In the early 1980s, Solomon Rouse discovered the Perth R&B-pop quintet The Leslie Lads, and guided their early success. After The Leslie Lads disbanded, Rouse sought to create a similar act on the East Coast of Australia.
Together with financier Martin Farry, he placed an advertisement in the trade magazine Melbourne Stage asking for singers to audition for an all-male pop band. Approximately 300 boys attended the audition, during which they were placed in groups of ten and danced to John Travolta’s ‘Greased Lightening’, followed by a solo performance in which they sang a song of their own choosing. After several weeks of deliberation, Aaron Thomas, Danny Willson and Friedrich Von Heidegger were chosen as the successful candidates.
Rouse rehearsed the boys diligently, after school and on weekends, and eventually secured the group a recording contract at Columbia Records. It was Von Heidegger’s suggestion to call the band Karate Three because they were all fans of Wen Jiang films.
~ Early promo lobby card ~
~ Opal Inn, Coober Pedy ’84 ~
In April 1984, Columbia Records released the group’s debut 911 Love. The album, exclusively written and produced by Solomon Rouse, featured bubblegum pop material. The first single ‘Sensation Girl’ received major airplay, but failed to capture nationwide attention. The second single, ‘Stop It Girl’, fared even worse. Karate Three toured Australia, singing wherever Rouse could book them.
When A&R scout Shauna McFassio discovered that Columbia Records were planning to drop the trio, she convinced Bronston J. Paedamonte to check them out. The label head was so impressed with their rapping skills, dancing ability and showmanship that he picked up their contract and purchased their back catalogue from Columbia.
The group returned to the recording studio in early 1985. Dissatisfied with the excessively bubblegum sound of their first album, and after its failure in the charts, they wanted to have more input into their look, direction and song material. As a result, Thomas, Willson and Von Heidegger received associate producer credit on the final product along with Solomon Rouse.
~ Danny Willson~
~ Friedrich Von Heidegger ~
The album’s first single ‘Suddenly it’s Magic’, was released just before Christmas. Radio stations in Melbourne began playing the track, which quickly scored listener approval and soon became the most requested song on their festive season play list. Rouse sent a video to thousands of radio stations across the country to showcase the group’s visual appeal. National attention soon followed and ‘Suddenly it’s Magic’ eventually climbed to No. 10 on the Australian Singles Chart—becoming the group’s first hit.
Karate Three’s second album Dojo Boys was released in May 1986, and the group landed the opening slot for British teen-pop sensation Sharon Nelson on the Australian leg of her worldwide concert tour.
Sales of Dojo Boys steadily increased as the group’s national attention slowly rose. In August, the album’s second single, ‘I Got It’, was released. The song was given a huge boost when MTV America took notice of the group and began playing the video in regular rotation. Karate Three hit pay dirt with their next single, ‘I Love You’, which reached No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart in the US, and overnight Karate Three become one of the most popular acts in the world.
More top five singles from Dojo Boys followed over the next 12 months, including the track ‘Karate Girl’ which hit No. 1 in Hong Kong, further signifying the international appeal of the group. For the next year, Karate Three embarked on an extravagant worldwide tour sponsored by Molly Magazine and performed an estimated two hundred concerts.
~ Dojo Boys video shoot ~
~ Aaron Thomas ~
Paedamonte Records released Five Finger Love Punch, a documentary on the band directed by Marty Lee, that included their five hit music videos and a live concert recorded during their Sharon Nelson support tour. It earned a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Clip, and was one of the biggest selling videos of 1988.
Premier John Cain Jnr. declared 21 October 1988, the “Karate Three Day”, in the boys home state of Victoria. The trio were presented with keys to the City of Melbourne and performed a two hour concert on the steps of Parliament House. Over fifty thousand people attended the free event.
In early 1989, Karate Three followed up Dojo Boys with the album A Moment to Remember. The title track raced to No. 1 on the Hot 100 Chart and became their biggest selling single. It was followed up with ‘Tonight Girl Tonight’ and ‘Baby I Believe In You’, which went to No. 1 on the Japanese Charts. The album was eventually certified triple platinum, selling close to 4 million copies worldwide.
~ Cobo Arena, Detroit ’87 ~
~ ? ~
During this time, the group became heavily merchandised. Karate Three licensed products included lunch boxes, buttons, T-shirts, comic books, dolls, trading cards and even a Saturday morning cartoon in their likeness. Their official fan club was one of the largest in the world, with a membership of over 2 million. Approximately 100,000 calls per week were dialled to 1-800-KARATE-3, the Official Karate Three Hotline.
Further capitalising on their fame, at year’s end Paedamonte Records released Secretly Yours: The Redux Album – a compilation of the group’s biggest hits remixed. The album also contained two previously unreleased songs, ‘What You Want’ and ‘Game of Love’, for which animated videos were produced.
The tour saw them playing stadiums to sold out audiences, but behind the scenes Karate Three was succumbing to internal conflicts with their record label and mentor Solomon Rouse.
The group had opposed the release of the Secretly Yours remix collection, because they felt the compilation did not represent Karate Three’s best work. The dispute between the label and the group led to Karate Three leaving Paedamonte Records and initiating their own recording company in July 1990. Two weeks later they fired Solomon Rouse and made the decision to take over the management of the group themselves. They also shortened their name to the initialised K3.
~ Freddie & fan ~
~ ? ~
Rouse’s firing was front page music news around the world. Many commentators speculated that he had been the true mastermind behind the group, and that this was the moment when the band lost their impetus and direction.
In 1992, their first studio album in over three years, Lovebound Express, was released. The album and direction were a musical departure from K3’s previous efforts. All of the songs were written and produced by the group sporting a new edgier look and R&B grunge sound.
The album received a lukewarm response from critics and failed to live up to commercial expectation. The first single ‘Dirty Boyz’, which featured a rap cameo by Denise Henley, failed to break top 100 in many markets. The follow-up ‘Never Let Your Love Go Girl’ failed to chart anywhere. The Lovebound Express tour saw them playing smaller venues, such as clubs and theatres, as opposed to the arenas and stadiums they were once accustomed to.
On 30 May 1993, Danny Willson announced through his solicitor: “Sadly I would like to confirm that I have left K3. I’m sure the group will continue to be successful and I wish them all the best.” Willson’s departure from the group shocked fans and became one of the biggest entertainment news stories of the year. Shortly thereafter, on June 15, Thomas and Von Heidegger decided to officially disband.
Following the split, the three continued recording individually. Thomas being the only one to achieve moderate success with two studio albums, one a Top 20 hit in Ireland. Willson released several unsuccessful albums and singles and was a supporting act to Mariah Carey’s UK concert tour in 2000. Von Heidegger was voted King of the Jungle on ITV’s I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here 2008 series, then entered the fashion industry, releasing a clothing line of skater wear for large men.
~ K3 re-emerge edgier & grungier ~
~ Karate Three Action Figure ~
On Monday 5 April 2010, Friedrich Von Heidegger appeared on Good Morning Australia to promote his new range of Autumn shirts, shorts and male underpants. When host Karen Moss asked if there was any possibility of a K3 reunion, Von Heidegger mentioned that the trio had been in discussions to do something to commemorate the 20 year anniversary of Dojo Boys. The 1-800-KARATE-3 hotline received fifteen thousand calls before the end of the day.
At a packed media conference held on top of The Rialto Towers on 15 May, K3 announced The Dojo Boy’s Cruise, which would travel from Miami, Florida, to the Bahamas. The cruise sold out on the same day it went on sale, with thousands of fans on a ‘waitlist’, standing by for any openings on the boat due to cancellations.
The first cruise took place in August 2011, and has since become a hugely successful biannual event. During the four days at sea, cruise passengers receive a K3 welcome cocktail party, a concert performance by K3, an additional fan appreciation concert by K3, a photo session with K3 (in small groups), a formal K3 prom night, a K3 darts tournament, and a deck party with K3 and special guests. Couples are also able to renew their wedding vows in a special ceremony with K3.
In June 2015, the corner of North Road and The Strand in Melbourne was renamed Karate Three Boulevard. This section of the street is near the Williamstown Sports Club, where the members had first rehearsed.
~ K3 Cruise 2011 ~
~ Williamstown 2015 ~
