, singing the Channel 7 Home

and Away theme song from 2000 to 2006, and as backing vocalists for Australian Idol.

Nearly three decades on from the early days, the family harmonies and brotherly balance remain a compelling feature of their singular and collective talents.

“We have had ups and downs, as you can imagine, like, that’s life,” Robertson said.

“It’s a hard slog, and the music industry has changed so much we had to adapt, and that’s what this variety show is about.

“The brother thing is something we’ve always done, and it made complete sense to build this show around vocal groups and harmonies and hopefully, good singing.

“And we’ve managed, through the ups and downs, to keep it going.”

The show also features guest performers Simon Brook McLachlan (from Jersey Boys) paying tribute to Del Shannon and Cosima De Vito in homage to Petula Clark.

The 1960s Variety TV Show will play at the Byron Theatre on Saturday, August 2, and at Twin Towns on Sunday, August 3.

For tickets, visit byroncentre.com.au or twintowns.com.au/events/the-robertson-brothers .