Project Description
Interview with
MATT SCULLION
Interviewer – Vicky Hebbs
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Have you always been interested in making music? When did that become a more serious concern for you?
Pretty much as soon as I first picked up a guitar at 16 I was writing songs. I’ve always been quiet prolific but when I first went to Nashville in the late nineties I really started to take songwriting seriously.
Who did you listen to growing up? How has the music of your childhood impacted your work?
Growing up I listed to the radio a lot in the car 70’s, 80’s hits of the day. We had an old commodore sedan with a cassette player in it- a tape got stuck in it and it had a lot of early country artists on it like Kenny Rogers, Slim Dusty, Charlton Pride and Dolly Parton. So for about 6 months that’s what we listened to on long trips and I guess it stuck.
You have just released your single, ‘Aussie As.’ Where did the idea for the song come from?
The initial idea came one Anzac Day dawn service about 3 years ago. I’d just come back from a long stint living in the States and was feeling very caught up in the moment, I remember thinking what a fantastic country I’m from- how blessed am I to be able to come home to this. I’d alway wanted to write a song about how I personally felt about Australia and what it was like to grow up here- coming home was all the inspiration I needed.
Did you enjoy making the music video? Would you make another in future?
Absolutely I loved making the Aussie As video and will always make videos for my singles. Videos let you tell another story that’s sometimes not in the lyrics.
Have you found more motivation after “Our Backyard” won Song of the Year at Tamworth’s Golden Guitar awards last year?
Yes I have. To have a song connect with so many people like Our Backyard did it got me thinking about the next stage in my career as an artist. So I’ve been putting pen to paper writing more about what I know- which is Australia. Hence Aussie As and an album full of Australian themed songs which you’ll hear later on in the year.
Where do you find inspiration to write?
Anywhere and everywhere. I travel a lot for shows- so just looking out the window will spark an idea. Also people say the most uncanny things without realising it so I’ve always got a notepad handy.
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You are touring at the moment – how is that going?
I love touring and I need to do more of it. I do a lot of gigs in around Newcastle where I live- but I’ve got some shows planned in Canberra, Tamworth and a few stints in Central QLD coming up soon. Touring keeps the wheels oiled and the mind ticking.
What can your fans expect from your live shows?
A lot of laughs, a heap of toe tapping and a few tears. My shows are just me, a guitar and a stomp box. I usually do a selection of new songs I’ve been working on, some I’ve written for other artists and a few I’ve had hits with myself, I’ll also throw in a few sing along covers the crowd will know. I try and make it a fun thought provoking show.
If you could pick absolutely anyone to bring on tour with you, whom would you pick and why? (Dead or Alive)
That’s a hard one, but I reckon I’d love to share the road with Paul Kelly. I absolutely love the way he writes and I’m sure I could learn a thing or two.
What else have you got planned for 2019?
Apart from running a monthly songwriter show in Newcastle called “The Scullion Sessions” I’ve been in the recording studio with award winning producer Shane Nicholson putting down songs for my next album which I’m planning on releasing around Aug of this year.
What are your longer-term goals in your music career?
To keep writing and recording songs about this wonderful country and to keep building my fan base.
Finally, a few questions for some quick answers –
FAVORITE:
Album – Warragul- John Williamson
Artist – Paul Kelly & Slim Dusty
Movie – The Castle
Place to visit – Ulladulla and Darwin
Venue to play – Anywhere with an attentive crowd
Food = Mums baked dinners
Drink – Wild Turkey & coke
Person in History – Bob Hawke
Tattoo – (if you don’t have one, one you would get?) Treble Cleft
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BUY ‘AUSSIE AS’ HERE
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TOUR DATES
Wednesday 1st May – The Scullion Sessions – Stag & Hunter Hotel – Newcastle – NSW
Sunday 12th May – Edgeworth Bowling Club – Newcastle – NSW
Thursday 16th May – Wickham Park Hotel – Newcastle – NSW
Friday 17th May – Harmonie German Club – Canberra – ACT (w/ Drew McAlister)
Saturday 18th May – Tourist Hotel – Queanbeyan – ACT
Wednesday 5th June – The Scullion Sessions – Stag & Hunter Hotel – Newcastle – NSW
Saturday 8th June – Smoke in Broke – McNamara Park – Broke – NSW
Wednesday 3rd July – The Scullion Sessions – Stag & Hunter Hotel – Newcastle – NSW
Saturday 13th July – Hats Off To Country Music Festival – Tamworth – NSW
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Check out Matt Scullion below
Website | Facebook
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MATT SCULLION BIO
When Matt heard “Our Backyard” announced as the winner of song of the year at last years Golden Guitar awards in Tamworth, he literally floated from his chair to the stage to rapturous applause. Matt joined co-writers Travis Collins and Amber Lawrence in an acceptance speech, one he had been rehearsing all his life. It was the 7th time he had been nominated but his first win.
Matt is known in the industry as a songwriter to the stars having his songs recorded by the likes of Lee and Tania Kernaghan, Sara Storer, O’shea and Cold Chisel to name but a few- 18 of those going to the NO 1 spot on the country music charts. Songwriting has always been a passion of Matts and he remembers reading the small print on the back of records and realising at an early age the singer didn’t always write the song.
The story telling artists like Tom T Hall and Kenny Rogers were the ones Matt most identified with and when he first heard Cunnamulla Fella by Slim Dusty he was hooked like a barra to a teaspoon lure.
The transition to country music was a progressive one that would take Matt from Darwin to Tamworth and eventually lead him to Nashville where he spent years living out his songwriting dreams and learning from the best music city had to offer.
Growing up in the small south coast country town of Ulladulla Matt joined his first band at 16 and with stars in their eyes and a set list full of rowdy tunes, the foursome played anywhere that would have them from local markets to surf club parties. In fact from the time he first picked up a guitar he was writing songs, though it didn’t come easy Matt was determined to find his own sound and the ears of the industry.
His first EP recorded in 1997 with Darwin Band Tanami was a great Introduction to the world of radio and Matt laughs when he remembers ringing up a radio station to request his single Territory Rain. “I tried to disguise my voice, but the DJ recognised me and said is that you Matt, I replied no it’s Jack and embarrassingly hung up”.
As an artist in his own right Matt is known for hits like Hard Earned Money and Giddy Up off his 2007 album Put It Down To Experience. In fact both those songs earn’t him his first two Golden Guitar nominations and Giddy Up was featured in the Paul Hogan movie Charlie & Boots where Matt also played a cameo role as a bar room singer performing the song.
Around the same time the industry doors started to open and Matt was invited by Lee Kernaghan to write with legendary producer Garth Porter at Rancom studios in Sydney. The 3 way partnership proved very productive and would see Matt have over a dozen songs recorded on 4 albums for Lee, the biggest being Planet Country that spent a record 9 weeks on the top of the charts.
Late last year Matt released Shout The Land A Drink, a heart wrenching song from a farmers perspective that debuted at NO 1 on the iTunes country singles chart. He wrote it while driving through the drought stricken New England region and called on a few close mates James Blundell, Tania Kernaghan, Drew McAlister and Simply Bushed to be part of the project and the Hay Balers were born. All sales of the song were donated directly back to Buy A Bale and has so far raised some much needed cash for the folks doing it tough on the land.
Matt now calls steel city Newcastle home and when not playing along side award winning songwriter Allan Caswell and opening up shows for Drew McAlister he’s busy hosting a monthly songwriter showcase called the Scullion Sessions. It’s 3 stools, 3 well travelled guitars and a night full of great stories. Some of his special guests have included Adam Harvey, Travis Collins, Catherine Britt, Felicity Urquhart, Adam Eckersley, Lynn Bowtell and the list goes on.
Aussie As is the latest in a new crop of songs Matt’s recently written and says it’s one he’s been living his whole life to write. It’s a throw back to his youth but is also a celebration of where Australia is heading culturally. The initial idea came to him a couple years ago on Anzac Day, he’d been spending a lot of time abroad and was really glad to be back home. Matt took the idea to good mate Paul Grierson of the band Simply Bushed and together over the course of many rewrites and strong coffees Aussie As took shape.
He’s employed the trusted services of music producer Shane Nicholson to do what he does best and give the song wings. With layered guitars and a classical string section Aussie As rings like a bell bird and is quiet different to anything Matt’s done before. He says he wanted the video clip to not just pull on the patriotic heart strings but to also represent the multiculturalism that is Australia today. He shot the video at Lizottes in Newcastle with Luke Mcdonagh of White Tiger workshop and called upon the wider community to feature in cameo rolls. One of those was Alfie Carter a 102 year old World War 2 Veteran who proudly wore his medals along with his cheeky smile.
Matt says living in another country has really given him a greater appreciation of his own. It’s like the Eucalypt smells sweeter, the Kookaburras laugh louder and the Aussie lingo is thicker. You tend to take those simple things for granted until you miss them.
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