John Brewster, co-founder of the legendary Australian rock band The Angels, is a living icon of Australian music. Now 75, Brewster has enjoyed a prolific career spanning decades, working alongside industry legends such as AC/DC, Chuck Berry, and The Kinks. His band redefined Australian pub rock in the late 1970s and early 1980s, earning a devoted fan base, and in 1998 induction into the ARIA Hall of Fame. Brewster’s contributions have left a profound legacy, influencing acts like Guns N’ Roses, Pearl Jam and collaborating with luminaries through music groups such as The Party Boys and The Bombers.
An avid golfer and dedicated charity worker, Brewster balances his passion for music and touring schedule with work for the Heart Foundation, Autism and other notable Australian causes. The Brewster brothers are icons of Aussie rock who continue to inspire on and off the stage.
John Brewster at Victor Harbour Golf Club.
Can you remember when you got started with golf and who introduced you to the game?
My dad was a very good golfer. And I think he was my first inspiration because I remember him showing me how to chip…something I’m not that good at anymore. Dad would say if you can chip, you can hit full shots later. I think that was quite a nice way to learn to play.
Your old man was a musician, too, wasn’t he?
Yeah, he was the principal cellist of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. He also had his own string orchestra, which he conducted. It was a 40-member string orchestra. And then later, he became the director of music for the ABC here in South Australia.
Did you play much golf with your dad?
I did later in life. I used to caddy for him when I was a kid, but then I realised that I could make more money if I caddied for his friends. They used to pay me more than Dad did. I used to catch a bus down to Kooyonga Golf Club when I was about 12 or 13 and caddy for some of Dad’s friends. It was about 10 shillings at the time, and if he had a good day, paid me a pound. That was like a fair bit of money back then. Dad was a member at Kooyonga and one day he came home, and he said, “son, I’ve just seen the greatest round of golf of all time.” That was the 1965 Australian Open when Gary Player shot 62 or something, with a bogey!
I met Gary Player recently because we had our centenary at Kooyonga and he was our guest, and he was there for about five days. Everyone got to have a bit of a chat. I said to him, I live at Victor Harbour, and that I saw him play at when I was just a kid. Gary Player said, “Victor Harbour, that’s the best first tee I’ve ever seen anywhere in the world.”
You’ve been playing golf basically since you were a kid. Have you been a member somewhere most of your life?
I was a member of Victor Harbour when I was a teenager and then I got into surfing and golf sort of went pretty much by the wayside. Then of course we started The Angels in 1974. There was no time to play golf. Once we decided to form a rock band and go on the road, it was all consuming. We were just constantly on the road, driving around in my old EH station wagon.
The Angels long time lead vocalist, Doc Neeson, loved his golf too?
Yeah, Doc Neeson lived beside the second fairway of Concord Golf Club. In those days the border fence of the golf club was just this low paling fence. Back in the late 1970s one night we were at Doc’s place. We had a few drinks, decided to go for a walk and walked across the road, then stepped over the fence and we were walking through Concord Golf Club. The moon was up, and it was a beautiful night and I’m looking around and I just said to myself, ‘you know when the band makes it, I’m going to join this golf club.’ And that’s what I did. We hit the big time about a year later and I joined Concord in 1979.
Do you still play much these days and what’s the lowest handicap you ever got down to?
Yeah, I play Wednesdays at Kooyonga and Thursdays at Victor when I’m home. I got to a four handicap back in those days. We were using wooden drivers and fairway clubs and hitting balata balls and I’m thinking, how did I get to that sort of handicap with those clubs? The balls went nowhere. I am now 75 and I’m playing off 13 at Victor Harbour.
Have you played much in celebrity pro-ams and things like that?
I used to be a regular on Jack Newton’s pro-am. Great guy, Jack. Every year I play at Manly Golf Club and their charity day for autism and I managed to get the guys in the band to come together and we just play in the bar, which is not really usual for The Angels to do. That helps raise money for ASPECT, Autism Spectrum Australia. We had a day recently at Victor Harbour Golf Club for the Royal Flying Doctors and that was very successful. Had a full house and it’s just me with my guitar and sing a few songs.
An icon of Aussie rock, John Brewster of The Angels.
You must have played golf with some pretty interesting people over the years.
Wilbur Wilde is one of my closest friends and he’s always great to play with. Usually when the band plays in Melbourne, I stay on for another day or two and I’ll play in his fairway club on the Monday, perhaps a round at The National on Sunday. And interesting people, yeah. I mean Alice Cooper and I played in 1992 I think it was. I had a band with Alan Lancaster who was the bass player of Status Quo and with me and the Party Boys and we had the number one single, He’s Going to Step on You Again. We formed a band called The Bombers and we got the Alice Cooper tour. We toured the whole country with Alice and I played golf with him every day. We were both on six handicaps then and so it was pretty competitive and good fun.
Have you ever had a hole-in-one?
I’ve had three. It’s quite funny, actually, because I was playing with Ken Trimble and Murray Golding, and they were ribbing me all day. You know, ‘how many holes in one have you had, Murray? Oh, I’ve had such and such. What about you, Ken? Oh, I’ve had about seven. And how many have you had, John?’ And I said, shut up. You know I haven’t had any. They were just laughing at me all day. We get to the 14th tee and Murray Golding said, come on, someone have a hole-in-one. I said, today’s my day. And I holed the shot. They were all jumping up and down. So that was my very first one.
At Concord, the last Saturday of the year, Christmas, we have the Rogues Cup. I’m proud to be a life member of the Rogues. So, I was playing with the head Rogue, Vince Curran, we got the fourth tee and I holed my shot.
My third one was back in 2009. I’d had a heart attack and quintuple bypass surgery, like Jimmy Barnes. And I just got back into golf. I was only probably a couple of weeks back into golf and I had a hole-in-one on the 14th there.
So we’re going to talk about hearts for a bit. Am I right in thinking you do some ambassador work for the Heart Foundation?
I went up to Broken Hill and they had me talk to people about the dangers of ignoring warning signs because I had warning signs and didn’t do anything about it. I was very lucky to get through all that. I don’t recall having a massive heart attack on the first occasion. The second one was a bigger deal.
By warning signs, what would be the ones that we should alert people to?
Well, funnily enough, my first warning sign back in 2008 was playing golf with my friends at Concord Golf Club. I had this pain in my chest and I’d eaten a croissant that was kind of dry and I thought that it affected me. I said to the guys, ‘oh jeez, I’ve got this pain.’ I actually played really well that day. I walked slowly, swung it slowly, had something like 42 points and I think I won the comp. I thought, well, that’s a good lesson, just slow it down. We then had three shows with The Angels back-to-back and thankfully our tour manager realised I needed to get medical help as I was complaining of chest pains.
Go to https://theangels.com.au/ tour dates and new album ‘Ninety Nine’.
Heart Heath – From the Heart Foundation
In Australia, one in six people self-report as living with cardiovascular disease, accounting for more than 4.5 million people. Coronary heart disease remains the nation’s leading cause of death, responsible for claiming the lives of about 17,000 people each year.
What is a heart attack?
A heart attack occurs when an artery supplying blood to your heart becomes blocked, which stops blood flow and reduces the amount of oxygen that gets to your heart.
A person having a heart attack is usually conscious and may be complaining of chest discomfort, pain or other symptoms. A heart attack requires emergency treatment to restore blood flow to your heart.
Each day, an average of 19 Australians die from a heart attack. One patient is admitted to an Australian hospital with a heart attack every nine minutes.
What is the difference between a heart attack and a cardiac arrest?
A heart attack is different to a cardiac arrest. However, if left untreated, a heart attack can lead to a cardiac arrest. A cardiac arrest occurs when your heart stops beating due to an electrical malfunction.
A person in cardiac arrest will be unconscious (not able to respond) and will not be breathing. This is because their heart has suddenly stopped beating and blood can no longer flow to the brain, heart and lungs. A cardiac arrest is a medical emergency. If the heart is not restarted immediately, cardiac arrest can lead to brain damage and then death.
Some golf clubs have an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) on site. In the event of someone experiencing a cardiac arrest on the course, be sure to call Triple Zero (000) first, start chest compressions (CPR) and retrieve an AED. While you wait for the ambulance, the AED will talk you through chest compressions and by having a go, you could save a life.
What are the warning signs?
The most common heart attack warning sign is chest discomfort or pain. This can feel like uncomfortable pressure, aching, numbness, squeezing, fullness or pain in your chest. This discomfort can spread to your arms, neck, jaw or back. It can last for several minutes or come and go.
Other heart attack symptoms can include:
• Dizziness, light-headedness, feeling faint or feeling anxious
• Nausea, indigestion, vomiting
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing – with or without chest discomfort
• Sweating or a cold sweat.
At the first sign of symptoms, stop playing and rest. If you, or a golfing buddy, is experiencing heart attack symptoms after more than 10 minutes of rest, or if symptoms are severe, or getting worse, call Triple Zero (000) immediately.
How can I be proactive with my heart health?
Golfers might think they’re safe because they’re active, but a heart attack can happen to anyone, even people who are physically fit. It’s never too early to start thinking about your risk factors for heart disease or discussing your family’s history with your GP.
While there are some risk factors that can’t be changed such as age, sex, ethnicity and family history of heart disease, you can take preventative action such as:
• Maintain a healthy weight
• Aim to be physically active five or more days each week
• Be smoke free and reduce alcohol intake
• Look after your mental health
• Manage high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
If you are 45 years and over (or 30 and over if you are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander), the Heart Foundation recommends you have a Medicare-subsidised Heart Health Check with your doctor at least every two years.
Since 2019, 798,520 people have a Heart Health Check. Contact your GP and book yours today.
To learn more about how to look after your heart health or to make a donation to the Heart Foundation’s life-saving research in the fight against heart disease, visit www.heartfoundation.org.au.
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