SHIRLEY STRACHAN

Graeme Strachan born 2 January 1952, better known as Shirley Strachan, was the lead singer of Australian 1970s rock group Skyhooks. Born in the Melbourne suburb of Malvern, he was an avid surfer, and his nickname "Shirley" was given to him by his surfer friends because of his long, sun-bleached and very curly hair, referring to Shirley Temple. Strachan pursued a solo singing career during his time with Skyhooks and released a number of records, the most successful of which was his cover of "Every Little Bit Hurts" in 1976. He left Skyhooks in 1978 and then worked as a radio and television presenter. He became known to a new generation as the host of children's television series Shirl's Neighbourhood in the early 1980s.

In the 1990s he was a regular presenter on home makeover program Our House where he resurrected skills from his pre-Skyhooks carpentry trade. He was also instrumental in several Skyhook reformations during the 1980s and 1990s. Strachan presented a breakfast radio show with Gary Belcher and Dean Miller on the Brisbane radio station Triple M in the 1990s. Strachan left Triple M in 1999 following a pay dispute. Strachan died in 2001 when he was killed in a helicopter accident. He had been a fixed wing pilot for many years and had been undergoing training for a helicopter pilots' licence, with a view to buying a helicopter and taking friends and family on surfing safaris. On a solo flight near Mount Archer in clear weather and inexplicably off the course planned by his instructor, Strachan encountered mountain turbulence which caused the rotor of his Bell 47G to sever the tailboom, crashing the helicopter onto a mountain slope.

SINGLES 
''Every Little Bit Hurts (#2) / Cruisin' Out On You'' 1976 Mushroom 
''Tracks Of My Tears (#20) / Missing You'' 1977 Mushroom 
''Mr. Summer / Song For A Friend'' 1978 Mushroom 
''Nothing But The Best / Your Love'' 1979 Mushroom 
''Christmas Time In The Neighbourhood / Christmas Children'' 1979 Mushroom 

ALBUMS 
'It's All Rock 'N' Roll To Me' 1980 Hammard 

References

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graeme_Strachan

http://top100singles.blogspot.com.au/