Welcome to Listen To Older Voices, a program produced by Rob Greaves and podcast through the Toorak Times and Tagg” style=”3d” color=”orange”][/vc_cta][/vc_column][/vc_row]
Ross D. Wyllie – [CLICK to enlarge]
This is the 4th and final program in the Life and Times of Australian artist and TV program host – Ross D.Wyllie.
Born in 1944, Ross contracted polio at around the age of eight but refused to let that define who he was and to limit his opportunities. Being gifted with a wonderful tenor voice, by the time the music explosion of the 1960’s hit our shores, Ross was singing and soon recording having decided that being a musician wasn’t his calling.
Ross with the steel guitar that was his first music instrument – [CLICK to enlarge]
Ross had major hits such as “Here Comes The Star” and went on to host teen music shows such as Uptight and Happening 70. His career was full of highs and lows and it was a continual learning process for Ross, who learned his lessons well.
A recent picture of Ross with John Blackman, and industry mate from the past – [CLICK to enlarge]
In this final program, Ross continues to be upfront and honest as he shifts the focus away from his career to his family and his personal beliefs. Proud of his children and grandchildren who have made the most of the educational opportunities that he missed out on, because of his polio as a child.
Having spent a lifetime as an entertainer he still finds time to perform today!
Ross performing in 2020 (Picture by Peter Miller) – [CLICK to enlarge]
Yet, it is impossible for him to totally separate both his concerns and his beliefs regarding social and environmental issues from his work, and it’s a pleasure to hear him reflect and tie the past into the present and the future.
Ross is and always has been an entertainer, but he is more than that, he is a polio survivor, he is a proud father and grandfather and he is a man who is content with what he has – his wonderful wife Eileen, his home, his family and, a cold beer.
As he says, “what more could a man need?”
Click to hear – Ross D. Wyllie – Part 4
Previous Listen To Older Voices Programs can be found in our archive, by clicking on one link or the other
– 2012 to 2016
– 2016 onward
[Listen To Older Voices receives funding from the Commonwealth Government
through the Commonwealth Home Support Program Program]
I have been with the Toorak Times since April 2012. I worked as Senior Editor of the Toorak Times until 2023, when I retired. I now work as a special features contributor for both the Toorak Times and Tagg. I've been in the Australian music scene as a musician since 1964, and have worked in radio and TV and newspapers (when they were actually printed on paper) as well as working in the film industry, as the Film Unit manager on Homicide for several years. I also have extensive experience in audio production and editing.
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