The Dance Exponents receiving an award, 1984. Brian Jones, Chris Sheehan, Dave Gent, Michael "Harry" Harallambi, Jordan Luck.
In this full-length interview for 2003 television series Give It a Whirl, three members of the legendary Exponents – singer Jordan Luck, guitarist Brian Jones and bassist Dave Gent – cast their memories back to the early days of the band. Among the topics discussed are touring shenanigans in New Zealand, moving to London, favourite bands from Christchurch and Dunedin, opening for David Bowie and the Rolling Stones, and making the video for ‘Victoria’.
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Watch below: Full-length interview with The Exponents from Give It a Whirl (2003) via NZ On Screen (2022).
Watch below: The Exponents discuss their early touring days. Dave Gent: “We had no money. We were borrowing money off our soundman, off anyone, just to get to the next gig.”
Watch below: The Exponents recall playing live, and the band cementing their reputation with venues as they kept touring. Jordan Luck: “Often you’d arrive with a reputation that wasn’t necessarily that flattering – inevitably after a couple of times you got treated really well.”
Watch below: The Exponents discuss one of the favourite parts of touring – on the road pranks. Dave Gent: “We used to spend weeks chasing each other around, throwing eggs at each other out of rental vans. That was the most entertaining part of being on tour for a while ... All the bands we played with, we’d just have two vehicles and buy dozens of eggs.”
Watch below: The Exponents discuss being perceived as a pop band. Dave Gent: “We didn't care. The thing is, we like pop music, we love pop songs. It was no problem.” Brian Jones: “Musically we could do all sorts of things. Whatever we wanted to do really.” Jordan Luck: “The main thing is now, lots of people are getting played on the radio. Back then, you were just lucky if you did.”
Watch below: Dave Gent on opening for big international acts. “We played with the Rolling Stones, Bowie, KISS. We played with some massive, cool bands – that was wicked.”
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This interview was recorded for the 2003 season of TV series Give it a Whirl. All audiovisual content is copyright to Visionary Film & TV, and may not be reproduced.
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Further reading: Nick Bollinger on Give It a Whirl