Kristina is a professional musician. She loves Australia and this year become a permanent resident. She was previously Los Angeles based, and spends her time travelling the world attending festivals. She particularly loves our Sunshine Coast hinterland area.

Jessiah (bottom right) is a Mapleton boy. He learnt his first guitar tune when he was four, was taught ‘Wild Thing’ by a 7 year old! and he hasn’t stopped playing since. He is currently completing a Bachelor of Popular Music at Griffith University on the Gold Coast.

Both Kristina and Jessiah use song writing as story telling, although Kristina spins a very good yarn as well.

The evening starts at 6:30 with a BYO everything picnic dinner and the concert starts one hour later at 7:30pm. Our regular attendees ensure they arrive in

good time to meet other members of the audience in the rowdy pre- concert period. We have found this format to be very, very popular. Montville Hall Fri 6th Jan 6:30pm. Sat 7th Jan 6:30pm.

BYO everything. Tickets on sale now $25 (all concession) $200 for a table of 10.

For more information phone Chris and Danny 5445 7410. Tickets must be pre-purchased to secure a table.

Many will remember the band’s distinctive sound, featuring hammered dulcimer, mandolin, guitars and bodhran (with the occasional hurdy-gurdy and keyboard). They often performed their Scottish-themed nights at the Celtic Tearoom of Maleny.

In the five years since the group’s last appearance, Dale Jacobsen has become a full-time writer (her novel, Union Jack was launched at Rosettas a couple of months ago), During discussions on fund-raising ideas for her bowls club, she suggested holding a Burns Night, complete with haggis, piper and all the trimmings.

The line-up for Hammer On! will be a little different from the past: John McGregor, with his broad Scottish accent and bodhran is still there, as is Dale on her hammered dulcimer and concertina. Joining them will be Paul Canon and Sue Tanner who often perform around the range, and Lee Megyeri on keyboard and hurdy gurdy.

So, dust off your kilt (or anything tartan) and come along for a once-only encore performance of Hammer On! at the Maleny Bowls Club on Saturday 21 January. Tickets, available at the Maleny Bowls Club or the Maleny Newsagency, cost $28 per person which includes dinner and show. A night of FUN is guaranteed.

Enquiries phone Dale 5494 4046 or email: dale@dalelornajacobsen.com.

8 Ball Aitken is authentic – a real deal character who rattles the roof, stomps the planks and gets his audiences whooping and hollering along in a frenzy of pure fun. 8 Ball Aitken comes to the Beerwah Hotel on Saturday February 11 at 8pm.

He takes a swampy, alt.country/blues turn at the country music capital of Australia, recording in Tamworth’s famed Enrec Studio, producing and playing every instrument on the album himself – including guitars, slide-guitars, banjo, harmonica, bass and percussion.

The first single and music video from The Tamworth Tapes is Rogue Pony which is released at the same time as the release of his fourth album on February 18.

Teaming with American-born blues harmonica player Doc Span in 1990, the pair enjoyed success and won numerous awards in performance and recording. Together, these travelling bluesmen – Doc Span and Ross Williams – performed at almost every major festival in Australia and work regularly up and down Australia’s East coast.

Ross’ masterful understanding of the blues spans decades and his sensitive and soulful guitar work offers a faultless fusion of swamp, blues and jazz.

A ten year partnership with Doc Span led to several albums and awards, including Entertainer of the Year, winners of the Noosa Song Contest (Lazy Noosa Sunday) and a Sunnie Award for their collaboration, “ The Last Train”.

Doc Span has played with Oz blues luminaries like Andy Cowan, James T, Fiona Boyes, Jan Preston, Lil’ Fi, and Kevin Borich. He’s played most major music festivals across Australia, thousands of live performances and dozens of recording sessions.

Doc and Ross are at the Caloundra Surf Club on Sunday January 22 at 2.30pm.

Kicking off the month for “Roots, Beats and Special Treats” on Sat January 7, fresh from their tour of WA, Caravana Sun (pictured below) make their first Palmwoods appearance.

Building a reputation for first-class live shows laden with dance worthy “boppy” reggae grooves and down to earth soulful lyrics, the close-knit high-energy surfing troupe has charmed audi¬ences (under the moniker CARRA) at various festivals including Peats Ridge, Sydney Blues & Roots, Bridgetown Blues and Fete de la Musique (France). They also have a swag of brag worthy performances under their belt in France, Italy, London, Amsterdam and Malta, and have played with the likes of Ash Grunwald, The Whitlams, C.W. Stoneking and eMDee.

“Palmwoods Got The Blues” returns on Saturday January 21 with another star studded lineup. Rising star Brodie Graham returns to the home of many of his earliest triumphs with his new band. A much heralded guitar talent with tastes of funk, jazz and blues in his playing, Brodie’s expanding his horizons more and more.

New to the Palmwoods stage, Beth n Ben’s songwriting spans from Blues, Roots, Folk and Reggae to Jazz and Soul tunes. Their fusion of genres, coupled with witty lyrics and obscure view on everyday life makes for solid entertainment and reflection and, when dropped in front of a beat people can move to, they consistently turn heads and get the crowd moving wherever they go. With the new single “Back Of The Line” attracting Triple J airplay, they’ve started booking spots on the festival circuit and will be a perfect dance entree to the legend Wiley Reed (pictured above).

Wiley has been part of Australia’s Blues & Roots scene since he arrived in Australia in the early 70’s. A classy, double fisted piano man, Wiley is just about the deepest blues singer in Australia. And with his crack band in tow, the only solution is to dance like there really is no tomorrow.

Beerwah’s got Country

kicks off with a bang in 2012 with the return of Australia’s most promising female country music star Tori Darke.

This will be Tori’s third visit to the Beerwah Hotel and with an album that has netted her four top five singles so far, this young lady has already achieved more than some dream of fulfilling in a life time.

Tori’s voice is sublime but she can rock with the best of them and with a sensational band you’re in for a great night of modern country rock with arguably Australia’s best female vocalist.

Tori and her band will hit the stage at 8pm on Saturday the 14 January so why not book in for the Coast’s best steak and then stick around to see why Beerwah loves Tori Darke.

Harnessing a unique and eclectic mix of styles cooking together reggae, blues, roots–‐rock, and funk mixed with the flavours from the lap slide and Latin percussion, whilst unleashing the timbres of more than 10 different instruments from all over the world.

Palmwoods Got The Blues on Sat February18 sees a subtle change to the template with our headliner acts now set to play from 8-midnight. Since fronting NSW powerhouse The Bluezone, Adam Eckersley’s star (below) has risen to all sorts of heights. A multiple award winner at the Australian Blues Awards including Male Vocal Of The Year, Song Of The Year and Album Of The Year and an Australian Idol Top 20 place, Adam’s been on an extended songwriting and recording sojourn in the US and returns to Australia an even more accomplished artist.

And onboard in his band, a couple of Australia’s most respected and sought after sidemen in Rudy Miranda and Scott Greenaway. Known as A.E.B. FULL TILT FREAKOUT, the bands all original mix of rock, blues & funk is indeed likely to inspire a FULL TILT FREAKOUT.

Toni has also teamed up with a ten-piece band to cover a wide variety of music for weddings and corporate events. She has also been the velvety voice in numerous national radio and television commercials. Toni is at the Upfront Club with Julian Jones on guitar on Friday January 27. Entry by donation. Meals from 5.30pm.

Call 5494 2592 for bookings.

Said Marianne, pictured left with the striking dragons she has created that decorate the Emperor’s throne room: ”I have trawled the internet and the library for accurate references for what the Director wants.”

With over 60 local people of all ages in the cast, glamorous costumes and exciting stage effects, the Maleny Players hope to follow their sell-out success of last year’s Christmas’ pantomime with a spectacular staging of the Aladdin story.

Scheduled again for the last weekend before Christmas, the show promises to be full of laughter and song, with a cast of comical characters including Dobbin the Horse, Widow Twankey, Titttibum and Tittipoo , Lubbly Bubbly, Wishee- Washee and the wicked wizard Abanazer. Marianne herself plays the Empress.

As with last year’s show Cinderella: The Sequel’ original words and music are by David Crewe and Paul Coppens.

Rehearsals are now in full swing , with the public performances starting on Friday December 16 at 7.30pm, then on Saturday 17 at 2.30pm and 7.30pm, on Sunday 18 at 2.30pm; with an option for a Sunday evening performance depending on ticket sales.

Tickets are on sale from December 1 from the Maleny Visitor and Information Centre in Maple Street; $15 adults (no concessions); students $10 and children under five free.

Rapskallion takes to the eastern road again this summer, pedalling their new five track E.P “Le chat et Fiddle” from Melbourne town to Crystal Waters in a blaze of sweat, colour, feathers and accordion powered riffage.

“Le Chat et fiddle”(The Cat and Fiddle) is a collection of musical vignettes from a realm inhabited by back alley gangster felines, femme fatales, and silver moon maidens, with a soundtrack somewhere between a Chicago speakeasy, a Hungarian hoedown, and a Halloween party at a south seas pirate haven.

The buccaneers gone electric have extracted these five songs from their upcoming full length release, “Vagabond King”, which will be available on vinyl and CD in March 2012.

So come hell or high water Rapskallion shall be exploding onto The Deck at the Crystal Waters Eco Village, Sunday December 18, $10 entry, kids 16 & under free, Dinner available, BYO alcohol, Roll up, roll up!

Info – Tom: 5494 4590 or em:tombow51@ hotmail.com www.crystalwaters.org.au.