Welcome to the Spring edition and now for the after-Winter ‘thaw and yeehaw’ as we embark on back to back festivals every few weeks through til Christmas. You will note some changes with this issue, firstly the price increase for which I apologise and have tried to avoid for as long as possible. It has […]
By Kim Cheshire. As any of my friends will attest, I’m not really big on sentimentality and I like to think that I have a finely tuned bullshit barometer, so when asked to appraise the commercial version of someone’s personal life story my sensory apparatus is usually set on high alert. Australia’s finest country singer […]
It’s been many years now since my one and only interview with the one and only Dolly and it was thrilling to have this opportunity to delve into her current music, movies, attitude, milestones, projects and life. There is nobody like her. She is warm, big-hearted, funny, charming and the undisputed queen of the quotable […]
By Luke Austen. Searching my heart, it is difficult to find words to do justice to this World Champion rodeo rider, stockman, drover, songwriter and all round showman, who learned his trade with The Rick and Thel Carey Show, and would persist to ultimately become the last of the travelling showman. I can only tell […]
Ralph Stanley, pioneering bluegrass musician and one of the principal remaining links to the origins of traditional American music, died June 23rd at his home in Sandy Ridge, Virginia due to complications from skin cancer. Stanley was 89. A venerated long-standing stalwart loved by the bluegrass community, in the 1990s he found unexpected new […]
I caught up with the delightful Amber Lawrence – ‘caught’ being the operative word, as she’s always on stage or on a plane – to talk about her fifth studio album, hot on the heels of her magical kids record that Luke O’Shea previewed in last issue of Country Update. DT: Two albums in just […]
I remember my first Gympie Muster well. It’s six years ago now, and my band The Wildes were quite surprised when we got invited to play. Earlier that year, we’d made our first pilgrimage to Tamworth and, in our own estimation at least, we were yet to make an impression on any country music fans […]
he North Coast of NSW, home of the long running and iconic music festivals the beloved Byron Bay Bluesfest and for the younger crowd the mighty Splendour in the Grass, has recently decided to try its hand at boutique festivals. I’m not sure if the long running Mullumbimby Festival could be included having been successfully […]
Your columnist has lived in Sydney for more than a decade. It’s not something I’m proud of. But pondering my 30th birthday this year from the boozy, carefree side – the side sans Medicare Levy Surcharge and widow’s peak – I’ve felt the growing need in recent months to take stock, and the realisation that […]
With great delight, we caught up with Nashville based bluegrasser Jeff White for this issue. For those of you who don’t know, Jeff is one of the most underrated bluegrass giants on the scene. Aside from playing in his own band and The Earls of Leicester, he is a very sought after sideman and the […]
