McCully Workshop

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Legends Of South African Rock

McCully Workshop

McCully Workshop c.2019 (Left to Right):
Gordon Mackay, Mike McCully, Tully McCully, Richard Black, Rupert Mellor

Biography

November 2025

McCully Workshop is widely regarded as one of South Africa’s finest pop rock bands, with a history stretching back to the 1960s. Founded by brothers Mike and Tully McCullagh, the group evolved through several line‑ups and names before settling into McCully Workshop, rehearsing in their mother’s garage. Their debut album McCully Workshop Inc. (1970), produced by Billy Forrest, showcased psychedelic and progressive influences and yielded the hit single “Why Can’t It Rain.” Over the next decade, they released albums such as Genesis (1971) and Ages (1975), blending folk, prog, and pop rock styles while building a reputation for strong harmonies and inventive arrangements.

The band’s breakthrough came with Workshop Revisited (1977), which introduced South African audiences to enduring hits like “Buccaneer” and “Chinese Junkman.” “Buccaneer” topped the Springbok Radio charts and earned Mike McCullagh the Songwriter of the Year award in 1978. Through the late ’70s and ’80s, McCully Workshop became a fixture at venues like the Canterbury Inn, known for their mix of comedy, progressive rock covers, and original material. Though the turbulent ’80s brought fewer chart successes, the band remained active, re‑recording classics and releasing new material, while members pursued solo projects and collaborations.

In the new millennium, McCully Workshop continued to reinvent themselves. Tully ran the acclaimed Spaced‑Out Sounds Studio, Mike directed popular stage musicals, and Rupert Mellor remained a sought‑after session player. The band re‑formed for concerts in the 2000s, released Live! (2008), and later Work in Progress (2013), which won them the Wawela Award for Best South African Group.

Their 2019 album Infinity reaffirmed their creative vitality, even as members relocated abroad or pursued side projects. In the years that followed, McCully Workshop released new singles “Beginnings” (2022) and “All The Gingerbread Men” (2024), while Tully McCullagh and Gordon Mackay carried the spirit forward through albums under the McCully/Mackay banner. McCully Workshop’s legacy continues to resonate, securing their place as icons of South African rock history.

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