Band Biographies
Pierre S. Dakota | Steve Johnson | David Plunkett | Reidar Jorgensen | Noel Annett
Pierre S. Dakota
Vocals, Keyboard, Harmonica, Accordion and almost anything else that works with the music!
Pierre has been listening to music since the womb and playing it not long after. His parents were both musos so he grew up in a house where there were regular jams with different players & instruments that gave him an eclectic range of influences and tastes that he brings to the music he makes now.
He’s played with folk, jazz, blues, & rock bands and even played bass for a while with a Chilean contemporary folk group. He has played with people as diverse as Angus Young and Pat Drummond and he “can’t remember the names of most of the bands” he was with, but here are some: The Mudflaps, Bullfrog, The Clan (with Angus), Rocks Edge, The Impalers, Gay Pierre, Rock’et, Farrell & Palmer, Filthy Rich, CofA, Band with No Name and now.…No Idea!
Steve Johnston
Many Guitars/Ukulele/Vocals
Steve started playing guitar and harmonica in school, which inevitably led to joining his first band in about 1971. He's played with a few great outfits over the years such as Pilot, Grisbo, Rockit, Delores Deluxe, Gay Pierre and Jive time (“the most professional bunch of guys I’ve worked with”).
Steve feels more comfortable with blues/swing music but will listen and have a tinker with most styles as evident with No Idea’s new sets.
David Plunkett
Guitar/Mandolin/Vocals
Born in 1958, David was turned on to guitar playing by the introduction to Cat Stevens’ “Longer Boats” from the Tea for the Tillerman album. Something about the sound of those finger-picked acoustic guitars made him decide he wanted to be able to play that way too. That was in 1974 and he’s been playing guitar off and on ever since. One day David might learn how to play “Longer Boats”.
Apart from a short stint with a High School type band in the 1970s (preposterously named “Priapus”), No Idea is the first band David’s been in. Waiting this long has given him the musical maturity that only comes with arthritis.
Reidar Jorgensen
Drums/Percussion/Vocals
Reidar started drumming in the early 70's, playing on the legendary Perth pub circuit. Moving to Sydney in 1976, he formed a heavy rock
band, playing songs by the likes of Jethro Tull and Led Zeppelin. He and the band headed back to Perth in 1979 and spent that year playing
all over WA. He frequently reminisces about his five years as a full time musician (the dole was much easier to get then).
After moving to Canberra in the 80's, Reidar spent some time playing pubs in a covers band, but grew tired of packing up his drum kit at 4
am, so he cashed it all in and built up a home studio where he recorded hundreds of song segments and at least 2 or 3 complete songs (often
staying up until 4am).
Into the 90's and 00's, Reidar played bass for a couple of jam bands and in 2006 formed and played guitar in The DayTrippers, a Beatles tribute
band. Following this, he surrendered to the inevitable and got back to his first musical obsession - drumming.
Reidar is thrilled to be able to throw his experience into a big pot, shake it around and pour it into No Idea.
Noel Annett
Bass Guitar/Vocals
Noel started playing bass guitar in Melbourne in 1963 and in the period 1964 to 1968 played city & country based gigs with the ‘The Defenders’, ‘The Travellers’ and ‘The Mind Excursion’. This last Melbourne band, formed from the 1960s Adelaide ‘Beatles’ imitation group, ‘The Flies’ played mainly Yardbirds and Georgie Fame & Blueflames covers.
In 1968 Noel moved to Canberra and left the band scene for several years to concentrate on family and career. In the 1980s Noel was drawn back to music performance, linking up with a former drummer with Canberra 70s band ‘ Second Movement’ to play with the local 4 piece bands ‘Silhouette’ and ‘The 1053 Band’. In the 1990s, Silhouette became a Shadow’s/Cliff Richard revival band (‘Out of the Shadows’) playing at Canberra taverns, with emphasis on recreating/covering Cliff and the Shadows 1960s hits.
Noel has also played as bassist/vocalist with popular local pub rock group ‘Little Rock’ and more recently, the pop covers group ‘Solid Gold’, playing at mainstream club venues and private functions in the area.
We've also learned a lot from our previous band members.