The Bishops Set To Storm
Rock action '79

THE BISHOPS are set to take Sydney the rock scene by storm. From the UK, the Bishops arrived in Sydney last week for a six week tour of Australia. The four man line up consists of two ex Buffalo members, Dave Tice, lead vocals and Paul Balbi on drums. Johnny Guitar is on lead guitar and Pat McMullen is on bass. The opening gig at the Capitol on Friday night was the best I have ever seen. A rhythm and blues based band, the Bishops pump out such classics as "I take What I Want" and "Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White". The band will be in Sydney till October 12, then it's off to Adelaide. You will get another chance to see them before they go home. They return to Sydney on October 26 for a concert at the Manly Vale Hotel, the first of a series of venues.
Lisa Perry

Band returns
1979

Rock On with Glenn A Baker
1979

Back in the early seventies, Sydney heavy-metal band Buffalo achieved the rare distinction of having their first two albums released throughout Europe on the prestigous Vertigo label. Although he didn't know it at the time, vocalist Dave Tice built up a sizeable following on the Continent for his gruff, bellowing voice. Then in 1976, respected London pub band The Count Bishops asked Tice to come to England to front them. Now known as simply The Bishops, the hard-driving and surprisingly melodic outfit are undertaking a low-key tour of Australia and can be seen at the Bondi Lifesaver on Friday night and the Stagedoor Tavern on Sunday night.

Free tickets
1979

Sydney Shout readers have the opportunity to win double passes to see the Bishops and Jimmy and the Boys. Dave Tice, who was the lead singer with Buffalo returns to Australia this week, with the new wave English group, the Bishops. Jimmy and the Boys are playing at the same concert at the Capitol Theatre and Sydney Shout has 20 free passes available. Just pop in and ask for one! First in, best dressed!

Bishops in Blues Revival
1979

The Bishops, pioneers of the current rhythm and blues revival in Britain and Europe, will appear at the Family Hotel, Rydalmere tonight (Tuesday) The band's lead singer is Dave Tice, who fronted Australia's Buffalo for five years and five albums. When Buffalo disbanded in late 1976, Dave headed for England to join The Bishops. Another member of the London-based band is also an Australian, drummer Paul Balbi, who was the original Buffalo drummer who played on the groups debut album in 1972. "I think we play more the newer style rhythm and blues," Balbi said. "It's more progressive than the older style rock and roll, a little more contemporary." The Bishops have released three critically acclaimed albums in England, and are distinguished by their raucous good-time energy and easy balance between rough-house rhythm and blues and high-powered but melodic pop-rock. Their appearance at Rydalmere comes at the start of a six week tour, their first in Australia.

The Bishops...their religion is rock'n'roll
Juke 20/10/79

The first thing Bishops' lead vocalist Dave Tice did when the band arrived in Sydney was to look up the old members of Buffalo. Tice used to sing for them. Peter Wells is with Rose Tattoo, Chris Turner is doing his own thing and John Baxter is putting a new outfit together after Boy Racer bit the dust some weeks back. Buffalo were angry young men on the Sydney scene, their ruff, tuff'n' reddy image attracting a large live following but denying them the chance to dent the mass market (something Rose Tattoo are going through) When Tice flew out to London two & a half years ago after getting an invitation from The Bishops, the band was rife with personality clashes due to frustration. "We were a good band, no doubt about that. But the mass market is very MOR and we could never crack it. By the time I left we were starting to run down." Buffalo had to be respected for sticking to their music principles. So too are The Bishops. One of the most respected R&B bands in England, their records have never been big sellers (negotiations are under way for their label Chiswick to be distributed in this country). "It's slowly getting there for us though," says Tice. "The punk thing slowed us down a bit. Actually when it first started out, the Bishops were seen as a punk band because of th energy of the music. But punk was a fashion as well; and because we stuck to our jeans, we fell from their favour. Right now there are a number of good R&B bands around England - The Bishops, Dr Feelgood, The Inmates...we've never chased commercial success by selling out, thats such a pointless exercise. It'd take easier for people to understand if we don't go for accessible poppy tunes but our fans will stay longer in the long run. But anyway, the British charts are really varied and exciting at the moment, I can sense our breakthrough coming up soon." Their last single, "I Want Candy" seemed set to be a big hit. But in March their rhythm guitarist died in a car accident. Then their drummer, Paul Balbi (who's got an Aussie passport) has been told to get out of Britain by the authoities. So while he works out his visa problems, the band have returned for six weeks of dates here. Tice has always been the sort of person who doesn't mind how much money he earns as long as he digs what he's doing. "We're living quite comfortably in London. It's very expensive but we all share a house and I own a car." Not married yet? He grimaces. "Come off it! Marriage is an institution they put you in when you're old"
Christie Eliezer

After Dark with Roger Crosthwaite
Mon. Oct. 8 1979 Daily Telegraph

The Bishops, the English band featuring former Buffalo lead singer, Australian Dave Tice, are in Sydney for a couple of weeks to play around the traps. They are at he forefront of the R and B revival in England and later this week our rock column will feature a longer report on Tice and the band's history.

ROCK - Buffalo Dave Returns
Wed. Oct. 10 '79 Daily Telegraph

Dave Tice left Australia two and a half years ago to join a little-known R&B group, The Count Bishops. This week the former singer of Buffalo was back in town for a six-week east coast tour - and a chance to meet old friends. Now just known as The Bishops, the group are among the biggest names in English R&B revival. But they are not strictly an R&B group. The Bishops music is more progressive than most of the revivalist bands. They lay loud and fast and with their driving, no-nonsense style they were originally grouped with the punk explosion of 1977. After outlasting most of the punk groups, the band are firmly established with three albums and a number of singles out on one of the leading independant labels in Britain, Chiswick Records. Chiswick are currently negotiating a distribution deal for the band's records in Australia, which until now have been available only on import. Said Dave: "It's good to be back in Australia for a while. But London is the place to be at the moment - the audiences there are much more receptive to something new.

The Bishops
October 27 1979