The Delltones were an Australian rock 'n' roll band, which formed in 1958. They started as a doo-wop, harmony quartet with Warren Lucas, Brian Perkins, Noel Widerberg and Ian "Peewee" Wilson. In July 1962 Noel Widerberg died in a car accident in Brighton-le-Sands in Sydney, and three weeks later the group's single, "Get a Little Dirt on Your Hands", reached the top five on the local charts. Widerberg's position was filled by Col Loughnan. The group disbanded in 1973.
Clockwise from bottom left: Warren Lucas, Noel Widerberg, Ian "Peewee" Wilson, Brian Perkins, 1959
The Delltones with four radio awards, (l to r) Warren Lucas (tenor), Ian (Peewee) Wilson (bass), Brian Perkins (baritone) and Col Loughnan (lead)
The Delltones performing at the Anti Nuclear Rally
Colin John Loughnan is an Australian jazz saxophonist, teacher, and composer, best known as a member of the Delltones, Ayers Rock, Judy Bailey quartet, and as a teacher of saxophone at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Although Loughnan has long been associated with jazz music, the first nine years of his career were spent as a non-instrumental vocalist with vocal harmony groups The Crescents, and The Delltones starting in 1958. In the 60s, he learnt to play the saxophone, performing as an instrumentalist with Col Nolan and The Soul Syndicate, and as a founding member of the Daly-Wilson Big Band. At this time Loughnan was proficient in saxophones, flutes, and clarinet.
Loughnan at Venue 505 in August 2015
The Crescents, (l to r) Mike Downes, Col Loughnan, and Kel Palise.
Tenor (left) and soprano saxophones used by Loughnan in 1974
Loughnan at the Record Plant, L.A. in September 1975