THERE’S a mad mob from Mullum back to terrorise and titillate unsuspecting audiences at the 2015 Tamworth Country Music Festival.
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Combine the talents of award-winning Australian bush poet Ray Essery – the Mullumbimby Bloke – a member of the Naked Poets; international multi-award winning country music artist Clelia Adams and Byron Bay’s Calypso Cowgirl, Kathryn Jones, and you’re in for an interactive, three-hour comedy-filled show of mayhem, music and shenanigans.
This show has been taking the club circuit by storm. With a combination of over 50 years’ performance behind them, the Mad Mullum Mob specialises in giving the audience a quality concert experience reminiscent of the great shows of yesteryear.
Clelia and Kathryn’s exquisite blend of harmonies has bowled over audiences at the Gympie Muster, Tamworth and the Slim Dusty Festival, garnering appreciative comments such as “country harmonies to die for”.
Ray Essery co-wrote River Valley Express with Clelia, a song tracing the old train route through the Northern Rivers, and it reached No.1 on the European ECMA charts in January 2013.
Ray continues to perform at country music and bush poetry festivals all over Australia.
A recent addition to the Mad Mullum Mob program for Tamworth 2015 is the multi-
talented Golden Guitar winner, Steve Passfield, who never disappoints.
Add to that Adrian Davis’s fancy guitar work, and you’ve got one heck of a value-for-money show.
Catch the Mad Mullum Mob at the Frog and Toad Function Centre on Goonoo Goonoo Rd at 2pm on Wednesday and Thursday, January 21 and 22. You won’t leave without a smile on your face or a song in your heart.
Check out what you’re in for with some videos at www.cleliaadams.com
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IT’S almost three years since the great man’s passing on April 2, 2012, but Uncle Jimmy’s memory and good works will continue to live on through the Jimmy Little Foundation.
A Jimmy Little Memorial Concert will be held at Tamworth Regional Entertainment and Conference Centre on Thursday, January 22 at 8pm. Part of this event will be the screening of stunning footage recorded at the Sydney Opera House concert, with performances by Archie Roach, Paul Kelly, Warren H Williams, Don Walker, Dan Sultan, Kevin Bennett, Neil Murray, Christine Anu, Col Joye, Judy Stone and more, as well as live performances.
All proceeds from the event will be directed to the Jimmy Little Foundation, which was formed with the aim of providing a healthier future for indigenous Australians.
With funding from the federal government’s Department of Health and Ageing, the JLF team continues Uncle Jimmy’s work, on the road, delivering the Thumbs Up! program to isolated communities around the country.
Tickets for this special event can be purchased by phoning 6767 5300 or at the Capitol Theatre, Tamworth, the information centre at the Big Golden Guitar, Ray Walsh House or at www.entertainmentvenues.com.au
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THERE’S some big news I’ve got to share with you about the 2015 Golden Fiddle Awards. This coming year there’s been a change of venue and a change of pace, and it’s going to be fabulous.
The story of violin music through the ages, with emphasis on heritage fiddle music that migrated to Australia with the first fleets, will be the theme for the 2015 Golden Fiddle Show. It will mark a celebration of 10 years of awards to fiddle players, composers and teachers.
The fiddle story will be told through the eyes and musical skills of previous winners of the Golden Fiddle Awards, and narrated by iconic comic fiddler Pixie Jenkins, in collaboration with a fellow director of the Golden Fiddle Awards (GFA), global multi-instrumentalist Andrew Clermont.
The 2015 show will be different, being held at a new venue, the Capitol Theatre in Tamworth on Wednesday, January 21, and there will be no award presentations, just full-on fiddling.
All but one of the previous 10 Golden Fiddle shows was staged in Tamworth Town Hall on a Thursday. Awards chairman Mark Mitchell said the committee felt a decade was a milestone to mark in a different manner.
“After 10 years of highly successful awards shows, it is timely to regroup and plan perhaps a different approach after getting feedback from the directors and members of the wider fiddle community,” he said.
“We thought there was no better way to celebrate than to stage a fiddle spectacular, with a historic storyline, and free of award presentations.”
The Golden Fiddle Awards, conceived and sponsored continuously by Australian designer and manufacturer of stringed instruments, Epoch, is a not-for-profit entity dedicated to nurturing and rewarding violin players, composers and teachers, covering all genres of fiddle music from bluegrass to classical.
The awards encouraged and recognised young players and bands through its Youth Achievement Award, and many who made their public debut with the Golden Fiddle Show on the town hall stage have progress-
ed to professional playing, teaching and composing.
Because Australia’s most respected professional touring performers embraced the Golden Fiddle Awards concept, their involvement has been an inspiration to the fiddle community of young, amateur and recreational players. Top international players like Clermont, Jenkins, Ian Cooper, Marcus Holden and George Washingmachine have graced the stage many times, sharing their skills with the younger players.
The show has grown in stature throughout the decade, in some years attracting audiences of up to 800.
Who could forget the traditional show finale, with all contestants and guests on stage performing a frenetic version of the classic, The Devil Went Down to Georgia?
The Golden Fiddle Awards team has invited past patrons to join in this celebratory event. The 2015 show starts at 10am on Wednesday, January 21, so get your tickets now or you could miss out on this “golden opportunity”.
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IF YOU’RE stuck for something to do on Monday night, why not get a little music into your life at Country in the Village?
Staged to raise funds for the Australian Country Music Hall of Fame, it’s held at the Lifestyle Village hall, Warral Rd, Tamworth and kicks off at 6.30pm.
Your very affable host is Graeme ‘Dubby’ Doubleday, who will introduce featured artist Tom Maxwell, and other local artists.
For a $5 cover charge, you can enjoy the entertainment and a light supper with tea or coffee. Everyone is welcome to attend. For further details, call Lorraine on 0403 322 472.
