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www.countrymusichalloffame.com.au cnr. Peel & Murray Streets, (P. O. Box 1842) Tamworth, NSW 2340 Phone 02 6766 9696

NEWSLETTER – BITS ‘N’ PIECES President: Secretary: Eric Scott 46th EDITION - DECEMBER 2016 Christine Matthews

Hello again from the team at the Australian Country Music Hall of Fame, and welcome to our new secretary, Christine Matthews.

Our Annual General Meeting took place on Tuesday 20th Dcember. It was later than usual, because of work on the long overdue rewrite of the ACMF constitution.

PRESIDENT'S REPORT - 2016This past twelve months has seen us settling in to our new circumstances and building. We still have had no contact from TRC regarding our tenancy and the matter of a peppercorn rental as we requested before we moved from 93Brisbane Street premises. At the moment we are able to addall admission fees to our account, which gives us the ability to work on further developments like lighting. There have already been conversations with Council regarding our need for very special lighting to replace the existing powerful lighting we inherited from the previous tenant, the Visitors Information Centre. Not only is it powerful, but very destructive to textiles and pictures on display. This coming year should see us further investigating badly needed top grade adjustable LED lighting that has as close to zero Infra Red and Ultra Violet components as possible. We should beable to contribute to this costly, but necessary, progress towards a fully professional archive and museum.

Also looking to the future, last year we received a most generous offer of assistance by Supercool Asia Pacific. They have donated the specialised equipment required to monitor both temperature and (just as important for preservation of textiles and other artefacts) humidity levels inour archive rooms and display spaces. I am pleased to report that the technical kit has been received and installed by volunteer Gary Collins who did a great job with the installation. We are very grateful indeed to Supercool C.E.O.Mark Mitchell and Jon Mitchell for their generosity.

Since the instigation of the ACMF over 20 years ago, there have been changes in legal requirements for constitutions and certainly in the way organisations operate. A good example is society's use of electronic communications and the impact of the Internet. Add to this the fact that almost a quarter of a century has passed since our present constitution was written. Over those years, it has had a number of additions and changes and in today's world it is pretty outdated and unnecessarily convoluted. This year a great deal of work has gone into updating our present constitution. At the end of November, Michael Huxley,

recently retired Chief Executive Officer of Museums and Galleries, New South Wales, completed the constitution re-write to our template. In the mail, all members should have received a copy of the revised constitution – version 8.3 – which of course complies with present legislation and will improve the smoothness and stability of the ACMF's governance. The board has adopted this constitution, but forit to be brought in to effect, it must be presented to the general membership later in this meeting.

I would like to express the current board members and my sincere thanks to Tamworth Regional Councillors, TRC properties department and Bridget Guthrie, the Art Gallery Supremo, for their support through this year of development.

Of course, I must say thank you to the volunteers at the Hall of Fame, for their huge support. They are rather few in number, but they make up for that with “full on” support for what we do. Thank you all, and may you have a Happy and safe Christmas 2016. Eric Scott (President)

THE ERIC WATSON LITERARY AWARDA big crowd of friends and country music supporters celebrated the presentation of the ACMF’s coveted “Eric Watson Literary Award” to writer Monika Allan in Sydney recently. It was held in the Randwick Library in Sydney as Monika had been unable to attend the announcement in Tamworth in July, because of ill health.

Opening the Presentation, ACMF Patron, Max Ellis, said Monika’s book, which was the basis for the Award, was about the Tamworth Country Music Festival and the artists who supported it. It had been a significant milestone in the

recorded history of Australian country music. In accepting the trophy from Country Music legend, Joy McKean, Monika said she was so proud to have been selected as only the fourth recipient of the prestigious Award and she thanked ACMF for considering her work. In 1988 Monika wrote her book entitled “The Tamworth Country Music Festival”. It was the first definitive book about the Festival. Monika also wrote extensively for other mainstream publications including “The Age “ newspaper, an article in Angus and Robertson’s “ Almanac & Book Of Facts” and an entry on Australian Country Music for the “Oxford Companion to Australian Folklore”, published by Oxford University Press. Mr Ellis saidthat Monika had been awarded the honour because of the quality of her research and the strength and clarity of her writing and the degree to which her work has been quoted and praised.

Monika's furry friend “Twinkles” proudly stands guard over the “goodies.”

HANDS OF FAME INDUCTEES - 2017The 2017 awardees presentation will take place at the museum on Saturday 21st January at10.30am. Please accept our invitation to be in the audience. We will be announcing the country music identities to have their imprintsadded to the “Hands of Fame” or be elevated to the “Broadcasters’ Hall of Fame.” Our MC will be Wayne Horsburgh with entertainment by the “Rattling Boney Brown Sisters” with “Gorgeous Grannies of Goonoo Goonoo” line dancing group and possible performances by the Inductees.

HOLIDAY VISITORSFolk on holidays visited us from all points of Australia and Washington, Detroit & Texas USA. With a sprinkle from New Zealand and a couple from Ontario, Canada. Our mini International connection display always adds interest for them, and Geoff Mack’s motor bike is well remembered by them from Geoff's international hit “I’ve Been Everywhere.”

*********************Another very interesting person to arrive at the Hall of Fame in mid October was Roslyn Russell, Chair of UNESCO Australian “Memory of the World Committee.”The visit was an eye opener for her to see so much history of our country music heritage already rescued and archived for the general public to see and admire. Hand made costumes of the 1930s

through to the saved sides of the Buddy Williams truck still ingood order, rescued from a back garden in the the early 2000s.

Roslyn’s complimentary remarks brought smiles of appreciation to our Curator Judy Loffel and volunteers. We enjoyed your company and hope you visit us again sometime. The reason why we are so thrilled at Roslyn's interest in what we are doing in the Australian Country Music Hall of Fame can be best explained by looking at the objectives of this world wide organisation.

The vision of the Memory of the World Programme is that the world's documentary heritage belongs to all, should be fully preserved and protected for all and, with due recognition of cultural mores and practicalities, should be permanently accessible to all without hindrance.

The mission of the Memory of the World Programme is:

• To facilitate preservation, by the most appropriate techniques, of the world's documentary heritage. This may be done by direct practical assistance, by the dissemination of advice and information and the encouragement of training, or by linking sponsors with timely and appropriate projects.

• To assist universal access to documentary heritage. This will include encouragement to make digitized copies and catalogues available on the Internet, as well as the publication and distribution of books, CDs, DVDs, and other products, as widely and equitably as possible. Where access has implications for custodians, these are respected. Legislative and other limitations on the accessibility of archives are recognised. Cultural sensitivities, including indigenous communities' custodianship of their materials, and their guardianship of access will be honoured. Private property rights are guaranteed in law.

• To increase awareness worldwide of the existence and significance of documentary heritage. Means include, but are not limited to, developing the Memory of the World registers, the media, and promotional and information publications. Preservation and access, of themselves, not only complement each other - but also raise awareness, as access demand stimulates preservation work. The making of access copies, to relieve pressure on the use of preservation materials, is encouraged.

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A very quiet visitor, wearing a stylish black hat on his head, who “snuck” in to view the Hall of Fame and its display of country music history, was Peter Garrett (remember him as aLabor Party member? Or better still “Midnight Oil”.) One of our volunteers remarked to him on his departure “don’t I know your face from somewhere?” The reply was “Ah yes, Peter Garrett” with an extended arm for a hand shake. He enjoyed his brief visit while passing through Tamworth and congratulated us on a very interesting history exhibition.

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Visiting performing artist Jerry Salley and his wife from Nashville, America, called in on a private break in his schedule to take a look at Australian country music history and thoroughly enjoyed his walk back through time.

DONATIONS Due to their office relocation and the new age of digital technology the Fairfax organisation have donated all their paper archive material of Capital News. A big thanks from

our Archive department.

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More item’s of interest were received from Berice & Arthur Blanch, Deseree Crawford, and Kathy Thomson Kettle.

There will be more to tell you in the next issue as we have had phone promises for January drop offs during the Festival. Wow .. the message has been heard and people are answering the call for history to be preserved. Fantastic!

CHANGE IN MEMBERSHIPWith our updated constitution, the board of directors has restored the original membership period to twelve months ending 30th June each year. To make it fair for all for this changeover period, new members joining from the 10th January 2017 will be members until 30th June, 2018, and those existing memberships that are due to be renewed before next June will remain members until 30th June this year.

VALESadly the country music community lost a few more of its folkduring the last three months.

10th July 2016 – Michael “Mick” Danaher, aged 82 years,

in Ipswich, Qld. A Queenslander by birth, he later became employed with the Commonwealth Bank, then as an accountant but also Qld entertainer known for his “Remembrance of Gene Autry” concerts and charity work; all aspects of a man very talented in many fields of life includingcricket, rugby, tennis, golf and European history and culture.

12th October, 2016 – Judith “Judy” Johnson, in her younger days on stage performing as Judy Dulhunty (later Johnson); the daughter of the famous showman Larry Dulhunty. Judy entertained on Larry’s travelling shows around Australia. You may remember her as the “limbo”girl on stage.

20th November, 2016 – Wesley “Wally” White aged 86 years. A bushman/stockman with singing and writing a serious part of his life. “Those Battered Rodeo Boots”, “Mary’s Garden” and “Vietnam” were his big sellers. He was associated with the beginnings of Tamworth Branch Modern Country Music Association and its rise to the Capital Country Music Association. “Wally” recorded for CM Records, Dubbo.

22nd November - John Vaughan passed away. He was one of the two original founders of the “Heritage Hall” Museum, Tamworth. A solicitor by career he also was much involved with country music and wrote, played and sang genuine Australian country music and later recorded for Hadley Records. John played and was associated with the ukulele clubs in Australia and USA.

GRATEFUL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORSAs always, we sincerely thank the businesses and individuals who contribute in so many different ways to the work

of The Australian Country Music Hall of Fame

Amber Lawrence Noel Smith Ron Kelly