IT’S a rhythm every bit as distinctive as a honky tonk beat. You can feel it in the air, that unmistakeable energy around Tamworth that heralds the arrival of the country music festival.
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Is there an event in this nation that exemplifies the Australian country experience like the festival?
Is there an event that embraces all walks of life as warmly as this extraordinary celebration?
It might be a complex, multi-faceted affair to run, encompassing dozens of venues, hundreds of artists and thousands of fans.
But the magic of the festival lies in its simplicity.
At its core, it is fuelled by a shared passion for country life and the music that seeks to reflect it.
The artists’ connection to and genuine affection for their fans is unrivalled in any popular musical genre.
The majority come here not for the money or the adulation, but for the sense of belonging.
And that’s a force more powerful than any amount of marketing dollars.
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AFTER four decades of handing out flyers and sitting through branch meetings, Gunnedah granddad Joe Hillard is about to be thrust into the political blast furnace.
The softly spoken 61-year-old scarcely imagined he would ever go from backroom to centre stage.
By nominating as the Tamworth ALP candidate for the March state election, Mr Hillard will be swimming against an impossible tide of conservatism.
The true blue conservative seat has never been held by Labor and it’s probably safe to say never will be.
Mr Hillard’s predecessor Paul Hobbs garnered a modest 4.7 per cent of primaries at the 2011 poll.
But Mr Hillard knows he won’t be our next member.
His aim is to uphold a Labor tradition of contesting the seat and to offer an alternative voice.
Whether he strikes a preference deal with independent Peter Draper is yet to be known, but certainly Labor’s progressive ideology sits closer to Mr Draper’s centrist views than with the Nationals.
And in an election that could well be decided by preferences, Mr Hillard might suddenly find himself going from bit player to kingmaker.
