Sheldon King

And To Tamworth
Tamworth is a small town with a big heart. The self-proclaimed Capital of Australian Country Music, the town hosts the many tens of thousands of visitors, performers and crew that descend every January. It has an unusual assortment of venues and amenities, one of the most notable of which is the new Visitors' Centre which is in the shape of a guitar. Really.

Why Are We Here?
We came to Tamworth accompanied by Barbara Morison, Sydney's foremost expert on all things Aussie Country, veteran community service broadcaster and champion bullduster. We annexed ourselves to her position and found ourselves in some very interesting situations and places indeed. But predominantly I was in Tamworth to hear live new music. Didn't care who or where, as long as it was live and real, I was there.

Lark in the Park
Our first night [Wednesday, Australia Day] in Tamworth finds us in the Bicentennial Park, with at least two thousand other folk, listening to the strains of old-time country and favourites from the huge stage that was erected there. I guess I was still jet-lagged and allowed myself to be lulled to sleep on the grass by the dulcet tones of Lucky Starr and Frankie Davidson in their rendition of <My Old Man's A Dustman>.

FanFest
Thursday morning at the crack of 0900hrs, the FanFest begins at the Town Hall. It's a great concept, we all cram in to listen to dozens of acts perform a couple of numbers each. It's like a sampler, and not only gives us a taste of the festival, but helps us figure out who we'd like to see later on. Star of this particular Fanfest for me was Shanley Del who performed the most incredible acoustic set. She has a new song called <Glass Hearts> which not only stops the show that it's being performed in, but also any other show with 3K's! Sherrie Austin performed some of her [and my] faves, and this was the first occasion I saw Felicity and Darren Coggan.

Slow, Slow, Quick, Quick ...
Later that same afternoon, Hal and I decide to go terrorise the only two-steppin' workshop we could find. Our teacher, Chris and her husband, Joe, were pretty cool. We had to teach them some new nomenclature [leader/follower rather than gentleman/lady springs to mind], and they had some preposterously complicated routines to attempt to teach us. We ended up kinda making stuff up on our own. We started with me leading, so we looked pretty useless, but then we requested some fast two-steps, went back to the old ways, and showed them how it's done. There's not a lot of two-stepping out here - perhaps because no one teaches it. They do, however, love their lines ....

<Gaaarth!> Uh, <Leeeeee!>
Lee Kernaghan is kind of Australia's answer to Garth Brooks. Not really my cup of tea, but extremely popular among the Aussie contingent (and one of Hal's favorites as well ... Hal reckons that Lee's 1998 album, "Hat Town", was one of the best country albums of the year). He also turns a cracking show! This was our Thursday night. Lee is supported by Sherrie Austin, who, it appears, only has three or four songs rehearsed for the entire festival. I am beginning to get the feeling I'll be tired of hearing them come the weekend ...

Heel, Ball, Change, Whua?
So the Aussies do love their line dances. They call it <Boot Scootin'> because that's what they think Americans call it. Go figure. One of the foremost instructors/choreographers is the lovely Gordon Elliott. He is the chap responsible for the line dance <The Outback> which has been fairly popular in England too [of all places!]. The class is packed, and very hard work. Gordon taught a number of new dances, and I realised that it's been so long since I learned one, I wasn't sure I could remember how. It all came back to me eventually. Gordon is a great teacher, and a really super nice guy to boot. [Geddit?]. Hal, not being much of a line dancer, watches and laughs at me falling over my feet (I'd never laugh unless I could do it better myself! - H). In between revisions, we have a protracted conversation about line dancing, country dancing and the state of the union which, obviously, are all very closely related.

We Are Glitterati - Hear Us Roar!
After a quick sneak into the Song Writers' showcase [featuring amongst others Sherrie [doing the same songs again!], Kelly Willis, and the super Beccy Cole [about whom more later], we take ourselves back to the motel to get spruced up for a cocktail party thrown by the principal sponsors, Toyota. Either it was the tan, the beard or the hat, but I keep getting accosted by folk who think I'm <talent>. Obviously, I am <talent>, but probably not of the stock they are interested in. It happens so often that Hal and I are considering concocting a story and seeing if we can sign a recording contract or something. For a laff. (This would require Hal to remember how to play the guitar - so according to him it isn't likely to happen any time soon!)

Got cornered by up-and-coming star Josh Arnold, who talked to us for at least an age. Hal didn't seem to mind, as Josh was cute, personable, and had adorable blue eyes! I managed to get away and scope out the glamorous and gorgeous of Australian Country Music. The girls are glamorous, the guys, so far, are <eech!>.

It was fun to be invited to such an event, although because so many of the artists are unfamiliar, it's not one of those <could that be ...? look it's ...!> events. Had they been it would have been, if you see what we mean.

Actually Hal did recognise a fair number of artists, but says he's far too refined to gawk :0) Anyway, we scarper after a while as we have managed to scrounge tickets to see the amazing Shanley Del.

Glass Hearts
Shanley Del is an amazing talent. In my small spot of A&R for the week, in talking to Shanley's manager, I suggest that she seriously consider taking Shanley to the UK. Never mind the US - they'll think she's Martina McBride MK II, which she's not. Shanley has a wide range of material, some country, some pop [with a very Saint Etienne kind of feel - very Radio 1 if you know what I mean], she's pretty, energetic and has the most amazing voice. As an added bonus, Shanley writes a lot of her own material. Extra special shouts to David at BMG and Louise, Shanley's Manager, for co-operating with our blagging attempts :0)

Dedication's What You Need
Did y'all know you're in the company of Guinness World Record holders? Well you are. Saturday brings the attempt on the world record for the longest linedance in history. Thousands of us descend on Peel Street, the main drag in Tamworth, to rehearse a watered-down <Boot Scoot Boogie> [known to the rest of us as a Vancouver Boogie]. At 0935hrs on Saturday 29 January 2000, Hal, I and 6273 other folk smashed the record for the world's longest line dance, which was set at a previous Tamworth festival. We've got certificates and everything. So there's something interesting for the resume ...

Young and Gorgeous
Still basking in the glow of out record breaking antics, it's back to the Leagues Club [where most of the events are held] for a showcase of the Young Stars of Country. Easily our favourite event on the entire festival. An amazing lineup of Beccy Cole who has some amazingly acerbic renditions mostly aimed at her soon-to-be ex husband; Darren Coggan 6'2" shocking ginger hair, and not unsurprisingly cast as Richie Cunningham in the recent stage version of Happy days; Felicity entertaining with super bubblegum country as ever; Stephanie Grant, a new country talent who is highly entertaining, although still finding her way in her voice, and Josh Arnold with his rockabilly sound.

These guys all support each other tremendously, playing instruments for one another, providing vocal backing for one another, serving roadie duty, being the butt of jokes, and generally ensuring that not only us in the audience, but everyone on stage, has a jolly good time. Three hours seemed like twenty minutes in the company of these superbly talented individuals, and there's surely acres of success in the pipeline for each of them.

Standing out particularly for me is Beccy, who has an amazing stage presence, a razor sharp wit, and some pretty spectacular self-penned material. Her best trick is to do the rounds of her band, taking each instrument in turn. I've never seen that done, and it's a terrific crowd pleaser - especially when she takes the keyboards, for which she obviously has no aptitude, and pounds away anyhow with a huge grin on her face.

Darren Coggan is also an amazing performer, so much energy every time we saw him. He also varies his material every show. Sometimes you see the same person more than once, perhaps supporting or as part of a showcase. Darren made a concerted effort to put on slightly different show each time - which we much appreciated!

Felicity is a great, solid young country act. Great looks, great voice, great material for the most part. Thoroughly entertaining.

And The Winner Is ...
Big Saturday Night Out. To the Australian Country Music Awards. Hal is convinced they've missed the boat with the name, and suggests that if they were called the <Tamworth Australian Country Music Awards>, the name could be shortened to the <Tammys>. In any event, glitter, glitz, glamour and all that again.

It's an interesting event, as we've had time to get used to the performers, remember their names [well, Hal has], and take an interest in their success. It's still a kind of <someone else's Pride> kind of deal for me, but I guess you get swept up in it all.

At one point I remarked to Hal that there cannot be any homosexuals involved in this event. The stage set is absolutely hideous beyond reproach, and has got to go. It looked like a kids TV show set. Other than that, the show goes off without any major calamity, and was generally enjoyed by all.
We had special invitations to the after show party. The Aussies haven't quite figured out this concept fully yet. There was not much in the way of food, and the bar was not free. Our foray into this event was limited. The idea of catching up on some sleep became appealing.

All kitted out for the Awards Do!

Fiddler
We had the opportunity to catch some of Pixie's show this morning. Pixie is a Tamworth mainstay, and is mostly famed for his fiddling. This show, however, was different in that is commemorating many of the talents of Aussie Country over the years. We couldn't help to be moved by the show, although many of the artists and their stories were unknown to us. We suitably impressed that several of the celebrants were actually in the audience during this performance. We got to see John Williamson, one of the winners of last night's CMA Awards, just a few rows away from us! Pixie is an amazing performer, although there is little escaping the fact that he's absolutely barking mad.

Heads Canberra, Tales California
Jo Dee Messina is one of the few truly American country stars to appear at the festival. Although not as accomplished as many of her Aussie counterparts, she headlines a handful of concerts here. Our last-ditch blag attempt to see her on Sunday is successful, and she puts on a hell of a show. She is getting a reputation for being the <Bette Middler of Country> and from her petite frame, shock of ginger hair, and cheeky grin, it's easy to see why. There sure seem to be a lot of carrot tops in country!

Jo Dee energetically took us through some of her old hits, lots of stuff from the fabulous <I'm Alright> album. It was nice to get a singalong with some familiar material! Then there's the new stuff. Not convinced, I'm afraid. Jo Dee is premiering some new material here first, and it's .... well it's pop. It's entertaining enough, but it's not the style of music that's selling millions of copies of <I'm Alright>. For my money, it's a mistake with a capital <M>. But we shall see.

Show highlights - an <impromptu> rendition of Silver Thunderbird, and Jo Dee's hilarious introduction to <Lesson In Leaving>.

The Beccy Cole Experience
Following her performance at the Young Stars show earlier in the week, we made a special effort to see her longer show tonight. She did not disappoint, and kept us humming, tapping and laughing through her set. Hal and I both think that Beccy is wonderful. Opinion is divided, however, on her potential success.

Hal thinks that Beccy may turn out to be one of the big winners of Tamworth, as she had the audience in the palm of her hand for her entire show. She also has some very prominent proponents including John Kerr, who's not only a good friend of Barbara's but also an influential broadcaster on Australia's most popular radio station!

For my money, Live In Oz may well be where it ends. Beccy is sharp, witty, talented clever - all the essential ingredients to be totally ignored by the record industry as a whole. I'd be happy to be wrong on this one, but I don't think she'll ever sell a million CDs. Beccy does, however, have a long and illustrious career as a live entertainer waiting for her should she want it.

Little But Loud
During Jo Dee's concert we had the good fortune to be introduced to Lyn Bowtell, who (according to Barbara) is Oz's answer to Martina McBride. It turned out that she was performing later that night, at the same time as Beccy's show (but fortunately in the lounge right outside Beccy's venue). We had a chance to catch Lyn's first set before Beccy started up, and were quite impressed with what we heard. Lyn favours Martina McBride material, which really does highlight her wonderful siren of a voice. Much later on, when Beccy had finished, Lyn was still performing in the lounge, though she'd unfortunately had to tailor her show to the increasingly rowdy and more rock-oriented crowd. We didn't stay to the end of Lyn's show, as it was getting late and we were getting pooped, but we managed to sneak up to the stage between sets and get hugs and kisses from Lyn as a final farewell to the Tamworth festival.

Busk It!
Special shouts to all the many and various amazing performers who turned up day after day to colour Peel Street [the main drag in Tamworth] with a selection of some good, some not so good some rehearsed and some impromptu performances I hope the recording folk were listening out! Also a mention here to all of the folk who put on lessor-billed shows and support acts in the bars and clubs and to the excellent musicians (<musos>, in OzSpeak) who played in the bands we've seen all week. So much talent!

Getting To Know You
Well, I for one am better acquainted with Australian country music than I was at the beginning of the week. What an amazing selection. So many genuinely gifted folk, so much great music! I have my shopping list now - Grace Brothers here I come!

To Be Near You
We especially enjoyed the - for lack of a better word - proximity of the entire event. We got to meet almost every artist we'd seen perform - thanks in no small part to Barbara, who not only knows them all but isn't the least bit shy at introducing them to her guests. But even if we hadn't been treated like VIPs due to Barbara's influence, we still got to see many of our favourite performers just wandering around the festival or sitting in the audience of a fellow artist's show. For example, on our own we'd have run into Darren Coggan, Josh Arnold, Beccy Cole (and her mom, and her baby son!), Americans Dean Miller and Gary Allan [now there's a looker!], Sherrie Austin, John Williamson, and countless others.

It was especially rewarding to attend the festival under the wing of Barbara, who was clearly in her natural element among the stars of Australian Country. She couldn't take two steps in any direction without running into an up-and-coming artist, or a mover/shaker in the industry [it could sometimes take a good hour to leave a venue …], or just someone who could help us get tickets to the next show that we wanted to see!! A source of particular amusement was when she conducted a telephone interview with new-artist-of-the-year nominee Brendon Walmsley for a national radio broadcast -- using our cell phone! (Brendon did indeed win the CMA Award a few nights later.) It made us feel like we'd made our own small contribution to Australian country music!

All Countried Out
The week that follows the Tamworth festival is usually a quiet time for everyone to recover a bit. It's been nice to listen to dance or NRG for a little while. Still humming stuff like <Country Girl> by Felicity and Darren Coggan's version of <Brown Eyed Girl>.

If We Had it All Again
We've been asked if we want to come back next year. I think it's safe to say we would. There's have to be some serious schedule shuffling. I am fascinated to watch some of the talent we experienced evolving - and the Australian country industry strengthen it's identity. Perhaps next time we'd sleep for a week before we left for the Festival - rather than for a full week after it!