Brothers Gary and Donald Hosie had been the prime movers of the Sydney (Australia) mod revival scene of the early 1980s with their band The Sets.
“The Sets were not 60s revivalists,” explained Gary. “We simply took the fashion and music of the mod era as a starting point; we weren’t trying to recreate anything”.
“I thought the clothes were great because you could wear them to a gig and then go and have a drink at the Hilton – you looked sharp enough to go anywhere”.
In The Mustard Club, the Hosie style matured into double-breasted suits coupled with a powerful brand of R&B party music. But accusations of revivalism frustrated Hosie.
Their second single, The Rest Of My Life Begins Today was described by one reviewer as “the best song Paul Weller never wrote”.
The fourth single, Steeltown Man was a tribute to Mr Hosie Senior (“He’s a real doer, and not only do I like him a lot, but I admire him as well;” said Gary of his father at the time).
The song was a slice of gutsy, good-time, modern R&B that trod similar territory to The Rest Of My Life. It certainly recaptured some of the spark that was missing in the third single, Leave Before She Wakes.
Donald Hosie (ex-The Sets and Stupidity) eventually joined his brother in the line-up and Mustard Club became a heavy version of The Sets.
Gary Hosie
Vocals
Rob Turner
Guitar
Stanley Mobbs
Bass
John Nicholls
Drums
Peter Iacono
Drums
James Crosland
Bass
Donald Hosie
Vocals
