He has published two memoirs, "1001 Australian Nights" (2011) and "WORKSHY" (2018) and two lyrics books "It Is Written, Baby" (1997) and "There He Goes With His Eye Out" (2023) David John Graney grew up in Mount Gambier, South Australia.

In April 1983, Mick Turner (previously in Sick Things, Fungus Brains, later in Dirty Three) joined on guitar and they relocated to the United Kingdom in October.

[3] They released their studio album "Thirsty's Calling" in 1984 on the Red Flame label with Victor Van Vugt co producing with band along with engineer Tony Harris .

[1][2] In 1988, with Barry Adamson (former member of Magazine, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds) producing, they recorded enough material for an extended play, "At His Stone Beach" released in September on the Fire label.

[5] The four tracks, "World Full of Daughters", "Listen to Her Lovers Sing", "A Deal Made for Somebody Else" and "The Greatest Show in Town", were later included on CD version of the Dave Graney with the White Buffaloes album, "My Life on the Plains".

The album included tracks written by other artists, such as Gene Clark, Fred Neil, Gram Parsons and the traditional "Streets of Laredo".

The cover featured images of a young Jesse James, Custer and ornate Edwardian lettering by London artist Dave Western, based on a Frederic Remington cowboy painting.

It reflected Graney's obsession with wild western myth and late 1960s psychedelic bands with similar tastes, The Charlatans and Quicksilver Messenger Service from San Francisco.

"Codine" was written by Buffy Sainte-Marie and had been performed by The Charlatans in swaggering space cowboy style while the Dave Graney with the White Buffaloes cover version was equally tough.

In mid-1991, the band had moved back to Melbourne with a line-up of Blair, Graney, Moore, and Hayward; with Robin Casinader on keyboards (ex-the Wreckery).

For their April 1993 album, Night of the Wolverine, the band signed with PolyGram, Andrew Picouleau (ex-Sacred Cowboys) provided the bass guitar and Tony Cohen co-produced.

[nb 1] "I'm not Afraid to Be Heavy" (June), "Rock 'n' Roll Is Where I Hide" (August) and "I'm Gonna Live in My Own Big World" (February 1996) were issued as singles.

It was recorded in Melbourne and mixed in London at Maison Rouge studios and co-produced by Graney, Moore and David Ruffy along with engineer Kenny Jones.

[7][11] The single was promoted with an appearance on the daytime soap Neighbours, in which Dave sent up his sinister lounge-core persona in a pastel blue suit and a fedora – in one memorable scene holding the character Toadfish upside down and shaking him for the return of his mobile phone.

In 1997 Graney released his first book, It is Written, Baby, a collection of his lyrics interspersed with fragments of journalism, memoir and opinion, with photographs by Mahony.

It included an unreleased version of "The Sheriff of Hell" from The Devil Drives which was re-recorded and remixed with Andrew Duffield (ex-Models) on keyboards, Phil Kenihan and Billy Miller (The Ferrets) on guitar and vocals.

Cockaigne's first release was The Dave Graney Show's single, "Drugs are Wasted on the Young" in February 2000 ahead of the album, Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye in April.

Graney and Moore engineered and mixed the debut albums by the Darling Downs (Salmon and Ron Peno) and the Muddy Spurs.

In 2003, Graney and Moore briefly reformed The Moodists – with Turner, Steve Miller and Walsh – for a limited number of performances in Melbourne to promote the release of a double compilation album, Two Fisted Art (1980 -1986).

[16] Jazz pianist Mark Fitzgibbon played on a lot of the album and Warren Ellis (Bad Seeds-Dirty Three) guested on flute, mandolin and violin.

In 2006, Graney's Point Blank was recorded, which he described as "a song cycle of a life as a heavy entertainer", for which he was accompanied by jazz musician Mark Fitzgibbon (The Moodists) on piano and Clare Moore on vibraphone.

It was produced, recorded and mixed by Graney, with Moore co-writing some tracks, arranging and contributing instrumentation, with Thomas and Perera from The Lurid Yellow Mist as guest performers.

[19] A video was produced for the title track, "Knock Yourself Out", directed by Nick Cowan, it was shot in Hosier Lane and Smith Street, Melbourne.

A solo show called Early Folk [27] featured Dave Graney playing songs from across his career which had been inspired by the town of Mt Gambier.

[28] UK guitarist Nick Harper played on two tracks and Graney recorded all the lead vocals with Lisa Gerard (Dead Can Dance) at her studio in country Victoria.

2015 also saw the first of several reunion shows with Dave Graney 'n' The Coral Snakes, playing to sellout crowds in Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle and Adelaide.

Dave Graney and The mistLY played an ATP Festival in Prestatyn, Wales,[31] curated by comedian Stewart Lee, a long time supporter of their activities.

They joined up with former guitarist Malcolm Ross and played shows in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester (including a BBC6 session with dj Marc Riley) and continued on to dates in France, Holland, Belgium and London.

[33] The album featured guest appearances by Shane Reilly from the Lost Ragas on pedal steel and Coral Snake Robin Casinader on mellotron.

He performed on the TV shows Recovery, Nomad, Smash Hits, Live and Sweaty, Denton, Midday with Kerry Anne, Jimeoin, Shaun Micallef's Micallef Tonight, Mornings with Bert Newton, AM with Denise Drysdale, Sale of the Century, The Games, RocKwiz, Spicks and Specks, Australia's Dumbest Musician, Neighbours (two-episode story), Review, and Roy and HG's Club Buggery (1996–1997).