Page 5 of 5 - The 10th Birthday Party
On the 4th of April, 2001, the Clippers celebrated their 10th birthday with a party/performance at the Old Queensland Museum. The Clippers performed several numbers for the entertainment of family, friends, ex-members, prospective members, visitors from the Banana Blenders, and sponsors.
(All the images below can be clicked on to give a full-sized version)
The risers quaking under the full weight of the Clippers
Following the Clippers' performance, the audience was graced by the golden tones of three quartets:
Quadravox (and no, some of those trophies belong to other groups!)
L-R: Steve Harris (tenor), Mike Muller (lead), Cliff Callinan (bass) and John Gairns (baritone)
Full House
L-R: Colin Chapman (baritone), John Shelton (bass), Gordon Sanderson (lead) and John McMillan (tenor)
Southern Cross
L-R: Daniel Beckitt (tenor), John Newell (lead), Mark Penman (bass) and Bill Staff (baritone)
Following the quartets, the hall was in for a special treat: The River City Clippers returned to the stage, joined this time by all the ex-members in the room, as well as the visitors from the Banana Blenders and anyone else who wanted to have a sing. 65 singers graced the risers! Link Abbott, the Musical Director that Bill Staff succeeded, was invited to lead the massed singers in a repertoire of barbershop polecats.
At one point there were two Musical Directors on stage together (Paul W seems very pleased about that):
What a sound!
Following the performance, food and drinks were had by all, and the party wound its way into the wee hours, with scratch quartets appearing in all corners of the room. A most successful evening.
