Ann Vriend, Corb Lund, John Wort Hannam, Kelly Alanna

MADE IN ALBERTA is a project of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, an agency of the Government of Alberta, formed in 1991. Each year, $19 million from lottery revenues is distributed by the AFA to individual artists and arts organizations in the visual, performing and literary arts, and cultural industries. Now in conjunction with the Government of Canada, Air Canada and our own Allied Artists, some of their finest musicians have been to visit our shores.

The CORB LUND BAND have been here before of course, but they are having an extended tour this month, opening shows for ADAM HARVEY and enjoying more widespread exposure than most visiting acts could expect. In the near future there will no doubt be photos and stories from their current Australian visit on their Website, but meanwhile, if you catch a show, why not leave the boys a message in their guestbook.

CORB LUND BAND

JOHN WORT HANNAM describes his style as "blue collar roots music" and his songs as being about "small towns and those people with the courage to leave them, those with the courage to stay, and those with the courage to return". Indeed, his acoustic based recordings and performances have brought him great acclaim in his homeland and he won the 2004 Calgary Folk Festival's Song Writing Competition with his song Church of the Long Grass.

There is an Australian connection on the opening page of the Website of ANN VRIEND (pronounced Vreend). It is a quote from Vicki of The Waifs, on discovering music at folk festivals; "For me it was Ann Vriend the other day: she was someone I hadn't heard of, and I just sat on stage and was blown away...and I haven't stopped talking about her." Ann is based Edmonton, Alberta but her appearances at many festivals (including an opening spot for ex-Men at Work front man Colin Hay) have brought the promise of a great future, as will her forthcoming showcase at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas. Meanwhile, in Sydney at the Canadian Consulate General, Ann also played piano and sang for fellow Edmonton artist KELLY ALANNA who also thrilled the industry audience with her soulful performance.

Here at the Cowboys In Cyberspace site we are still collecting for you, more links to all the post-Tamworth Festival photos, reports and video replays that appear in the last few weeks. More links...

Lubbock, Texas - 1972: Musical friends Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch Hancock release their first album as THE FLATLANDERS and are rejected by the country music establishment. Undaunted, they went on to forge successful solo careers, but thirty years later they reunited to rekindle the fun and camaraderie of those early days. Indeed, in this 2002 live performance there is no doubt they are genuinely enjoying being together and having a rollickingly good time. Nearly all of the 17 tracks are jointly written by the trio with just one solo composition each and four covers that include a finale of the traditional Sitting On Top Of The World and Townes Van Zandt's classic White Freight Liner Blues.

This DVD is one of the first four releases of a series (and the only one currently not also available on audio CD) all recorded live for the acclaimed Austin City Limits TV show (the others are Robert Earl Keen, Susan Tedeshi and from 1986, Steve Earle). While the concerts were originally edited to 30 minutes for television, the DVDs feature the full length shows, re-mixed and re-mastered in high quality 5.1 surround sound. There are more than 400 shows in the Austin City Limits archives and many of the performances are rare one-of-a kind television appearances from some of the country's best. This has brought the show the unparalleled honour of the National Medal of Arts. Many more DVD releases are promised...bring them on!

New West NW8003
(via Shock in Australia) 75 Mins

Track Listing:
I Had My Hopes Up High
Going Away
Down In The Light Of The Melon Moon
I Thought The Wreck Was Over
Wavin' My Heart Goodbye
Now It's Now Again
Yesterday Was Judgment day
My Wildest Dreams Grow Wilder Every Day
You Made It Look easy
Right Where I Belong
Julia
Pay The Alligator
Gimme A Ride To Heaven
Dallas
South Wind Of Summer
Sittin' On Top Of The World
White Freight Liner Blues