In May of 1999 my Aussie partner Bonnie Dakota and I headed for Sydney, Australia to test the shark infested waters of the music industry. On our arrival we checked into a hotel overlooking Botany Bay and got down to the task of contacting record companies, managers, agents, radio stations and venues.

It never ceases to amaze me what a weird and wonderful place this world is. On about the third day of our visit we were in a neighborhood called "The Rocks" when we noticed a shop that dealt in North American native art. We went in and while looking at some carvings the proprietor approached and said "You must be from Canada if you know what those are." My response was "Not only do we know what they are we also know the person who carved them." We talked and when I noticed a guitar behind the counter asked if he was a musician. He said "Yes, my name is Mark Lucas and I'm a singer/songwriter." Mark turned out to be a wealth of information and contacts.

My first real Aussie experience came when we drove through the Blue Mountains to The Jenolan Caves. When we arrived we entered and crawled through narrow passageways until we came to a large cavern called The Cathedral. There with about fifty other folks we were treated to a musical recital of medieval music and songs (part of the Blue Mountain's Music Festival). It was really quite spooky being underground with the bats. On the way back to Sydney we stayed a few days in the mountains and on a cold winter day got to visit the famous Three Sisters.

Then it was off south to see a concert promoter called "Texas Dave" who apparently came by his name for being a fanatical fan of Texas music and through his dedication was actually made an honorary Texan by the Governor of Texas. We first learned of Dave from a record company (one that Mark Lucas recorded for) in Sydney. They suggested that when we went south to Moruya to be sure to look him up. We met with "Texas Dave" one afternoon and learned that he had promoted shows for noted Texas musicians like Townes Van Zandt, Butch Hancock, etc. He is quite a character !

We continued down the coast as far south as Merimbula and on our return trip to Sydney we decided to duck inland from Bega and see some of the countryside. We visited a town named Cooma and it really struck me as cowboy country with it's rolling hills and plains.
On our arrival back in Sydney I performed some showcases at "The Cat And Fiddle" and "The Excelsior." Another interesting find was "Bill And Audrey's Country Jam". It's a weekly jam held in a pub run by Maori folks from New Zealand. It was great to hear and sing some country music and the audience reception was fantastic!

Being from Canada I was totally in awe of the Cockatoos, Kookaburras, Kangaroos, Wallabies, etc. I kept hearing about the poisonous spiders in Australia so every time we were in the bush or grass I must admit I was quite paranoid. Well I guess paranoia breeds manifestation. We were north of Sydney in Newcastle one afternoon and we had just pulled out of a shopping mall when a GIGANTIC spider ran over the hood of the car and across the windshield. It was heading for Bonnie's open window and amid the screams of terror she managed to close the window just a millisecond before it got into the car. Unfortunately the spider tucked up under the top of the window so I immediately pulled to the side of the highway and came to a screeching halt with people honking at my erratic driving. I cautiously climbed out of the car, found a stick, and proceeded to try and flick the nasty visitor onto the highway. After some nervous poking on my part I finally got rid of the beast and as it clambered across the road we were once again on our way. We still don't know what kind of spider it was but the Aussies thought I was crazy to be poking it with a stick in case it landed on me and bit me. A scary wildlife adventure!

With nine days remaining before our departure for Canada we rented a suite overlooking the ocean in Manly. It was great to sit on the balcony with our morning coffee and experience the true ambiance of Sydney with the surf pounding, the surfers trying to catch the perfect wave, and the dolphins slowly swimming past just outside the breakers. PARADISE!

With all the interesting places we visited and the great people we met it was hard to leave Australia and head back to Vancouver. I felt we had just barely begun our adventure.
"NO WORRIES MATES!!! WE'LL BE BACK !!!"

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