The Bogle Blurb
By Eric Bogle
6 July 2001, South Australia
Hello all -Well, I've finally, grudgingly, accepted that we are now living in a New Millenium, and have purchased a horrendously expensive I-Mac computer in an effort (probably in vain) to keep myself relevant and up-to-date. All a bit late I fancy, but I shall endeavour to master a few basics in order to a: keep you in touch with what's happening in Bogle World, and b: to justify the capital expenditure.
As, hopefully, my computer skills increase, this newsletter will get a touch more professional and, if I'm lucky, a lot more interesting. But as of now, my skills are of the basic variety, and so therefore must be the content and layout of this newsletter. So, lead on Mcduff (or in this case, Mcintosh).
So, what's happening in Bogle World? Well, not much really. It's Winter across in Australia, and I'm sort of hibernating. On 25th of August I leave Australia to commence a North American tour with one Mr. John Mcdermott, singer of Irish Ballads, consumer of fine malt whiskies, and general all-round good egg. I'm doing the opening act for John's concerts, and am very much looking forward to it. In many ways it will be a musician's dream tour- easy work, good money, absolutely no responsibilities, and the prospect of some wildly enjoyable times. Heaven! This will be the first tour I've ever done where I will not have any financial or organisational input into the tour. I'll just be a hired gun. I'll try not to shoot myself in the foot of course, but I must say it will be a role I'll relish. The dates and venues for the tour are of course elsewhere on this web-site. (See Tour Dates - ed.)
Next weekend, on the 14th of July, I will be attending the Annual Conference of the Humanist Society of Australia. For some inexplicable reason they've voted me Australian Humanist of the Year, and I go to accept my award next Saturday. Regrettably, as I understand it, there is no cash money involved. I've looked up Humanist in the dictionary, and I sort of qualify, so I'll try not to blush when I make my modest, self-effacing acceptance speech. I think they want a song as well, so I'd better take my guitar along.
To fill you in on my year so far, I've done a couple of small tours in Australia, plus most of the major Folk Festivals that we have across here, Port Fairy, The Blue Mountains, and the Canberra National Festival, which was, to my mind, the most enjoyable. All the festivals have their own unique flavour, but Canberra is the most diverse of the festivals I think, and not so enmeshed in the star-system programming that lead other festivals into a never-ending cost spiral. But that, as is everything else that appears in this blurb, is only my opinion.
I also appeared at Tamworth Country Music Festival in January, Australia's biggest country music festival. I've appeared there about 6 times in total, and enjoy it. In many ways I think country music, at least in this country, to be the true folk music of Australia. But then, what is Folk Music? I know the answer of course, but modesty forbids me to inflict my theories on your good selves............
Throughout all this toing-and-froing I have of course been trying to write some new songs, with limited success. In fact to date I have only written 2 new songs this year. Are they any good? Not a question a songwriter can answer of course, it is impossible for us to be objective about our songs. About the only gauge we can use as to their worth is public acceptance or rejection of the songs. Some people would see this as a fairly unreliable yardstick, but I have no qualms about using audience reaction as a clue to whether a song is worth singing or not. Songwriting should be all about communication, and if that's not being achieved by a particular song, then the song should be looked at fairly carefully, and either re-worked or scrapped.
As usual though I do have plenty of ideas for new songs, and am working on a couple at the moment. As has been the case many times in the past, the impetus for the songs has come from people who write to me with their stories. The song I am working on at the moment has a fairly heavy subject, typical Eric Bogle fare, about parents coping with the death of their children. In my letter file I have no less than three letters from people who wrote to me about this most heartbreaking of situations. One from a mother who lost her baby at four months, a cot death (SIDS -ed.), one from a father who's son killed himself, and one from a father who's son died in a car crash. Pretty heavy stuff I know, but these people write to me in the hope that maybe I can give them some small voice, or comfort, or immortalise their dead kids, I don't really know why they write, but they do and I have to respond. All those letters have a common theme, aside from the grief, and that is that friends and even family tend not to talk about these dead kids, in an effort to spare their parents further pain, but by doing so only deepen the pain and in effect kill these kids a second time. That's the approach I will take with the song I think. I can only hope I get close.
On a lighter and more personal note, my wife Carmel & I continue to enjoy good health, although I am still smoking too much as usual. God, do I love that nicotine! I actually got a prescription from my doctor for the new anti-smoking wonder drug Zyban, but have heard mixed stories about it's side effects, and so far have not started the course. And if I do give up smoking what will happen to that smoky, sexy voice of mine? Will my career be over?
That's it for now folks. I don't know how regular this newsletter will be, fairly regular I hope, but of course no doubt tours will get in the way, but I'll try and keep you up to date of the goings-on in the happiest kingdom of them all, BOGLEWORLD! And once I get more gee-gaws for this infernal machine, I hope to include photos (nothing smutty of course) and even some music. Watch this space (But not for too long)............
All the best
ERIC
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