You knew when music entrepreneur Michael Gudinski was in a room … the energy shifted. Many have said it and it’s absolutely true. He was a force of nature and without him, the Australian music industry may have looked very different indeed. This year, the Melbourne International Film Festival celebrates the life of Michael Gudinski with the presentation of the documentary Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story.
Directed by Paul Goldman, the film follows Michael’s journey from his Jewish family escaping the remnants of war, seeking a better life in Australia through to the beginnings of Mushroom Records and ultimately becoming the global music industry figure we all knew and loved.
Legendary stories such as Michael charging Caulfield Racecourse patrons for parking on his front lawn to selling watermelons to punters at the Sunbury Music festival are all confirmed but how many knew he started out promoting blues acts and that he was schooled in the blues music scene in Chicago for a short period by none other than Muddy Waters? In the film Michael tells us that hanging out with Muddy, gave him an understanding of real artists and that some of the greatest artists of all time weren’t in it for the money but purely for the love of music. Gudinski’s love for music and in particular Australian music never left him … although he did like to make a buck too.
Guitarist Red Symons from iconic Australian band Skyhooks, whose success is said to have saved Mushroom records, uses the analogy of the music and horse racing industries in describing Michael as a punter. “You’ve got a band, like a horse, let’s give it a run! If it wins, good. If it doesn’t win, we’ve got another horse!”
Thankfully the seeds of this documentary were planted well before Michael’s death and the film’s creators had many hours of interview footage with the great man available to dissect, unlike the Judee Sill documentary also showing at MIFF this year which relies heavily on animation to tell her story. Ego also features a plethora of historical Australian and international music business figures and superstars who couldn’t say no to participation in the Gudinski film.
Acts such as Skyhooks, Split Enz, Jimmy Barnes, Paul Kelly, Hunters & Collectors, Kylie Minogue, Archie Roach and Yothu Yindi, who all benefitted from being signed to Mushroom Records, are featured in the film discussing Michael’s effect on their careers. From a touring perspective, A-grade clients like Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl, Ed Sheeran, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel and Sting also speak highly of Gudinski in regard to their exploits down under.
However, as Springsteen’s manager Jon Landau says in the film, it wasn’t all fun and games as Michael could also reveal a darker side, which could emerge unexpectedly at any time. I’ve seen that side of Michael myself when I once asked politely at a live music awards event about grabbing his client Jimmy Barnes away for a short photoshoot for Juke magazine in the eighties, only to be shouted down in no uncertain terms that the timing wasn’t right. But those moments were always fleeting and the next time you saw the man, he’d be as gregarious as ever.
There can be no doubt that Michael Gudinski had a significant effect on the Australian and global music scenes. He was a larger than life character who made things happen, a guy who it was difficult to say no to. It was crucial that this film be made, not only documenting one of the greatest characters in the Australian music industry but also chronicling other important industry figures of the time and presenting their many collective achievements. Those in the Australian music industry would know, how else would you ever hear Gudinski business partners such as Premier Artists’ Frank Stivala or Gerard Schlaghecke speak so candidly about Michael and the local music scene. Michael Gudinski led an amazing life. It’s a tale which had to be told and told well. Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story has achieved all of that and more.