In 1969 Wellington band Simple Image (which had had Barry Leef as lead singer) and Retaliation swapped lead singers, allowing Barry a chance to move to Australia.That band didn’t last long but when Simple Image moved across the Tasman later in the year, Barry could re-join his old band.

That year (1969) Max Merritt and the Meteors were based in Melbourne and played at venues such as the Thumpin’ Tum, Sebastian’s and the well-named Max’s Place. These were the days bands to play at several gigs each night, with the last likely to be in the inner city.

They played alongside bands like Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs at the Ourimbah Festival in NSW over the Australia Day long weekend in 1970.  Not long after the festival Dave Russell replaced Yuk Harrison in the line-up. (See photo below of Max and Yuk. Photo credit: John Newhill)