ALEX LAHEY COVERS
SKYHOOKS CLASSIC
‘EGO IS NOT A DIRTY WORD’
The Mushroom Group shares the latest single from its Mushroom 50 project, with Alex Lahey putting her spin on the Skyhooks’ classic ‘Ego Is Not a Dirty Word’.
This latest Mushroom 50 single coincides with the national release of feature documentary Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story, in cinemas from today following its premiere at Melbourne International Film Festival. Throughout 2023, Mushroom is commemorating fifty years of unforgettable songs with a project of reimagined singles, with artists across the Group covering some of Mushroom’s stellar catalogue.
“This song has so much energy and passion. I don’t think I could ever conceive a song like this with all its unpredictable twists and turns.”
Tasked with taking one of the original Mushroom smash hits and transforming into something both reminiscent of the original but contemporary in its execution, Alex Lahey leaned into the eccentricities of Skyhooks as a guiding star.
“Because the original recording is almost 50 years old, I wanted to take a modern approach to the recording. I looked to capture the same raucousness of the original performance in a more high-fidelity format. It was important to me to retain the complexities and character of the original recording, but with a 21st century clarity and shine.”
Skyhooks were Mushroom’s first superstars. ‘Ego Is Not A Dirty Word’ was the first single and title track from their second album, written by Greg Macainsh and produced by Ross Wilson.
The symbiotic relationship between Skyhooks and Michael Gudinski is well-documented, with Greg Macainsh referring to MG as “the sixth member of Skyhooks”. There was a mutual admiration, with Michael identifying Skyhooks’ trailblazing output and Skyhooks tuning in to Gudinski’s enthusiasm. Red Symons and Greg Macainsh both appear in the documentary Ego: The Michael Gudinski Story and ‘Ego Is Not A Dirty Word’ features on the soundtrack.
Ego: The Michael Gudinski StoryIn cinemas nationally from Thursday 31 AugustTickets on sale now
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