Billy Thorpe – Children of the Sun

I always post music that I like…it would be hard for me to post something I didn’t like and write about it indifferently. This one…I have played on guitar more than I’ve listened to. I played in bands for years and when I was beginning, this one was taught to me. I never heard it before I played it but it’s pretty easy…if you take away all of the space effects. It was a few years after I’d played it at least 20 times before I heard the record.

Billy Thorpe, was an English-born Australian singer-songwriter, producer, and musician. He was in a band called Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs in Australia.  their first major pop hit was a cover of “Poison Ivy” in 1964. The band broke up in 1967 but re-formed one year later, with Thorpe on guitar as well as vocals.  Thorpe’s signature song in Australia was “Most People I Know (Think that I’m Crazy)” in 1972.

Children of the Sun made it to #41 in 1979. The song was written by Billy Thorpe and Spencer Proffer. This was his only hit in America.

Children of the Sun

People of the Earth can you hear me?
Came a voice from the sky on that magical night
And in the colors of a thousand sunsets
They traveled through the world on a silvery light
–More–(51%)
The people of the Earth stood waiting
Watching as the ships came one by one
Setting fire to the sky as they landed
Carrying to the world Children Of The Sun

All at once came a sound from the inside
Then a beam made of light hit the ground
[Lyrics from: https:/lyrics.az/billy-thorpe/children-of-the-sun-revisited/children-of-the-sun.html]
Everyone felt the sound of their heartbeat
Every Man – Every Woman – Every Child

They pa**ed the limits of imagination
Through the doors – to a world – of another time
On the journey of a million lifetimes
With the Children Of The Sun – They started their climb

No more gravity, nothing holding them down
Floating endlessly, as their ship leaves the ground
through the walls of time – at the speed of light
Fly the crystal ships on their celestial flight
On their celestial flight.

 

Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player.

18 thoughts on “Billy Thorpe – Children of the Sun”

  2. I don’t recall hearing that tune before. Glancing at the Wikipedia entry on Billy Thorpe, it looks like he was attracted by space/sci-fi themes. In addition to this tune, which I understand is part of a space opera album, he also wrote music scores for TV sci-fi series like “War of the Worlds”, “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and “Hard Time on Planet Earth”.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Yea he was different…funny thing he once signed with Capricorn…on the same label as the Allman Brothers.
      Like I said in the post…I’ve played it more than I’ve listened to it.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  3. The song doesn’t do a great deal for me! But I can see why you played it over on guitar which I would too (if I could play the guitar!) I find it interesting that the astral effects in the recording now sound a bit dated and artificial (to me anyway).

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. They do sound bad…I thought they sounded bad then. If I want to watch Star Wars I will watch it. Not my favorite song but I thought I would dig one out of the closet.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  4. This song was big in the circles I ran in in Odessa TX. It’s funny how music is often regional, how you get turned onto music that you’d never heard of from out of towners. For me it was White Witch and Joe Grushecky & the Houserockers. Have you heard of Point Blank? They were big in west Texas. How about Joe Ely? Again, he’s a big Tex/Mex/rocker back where I’m from. Good stuff if you don’t all ready know it…and if you do.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Joe Ely yes I’ve listened to some of his music. I have a friend who lived in Texas for years and he has played me quite a bit of stuff. Now I’m trying to think in what part he lived at…he was a cowboy…one who looked after a ranch and broke horses…until one broke him and feel on him. He is alright now but it was touch and go.
      Anyway he has introduced me to a lot of music from there…Joe Ely being one of them. I’ve heard some boogie/blues from him…I liked it.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  5. That made me laugh (sorry!) Sort of like… Ozzy on helium, in places!! I’d never heard it before. I can tell the guitar part would have been easy to play. Hopefully without all the… er… what the heck is at the start of it? Weird.

    Like

    Reply

  7. I have some very specific memories of this song. I enjoy hearing it still. There must have been a shortened version for radio. I don’t remember having to wait a whole minute for it to get started. How interesting that you played it on guitar before ever hearing the recording. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a live band play it.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. I do have good memories of this song. I thought there was another version by someone else…but I don’t guess they did because I couldn’t find it.
      It’s an easy one to play and teaches beginners good things to do.

      We practiced it more than times than playing it live.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. As soon as the guitar riff started, I was like “Oh, YEAH…remember that guitar sound…” It’s weird, too, you know. You hear something that is vaguely familiar and you know it comes from a time in the past. You just can’t quite put your finger on it.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. It’s been a long time since I heard it. I had to lookup who played it to begin with. A Scifi rock song…

        Like

Leave a comment