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| ARCHIVE : Capital News August 2006 Vol 31 No 8 |
DINING PLEASURE
Susan Jarvis
MIKE KERIN is one of the quiet legends of Australian country music.
He was an integral part of SLIM DUSTY’S TRAVELLING COUNTRY BAND, one of the finest fiddlers in the land, and a founding member of the FLYING EMUS.
But until now, Mike has hesitated to step out of the back-line to centre stage in his own right.
After much encouragement from friends and fellow musicians, particularly his wife Liz, long-time friend and bass player/producer MICHAEL VIDALE and ANNE KIRKPATRICK, Mike has finally released his debut album, The Dining Room Sessions.
The album is a reflection of Mike’s laconic, perceptive personality, and a snapshot of his musical influences and passions.
"These are the songs I play and sing for my own pleasure — my lounge room songs, if you like, except we moved them to the dining room in order to record them," Mike said.
The album contains everything from traditional tunes like Sally Goodin and Red Bird to a wonderful version of Loudon Wainwright’s The Swimming Song and Belinda Butler and Leonard McKay’s beautiful song, Land of Dreams.
It’s a diverse, eclectic and extremely appealing collection which reflects the many facets of Mike’s personality — which he admits is never simple or straightforward.
"I wanted a lot of different styles and sounds on the album because basically I get bored listening to the same thing all the time. I make no apologies for this album — the songs are all there because I wanted to record them, because I love them," Mike said.
All but two members of Slim’s long time band, the TCB, feature on the album, as do several Flying Emus. In fact, Mike gathered together IAN SIMPSON, JOHN KANE and Mike Vidale to join him on Sally Goodin — almost a complete Emus reunion.
The two missing TCB members are Rod Coe and Jeff Mercer — Mike had intended to have them both play on the album, but recording schedules kept on preventing it.
"The do seem strangely absent. We worked together for a long time — and still do," Mike said.
Between Slim Dusty commitments, the Travelling Country Band in fact recorded three albums together, and Mike also recorded five albums with the Flying Emus during the band’s six-year reign as the hottest group in country music during the 1980s, during which they took out three Golden Guitars.
Mike says he loved the years with the Emus — formed during a six-year period when Slim was off the road. The band was at the forefront of a new era in Australian country music, but Mike says they weren’t trying to be trendsetters — they were just having fun.
However, it’s his time with Slim that he remembers most fondly, particularly the last 10 years of the King of Country’s career.
"He was just firing. He was an absolute monster on stage. I remember one night in Winton when he was meant to do an hour and after two and a half hours the show finished. It was the best I’ve ever seen him, and it was always a privilege to work with him," Mike said.
It was Slim who gave Mike the nickname "Fettler" — a name he’s been known by in country music circles for many years.
"I used to work on the railways when I was very young. When I started in Slim’s band there were three Michaels, so Slim started calling me Fettler. It’s stuck ever since," Mike said.
Mike has also had the pleasure of working with Slim’s daughter, Anne Kirkpatrick, over the years, and is now touring with her again.
Together with Mike Vidale, he coproduced Anne’s exquisite new album, Showman’s Daughter — in fact, he persuaded her to lay down the first few tracks, and played a big role in making the album happen at all.
"I’m very proud of Anne’s album — I think it’s an amazing piece of work, and I’m pleased I kept at her to do it. Mind you, she paid me back by encouraging me to record mine," he said.
Just some of the many highlights of The Dining Room Sessions are two songs Mike wrote for his children, Triona Akba and Dan’s Waltz.
"Triona used to wander around singing this little song — she still does, in fact. She contributed to the recording by pressing the start button then leaving," Mike said.
"And Dan’s Waltz was probably the easiest and fastest song to record. It went down in one take.
Mike also penned the catchy Hair Goat", which has been added on to Land Of Dreams.
There’s also a very special surprise, a bonus track by Mike’s late father, Michael Kerin Snr.
"It was the last recording he ever made — he passed away a couple of years later. I also play his fiddle on the album — its photo is on the album sleeve — so it felt pretty special to include this track," Mike said.
Other outstanding tracks include Pinetop Mountain, written by Hunter Owens, and the fabulous Hangman’s Reel — a song Mike says he’s "been trying to play for years".
Hunter and Susie Owens also contributed the first track, Heartache Blues.
Spanish Johnny was written by Paul Siebel, who performed at Woodstock.
"It lends a whole new feel to the album. I’ve heard a couple of different versions over the years, but it’s not a well known song. I really like the feel and the period-piece style of the song," Mike said.
Mike wanted to record a Slim Dusty on the album, and eventually chose Two Rats, which Slim recorded many years ago.
"It was written by Denis Surman. It’s an unusual track, and not very well known, but it fulfilled that desire to have a Slim song as part of the recording," Mike said.
Mike is clearly delighted with the final result of his dining room recording sessions.
"I’m happy because the album’s exactly how I wanted it to be. We had a lot of fun doing it, and there was total freedom in the way it was created. For me, that’s the ultimate achievement," he said.
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