Former member of the legendary Saints Ed Kuepper left that group to become one of Australia's most distinctive, fiercely independent and prolific singer songwriters.

Edmund Kuepper was born in Germany in 1956. His parents emigrated to Australia when he was about three years old, settling in Brisbane. He form Kid Galahad and the Eternals and The Saints with Irish migrant Chris Bailey.

Ed recorded three albums with The Saints. (I'M) STRANDED was groundbreaking angry young man rock. The second album ETERNALLY YOURS a more sophisticated r&b and the third album PREHISTORIC SOUNDS was a dark, restless it had only just been released when Kuepper and Bailey sat down to compare the songs which might make up the next Saints album.

It was clear that Ed and Bailey driving forces were heading in different directions. Physically, Bailey stayed in London to put together a new Saints line-up, the way he saw it, while in late 1978 Ed Kuepper returned to Australia.

Instead of going all the way back to Brisbane he settled in Sydney. At first he wondered about returning to music. Kuepper formed a new group the Laughing Clowns, after one of the songs he and Chris had agreed to disagree about.

The Laughing Clowns took up where the Saints had left off. Setting an innovative standard for independent bands in the early eighties, contemporaries of Birthday Party and the Go-Betweens, the Laughing Clowns broke up after five years and a diverse collection of mini-albums and albums.

Significantly, two of the members went off to become members of the Saints incarnation, while Ed Kuepper launched himself into a solo career.

Ed played most of the instruments on December 1985 album ELECTRIC STORM himself. To play the music live he formed a group, The Yard Goes On Forever, named after a Richard Harris album. Basically the rock bandbacked Ed on his next two albums ROOM OF THE MAGNIFICENT and EVERYBODY'S GOT TO.

In October 1990 Ed returned to basics with an acoustic album, TODAY WONDER. His recordings and tours overseas with the Laughing Clowns and Yard seemed to fall on deaf ears. Mark Dawson had helped him create the unconventional sounds which had marked. This album changed the tide. Suddenly he was in favour again.

Ed Kuepper responded with a busy flurry of creative outburst. He performed and recorded with the Saints, reclaiming some of the fiery Saints territory. With the Laughing Clowns drummer Mark Dawson he also formed an ambient instrumental band, Mephisto Waltz, which never recorded.

The next solo album HONEY STEEL'S GOLD was a clear follow-up, containing THE WAY YOU MAKE ME FEEL, providing Ed with his first mainstream chart entry in Australia. The next album BLACK TICKET DAY won him his first ARIA award. The albums were rushing out now. SERENE MACHINE saw the formation of a new performing group of the same name as the album.

In between were the Laughing Clowns albums and tours. Ed wrapped up this chapter of his career in 1993 with BUTTERFLY NET, a hand picked retrospective of his 'solo' material.

After an uncharacteristic year's break Kuepper returned to the studio for CHARACTER ASSASINATION, formed the Institute Of Nude Wrestling, before embarking on his first solo tour overseas. His solo records had enjoyed rave reviews internationally. The albums A KING IN THE KINDNESS ROOM and FRONTIERLAND follow. During that time he also issued two mail order only albums.

His early copies of CHARACTER ASSASINATION and FRONTIERLAND both contained bonus discs. After a solo tour of Europe in 1997 saw the release of WTH A KNAPSACK ON MY BACK, recorded in Germany, a new compilation album THE WHEELY BIN AFFAIR, wrapping up another era.

By the time 2000 SMILE .. PACIFIC was released, almost unbelievably, there had been a gap of four years between Ed Kuepper studio albums. Record encapsulates everything that has made Ed so listenable and endurable. These four years were not idle of course. There were instrumental albums, music for movies and theatre, and a move back to Brisbane.

ED KUEPPER DISCOGRAPHY

1985  ELECTRIC STORM (album)
1986  ROOM OF THE MAGNIFICENT (album)
1989  EVERYBODY'S GOT TO (album)
1990  TODAY WONDER (album)
1991  HONEY STEEL'S GOLD (album)
1992  BLACK TICKET DAY (album)
1993  SERENE MACHINE (album)
1993  BUTTERFLY NET (compilation)
1993  LEGENDARY BULLY (compilation)
1994  CHARACTER ASSASINATION (album)
1994  DEATH TO THE HOWDY-DOODY BRIGADE (album)
1995  A KING IN THE KINDNESS ROOM (album)
1995  ED KUEPPER SINGS GREATEST HITS FOR YOU (compilation)  
1995  I WAS A MAIL ORDER BRIDEGROOM (album)
1995  THE EXOTIC MAIL ORDER MOODS OF ED KUEPPER (album)
1996  FRONTIERLAND (album)
1997  STARSTRUCK - MUSIC FOR FILMS & ADVERTS (album)
1997  STARSTRUCK - MUSIC FOR FILMS & ADVERTS EXPANDED EDITION (album)
1997  WHEELIE BIN AFFAIR (compilation)
1997  WITH A KNAPSACK ON MY BACK (album)
1997  CLOUDLAND (album)
1997  HEART OF NEW WAVE (compilation)
1998  LIVE! (album)
1998  THE BLUE HOUSE
1999  REFLECTIONS OF OL' GOLDEN EYE (compilation)
2000  SMILE PACIFIC (album)
2001  OUT-TAKES, CASTAWAYS, PRATE WOMEN AND TAKEAWAYS (compilation)