The Reg Lindsay – Country All The Way DVD is out now, containing highlights from both of his Logie-winning TV series (The Country & Western Hour broadcast from Adelaide and Reg Lindsay’s Country Homestead from Brisbane). Also included are many of Reg’s other television appearances and video clips, interviews with showbiz celebrities, and a photo gallery. Produced by Ros Lindsay, this DVD is a collector’s item and a very fitting reminder of one of Australia’s greatest country music pioneers! The DVD is available at the Reg Lindsay website.
A personal note:- “Forty years ago, I was lucky to be playing in the band for Reg Lindsay’s Country Homestead. Every fortnight, Reg, Heather McKean, Pee Wee Clark and myself would fly to Brisbane and record two episodes in one day at the studios of QTQ 9 with a great team of local musicians. This new DVD is the first time any of those shows have been released. As well as all of the great music from Reg, I was delighted the DVD included the first time I ever backed Lucky Starr and also Doug Ashdown (even though I had opened for Doug in a folk club four years earlier in 1975). Whereas most of the shows were shot in the studio, two of my favourites were filmed on location. There are several songs here from the ‘Live At The Barn’ episodes, recorded in front of an audience at a Brisbane hotel. Pictured above you can see an aerial shot from inside The Barn with Doug perched on the edge of the stage next to Reg. In the close-up, you can see Pee Wee, Reg and yours truly. Happy memories!” – Bob Howe
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Flashback to Sydney 1995, SLIM DUSTY at Darling Harbour. L to R: Mike Kerin, Bob Howe, Robbie Souter, Slim Dusty, Rod Coe, Warren Morgan (click on the photo to enlarge)
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It should come as no surprise that Gene Bradley Fisk has been a fan of Tom Russell and his music for some years now. Gene considers that Tom is “…probably the finest exponent of Americana music on the planet…” and from one outlaw to another, that’s a pretty cool recommendation.
What is surprising is that Tom Russell is not well known to most country music fans in Australia so hopefully Gene’s version of ‘Hair Trigger Heart’ may encourage more interest in his works. It’s a song that Gene has wanted to record from the moment he heard it and now with masterful production by Harry Jon Nanos at his Hideaway recording studio in Lancefield in rural Victoria, that wish has been fulfilled. Hopefully this will be the forerunner of more new material from Gene.
By the way, Tom Russell penned this song as a tribute to famous Mexican revolutionary general ‘Pancho Villa’ – who lived by his own rules.
Congratulations to The McClymonts, winners of the Sanity Top Selling Australian Album of the Year Golden Guitar! Presented in Sydney today at Museum of Contemporary Art, where the media launch for the 2015 Tamworth Country Music Festival was held. For a full list of the finalists for the Golden Guitars in January 2015, click here…
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You might be wondering why COWBOYS IN CYBERSPACE appears to be in recess? Well, it’s because head-honcho BOB HOWEhas been having a busy year! It started at Tamworth in January with his induction into the Australian Country Music Hands Of Fame along with Dianne Lindsay and Graham Rodger.
This happened in the middle of a hectic cruise season that saw Bob performing his award-winning Variety show, sailing from Kuala Lumpur to Darwin, New Zealand to Tonga, Hobart to Wellington, Perth to Mauritius and finally Samoa to Tahiti.
Since the year 2000, Bob has produced the popular monthly Sydney live show CANTERBURY COUNTRY. The concerts give big-city exposure to a myriad of Country artists and have become the biggest regular country music show in Sydney. In May this year the show celebrated its 14th birthday and continues to grow…
Things have been busy at Kenilworth Studios as well, where Bob has produced a new album for WAYNE HORSBURGH and also a pair of digital singles for the start of a recording project to salute the songwriting and recordings of fellow inductees in the Australian ‘Country Music Hands of Fame’. The first release in September 2014 is a pair of digital singles; DONNA FISK sings ‘Still In Love With You’and Bob performs ‘The Preacher’. Full details, samples, video and free Media downloads can be foundHERE!
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Sat Jan 18 at 10am. The Big T Jamboree live-to-air internet concerts from Country Music Capital’s Enrec Studios in Calala – Frank Gray, Bec Hance, Gus Helm and Patti Morgan with compere Tracy Coster.
Sun Jan 26 at 6pm. The Big T Jamboree live-to-air internet concerts from Country Music Capital’s Enrec Studios in Calala – The Enrec Artists Showcase.
Tamworth Country Life forlifestyle, business, community, news and sports hub for locals and visitors.
Just released online: Dream Out Loud – The 7 part documentary series follows a group of Australian singer-songwriters at the CMAA Music Academy in Tamworth, showcasing the diversification of Australian Country Music and why Tamworth is the spiritual home of the industry. Featuring appearances by Troy Cassar-Daley, John Williamson, The McClymonts, Sunny Cowgirls, Felicity Urquhart and other stars. Shot on location in Australian with footage from Tamworth Country Music Festival. Uplifting, entertaining and all about dreams. Produced by David Weston and Lyndall Lee Arnold from MediaCraft.
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The annual Toyota Hats Off to Country 2013 Festival is underway in Tamworth, Australia’s Country Music Capital. The latest program of artists and events can be downloaded from the official website:
The Big T Jamboree continues it series of concerts streamed live from Country Music Capital. On Sunday July 7 during the 2013 Hats Off To Country Festival you can log in from 6pm (Australian Eastern Standard Time) with the live broadcast taking place from Enrec Studios in Calala. Artists include Buddy Knox, Lawrie Minson, Shelley Minson, Norma O’Hara Murphy and the Big T Band (Alwyn Aurisch, Andrew McMahon, Steve Whitby).
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STEVE MARTIN & EDIE BRICKELL Love Has Come For You Universal Music Australia Is there anything STEVE MARTIN can’t do? Comedian, actor, author, playwright, and Grammy®-winning bluegrass banjoist. Recently, a chance conversation with singer-songwriter EDIE BRICKELL led to him sending her one of his banjo melodies with a view to her adding lyrics to it. The result was so instantly encouraging that they went ahead and recorded a whole album of their joint compositions. The joy you will get from hearing the result will also be instant. In these days of material overload, I have rarely been as quickly engaged in new music as I have by this exquisite collection. Apparently Steve Martin was constantly surprised by the lyrics and subjects that Edie Brickell set to his tunes and you will be as equally delighted by her thoughtful and insightful observations. Her voice is light and clear and his banjo favours the old-time/clawhammer style this time around, rather that the virtuoso bluegrass/Scruggs style, which serves the songs perfectly. In the producer’s chair is the legendary Peter Asher, who lets the music shine with only a few well-chosen embellishments. In all, a gem of an album that will continue to shine through repeated spins. (Bob Howe)
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Australia has so far been denied the experience of the live ‘electric’ Richard Thompson. Not that we have been truly deprived; the live ‘acoustic’ Richard Thompson we have seen several times (although not for seven years) is no mere cut-down version of the main act. As a powerful solo performer he towers over many better-known entities. The Australian shows he performed in tandem with bassist Danny Thompson were exquisite. Having first seen him live at Birmingham Town Hall (UK) in 1977 as the ‘Richard & Linda Thompson Band’ though, I can bear witness to the magic of his electric guitar improvisations that lead many to assert that he is the most important exponent of the instrument performing today. The good news is that in his current compact trio setting, we may see him down-under before the end of this year.
Meanwhile, we have an excellent CD release entitled Electric to enjoy and straight away I will say, get the Deluxe 2-CD version. The title Electric is descriptive of the atmosphere on this set as much as of the content; note there is some outstanding acoustic playing as well. Produced by Buddy Miller at ‘Buddy’s House’ in Nashville, there is collaborative feel from the rousing rhythm section and all the musicians, giving Thompson a sound base from which to begin his music explorations. The tracks range from Celtic-folk to swamp-infused country feels, with contributions by Stuart Duncan on fiddle, Miller on guitar, harmony vocals by Siobhan Maher Kennedy and, on the sublime ‘The Snow Goose’, Alison Krauss. Lyrically, Thompson is at his most accessible, from the ribald opening of ‘Stony Ground’ to the closing country waltz, ‘Saving the Good Stuff for You’. The bonus CD contains 4 more tracks from the sessions at ‘Buddy’s House’ plus 3 tracks from previous releases. A vastly influential and important artist at the top of his game…what are you waiting for? Buy it now!
(Bob Howe)
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Time As We Know It – The Songs of Jerry Jeff Walker
Stem Music (Distributed by Planet)
Jerry Jeff Walker released his much-loved album Driftin’ Way Of Life’ in 1969. Recorded with Nashville’s coolest session men, it marked a turning point for the singer-songwriter who had recently tasted success with ‘Mr. Bojangles’ and would soon relocate to Austin, Texas and become an influential part of the burgeoning ‘Outlaw Music’ movement. Fast forward to 1995 when singer Keith Sykes gave his copy of the album that Walker had given him on the day of its release, to his friend Todd Snider as a birthday present. Snider had by then, been a fan of Walker for ten years at least; “He’s the guy I saw at 19 and decided to try to be like.”
Fast forward again to 2012 when Todd Snider (best known to us for ‘Talkin’ Seattle Grunge Rock Blues’ and ‘Alright Guy’ ) released not only another original album Agnostic Hymns & Stoner Fables, but also realised his long-time ambition to record an album of songs by his major influence, Jerry Jeff Walker. On Time As We Know It we find 16 tracks, mostly written by Walker and a few well-chosen songs that he covered. The material speaks for itself and Snider’s relaxed delivery and the understated backing doesn’t obstruct the ragged beauty of the songs. Production is by the legendary Don Was and amongst the backing vocalists are contributions by Kix Brooks and recent Australian visitors, Elizabeth Cook and Peter Cooper. This collection is a delightful reminder of the great legacy of Jerry Jeff Walker who is himself still out there performing and recording.
(Bob Howe)
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It should come as no surprise that 
Is there anything STEVE MARTIN can’t do? Comedian, actor, author, playwright, and Grammy®-winning bluegrass banjoist. Recently, a chance conversation with singer-songwriter EDIE BRICKELL led to him sending her one of his banjo melodies with a view to her adding lyrics to it. The result was so instantly encouraging that they went ahead and recorded a whole album of their joint compositions. The joy you will get from hearing the result will also be instant. In these days of material overload, I have rarely been as quickly engaged in new music as I have by this exquisite collection. Apparently Steve Martin was constantly surprised by the lyrics and subjects that Edie Brickell set to his tunes and you will be as equally delighted by her thoughtful and insightful observations. Her voice is light and clear and his banjo favours the old-time/clawhammer style this time around, rather that the virtuoso bluegrass/Scruggs style, which serves the songs perfectly. In the producer’s chair is the legendary Peter Asher, who lets the music shine with only a few well-chosen embellishments. In all, a gem of an album that will continue to shine through repeated spins.
Australia has so far been denied the experience of the live ‘electric’ Richard Thompson. Not that we have been truly deprived; the live ‘acoustic’ Richard Thompson we have seen several times (although not for seven years) is no mere cut-down version of the main act. As a powerful solo performer he towers over many better-known entities. The Australian shows he performed in tandem with bassist Danny Thompson were exquisite. Having first seen him live at Birmingham Town Hall (UK) in 1977 as the ‘Richard & Linda Thompson Band’ though, I can bear witness to the magic of his electric guitar improvisations that lead many to assert that he is the most important exponent of the instrument performing today. The good news is that in his current compact trio setting, we may see him down-under before the end of this year.
Jerry Jeff Walker released his much-loved album Driftin’ Way Of Life’ in 1969. Recorded with Nashville’s coolest session men, it marked a turning point for the singer-songwriter who had recently tasted success with ‘Mr. Bojangles’ and would soon relocate to Austin, Texas and become an influential part of the burgeoning ‘Outlaw Music’ movement. Fast forward to 1995 when singer Keith Sykes gave his copy of the album that Walker had given him on the day of its release, to his friend Todd Snider as a birthday present. Snider had by then, been a fan of Walker for ten years at least; “He’s the guy I saw at 19 and decided to try to be like.”
