Dave Tice (b. 1950) was the lead singer for the trailblazing Australian hard rock band Buffalo. London born, he came to Australia in 1964 and as a teenager in Brisbane joined the bands The Odd Colours and Strange Brew. In 1968 he and bass guitarist Peter Wells started the band Head, which in 1970 relocated to Sydney and became Buffalo. 'We'd do a show at Hornsby Police Boys Club and there'd be 1200 kids there. Fifty cents each to get in,' Tice recalls. Over a seven-year period and with some personnel changes, Buffalo recorded five studio albums. Dead Forever (1972) has been described as Australia's first heavy metal LP and was released with the advice to 'Play this album LOUD'. Volcanic Rock ('Play this album even LOUDER!') was released in 1973 and was banned by some stores because of its 'obscene' cover art. Only Want You for Your Body (1974) was banned for this reason too. Despite having a wild reputation, Buffalo had a committed following and toured with crowd-pulling international acts like Black Sabbath, Slade, Status Quo and Motörhead. In 1976, Wells left to form Rose Tattoo. Buffalo disbanded in 1977 and Tice returned to England, where he became front man of the influential R&B/ proto-punk band the Count Bishops. The Count Bishops made three albums and supported bands including the Clash and the Stranglers before splitting in 1979. Back in Australia since 1984, Tice has toured with blues and rock stalwarts around the country and held long-term regular gigs at Sydney venues including the Bridge Hotel and the Sandringham. His projects – solo, with ex-AC/DC bassist Mark Evans, with the Dave Tice Band and with Buffalo Revisited – are ongoing.
