Only The Good Die Young
Brisbane mourns the loss of lyrical genius and gentleman Grant McLennan, who passed away in Brisbane over the weekend. McLennan was a prolific songwriter and along with Robert Forster formed The Go-Betweens, one of Brisbane's best known musical exports. McLennan's 'Cattle and Cane' was recently voted one of the ten greatest Australian songs of all time.
I last saw The Go-Betweens perform last October at the Multicultural Festival held in the Roma Street Parklands. A highlight was their evening performance at the Albert Park Amphitheatre.
The air was warm and mood upbeat, as a very relaxed Forster and McLennan played a selection of old favourites and new tunes from their ARIA Award winning album 'Oceans Apart'. The kids danced as their oldies swayed, sang and reminisced to 'Spring Rain', 'Through the Streets of Your Town' and finally, 'Lee Remick'.
The title of the Go-Betweens' 1984 album 'Spring Hill Fair' is a tribute to the popular, annual event, which, up until the year before last, was held in September in the rambling streets of Spring Hill. The Spring Hill Fair officially began in 1973 but unofficially started a few years earlier when one-time mayoral candidate, and passionate crusader for retaining the suburb's heritage, Cecilia McNally organised neighbourhood parties in order to get to know her neighbours and raise money for charity.
More recently, portions of McLennan's song 'Streets Of Your Town', from The Go-Betweens' album '16 Lovers Lane' have been used in a TV advertisement for the tabloid 'Courier-Mail'. McLennan penned the song in response to Brisbane's oppressive political and social climate in the 1970s and 1980s, yet the lyrics alluding to this have been omitted from the ad.
Grant McLennan RIP.
BOUNDARY RIDER (from Oceans Apart)
There's a boundary rider
at the five mile fence
bloodwood, bones + steers
And the sky's so deep
you can't find your sleep
keeps you walking through these tears
So you reach for things
you're never satisfied
you're running down the years
And to know yourself
is to be yourself
keeps you walking through these tears
Some days you ride it hard
to stop them getting out
then comes the day you ride
to stop them getting in
There's a boundary rider
on the five mile fence
bloodwood, bones + steers
And to know yourself
is to be yourself
keeps you walking through these tears
'Blowin' In The Wind'
Last Sunday evening, I attended a screening of David Bradbury's latest documentary - 'Blowin' in the Wind' - at the REV, along with a series of bands including Kill TV (the guys who crashed the Big Brother House last year).
'Blowin' In The Wind' was devastating in its revelations about Australia's place in the new world order. After initially feeling shock at the unimaginable and terrible truths about Australia's status as a so called United States 'Ally', 'Blowin' In The Wind' was ultimately depressing in its insight. How do you feel about the fact that our country is being exploited by the United States as a testing and dumping ground for nuclear weapons? If you thought Maralinga was bad, this film will make you want to move to New Zealand.
Mr Bradbury, who has happily retained that - action is the antidote to despair - glint in his eye, addressed the crowd both at the beginning and end of the screening. It inspired him to see so many youngsters taking an interest and appealed to our sense of action. You know, when all seems lost, hope is sustained by that one person who says, "I am with you. I care. Don't give up."
Details about 'Blowin' In The Wind' can be found at:
http://www.bsharp.net.au/htm/the-film.htm
If you want to see the film, get the ABC to screen it nationally - contact the Head of ABC Programming, Michael Ward or ward.michael@abc.net.au, or buy a copy : www.bsharp.net.au or www.frontlinefilms.com.au
TALKING HISTORY AT THE QUEENSLAND MUSEUM
'Queensland Connections: people, places and collections' is a series of monthly, lunchtime talks that cover a range of topics relating to Queensland history. Last month, Bill Kitson, Curator of the Queensland Museum of Lands, Mapping and Surveying, gave an upbeat and fascinating presentation (to a packed auditorium) covering the history of Queensland surveying.
This month, Helen Bennett, Historian from the Environmental Protection Agency discussed what it was like to live in flats in interwar Brisbane. Ms Bennett examined Brisbane's first foray into modern multi-storey living arrangements, which began during the construction boom of the early 1920s and continued well into the 1930s.
Ms Bennett said that in 1911 there were 425 flats in the Brisbane metropolitan area. Brisbaneites gradually adopted this new and glamorous lifestyle, along with a diminishing desire for a plot of land and a house. The number of flats increased to 1087 in 1921, 3785 in 1933 and 11,406 in 1947! Excellent examples of these buildings can be seen throughout Kangaroo Point, Spring Hill, New Farm and Clayfield. The Brisbane City Council is now recognising the importance of these flats and their contribution to the unique look of our city.
Upcoming talks will look at Queensland's cinematic history, Gold Coast heritage and history, memory and the past, in the novels of Penelope Lively. For more information, contact the Queensland Museum on 3840 7555 or the Environmental Protection Agency on 3227 6499.
Charles Colman, who is Sally's uncle, is a recent arrival to the art scene. Apart from some solid training twenty years ago at Sydney's Julian Ashton Art School, Charles' foray into art began six years ago with the Watercolour Society of Queensland, where he attended workshops and classes by prominent artists Lois Beumer, John McVeigh-Brown, Jocelyn Gedge and Michelle Retschlag. His evocative landscapes of wild places throughout Australia have been exhibited widely, and are displayed in private collections around the world.
Sally and Charles are both very excited about their first duel exhibition which encompasses enough colour, mood and medium to please the most discerning art appreciator. Their exhibition contains over 50 works, which are priced between $75 and $1000. Sally and Charles' exhibition runs from Saturday, 27 May until Wednesday, 31 May at the Art Factory Gallery, 84 Merivale Street, South Brisbane, corner Glenelg Street. The Gallery is open daily from 10 am to 5 pm, and parking is available in the grounds of Brisbane State High School. For more information see: www.sallyandcharles.com
In The Shadow Of The Palms
Produced and directed by independent Australian documentary filmmaker Wayne Coles-Janess, 'In The Shadow Of The Palms' was filmed in Iraq prior to, during, and after the 2003 invasion. 'In The Shadow Of The Palms', which was made without any government funding, follows the lives of a handful of ordinary Iraqis and reveals a side of the story that's not being told in the mainstream media. How would you feel if you knew your country was about to be bombed? What was the real impact of 'Shock and Awe' and the US invasion on Iraq's men women and children?
'In The Shadow Of The Palms' follows the day to day activities of a University Professor, wrestling coach, cobbler, their families and others as they prepare for the bombing of their country. The documentary's power lies in the unobtrusive way Coles-Janess has placed himself with the families and his gentle approach. As you witness the citizens as they attempt to negotiate some kind of order in the aftermath, you cannot help but wonder how courageous you would be in that situation. Would Australians display such resilience in the face of a destructive bombing campaign?
Coles-Janess' documentary is distressing in its truth and not for the faint hearted. Amidst the fascinating commentary and dialogue, there are harrowing scenes - a young girl being rescued from the rubble, a dying baby and a man being told by a US serviceman if he catches him selling petrol again, he'll be off to Abu Graib. You get a sense of the semantics of spin we are being fed here in the west, most pointedly during the interview with the tank driving US serviceman whose wife and children think he's just in training.
Real reportage from Iraq is rare, whether you support the war or not. War is never honourable or justified, but Australia is involved in the war in Iraq and Australians aren't getting any information about what our soldiers are actually doing in Iraq. Even acclaimed war correspondent John Hunter Farrell laments the lack of reportage from the operations of Al Muthanna Task Group Two in the Autumn edition of 'Australian & NZ Defender. "Four hundred and fifty Aussies are out there in As Samawah making Anzac history, but less than a handful of publishable images have emerged from Camp Smitty since the contingent took over the place late last year," he writes.
The images that have been released are "a mid 1980s 'happy' PR fantasy instead of a historical record. Countless images of pollies pressing the flesh and dancing Japanese! Dig's holding kids hands, wearing silly Santa hats, even running in novelty races!" He says.
Yet small gems of truth about the situation in Iraq can be gleaned from the internet. The most recent site I've encountered is War News Radio, the brainchild of a resourceful group of students at Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania. Frustrated by the media's unsatisfactory coverage of the war in Iraq, they accessed a couple of Iraqi phone books on the internet and found plenty of people willing to share their stories. See http://www.warnewsradio.org/show/ for further information.
You can catch 'In The Shadow Of The Palms' at The Schonell Cinema at UQ.
The Gift
The Gift is a collection of songs donated by national and international artists who support Mother's Milk Bank, which has been set up on the Gold Coast to provide pasteurized donor mothers milk to infants where human milk is not available.
This powerful and timeless compilation features Mia Dyson, Elixir, stringmansassy, Deborah Conway, The Waifs, Women in Docs and the diverse talents of many other inspiring and beautiful singers. The Gift is indeed an uplifting gift from the heart - your Mum will love it and the babies will thank you!
The Gift can be ordered on-line and by postage and is also available from Atlantis Music store, Scarborough Street, Southport. For further information on Mother's Milk Bank and details relating to availability of The Gift, see www.mothersmilkbank.com.au/gift.htm
Due to what a relative has dubbed our "various lifestyle", my date and I are a little late as we arrive at the Souths Leagues Club midway through James Muller's stunning instrumental interpretation of David Bowie's 'Ashes to Ashes'. We make our way to the bar as the award-winning Muller executes an evening of alchemy on guitar from an uncluttered stage, which is illuminated with simple, but effective lighting. The buoyant sound that emanates from his dextrous playing is a little bit George Benson, and features a blend of classy originals with a dash of Chick Corea to boot!
The chilled out crowd comprise serious fans and intense young musicians, along with Brisbane's husband and wife jazz luminaries, Katie Noonan and Zac Hurren. Everyone, including the barman, is transfixed by Muller's effortless playing - sheer delight evident on the blissed out faces throughout the room. He's also extremely modest, and regularly alludes to his talented band mates. Indeed they're worthy of acknowledgment - Phil Stack (Muller reveals him to be a "rock star" from well-known outfit 'Thirsty Merc') is bewildering on bass, while Felix Bloxsom shimmers on drums - the chemistry really cooks within this brilliant trio.
Two breaks in the evening's performance allow for the purchase of lovely glasses of cold champagne, plus some lingering banter and a smoke on the club's moonlit deck. Enthusiastic bongo playing echoes through the park, and our view elicits the merest glimpse of the Brisbane river through the voluptuous Moreton Bay Figs. Muller is incredibly relaxing to watch and before we know it the show is over. Blinded by the light, he thanks us all for coming and following a brief encore and a rapturous round of applause, we make our way into the brisk Autumn night.
What a magic start to the week! Who says you can't enjoy cool jazz anywhere in Brisbane on a Monday night? A long time ago, Kathryn Hepburn so enjoyed her visit to our old country town, she anointed Brisbane the New Orleans of the Southern Hemisphere. Sure it was because of the comparable tropical climate and delightful architectural heritage (much of which has since been demolished) but with Brisbane's increasingly evident jazz renaissance, I'd like to think there are still parallels.
After the show, the amiable Zac Hurren, who as well as being a local jazz legend, hosts the Sunday morning Jazz Show on Brisbane's 4ZZZ radio station, recommended 'Jazz On A Sunday Vibe'. This hugely successful event, organised by Zac and Katie, features different artists and is held on the last Sunday of every month at The Zoo, in Fortitude Valley.
For more details about our Antipodean Masquerader, see www.jamesmuller.com