Joe Galea
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Joe Galea, born [unknown], Australian blues artist.
[edit] Biography & Career
Galea grew up in the notorious King’s Cross area of Sydney, where he was influenced from an early age by American Merchant Seamen who, on R R leave, would play their blues and soul records. Here, he encountered artists such as Solomon Burke, Ray Charles, Little Milton and Muddy Waters.
In his teenage years, Joe sang with his band, The Midnighters, alongside other up and coming bands from the region such as the Bee Gees, Billy Thorpe and Max Merritt. The band members (Joe, his brother and a couple of friends) would use the family garage for practice. From there, every note they played, and every word Joe sang was being watched and taken in by several young boys from the local immigrant centre at Villawood; they would later become one of Australia’s leading bands – The Easybeats.
Whilst performing at the Down Under Club in Kings Cross, he was spotted by scouts and asked to become the resident singer at the new 5-star Narai Hotel in Bangkok. He worked there for two years, performing, on occasions, with top American musicians on tour, such as Rosco Gordon.
During the above period, he was spotted by an American officer who offered him and his band a contract to tour Vietnam during the war, entertaining the troops. They appeared, during this time, alongside artists such as Sammy Davis Junior, Laverne Baker and Duane Eddy amongst others. They actually remained in Vietnam until the end of the war, and were the last band to leave the country before the final takeover.
Over the years, Joe sang in many bands such as the successful Cross the Border. His current band is simply called The Joe Galea Band.
