Things of Stone and Wood (sometimes abbreviated to TOSAW) are a well-known Australian band which had their first show in 1989. They are perhaps best known for the song Happy Birthday Helen (released 1992). The song was about singer/songwriter Greg Arnold

Greg Arnold

Greg Arnold is a singer/songwriter who won the prestigious APRA songwriter of the Year award in 1993 and performs regularly with his folk/rock band, Things of Stone and Wood....

's girlfriend, whom he later married. The band won best new talent at the 1993 ARIA

Australian Recording Industry Association

The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...

 awards.

Their song Happy Birthday Helen reached #9 on the Australian Singles Chart

ARIA Charts

The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...

 and #91 on the Triple J Hottest 100

Triple J Hottest 100, 1993

The 1993 Triple J Hottest 100, counted down in January 1994, was the first countdown of the most popular songs of the year, according to listeners of the Australian radio station Triple J...

 in 1993.

Happy Birthday Helen was parodied on ABC's The Late Show in 1992 as We've Just Run Out of Melbourne Cliches.

They were all ex-students of Eltham College

Eltham College

This article is about the school in London, England. For the school in Research, Australia see Eltham College of Education.Eltham College is an independent school situated in Mottingham in south-east London...

.

Members of the band are:

• Michael Allen (bass, keyboards, guitar, vocals): 1989–present
• Greg Arnold
  Greg Arnold
  Greg Arnold is a singer/songwriter who won the prestigious APRA songwriter of the Year award in 1993 and performs regularly with his folk/rock band, Things of Stone and Wood....
  
   (vocals, guitar, keyboards): 1989–present
• Justin Brady (harmonica, violin, mandolin, guitar): 1989–1995
• Tony Floyd (drums, percussion, recorder, vocals): 1989–present

History

While their debut album The Yearning spawned a number of singles, received much critical acclaim and went gold, their follow-up Junk Theatre (which featured the singles Wildflowers and Churchill's Black Dog) failed to equal its success, despite Wildflowers becoming the most played song on Australian radio in 1994. The disappointing sales saw them part ways with their record company, Sony

Sony

, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....

.

Their third album, The Man With The Perfect Hair (a reference to the host of The 7.30 Report, ABC

Australian Broadcasting Corporation

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...

 journalist, Kerry O'Brien), was an independent release and the last of their folk-rock type music, as they headed down a Beatle-esque path, becoming a three-piece at the same time. The band's fourth album Whirligig was released in 1995 before the band went on a lengthy hiatus. Greg Arnold released a solo album Tricycle in 1999 and Things of Stone & Wood reformed in 2002, releasing a best of album featuring the new single Ship of the Damned. The album failed to sell in great numbers, as did the new album that followed, Rollercoaster. Greg Arnold writes most of the songs for the group.

Greg Arnold released a second solo album Lost Marie in 2007. Things of Stone and Wood continue to reform for shows sporadically. Greg spends his time as a music lecturer at Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE

Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE

Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE is a TAFE institute located in the northern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It has six city campuses located at Preston, Collingwood, Epping, Fairfield, Greensborough, Heidelberg, a country campus at Ararat, and country training facilities at Eden...

, working as a producer, and recording acts such as Junior, Chloe Hall, Carus & the True Believers and Skipping Girl Vinegar.

Discography

• The Hopeful (1991) CD-Single, MDS Things 001 Produced by James Black
• The Yearning (1993) CD Columbia 473586 2 Produced by James Black - ARIA
  ARIA Charts
  The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...
  
  #8
• Junk Theatre (1994) CD Columbia 478346.2 Produced by James Black - ARIA #8
• The Man With The Perfect Hair (1995) CD TOSAW things 003 Produced by James Black and Things of Stone and Wood
• Whirligig (1996) CD Shock Records Things 005 Produced by Things Of Stone And Wood, Simon Holmes and James Black
• Live At The Espy (1996) CD TOSAW Things 006 Produced by Things Of Stone And Wood (limited edition of 1000 numbered and autographed copies)
• Tricycle (Greg Arnold Solo) (1999) CD Festival Produced by Greg Arnold
• So Far: Best of Things of Stone & Wood 1992-2002 (2002) Barking Mad / Universal CD New songs produced by Greg Arnold
• Rollercoaster (2003) CD Mixmasters / Shock Produced by Greg Arnold
• Lost Marie (Greg Arnold Solo) (2006) CD Mixmasters Produced by Greg Arnold