Hoodoo Gurus are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1981[4] by Dave Faulkner (songwriter, lead singer and guitarist) and later joined by Richard Grossman (bass), Mark Kingsmill (drums), and Brad Shepherd (guitar, vocals, harmonica).

Hoodoo Gurus had a string of pop-rock singles including "Leilani" (1982), "Tojo" (1983), "My Girl" (1983), "I Want You Back" (1984), "Bittersweet", "Like Wow – Wipeout" (1985), and "What's My Scene?"

[4] After touring the United States from 1984 onward they gained popularity on the U.S. college rock circuit with the singles "Come Anytime" (1989)[6] reaching no.

[14] From 1960s power pop and garage punk to hard rock and funky psychedelic kitsch, the group's music stood out from Sydney's Detroit-inspired bands.

[4][18] The three guitarists Faulkner, Rendall and Radalj met at an end-of-1980 New Year's Eve party and were joined by Baker to form Le Hoodoo Gurus.

[23] Bramley and Shepherd had both been in The Hitmen and Super K.[4][24] Faulkner wrote "I Want You Back" in response to Radalj's public dissatisfaction with the Gurus.

[25] Radalj went on to perform with a number of other acts, including The Johnnys, Love Rodeo, The Dubrovniks and Roddy Ray'Da & the Surfin' Caesars.

[27] When Stoneage Romeos was released in America it stayed at number 1 in the Alternative/College charts for seven weeks, becoming one of the most played albums for the year on the college network.

[28] Initially a cult inner-city act, their popularity expanded due to regular airplay on radio station Triple J and nationwide pop TV show Countdown from mid-1983.

[21] Original drummer James Baker was sacked from the band in August 1984[4][30][31] and was replaced by Mark Kingsmill (The Hitmen, New Christs, Screaming Tribesmen, Hellcats and Super K).

The Hoodoo Gurus played Europe and the United States including sell-out shows at London's Hammersmith Palais and a two-month tour as special guests with The Bangles.

Despite subsequent fan speculation about the single "Poison Pen”, songwriter Faulkner said it was not about band issues but rather about a relationship that had turned bitter.

[36] It was adopted by the crew of Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Canberra as its unofficial anthem in 1993, playing it whenever its ships left port.

[37] Hoodoo Gurus played a concert, including "1000 Miles Away", on-board HMAS Canberra during its last voyage prior to decommissioning in 2005.

[35][42] The show made up for dates missed during December 1997, when Faulkner was ill.[35] In November 1998 Mushroom issued the Hoodoo Gurus' live album, Bite the Bullet.

[43] Although Hoodoo Gurus officially split in 1998 they signed with Acadia Records, who released the band's career-spanning compilation Ampology in October 2000.

Grossman had been an early member of Matt Finish,[34] he returned to perform and record Just a Short Note (Best of) released in December 2001.

[44][45] The Kelly Gang was a 2004 project Grossman formed with Jack Nolan, they brought in Hirst and Scott Aplin (Waikiki) to record Looking for the Sun; Shepherd performed as a session musician.

Faulkner also wrote original music for the films Broken Highway (1993) and The Sum of Us (1994) starring Russell Crowe and Jack Thompson.

[55][56] Persian Rugs recorded a five-track EP Mr. Tripper in June 2002, Grossman then left, and Shepherd recommended bassist Kendall James as his replacement[57] (ex Thurston Howlers, Crusaders).

So Mach Schau, far from us coming back and being "middle aged" and writing for an older fan base, we just wanted to make a hard rocking record that out-did anything we'd ever done.

We really blew a gasket on that one—it's our Presence, like Led Zeppelin.By early 2003 Hoodoo Gurus had re-formed to record "That's My Team" as the promotional theme for the National Rugby League between 2003 and 2007 (a CD was released September 2003 – see "What's My Scene?")

[63] Proudly Australian – celebrate Australia Day 2004 which included "Nothing's Changing My Life" by Hoodoo Gurus was a four-track give-away CD.

[84] Appearing with Hoodoo Gurus at the Sydney concert were, Coldplay, Eskimo Joe, Icehouse, Jet, Josh Pyke, Little Birdy, The Presets, Wolfmother, You Am I and additional artists.

In April 2013, the band hosted invitational concerts across the Australian capital cities, performing Mars Needs Guitars, and will be joined by Blue Öyster Cult, Flamin' Groovies, Buzzcocks, and Peter Case.

The concerts reunited all eight past and present band members for a two-hour set covering their beginnings as Le Hoodoo Gurus in 1982 all the way through to 2010's Purity of Essence.

The band headlined the 'A Day on the Green' concert series in March 2016, with Sunnyboys, Violent Femmes, Died Pretty, and Ratcat.

On 26 May 2018, the group held a benefit concert for the Tathra bushfire with artists The Badloves, 1927 and local talents Daniel Champagne, Corey Legge, The Figmentz, Erin McMahon, and Melanie Horsnell.

Appearing with Hoodoo Gurus at the Hastings concert were Eskimo Joe, You Am I, The Superjesus, British India, The Getaway Plan and Scott Darlow.

The song features on the vinyl version of the Gurus' tenth studio album, Chariot of the Gods,[101] released in March 2022.