After a devastating year of cancelling shows due to Covid and now starting to emerge under relaxing restrictions we were thrilled to get a call from the legendary Catherine Britt asking to include The Barn at Wombat Flat on her Bush Pubs 2020 Tour! To be honest, we were so excited to host her and inspired by her long trek from NSW, into Qld and then NT before the long trek south to us that we cancelled a planned holiday and just plain said YES!!
Catherine Britt
It’s the singer and the song that makes for truly distinctive and enduring artists. Lots of great songs and some mighty fine singing. Catherine Britt has a voice that instantly gets your attention but unlike others, it is the craftsmanship of this singer/songwriter who unashamedly boasts a worthy story to tell that truly keeps her audience enthralled.
Catherine’s new album is entitled Home Truths. They’re the best truths–direct, personal, and from the heart. Just the way Catherine sings. This album is also a new beginning. This is Catherine’s first release in over 20 years as a completely independent Australian artist. This independence was largely due to the loyalty and passion of Catherine’s fans who have been with her on this ongoing journey of music and song. Home Truths is significant also in that it was produced by Catherine–and performed by her all dancing, all singing, super talented, and beyond versatile Australian band of smoulderingly good players. All the songs on Home Truths were written or co-written by Catherine. That’s the way it is with home truths–they need to come directly from the heart of the person doing the telling.
She has lived a life in the world of entertainment most will never experience or dream of. The archetypal Aussie girl from the coal works of Newcastle uprooted herself at 17 years old and moved for six years to Nashville TN (USA) where she gained a deep knowledge of country/roots/folk history as well as touring extensively and releasing top 40 Billboard hits. Elton John heard Catherine during one of his Australian tours in the early 2000s and he took her albums back to America with him and helped get her a deal with RCA Records.
Over the course of her career Catherine has collected a host of accolades, a legion of fans and a mantel of awards including the country industry’s highest honours: 2009 CMAA Female Artist of the Year Award, 2012 CMAA Single of the Year, 2013CMAA Female Artist of the Year Award, 2016 Female Artist of the Year, 2017 Vocal Collaboration of The Year for her celebrated single “F U Cancer” as well as APRA Award and CMC Artist of the Year nominations. Six of Catherine’s albums released to date have been nominated for the ARIA Award for the Best Country Album release, which is a first for any Australian country artist. In 2010, Catherine was also presented with the CMA Global Artist of the Year award.
Catherine’s talent has also seen her tour, perform and record with some of music’s most respected names including Kasey Chambers, Paul Kelly, Sir Elton John, Steve Earle, Dolly Parton, Don McLean, Chris Isaac, Brooks & Dunn, Alan Jackson, Guy Clark and Keith Urban to name but a few. To this day Catherine remains the youngest Australian to ever perform at the Grand Ole Opry at the age of 17.
Catherine has also proven herself as a formidable interviewer and comfortable host during the time she was host of Australia’s national radio broadcast ABC Saturday Night Country. She also shone on television as the host of CMC’s ‘Alt Country’ program.
Melody Moko
Melody Moko is a woman who embraces and thrives on change. Born and raised in Adelaide, SA, she’s lived in Queensland and NSW, become a mother of two, and as a critically acclaimed songwriter she’s taken her music to the world since the release of debut album in 2017.
Melody is one of those artists whose style is a natural and heartfelt extension of her personality and perspective on life. Her songs reside under the wide umbrella of Americana yet they inhabit all its intriguing corners, traveling from melancholic alt-country to pining country songs, uplifting pop-tinged revelry and proud and powerful balladry. Her heroes and contemporaries include Brandi Carlile, Tift Merritt, Kathleen Edwards, Fanny Lumsden and Brooke Fraser.
Growing up with a father who was a passionate and encouraging music enthusiast, Melody knew early on that she “wanted to sing like Linda Ronstadt, and write songs like Bob Dylan.” That awareness of song and performance led to her traveling around Australia, playing her songs and winning songwriting awards in her early teens. The allure of international travel took her to the USA where she had the honour of performing at iconic country music venues such as Nashville’s famous Bluebird Cafe, The Continental Club in Austin, Texas and Hank William’s favourite hangout, Tootsies.
In 2017 Melody released her debut album The Wreckage, co-produced by multi-instrumentalist (and partner) Michael Moko and award-winning songwriter Catherine Britt. An album that celebrates life but doesn’t avoid its pitfalls, it covers everything from bluegrass to folk-pop, with a strong seam of Australian roots and gentle twang. As a full-length introduction to the musical world of Melody Moko, the album established her as a songwriter and performer on the Americana scene. She undertook a national tour, received a CMC New Artist nomination, played shows with Fanny Lumsden, The McClymonts and Catherine Britt, and appeared at high profile festivals including Groundwater Country Music Festival (2018), Gympie Music Muster (2019), and Spunk Record’s Thirroul Music Festival in 2019.
As a new decade begins, so too does an exciting new chapter in the Melody’s musical story. In 2019 she embarked on another successful USA tour, with Catherine Britt, and traveled to Nashville, TN to record her second album with acclaimed producer Neilson Hubbard (Mary Gauthier, Kim Richey, Matthew Ryan and Caroline Spence) and co-producer Michael Moko.
There’s a new maturity to this exceptional batch of alt-country songs – in both the depth of emotional connectivity, the richly detailed, world class voice that Melody possesses and the sonic tone and texture of the recordings. The majority of the album was recorded live, capturing the spirit of the players, including East Nashville’s Juan Solorzano and Fats Kaplin on fiddle and steel guitar (John Prine).
The first single ‘Last Cigarette’ (co-written with Britt) cleverly compares the grip of nicotine to a conflicted relationship.
Ricca Terra Wines, Barossa Street Food, Eudunda Bakery goods, BVB beer, soft drinks, hot drinks for you to purchase on the night.
NO BYO FOOD OR DRINK PLEASE.
Gates open 5:30pm / Show 7:00pm
