TALKING HEADS - Australian Songwriters on Songwriting Chris Matthews

Having already won a Golden Guitar for New Talent Of The Year at Tamworth, and Country Song Of The Year in the Queensland Music Awards, Brad Butcher is no stranger to writing a well crafted song, and in this episode of Talking Heads he gets right into the minutiae of his songwriting process. Enlightening, intelligent and often quite the funny fella, it was an absolute pleasure to have yarn with this master of song.

With a swag of Golden Guitar Awards under his belt, the Independent Songwriter of the Year trophy sitting on his shelf, and a bunch of other accolades from all sides of the industry, Tom Curtain is one of Australia's finest exponents of song. As well as being an absolute legend of a fella, one hell of a horseman and animal whisperer, and with an array of skills far beyond the usual, he has a unique perspective and method of writing, and covers a huge swathe of territory in this episode - it's one not to be missed.

There's not many voices better than Lyn Bowtell, and to go along with it, she's one absolutely phenomenal songwriter. With a list of accolades and awards far too long to get into here, as well as being the Director of the CMAA Songwriting Academy for many years, Lyn is an incredibly generous soul with a passion for sharing the magic of writing to the next generation of Australian writers -  which she does spectacularly in this episode of Talking Heads.

If you ask just about any songwriter worth their salt in Australia about who sets the bar on the craft of songwriting, Michael Waugh's name is usually at the top of the list. His songs peer unflinchingly into the lives of those who have faced misogyny, homophobia, illness, violence and mental health in Australian rural communities – but the stories are lovingly depicted, evoking striking images of funny, real, beautiful, strong and flawed people. Michael was almost the first person who popped into my mind when I thought about getting this podcast underway, and it was an honour and privilege to get an insight into his process and passion for song - emotional, real, honest and thought provoking, this conversation with Michael Waugh really gets to the heart of what it means to be an Australian songwriter.

For the very first episode of Talking Heads, we speak to the one and only Luke O'Shea - Australian Laureate Songwriter, 13x Golden Guitar Winner, Australian Independent Songwriter of the Year, amongst too many more accolades to list here. It's an absolute honour to have this master of song for the very first instalment of this podcast, and I couldn't think of a better way to kick off proceedings.