Hungry Hungry Hog

Well Hungry Town people got nothin to eat
They're scratching the dirt trying to plant the seed
When night time comes it's time for bed
Well now I gotta fight just to lay my head

Hungry Town, the unique hit single by BIG PIG was drenched in harmonica. Rising to 18th position on the National Charts in December of 1986 and as high as number six on our local charts. This is their top ranking original single.

The derivation of the name BIG PIG was anointed not only because it rhymed, but also because of the pig’s Chinese symbolism of wealth and good fortune. It’s why we have Piggy Banks. The PIG was BIG for a short time in the mid to late eighties.

The PIG were conjured in 1984 by Oleh Witer while living in London having been inspired by Kodo, a group of Japanese Taiko drummers. At the same time he was listening to gospel and his idea was to combine the two. Oleh proceeded to pen about ten songs with unique drum patterns and vocal melodies.

Returning to Australia after his visa had expired he swiftly garnered seven members for the new band. There was a trim to the number of drummers (he had nine in the original London formation). The Oz outfit comprised; Sherine Abeyratne on lead vocals, Nick Disbray, vocals and percussion, Tony Antoniades, vocals and harmonica, Tim Rosewarne, vocals and keyboards, Oleh Witer, vocals and drums and Adrian Scaglione and Neil Baker on drums. BIG PIG hit the live scene in February of 1986, and immediately distributed a self-financed, independent record of three tracks that included Witer’s fabulous art work.

A video for Hungry Town followed shot on a tight budget in black and white from their own van. The editing was left to a friend, who encapsulated the BIG PIG vibe. The combination of record and video hit the mark with the group signed by Mushroom’s White Label. They packaged a remixed two record set of the original EP and included dance mixes of both Hungry Town and Money God.

It took a couple of years, but in 1988 BIG PIG’s debut album ‘BONK’ finally dropped. The title is an onomatopoeic word that encapsulated their percussive, high-energy sound and also served as a double entendre. Bonk, the debut album quickly went gold and later platinum. BIG PIG had a three month stint in the United States, England and Europe where it supported INXS for part of the time.

The harmonica player for the PIG was Tony Antoniades, who was plucked from the props department of GTV 9. “I haven’t actually played in bands as such. I have played harmonica for a number of years and did some guest spots when Paul Kelly was in a band called the High Rise Bombers, and for Hunters and Collectors, which culminated in recording their live album. That was basically it for me. I had terminated my interest in playing in bands until the phone call from Oleh. I heard the material and I was just captivated.” (The Canberra Times, Thursday 13 November, 1986)

The Hunters and Collectors album Tony is referring to is ‘The Way To Go Out’ (1985). He blows similar riffs to Hungry Town back in the mix on the tune Follow Me No More. It doesn’t appear that Tony blew in another band after the PIG and I could find only two other session credits for him. One was on a self titled King Swamp 1989 album (looks like late in Louisiana Bride – 4:02 in) and the other on Jenny Morris’ Tangled In Love (1991). Both were when BIG PIG were still active.

I was intrigued by the inclusion of a sound bite at the beginning of the Mushroom remix. How and why did it fit in with the new mix? My take was a train platform attendant announcing, “Stand Clear” and something I cannot decipher. Richmond Recorders were in Pearson street East Richmond and the train station wasn’t too far away. Why not call on the producer Etienne Conod to search his memory banks?

SD: Hi Etienne. It’s been forty years since you were involved in the production of Hungry Town? How did you pick up the gig?

EC: Yes Shep it has been a while since I was with my friend Tony Antoniades and his mates at Richmond Recorders in Melbourne. We lived in Goongerah (East Gippsland) as hippies trying alternative lifestyles. Tony had a cabin there, this is how we met. I had been selling my studio (Sunrise Studios) in Switzerland previously and moved to Australia in 1982 to live on the land.

I knew Tim Stobart from Richmond Recorders so Tony asked me if I would record them there. Oleh brought the song and we produced in a creative spirit with the intention that everyone could have his/hers say much as I had been working at Sunrise.

SD: Now can you help me with what the heck is happening at the start of the track?

EC: On the desk is a microphone with which the engineer communicates with the artist. This can go on tape. The snipped we hear at the start of Hungry Town is from a dialogue with the control room and the studio. From my recollection it is Oleh Witer who shouts “get me out of here .. ” after some spirited dialogue about what we were about to do. 

SD: What did you do after the recording?

EC: After completion of the EP I went back to my farm and focused on other things.

SD: Thanks Etienne for going back in time and all the best for now and the future.

EC: I hope I have been able to help you with this matter and wish you success, Shep.

Well it's a Hungry Town
Where people kiss the ground
And the higher you go
That's where the feeling grows
There's a world out there
Where people just don't care
About what's going down
Right here in Hungry Town

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