Max Merritt and the Meteors on the cover of The Best of Bandstand Volume 7 (1964–65), which includes their performances of ‘Heatwave’ and ‘So long baby’.
Before anyone in Australia said “blue-eyed soul”, a young Kiwi with a voice like gravel and honey was playing Stax and Motown covers to packed dance halls. By 1969 Max Merritt was being called the King of Soul, and he never really lost the title.
Most people know him for ‘Slipping away’. Fair enough. But the road to that song ran through a Christchurch teenage band, a pile of Bandstand and Uptight spots, a car crash on a Victorian highway and a hard couple of years in London. Here it is, more or less in order.
A 15-year-old in Christchurch
Maxwell James Merritt was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 30 April 1941. He left school at 15 and started the Meteors in 1956. Their first single, ‘Get a haircut’, came out in June 1958 on His Master’s Voice, and by 1959 they were drawing crowds of 500 or more, according to his biography.
In December 1964 the band crossed the Tasman to Sydney. Plenty of Kiwi acts tried it in those years. Not many stuck.
On Bandstand and Uptight
The Meteors got onto Sydney television quickly. JSN’s Best of Bandstand Volume 7 (1964–1965) includes them doing ‘Heatwave’ and ‘So long baby’, back when Brian Henderson was keeping the whole thing in line on TCN-9. Have a look if you want to see how tight they were before London.
After the move to Melbourne in May 1967 they became regulars on ATV-0’s Uptight, and the ABC gave them their own four-part series, Max Merritt and the Meteors in Concert. That was a first for an Australian rock band, as MILESAGO points out.
The crash near Bunyip
Only weeks after arriving in Melbourne, on 24 June 1967, the band’s van collided head-on with a car near Bunyip in Victoria. Max lost his right eye and his face was scarred. Bob Bertles broke a leg. Stewie Speer had crushed legs, two broken arms and damaged fingers, which is about the worst news a drummer can get.
They came back anyway, and it took close to a year. Speer was the heart of that band. MILESAGO quotes a description of him as a drummer who swung, with beautiful time on the cymbal, and the crash could easily have ended his career. In 1969 their cover of Jerry Butler’s ‘Hey, Western Union man’ reached number 13, and the King of Soul tag started showing up in print.
London, Sunbury and a song he wrote himself
In late 1970 they did a farewell theatre tour of Australia and headed for the UK early in 1971. London was a slog. They ended up supporting Slade and the Moody Blues on tour, which is a strange double bill to picture. In between they came home for the Sunbury Pop Festival in January 1972, and again in 1973.
Then, in September 1975, Arista put out a ballad Max had written himself, ahead of the album A little easier in October. ‘Slipping away’ reached number two in Australia and number five in New Zealand, and it was the 15th biggest single in Australia for 1976. ‘Let it slide’ followed and got to number 29. It was Max’s own song, which matters. After nearly 20 years of mostly playing other people’s soul records, the one that defined him was one he’d written. The Meteors came home for a big tour in May and June 1976. Max said the song “struck a chord with a lot of people”, and if you’ve ever heard a pub go quiet for the first verse, you’ll know what he meant.
Nashville, LA and the last years
The Meteors wound down around 1977. Max moved to Nashville and later settled in Los Angeles, touring Australia every so often. When he got sick, the local music scene looked after its own. The Concert for Max at the Palais Theatre in St Kilda on 21 October 2007 raised about $200,000 for his care.
He went into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame on 1 July 2008. Kasey Chambers and Bill Chambers played ‘Slipping away’ on the night, and Gina Jeffreys had already made it her debut single back in 1992. New Zealand’s Music Hall of Fame inducted him in 2020. He died in a Los Angeles hospital on 24 September 2020, US time, aged 79, as The New Daily reported. He’d been on dialysis since 2007 and still went into the studio when he could.
You’ll find him in our Rock n Roll Heaven tribute, alongside a few of the people he shared stages with. If you liked this, you might enjoy the story of Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, who were working the same Sydney and Melbourne circuit.
Frequently asked questions
When did Max Merritt die?
Max Merritt died in Los Angeles on 24 September 2020, US time, which was 25 September in Australia. He was 79. He’d been diagnosed with Goodpasture syndrome, a rare autoimmune disease, in 2007.
Who wrote ‘Slipping away’?
Max wrote it himself. Arista Records released it in September 1975 and it reached number two in Australia and number five in New Zealand. Gina Jeffreys later recorded it as her debut single, and Margaret Urlich covered it too.
Who were Max Merritt and the Meteors?
The band Max formed in Christchurch in 1956, when he was 15. The line-up changed over the years, but the best-known Meteors included drummer Stewie Speer and saxophonist Bob Bertles. They moved to Sydney in December 1964 and on to Melbourne in May 1967.
Did Max Merritt appear on Bandstand?
Yes. The Meteors performed ‘Heatwave’ and ‘So long baby’ on episodes collected on Best of Bandstand Volume 7 (1964–1965), according to the DVD’s track listing. They were also regulars on Uptight on ATV-0 in Melbourne from 1968.
Why was Max Merritt called the King of Soul?
By 1969 music writers and fans were calling him Australia’s King of Soul for his Stax and Motown-flavoured sets and that rough, warm voice. MILESAGO and The New Daily both use the title, and it stuck for the rest of his life.
What happened to Max Merritt’s eye?
On 24 June 1967 the band’s van hit a car head-on near Bunyip in Victoria. Max lost his right eye and his face was scarred. Stewie Speer and Bob Bertles were badly hurt too, and the band took close to a year to recover.
Was Max Merritt at Sunbury?
Yes. MILESAGO describes a triumphant appearance at the Sunbury Pop Festival in January 1972, part of which made it into the Sunbury documentary. The Meteors went back to Sunbury in 1973.
Is Max Merritt in the ARIA Hall of Fame?
Yes. Glenn A. Baker inducted him into the ARIA Hall of Fame on 1 July 2008, and Kasey Chambers and Bill Chambers played ‘Slipping away’ on the night. The New Zealand Music Hall of Fame followed in 2020.
Did you see the Meteors at Sunbury, at a Melbourne dance or on Uptight? We’d like to hear about it in the comments.
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Disclaimer: The information provided is for educational and entertainment purposes only. While we strive for accuracy, music history is often based on available documentation and interpretation.
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