Andrew Jones MHR

L-R: Andrew Jones, Australian soldier, Prime Minister Gorton, Foreign Minister Hasluck and Senator Robert Kennedy.

Andrew Jones became the youngest ever Australian Parliamentarian when he was elected as the Member for Adelaide in 1966, at 22 years and 184 days, representing the 'Liberal and Country League' party.

Jones expressed his ultra-conservative views and low opinion of other parliamentarians in his book Andrew Jones M.H.R by Himself before releasing his infamous spoken-word record, Shadow Valley and Iron Triangle, which he described as "anti-Communist" and "a reaction against the spate of sick immoral and depraved pseudo-folk music, which pours from the radio". The record was a local Adelaide hit for Jones, who donated the proceeds to charity. At least one Adelaide radio announcer refused to play the song.

Jones lost his seat at the 1969 election. He later ran as an independent candidate for the Senate at the 1977 election before moving to Western Australia.

~ from the Australian National Archives ~
by Ian Hancock, BA (Melb), BPhil (Oxon), Reader in History, Australian National University, and Australian Archives Historical Consultant
Events and issues that made the news in 1967

...Andrew Jones discovered that MPs were 'half drunk half the time', and then apologised for the insight...

Events and issues that made the news in 1969

The government was badly mauled in the October election, losing 16 seats... Andrew Jones offered the Prime Minister some consolation: not even Jesus Christ, he said, could have held his Adelaide seat...