Firestone

Andrew Hull and Tonchi McIntosh

Telling the story of Louth on the Darling River through an incredible love story and the monument that glows in the outback sunset, Firestone is a unique Australian album.

This 2002 collaboration with songwriters Tonchi McIntosh & Andrew Hull is a festival favourite that weaves poetry and song into a contemporary sound-scape to tell a story that defies belief.

This evocative journey along the Darling River will have you packing your bags to head West and see this amazing spectacle for yourself.

 

The CD booklet includes all lyrics and an amazing story printed inside.
Price – $24.95 + postage and handling

Western Stream

A brand new release from Andrew Hull, the Bard of Bourke, this album is set to become an instant classic and sees Andrew’s memorable poetry performed with musical accompaniment. Produced by Leigh Ivin and featuring a host of fine Australian musicians this album breaks new ground for spoken word and for Australian folk music and is a must have for any Australian collection.

Price – $24.95 + postage and handling

 

 

Sample Track from Western Stream Album – West

[podcast]http://www.bushroots.com/podcasts/West-Andrew-Hull-Song3b.mp3[/podcast]

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Live Performance – Pise’ Walls

Song Titles

1. Gulargumbone
2. Cambell
3. West (Sample provided)
4. Peter Potter
5. Where The Waters Used To Run
6. My Darling
7. Pise Walls
8. The Pages River
9. Family, Food and Chooks
10. S30°57′  E150°58′
11. Where the waters used to run (reprise)

Credits

Recorded at the Tobacco Shed, Moore Creek, Tamworth, January – June 2008,
except * Recorded at the Gidgee Guesthouse, Bourke, December 2007.

All songs written by Andrew Hull (S30°57’ E150°58’ created by Leigh Ivin & Adam Bodkin). Produced, engineered & mixed by Leigh Ivin.

Andrew Hull: Words, whistles, acoustic and electric guitars.
Leigh Ivin: Electric & acoustic guitars, pedal & lap steel guitars, dobro & glissando guitar.
Ronny Rindo: Drums and percussion.
Adam Bodkin: Electric and double bass.

Featuring:
Gleny Rae: Fiddle (Also string arrangement on Pise Walls with Leigh Ivin).
Shaun Butcher: Banjo.
Chris Wilson: Harmonica.

Thanks

Thanks … to La Famiglia Rindo for allowing us to set up camp and bang and strum things well into the night. To Ronny, special thanks for your fine musicianship and dedication to this project and assistance well beyond the call of duty.  Boddo, likewise, your presence on this album is one of its great enablers.  Chris, Gleny and Shaun a sincere thanks for your generous contribution and supreme professionalism. Also to Libby and Kate for coffee, support and help, John Lee for the Focusrite, Toni Swain for the loan of that glorious dobro, Chris and Kristy for letting us invade your house and Draney for the inspired artwork.

Thank you to Melissa for giving me the space to do this project and all others who have supported it along the way. Finally, to Leigh for taking this idea from my front verandah to its full realisation. I cannot imagine this project ever happening without the rare combination of skill, talent, vision, persistence and attention to detail which you posess. Thank you.

Featured Photo – Cookie at Louth Races

Featured Photo – Gum Swamp

Featured Photo – Gunderbooka Landscape

West – People and Places

[audio:Bourke.mp3]

Poems by Andrew Hull

A recently released compilation of poems about the people and places of Western NSW. Simply entitled ‘WEST’ the book contains poetry from Coonamble to the corner country, and from the Paroo to the floodplain touching all points in-between.

This collection of poetry portrays his deep love for the people and country of Western NSW and updates the ledger on a remote region that is vital to the National psyche and the way in which Australians view themselves.

For any reader with even the most remote links to the West, this book is a ‘must have’.

Price – $24.95 + postage and handling

 

Bourke Blog

Do you live in Bourke, or are from Bourke, or have you been to Bourke. Let us know what you think of about this outback town and it’s surrounding areas.

Forbes Blog

Do you live in Forbes, or are from Forbes, or have you been to Forbes. Let us know what you think of about this great town.

The Tucker Box

The recipes in this blog are for the most part, real recipes that have been used by the authors for years. They are all very simple to make and use basic tucker box ingredients. The meats can be bought from a butcher shop and the rest from any supermarket.

If you are a real novice at cooking, then start with something easy like “Burnt Water Stew” for a step by step guide to making a simple stew using only meat and veggies with no added herbs and spices. You will be surprised at the quality of the meal.

Even though we can cook up a storm in the camp oven, using all sorts of herbs and sauces and such, the simple wholesome flavour and the satisfaction of making such an easy tasty recipe never tires.

Here is a suggestion of “Tucker Box” ingredients that would be useful to have with you for making these recipes.

What You Need

• Sense Of Humour
• Plain Flower
• Self Raising Flour
• Corn Flour
• Bread Crumbs
• Corn Crumbs
• Salt
• Sugar
• Mixed herbs
• Garlic
• Tomato Sauce
• Worcestershire Sauce
• Chilli Sauce
• Spuds
• Onions Pumpkin
• Tomatoes
• Tin peas
• Tin corn
• Zucchini
• Lemons
• Meats

 

As we have said above, most of the meat in this book can be simply bought from any butchers shop. The exceptions are the “Bardi Grubs” and the Yabbies. Advice is given later on how to catch Bardi Grubs. For the yabbies, most fishing shops sell opera house type traps that are built to the specification laws of the Fisheries Department and they are excellent to use. Simply place a bit of meat or a piece of soap into the bait net in the trap and throw into the water. These traps are great for overnight yabby catching expeditions as you can be practicing some camp oven cooking while you wait for the trap to fill.

The other type to use is the “Dilly”, which is looks like a butterfly net without the handle, you just tie your bait in, tie a rope to your trap, and then toss it into the water. Check it every five minutes by lifting straight up quickly and smoothly. Centrifugal force will hold the yabbies in the bottom of the net. These are good for catching yabbies as they don’t take much time to start working. Check the Fisheries Department for numbers of traps and Dillies allowed per person, these figures change now and again.

Aboriginal peoples in this country have eaten Bardi Grubs and the more widely known Witchety Grubs since time began. Our modern day palettes have been educated to be repulsed at the thought of this, however, we can assure you that once the squeamishness is overcome you will find a food source that is not only delicious but extraordinarily high in protein. A relatively small amount can go along way energy wise.

If you use more energy collecting food than you gain in nutritional value by eating it, then I’m afraid you are going to starve to death. This happened to a few of the earlier explorers.

The best way to find Bardi’s is to find a local who knows what he is talking about. No doubt he will be in the local pub, so you will obviously have to do quite a bit of research in the pub on this matter. Basically catching them, though simple enough, is a bit of a bush art and is best learnt by demonstration.

Once a “Bardi Tree” has been found, chip away at the ground surface below until you find the holes. These could be a meter or more in length and will have a fat grub at the bottom. Thread a bit of wire with a little ball of wool tied to the end down the hole until you feel a bit of resistance at the end. This is the grub, just dangle the wool around his face until he gets cranky and grabs it, then in one smooth motion slip him up his tunnel and over your shoulder in one careful pull. It is really impressive to watch some of the old timers doing this, and you will have respect for the craft yourself after you have ripped the heads of half a dozen perfectly good Bardi’s.

 

Ronnie Wilson

Camp Oven Cleaning & Maintenance

Never wash an oven unless really necessary and never ever use steel wool or a harsh scour. Always clean as soon as possible after use and if you’re not going to use it for a while rub a thin film of oil over the inner surface before storing.

When cleaning an oven use newspaper if possible and just keep wiping it out with fresh sheets until clean. This will bring it back to its dull black protective layer without taking it off, then just throw the newspaper into the fire as you go and the washing up is done.If absolutely necessary use warm soapy water and a soft cloth.

Another camp oven cook we know called Tiny, told us a story about his pride and joy. An oven he owned for twenty years and in that time it had never been washed. Well anyway his mate was going camping with the missus one night and he wanted to have a go at cooking a roast in a camp oven and so he borrowed Tiny’s oven. He wasn’t real keen to lend it but he knew these people would look after it and bring it back.

A couple of days later they brought it back all right, with many thank you’s in parting the mate said:

“Oh by the way me an the missus give it a good cleaning for you and I tell you Tiny it was bloody hard work, I ended up getting all that black stuff off though with my angle grinder and now it is good as new”.

Then they drove off in a cloud of dust leaving Tiny standing there with mouth gaping in horror at the loss of twenty years of baked dinners. Sure enough when he lifted the lid he found a bright and shiny new metal surface on his oven.

So put your camp oven on the list with your chainsaw and outboard motor of things that never get lent even to your best mate.

Just remember that a camp oven will not wear out from use only from neglect.

Ronnie Wilson

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