Hi folks

Wow. The year has just flown by once again. Here we are again getting ready to finish 2018 and looking forward to all that is in store in 2019. We would like to thank everyone that has sent their kind wishes to Annette while she has been unable to sing. It is most appreciated.  Since my return from Australia in early August we have slowly been getting back to performing as a duo. This has included a fundraiser for the Whangarei Special Olympics held at the Kamo Club and a guest artist spot at the Northern Wairoa Country Music Club’s fundraising concert for the Northland Rescue Helicopter held at the Dargaville Club. Both events have raised well over $1000 each.

There was a great turn out for both of these shows with the crowd at each one enjoying the afternoon and really getting into the spirit of the day. Alex Dickson getting a great round of applause for his rendition of “The Gambler” from the audience at the Special Olympics show and also receiving a “near life size” Elvis poster from his good friend Bill Pomare. I would like to mention at this stage how sad we all were to farewell Bill and Fay Pomare who left Whangarei in early November to join their family on the Gold Coast. We will really miss these guys at our gigs. Thank you so much for your support over the years.  

The Dargaville show was ably M.C.ed by Leeanne Dunn, who travelled up from Matamata, with singers from the club adding to the entertainment backed by Bruce Stenhouse and his band, Jim Wallace Snr (a very popular performer), Peter, Jack and Kerry with Ken working the sound. The crowd really getting in to the medley which we now regularly perform at shows.
On the 23^rd of November we did our first evening gig together for quite a few months with a performance at the Whangarei RSA. Once again the crowd was awesome and it was great to see so many familiar faces either happy to sit and listen or out on the dance floor. The following Tuesday we were entertaining for the residents of the Kamo Retirement Village. This was another enjoyable afternoon with everyone singing along to all the old familiar songs.Tuesday evening we were booked to entertain for members of the Whangarei Friendship Club, formerly known as Probus, at their end of year dinner held at the Kamo Club. We would like to thank Gloria and Lyn respectively for inviting us to perform at these two events.

Heading into January we are very excited to have our good friend Allan Webster here in Whangarei performing at the Kamo Club on Wednesday  the  9^thand at the RSA on Friday the 11^th. Allan and his wife Maureen have been wonderful to us when we visit Aussie. Taking care of us and our Aussie dad Dale whenever  we are travelling through.Allan is a seasoned singer/songwriter beginning his career in the music industry back in the sixties as a teenager forming a Rock ‘n’ Roll band with his brother and a couple of mates. They performed alongside the likes of the Beatles and Gerry and the Pacemakers at the Cavern Club. Allan will have his grand daughter, Melody, with him to perform as well. Melody is a very talented singer and has an amazing voice. Don’t miss these shows. There will be dance music so bring your dancing shoes.

On Wednesday the 5^th December we performed our final gig for the year at the Kamo Club Dance Sections Christmas break up. What a great night this was with a good sized crowd enjoying the evening’s music. It was so nice to see everyone out on the dance floor enjoying themselves. Some had even donned a little Christmas bling to celebrate the occasion. You may see a few photos doing the rounds on Facebook. Thank you to Denise and John and the Kamo Club for inviting us to perform. We look forward to being at the club in 2019. And a little shout out to our family members who had ventured out to support us. It was so nice to see you all there.

On the 18^th 19^th and 20^th January we will be at the Marton Country Music Festival. John has a great line up of country artists performing with Headliners, Noel Flynn from Ireland, and our very own fiddle player extraordinaire Marion Burns. It looks as though camping spots are filling fast with no powered sites left at the venue.

Sunday 24^th February we will be in Kawakawa for the Railway concert and on March 23^rd and 24^th we will be joining my cousin Craig Robertson for the 5^th Thames Country Music Festival. Craig is getting together a fantastic weekend of country music. So we look forward to catching up with you all at one of these events.

Finally we would like to thank everyone for your support in 2018. We wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a safe and happy and country music filled New Year.

Take care and remember to keep it country.

Best wishes

Annette and Kim

Hi folks

During July and August we were to travel to Australia to perform at several festivals and shows. As you all are aware now due to health reasons Annette was forced to remain in New Zealand and rather than disappoint our fans in Australia it was decided that I should continue the trip by myself once we had contacted all the convenors and organisers to make sure they would still be happy to have just Kim. Which, thankfully they were. Before I continue I must thank a few people for their assistance during the trip in providing gear, setting up gear, organising gigs, providing accommodation and transportation and a whole lot more. Firstly our Aussie dad, Dale, when we count our blessings in life we count Dale twice. Dale was my driver, roadie and marketing manager to name just a few. Don’t know what we would do without him really. Di Jones and Kerran Keats for the sound system and home style accommodation, Nancy and Reg Walker for all the help in arranging the Geelong gig. Much appreciated. Bidge and Barbara Boyd for the Colac and Camperdown gigs. Very inspiring to see the work you both do. Our thoughts are with the drought stricken farmers around Australia. Maureen and Allan Webster for their friendship and help in making our trip successful. Also very much appreciated. And to Allan and his great band “The Country Gentlemen” Nev, Henry and Drew for their support at Adelaide. That was a blast. Rosina at Club Barham for her understanding and support at the Barham Country Music Stampede. We all wish you the very best in your new endeavour. We will miss you. Gary and Sally at Colonial Motel for the accommodation at Barham. Roz and Craig Giles once again another great festival at Lockington. Jenny Keele for the accommodation at Lockington. Thank you Jenny for supporting Roz and Craig and making us feel welcome in your home. The heated wheat packs were lovely. Sandy and Graeme Smallacombe at Southern Country Music club Adelaide so nice to meet you both. Bev and Beryl at Kyvalley Morning Melodies lovely to catch up again. Thank you to you all for your help and support. We look forward to doing it again soon.

On Thursday the 26th July I landed in Melbourne ready for my three week stay in Australia performing at several festivals and shows. I was met by Dale and we headed up to Barham for the three day festival. Beginning my first set on Friday in the newly renamed Loddon room with a sit down audience was a bit nerve wracking not having my sidekick there to help run the show and tell me what to do. It took a little time to get used to the fact Annette wasn’t there and I had to take it one set at a time. But we made it through and it was great to catch up with old friends and to make some new ones as well. The crowd was wonderful and all asked how Annette was doing and sent her their best wishes for a speedy recovery. Other acts performing at the festival were New Zealand’s Craig Adams and Dennis Marsh both very popular acts at the festival. Well known Australian country singer Alby Pool along with popular Aussie artists Allan Webster, Sandie Dodd, Sharon Benjamin, Marie Hodson and new comers Shelley Jones Band and Danny Stain. Ably supported by “The Southern Cross Band” Anthony, Colin and Bob. Nothing was ever a problem for these awesome guys. It was great to work with you all again. A great weekend was had by all topped off with a hilarious finale that saw some great impersonations, improvisations and costumes take to the stage.

On the Monday I had the Monday Madness to do at the club before heading off. This is a fun afternoon of raffles and music run by the club and is great entertainment especially if you were lucky enough to win a prize. Not this year either for me. From Barham we headed to Echuca and a couple of nights with Di and Kerran who kindly supplied the sound system for the Monday Madness and would also help me out at Kyvalley for the Morning Melodies on Tuesday. A great morning was had by all that attended in support of their local community.

On Wednesday morning we decided to head down to Shepparton as we had a couple of days free before having to head to Lockington. There is a great antique and second hand shop that I wanted to visit again which we duly did. Di had also suggested we visit Yarrawonga and take a look at Lake Mulwala. So once shopping was completed at Shepparton we headed for Yarrawonga. Lake Mulwala is a manmade lake used for irrigation and is part of the Murray River. It is pretty spectacular and well worth a visit. We booked into the motel on the hill and had a chance to regather and take stock ready for the coming week. We made our way back to Echuca the following day stopping and
shopping at Cobram, Tocumwal, where we diverted to take a look at the Blow Hole. This is a hole in the ground said to be around 30mtrs deep and linked to the Murray River. Water flows from it generally when the river is low. Then on to Nathalia and finally ending up back at Di and Kerran’s.

On Friday the 4th August Dale and I headed to Lockington, along with Di and Kerran, as Kerran was also part of Roz and Craig Giles’ festival to be held for the second year at the local community centre. This is a great venue, set out well with plenty of room for sitting and dancing. The local community provided lunches and dinners at a small cost a good fundraiser for the community. My first set was on Friday night and I also had two sets to perform on Saturday. All went well and it was great to catch up with Roz and Craig again. They do an awesome job of organising this festival. Once again it was great to catch up with good friends Rupe Adams, Kinta, Callum Gleeson, Mick Hocking,
James Moore and Larry and Wendy Woods from Country Horizon who were on their music tour and heading up to Tamworth for the festival. Thanks to the “Good Time Band”, Colin, Fergy and Bob and Grant Luhr on sound. We couldn’t stay for Sunday as I needed to be in Geelong for a guest appearance at the Pleasant Sunday Country Music club held at the Sphinx Hotel function room in North Geelong. We had a great afternoon of music and it was awesome to have my cousins Kevin and Jeffrey Stopher there to see me with their wives Faye and Allison and also Dale’s brother Grant and his wife Cheryl came along to support me as well. Once again thanks to Eric Cook for the
invitation and to Reg and Nancy for arranging it all plus the accommodation. Fantastic. Thank you so much. We also had a lovely meal together after the club day. Monday was a free day and we decided to stay around Geelong before heading to Colac. So it was off to Portarlington for a quick look at where Dale’s father used to take the family on holiday. A nice hot chocolate was just the thing to warm up after a brisk walk along the jetty. It wasn’t exactly sizzling. We then headed down to Queenscliffe at the mouth of Port Phillip Bay and the entrance to Melbourne harbour. After a night spent with Grant and Cheryl in Geelong we headed down the Great Ocean Road where we would eventually head in land at Lorne and the next gig at Colac. On the journey down we saw some awesome scenery and got some great photos.

Tuesday evening 7th August saw me at the Colac RSL. Reg and Nancy had traveled down from Lara to support me and Bidge Boyd and his wife Barbara supplied and set up the sound system for me. This was another good night enjoyed by all and a little dancing was had as well with a conga line thrown in for good measure. From Colac we headed to Camperdown for a Morning Melodies on Wednesday organised by Bidge and Barbara Boyd held at the Camperdown footy club. This is another great venue with seating for around 250 people plus. The morning was a sell out as you may have seen by the video Bidge put on Facebook with the audience sending Annette a big HELLO. This
is a regular event run by Bidge and Barbara to raise funds for various charities. The money raised from our show was donated to the farmers drought fund. A very worthy cause at the moment with so many farmers facing difficult times. Well done Bidge and Barbara. Having said our goodbyes and thank you’s for an awesome morning we managed to hit the highway at around 3pm. We had decided to head down the coast again as Thursday was free and my next show was in Millicent on Friday night. We managed to make it to Port Fairy where we found lodgings and once again managed to take stock and get ready for the final burst as it were. Thursday morning we headed to
Millicent to meet up with Maureen and Allan Webster and to prepare for the gig with Allan at the Millicent and Districts Community Club on the Friday night. A small but appreciative crowd turned out to enjoy an evening of country music from “Allanette and Kim” the new duo taking country music by storm. From Millicent we were on the last leg home to Adelaide and a guest appearance at the Southern Country Music Club on Sunday the 12th. The support band for this show was Allan Webster and The Country Gentlemen band, Nev, Drew and Henry. It was a fantastic afternoon with this awesome band. This is also a great venue with a bbq lunch available or sandwiches and cake if you prefer and licensed as well. The dance floor was seldom empty. It was also nice to catch up with David and Marilyn and Joe again. Also some of Dales family attended the afternoon to hear me sing live for the first time so that was pretty cool. Thank you guys. And that brought to an end my Aussie tour. Made it. It was sad goodbyes to Maureen and Allan and the band as they had to head back to Millicent. The next couple of days were spent chilling out and trying to pack. We decided that it may be best to freight some of the stuff home rather than pay for extra baggage. Can’t wait for it to arrive. Early Wednesday morning I flew out of Adelaide heading for home. And that folks was about it. We will catch you all somewhere sometime in the future. Remember to take care and keep it country.

Best wishes
Annette and Kim