Weird Times.

Okay, I found the picture that was taken at Beechworth in the Court House in 1994 that I alluded to in my last blog.
To recap, we were on a trail for Ned Kelly locations and the like and found ourselves in Beechworth Court House where Ned had been first arraigned, (but quickly transferred to Melbourne as people were too sympathetic in Northern Victoria). People were still touchy about even talking about Kelly, due to relatives of the slain policemen living in the area. You could get your photo taken in a few costumes that were provided. We got dressed up and the photographer then discovered he had to run home to get some film, leaving us there as seemingly part of the "exhibit". We were supposed to be "diggers" from the gold fields. We were standing in the dock - where Ned had stood. We tried to look grim.

So winter arrived like an evil change of scenery in Melbourne. 9-10 degrees in the day. We had a  gig in Darwin which involved us getting up at 4am to get to the airport by 5:30 . Oh it was dark, windy and freezing cold.
The flight stopped off in Brisbane and then got delayed for an hour so we had to race to the ABC in Darwin. Oh yes, Darwin in the months June-September is delightful. "The DRY". We left our scarves and coats in the van in the carpark in Melbourne and were getting about hours later in our lightest of shirts.

 (picture taken by Danny Walsh during the week and messaged to us)

We tried to tune into the ABC in our van as we drove to the station but just found a frequency playing Led Zeppelins "Stairway To Heaven". This did in fact turn out to be the actual ABC at Drive Time on a Friday... While we got a few mics sorted the announcer played another track, "LA Woman" by the Doors...
We went with the weirdness.
We played a couple of songs and made our way to the hotel in the middle of town where we were on the 20th floor. Some kind of hawk flew around in the dusk. A dozen of them.

 

On the Saturday we played two sets at the Railway Club, myself on acoustic 12 string and my archtop and Clare on keys. There was also a  drumkit set up so Clare got behind that for a few songs. One was "CODINE" for the late Mike Wilhelm and then a run through of "You're Gonna Miss Me Baby" for the late Roky Erikson.  RIP comrades. Both songs so much fun to inhabit. Otherwise we did a lot of songs from ZIPPA DEEDOO WHAT IS/WAS THAT/THIS?
The sound man told us crazy great stories of conspiracies and evil and the Sydney jazz scene. I was distracted for a minute and all of a sudden he was in the middle of a story about playing in the band at Elton and Renate's wedding in the 80's. He had to hide IN A SAUNA from the bachanaalian goings on.  Luckily a waiter passed trays of food and drinks through every now and again. But the Banks hunting widows to murder? Dunno...

The club has pool tables and an outdoor area which is an atmosphere of cool overhanging vegetation and candles.
We had a  great time playing. I met the kind of people who really love my music. Rough hewn blue collar guys. Truckers with huge hands. Just great, regular people who really connect with my stuff. I spend so much of my time thinking of regulation city hipsters who are just dilletantes for the most part. Like teen pop fans, dizzy for whatever shit is on the merry go round this week. These people come up and hug me and tell me how much they've gotten from our music - for decades. Its flattering, of course, and very enlivening and humbling.

When I put my first book out in 2011 and did some readings in libraries in suburban Melbourne, Newcastle, Maitland and Sydney, the library people would coment on how they'd never seen these kinds of men in their places before. 

We caught up with some friends on the Sunday. Darwin has lots of markets for exotic foods and fruits.  A strange boom and bust of a place. people kept telling us it was in a bust at the moment.

The place seems to be built on hard rock and thats further knitted together by tough mangrove roots.
The sea looks lovely but no one is ever swimming. Crocs, sharks, jellyfish, mangroves. 

It could have been so cool in a downbeat tropical style. Of course it was all flattened by a  cyclone in 1975 and rebuilt. The buildings are all smashed in the wet season and by termites too I guess.

As we drive home at night there are groups of first Australians walking around, however they like. If the lights and power went out here it wouldn't mean shit to them. They walk all over it according to their own ideas anyway. Clare thinks if they want to make Darwin really BOOM they should hand it over to the indigenous people. Less Gold Coast or Miami - make it blacker. Indigenous food, art, culture, time.

There are a couple of pre-cyclone houses intact. All the louvres and timber in the walls revolve to let the breeze through, as well as being on stilts.

With more plane delays it takes us all of Monday to get back to Melbourne - via Sydney. I read more LUCIA BERLIN all the way back.

Melbourne is dark, windy, cold  and the rain is constant.

On the Tuesday, a man shoots four people in Darwin central with a pump action shotgun. Its a town of 140,000 people. Everybody knew him or his family. He's in custody.

On Wednesday the Australian Federal Police raid the ABC  after shaking down a NEWSCORPSE jounalist ( for 7 hours in her home) and a (revolting) 2GB shock jock the previous day. Were they just smoke screens or alibis?


MOST PHOTOS by Clare Moore.

Saturday June 15th-Major Toms, Kyneton(Graney and Moore) SOLD OUT
 

Friday June 21st the Bison Bar, Nambour DAVE GRANEY 
SOLO
 Saturday June 22nd - the Bearded Lady, Brisbane.DAVE GRANEY SOLO

Saturday June 29th - The Caravan Music Club - Bentleigh Special guest Sean McMahon

July 12th - THE GOV - Adelaide.Special guests The Sunday Reeds

Oh, I forgot. I'm keen on doing PARLOUR GIGS. I've done three or four and each have been different and enjoyable. Leaps into the unknown.

People have responded to my previous callouts by suggesting some venues that might appeal but this system is a bit different. People set up the situation/parlour/ backyard/room and invite their friends to come and hear me play. I dont do the setting up. You invite me.
This is an agency/app or system. Basically, with PARLOUR, a person applies via the website and offers to host a show and to organize to get 40-50 people along and I turn up and play. If its in Victoria I can come and play with my guitar and a mic through my amp, you don't need a PA. Elsewhere, we could work around that. I might just play totally acoustic or you could organize a small PA. So far I have played at a winery in an old shearing shed, someones back porch (with PA system and lights and opening act in front of a seated audience) and someones back yard. This is the link https://app.parlourgigs.com/artist/davegraney