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Beasts Of Bourbon drummer Tony Pola has died

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Five members of The Beasts standing in a field.
The Beasts. Tony Pola is second from the left.

Pola has played with Beasts Of Bourbon since 1990

Australian rock'n'roll drummer Tony Pola, best known for his work with Beasts Of Bourbon and Kim Salmon & the Surrealists, died over the Easter weekend.

The news was confirmed by his wife Katherine in a Facebook post.

"Tony loved his life, and everyone in it," she wrote.

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"If you punched on, cussed him out, if he hated you for years, if you hated him, if you gave each other the shits, if he did you wrong, or vice versa, if he pissed you off to the nines- no matter- Tony loved you all. He loved his life.

"One of Tony’s greatest qualities was his ability to be happy in the moment.

"We can all take a lesson from Tony. Be grateful, be kind, tell people you love them with abandon- make jokes, make love, forgive the wrongs, and enjoy your life.

"Life is fleeting, life is short, and this is a time of great upheaval, where the power of love is more precious than ever."

Pola's former bandmate Kim Salmon paid tribute to the drummer on Facebook.

"Your life was an act of generosity and you lived it for all who were around you," Salmon wrote on Sunday.

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Reflecting on the early days of the Surrealists, Salmon shared an anecdote that spoke to Pola's unpredictable and mischievous nature.

"It was in those days I found out what a knowledgeable, immensely likeable and popular rascal you were," he wrote.

"Who else would not get let on a plane because they arrived at the airport without their shoes, only to arrive in Sydney on the evening flight in time for the gig with two left shoes?!"

Pola joined the Beasts of Bourbon in 1990 following James Baker's departure from the group. He'd played with Salmon, a fellow Beast, in the Surrealists since the late 80s.

His first album with The Beasts was 1991's The Low Road, and he appeared on every record the band released since.

Most recently, Pola re-joined his remaining Beasts Of Bourbon bandmates for a new album and tour as The Beasts in 2019.

Salmon has organised a GoFundMe fundraiser to help Pola's wife Katherine pay for his funeral. You can find it here.

Pola is the third member of Beasts Of Bourbon to pass in recent years, after Brian Hooper and Spencer P Jones died away in 2018.

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Music (Arts and Entertainment)