Sold everything I own for just a song

songSo anytime you want, babe.

Oh.

You can come around, yeah, yeah.

Don't you leave it too late.

You just might find me gone.

Oh, listen out to the wind, babe, and listen out to the rain.

As you do.

Yeah.

And that was about it.

I mean, look, if you want to go way back, I mean, our little cover band opened for Ian when he was doing his Matchbox tour, but he wouldn't remember that.

Really? Matchbox, sorry.

And...

Yeah, we were in a little covers band and we did about three or four dates through the North Coast with him.

But I mean, that was different back then.

But I also understand we might hear a little something from you today as well.

Yep.

But we w- we were decided, uh, Nash and I said, "Let's make a covers record.

Let's have some fun." And I thought I'd get some of my friends to come up and be a part of it.

But when Don walked in, I could see him through the window.

And then I see Ian walk in behind him, and I went, "Is that Ian Moss that he's got, he's dragged up here with him?" And next thing you know, Ian's singing in the control room.

And Clinton, when you can hear that voice doing harmonies with you out there, I said, "Can you please invite Ian in to sing with me for real here?" 'Cause this sounds so nice.

Next thing we've met for the first time, shook hands in the studio, and we're face to face singing that song.

Yep.

Yeah, I'm going, did he bring Mossy with him?

What's the go? And I sort of was singing a song and I was doing Dark End of the Street because Nash Chambers and I were doing this beautiful old covers record.

And then I can hear this beautiful harmony coming through the talkback.

And I said, is that Ian now singing on my track? I said, can you please ask him to come in here and sing on it for real? So that's where we first met,

Okay.

I think Ian and I just really love to play and I think it's one of those things where, you know, when you look at people play together, there's nowhere to hide behind a couple of acoustic guitars.

So there's a lot of bonding over that.

I really, really love it.

Let's hit it, boys.

At the dark end of the street.

That is where we always meet.

Hiding in shadows where we don't belong.

Living in darkness to hide our wrong.

You and me, at the dark end of the street.

You and me.

Take us for a walk, Ian Moss.

[laughs]

"What's the go?" And I, I sort of was, was singing a song, and I was doing Dark End of the Street, 'cause A- Nash Chambers and I were doing this beautiful old covers record.

And then I can hear this beautiful harmony coming through the talk back, and I said, "Is that Ian now singing on my track?" I said, "Can you please ask him to come in here and sing on it for real?" So that's where we first met-

Okay.

I think Ian and I, um, just really love to play, and I think it's one of those things where we, you know, when you j- when you look at people play together, y- there's nowhere to hide behind a couple of acoustic guitars.

So there's a lot of bonding over that.

We really, really love it.

So, um, we just really enjoy just being able to get out there and make a noise.

Gee, we are good at putting on country music festivals in Australia, aren't we?

We sure are.

We're playing two this year, actually.

We're doing one.

We're doing Denny Ute Muster and we're doing Savannah in the Round.

Now, I don't know whether Savannah really is classed as just a country sort of a thing, but Ian fits into all of it.

I mean, you just have him along and we just get on stage and it ends up being the best time.

Always keen and willing to help out.

By that stage, uh, Troy invited Don up, invited me and then what happened then?

Well, and Ian gets out of the car, I'd never met him before.

And I'm thinking, "He's the Don Walker's brought bloody Ian here." Anyway, Ian walked in and, and they had the, the control room turned on with a microphone and I could hear Ian singing on my song that I was singing on.

And I, and I said, "A- Ash, can you just send Ian in here to sing for real, if you don't mind?" This is like, I, I'd never met him.

And so Ian came in and next thing you know he's warbling on the song.

We're like face-to-face here having a good old sing song.

And it ended up being that old song, Dark End of the Street, which is an old, um, Percy Sledge song, and that's the first single from the live record as well.

[laughs]

And, and your mum suggested that you go and live with your dad for a bit full-time in Sydney.

Yeah.

M- Mum, Mum gave me these grown-up decisions, and I bloody don't know why.

But we're driving along Rusworth Road in South Grafton, and she said, "I know you're not happy here.

I see the sadness in your face every time you arrive back at this flat from school," that we were living at.

Now, my stepfather would say, "Would you stop calling your grandparents' house home? 'Cause this is now your new home." And it used to break my heart because it was never gonna be home for me.

Mum, at that stage, um, was pregnant or either had had my beautiful sister, Michelle, and she gave me this opportunity to, to move to Dad, and, and of course, I was gonna say yes.

That's a credit to him that he would go there with you, I think.

And you talk about it as a performer, like you getting sick takes you out and that affects... um any of your tour stuff uh what's it like to like constantly be engaging with people too like you're caring for yourself but you also got to care for the other people around you

Well, you're right, Norrie.

I think, like, I was actually booked to go out and play Parchima in Alice Springs two years ago when the late, beautiful Rhoda Roberts was the person that was, you know, curating that.

And I came down with COVID and I just felt really responsible, I think, at that moment.

I said to Ring, Rhoda, and just said, look, I just can't go out there because I want to be responsible.

I could never forgive myself if you spread it throughout the community out there, especially in the elders sector too.

So it's a responsibility.

And for mob now who want to get ready for winter, where can they go for more info? Like is there a website, fact sheets or the GP?

Um, Troy, how did you two get together in the first place?

Look, this is actually the mark two of the Together Alone tour.

And, um, look, it was a fair while ago.

We worked out yesterday when we were doing some, some yarning that it was 22 years ago we first met properly.

But, you know, I was making a record with Nash Chambers up on the, up on the Central Coast, and it, it got to the stage where I thought to myself, "I'm gonna, gonna invite some friends." So I invited Don Walker up from Chisel to come and sing on a Hank Williams song because we both love those old country tunes, and he said, "Well, I- I've got Ian here.

Would you mind if I bring him up for a run?" And then I'm up there, I'm singing on a Dan Penn song, uh, Dark End of the Street, and I had the, the talk back accidentally left on while I was singing, and I could hear Ian-

Talk to us about why this is on your list.

Look, I had, um, some older cousins that were right into blues, and I hadn't really been, you know, exposed to it a lot.