Pantha -

Pantha was an Australian Latin-jazz/rock band that released the 1975 album Doway Do Doway Do and three singles through Wizard Records.

Members: Paul Curtis (lead vocals, percussion), Roger Pell (guitar, percussion, harmonies), Jack Wilson (bass, percussion), Dannie Bourne (electric piano, percussion, harmonies), Peter Lee (congas, percussion, drums), Adrian Paine (drums, percussion), Jose McLaughlin (keyboards, vocals), Barry Cram (drums), Meri Took (congas, percussion), Robert Ellis (bass, vocals)

Background

The group formed in Melbourne in 1973 when singer–percussionist Paul Curtis and bassist Jack Wilson expanded their pub covers unit with guitarist Roger Pell. Curtis previously sang with New Zealand jazz-rock band Farmyard and moved to Australia when Funky Truckin Band dissolved.

Pell redirected the repertoire toward original material and recruited conguero Peter Lee. Drummer Adrian Paine and electric pianist Dannie Bourne completed the sextet.

Manager Graeme McKee, who also represented Hot City Bump Band, secured Melbourne engagements at Prospect Hill and the Station Hotel. Further work at the Hard Rock Cafe allowed the group to replace cover material with three sets of originals. Wizard Records signed Pantha after roughly eighteen months, and the contract led to a December booking at Trafalgar Studios in Sydney.

Doway Do Doway Do

Pantha released their singular album, Doway Do Doway Do, in July 1975 on Wizard Records.

Each member doubles on percussion across the album. Lee concentrates on congas, while Curtis sings from within the ensemble texture. The repeated title phrase derives from the rhythmic ostinato beneath the title track.

“Doway Do Doway Do” coils around a chant-shaped ostinato as repeated syllables lock to one circular figure. “Bar Diddlyah Bordraux” lopes through a danceable five-beat cycle. “Blue House” swells through a long percussive ascent toward a dense finale.

A1. “I Am Not Afraid” (4:48) – Curtis, Pell
A2. “Pantha’s Overflow” (5:32) – Pell
A3. “All Things Below” (3:54) – Pell, Curtis
A4. “Doway Do Doway Do” (4:56) – Pell

B1. “Bar Diddly Ah Bordeaux” (4:55) – Bourne
B2. “Spiritual Sky” (6:12) – Pell
B3. “Blue House” (9:16) – Pell

Pantha recorded the album in December 1974 at Trafalgar Studios in Sydney, where Trafalgar engineer John Sayers co-produced with Pell. The rhythm section recorded live before Pell and Bourne added guitar and electric-piano overdubs. Curtis added lead vocals over the composite backing.

Sayers also handled contemporary console work for Sherbet and Marcia Hines. Trafalgar owner Charles Fisher joined Sayers and Pell for the February 1975 mix. Executive producer Tony Hogarth supervised the project.

Artist Jonathan Gurney, a friend of Pell, supplied the copy art after joining Pantha on an Adelaide trip. The gatefold extends a black-line tableau across a white field. Spotted cats and a human figure intersect primary-colored paths beside a small temple form.

Wizard lifted “I Am Not Afraid” as a November 1975 single (b/w “All Things Below”). In February 1976, the label issued the non-album “Happiness” (b/w “Life Dreams”). Wizard followed in December 1976 with “Melinda” (b/w “Doway Do Doway Do”).

Doway Do Doway Do reached No. 43 on the Kent Music Report albums chart.

German label O-Music returned the album to vinyl in 2015 (OM 71078-1) as a remastered edition.

Later Activity

Bourne and Paine left soon after the album, and Pantha recruited keyboardist Jose McLaughlin and drummer Barry Cram. The revised lineup opened Australian dates for the Doobie Brothers in 1976 and later supported Osibisa. Further bills paired Pantha with José Feliciano and Gloria Gaynor.

Later changes moved Lee to drums and brought percussionist Meri Took into the group. Bassist Robert Ellis replaced Wilson in the final lineup, which disbanded late in 1977 after a four-year run. On April 12, 1977, Double J recorded Pantha at a Sydney studio concert.

ARCA and Black Box Records released Live at the Sydney Showground and Tamworth Workers Club 1976 on digital platforms in 2023, with Sydney and Tamworth sets presented across thirteen tracks.

Discography: