AS far as good old-fashioned entertainment went, it didn’t get much better than this.
Sydney-based bush band Swamp Dawkins kicked off their black-soil plains tour at Moree Services Club on Wednesday night and left a couple of hundred people buggered but laughing as they were taught grand chains and cast-offs by lead vocalist Michael Buining.
The night of free entertainment featured a blend of Australian bush music and American hoedown, with plenty of vocals and dance-calling – and just about everything in between.
Swamp Dawkins opened with a pitch-perfect cover of John Mellencamp’s Jack and Diane – and everyone knew from that moment, they were in for a good time.
The tour is a Moree Plains Shire Council Ricochet Community Recovery event, designed to help develop connected, sustainable and resilient communities.
Buining, who plays guitar as well as vocals and dance-calling, performs with Dora Maria on violin, Paul Dengate on bass and James Barton on drums.
“There are a lot of people here tonight who have clearly danced before and strutted their stuff, and there’s a lot of little kids who have never done it before but are having a great time,” Buining said between sets.
“The kids definitely pick it up pretty quickly, and it’s great to see them having fun with their parents and grandparents and important others – it’s really nice to see.
“There are not a lot of things that bring people together and at the end, it’s not about the band, it’s about people having a good time with each other. That’s what makes the night,” he said.
“We love doing what we do, but what makes it work is the people when they come together. They always have such a great time, a real memorable night.”
Buining has the perfect vantage point on stage as he directs old-hands and teaches first-timers.
“We see it all. There are some people who are total naturals and others, when they get in the scheme of things, don’t know their left arm from their right arm,” Buining laughed.
“But everyone gets there in the end and that’s the fun of it all.”
Moree Plains Shire Council community recovery officer, Sandy McNaughton, said the Ricochet Community Recovery events are designed to bring people together.
“As we know, everyone has been through a pretty tough time,” she said.
“Whether it’s been the impact of drought, Covid, or the recent flooding events, for some people it’s been quite tough.
“It’s very important to bring people back together. Some communities can become fractured, or more vulnerable, after being through a series of compounded events, and it’s really important to maintain that social cohesion.
“I think a community that’s connected is a more resilient community, so it’s really important to build that capacity and that resilience.
“There’s no more perfect way to connect people than by joining hands and linking arms and having a knees-up at a bush dance,” she smiled.
Swamp Dawkins, known affectionately as the “swampies”, will next appear at Pallamallawa Hall at 6.30pm on Thursday, September 26.
They’ll perform at the Gurley Hall on Friday, September 27 at 6.30pm and on Saturday, September 28, will be at the Mungindi Long Lunch, where a few hundred people are booked in to dine and be entertained.
The group’s final north-west performance will be at 5pm, Sunday, September 29 at the Garah Hall.
“I’m particularly looking forward to Mungindi,” Buining said.
The tightknit border-town community has tried at least five time to get Swamp Dawkins to the banks of the Barwon.
Each time, disasters have forced cancellations – tragically ironic, given the prime purpose of the Ricochet Community Recovery events is to help people get through tough times.
“They tried to book us a few years ago, but the supermarket had burned down, and they had to cancel,” Buining said.
“They also had the drought, then Covid hit and we got binned because of that. They booked again and the Barwon River flooded.”
Then the mice plague came.
“Everyone was going to be camping out but there were about five-and-a-billion mice around the place, so they had to cancel again.
“Mungindi was hammered by drought, fire, Covid, floods and mice – it will be nice to finally get there and meet everyone,” Buining smiled.
Words: Bill Poulos
Images: Bill and Cindy Poulos
