THE OLDEST bush balladeer still gracing Tamworth's stages has one thing in common with one of the youngest bush balladeers in town - they love singing and they love the community.
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Col Taylor turned 86 on the day he recorded his ballad for the Hats Off To Country online festival.
He's spent most his life in Tamworth and more than 50 years as a bush balladeer.
"I've sung with a lot of people ... you probably couldn't name a place from here to Goondiwindi that we hadn't sang in, and up the coast, Queensland, it must be hundreds of places," Taylor said.
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This is the first time he's performed to a camera and not a crowd, but he's happy to be involved and looking forward to playing festivals in the future.
Taylor said it's the mateship he loves about being a bush balladeer in Tamworth.
"I didn't want fame of fortune, I just love it. It's mateship, they're family," he said.
Tommy Chesterfield may be one of the city's younger balladeers at 21 years old, but he also said making connections is his favourite part about being in the industry.
"I just love meeting new people and having a bit of fun," he said.
Chesterfield is the youngest singer to feature in the Hats Off To Country set, which will stream on Facebook at 10:30am on Saturday.
Chesterfield's only been in the game a couple of years, but he's already won a country music award and released a single about his family farm.
A handful of Tamworth's bush balladeers each recorded a song for the festival set.
Police and crime reporter at the Newcastle Herald.
Police and crime reporter at the Newcastle Herald.
