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The 2009 Bush Balladeer
Star Quest was held at the
Tamworth West Diggers Club (Kable
Avenue)
on Monday 19th January 2009 at 1pm.
Four finalists had been
selected. SHARON SMITH, BEC
HANCE, TREVOR TOLTON, & NATALIE
FOLEY.
In the search for a genuine balladeer,
to carry the Star Quest banner through
2009, the Bush Balladeer Star Quest
again presented four young performers
to compete in the 2009 Bush Balladeer
Star Quest.
SHARON SMITH of Oakey
QLD took out the honour.
About the quest......
The Bush Balladeer Star Quest is not
just another quest...
The winner must be dedicated to the
bush ballad style and intent on making
a career in the bush ballad industry.
As a winner of the quest, that person
recieves recording time for a radio
single, and major festival appearances
around the country throughout their
12 months as winner.....which will bring
them in contact with not only new fans
for their music, but introduce their
talent to the industry, radio and give
them lifelong promotion skills.
The A.B.B.A congratulates SHARON SMITH
as winner of the 2009 Bush Balladeer
Star Quest.... and wish all the finalists
in the 2009 quest every success with
their musical careers..
Guest Artists on the show were: Daley
Stephenson & 2008 winner Rachel
Richards>
Comperes: Anita Ree & Lynn
Manning
Backing
band: The Charley Boyter Band.
INTRODUCING - THE 2009
entrants:
 (Finalist)
BEC HANCE (QLD)
Bec Hance was brought up in South Gippsland
on a beef farm for the first 18 years
of her life. Her interest in music started
when she was 10 years old playing the
piano. In her later years Bec taught
herself the guitar, studying music theory
and writing songs of her own. Bec is
developing her music in teaching herself
the mandolin, harmonica and slide guitar.
She also is self-taught and enjoys yodelling.
Her
interest in country music derived from
her upbringing listening to traditional
country music influences such as Slim
Dusty, Shirley Thoms, John Williamson,
Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn and Johnny
Horton. Her modem influences today are
the likes of Sara Storer, Graeme Connors
and Troy Cassar-Daley and more recently
the writings of artists such as Norma
O'Hara Murphy.
Bec
finds a true satisfaction in performing
and writing country music. In particular
she loves to tell the stories about
her life and other peoples, and that's
including dogs and snakes! She has a
passion for farming, country living,
and old fashioned values.
This year in Tamworth Bec was a feature
artist on the Country music express
train and proved to be a very pleasing
throughout the 10 day trip.
Some of her other past achievements
include: 2008 West Moreton CIVIC overall
Winner 2008 Charters Towers Country
Music Festival 2nd Songwriting 2007
NSW/ACT Senior Showcase Overall Winner
2007 TSA Semi-finalist Professional
Section 2007
Rockhampton Overall Senior winner 2007
TSA QLD 4th place Comedy/Novelty song
writing section 2007 Overall Senior
Winner Orana Country music Festival
2007 Overall Winner Deniliquin Country
music idol 2007 Overall Senior Winner
Leeton Country music Festival 2007 Overall
Senior Winner Kinross Country music
Festival
@ 2006 Tamworth CCMA Talent quest 1st
Songwriting and 1st Yodelling winner.
2006 and 2005 finalist Victorian Country
Music Awards
@ 2004 TSA semi-finalist Amateur Section
Bec has completed a new self-funded
album of 12 of her original songs, recorded
at Chris Wilson Studios in Melbourne.
She has also been selected to attend
and graduate from the CMAA country music
college in 2009.
Bec performs and competes when possible
at country music festivals, country
music clubs, and country pubs in QLD,
NSW and VIC. She continues to gather
a solid reputation for her strong versatile
voice as well as unique quality of song
writing. Bec now resides in central
Queensland with her boyfriend, managing
a small beef farm, working as a paramedic,
and occasionally going out to their
hut at the Gemfields fossicking!
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(Finalist)
TREVOR TOLTON (QLD)
Well I first started noticing bush ballad
music a few years back, and I was really
introduced to the art
of the bush ballad
through John Williamson's music. I bought
many of his recordings and DVDs and
I watched him play the guitar. After
watching him play the guitar and listening
to the music he created, this drove
me to want to learn how to play the
guitar.
So  in
early 2007, I went out and bought my
first guitar, which was a Valencia,
nylon-string guitar. It was a cheap
guitar. I never learnt to play the guitar
until early 2008, and in between the
space of when I first bought my guitar
and when I first learnt how to play
it, my musical interests had broadened,
and I was/ am now listening to Buddy
Williams, Slim Dusty, John Williamson,
Gordon Parsons, Nathan CharIton, Dean
Perrett, Amos Morris and Matt Manning.
I would have to give credit to John
Williamson for being my main inspiration
and influence, but Slim Dusty has always
been a huge inspiration.
I
first taught myself the guitar by using
the thumbpick only and learning very
basic two-chord or three-chord bush
ballads. One of the first songs I
ever learnt was 'By A Fire Of Gidgee
Coal'. Over time, I started spicing
up my guitar playing, so I now use just
the normal plectrum to play and sometimes
use a thumbpick and a fingerpick, just
like how John Williamson plays the guitar.
I always switch between the normal plectrum
and the thumbpick. I just recently have
bought myself a brand new guitar. It
is a Takamine D Series. It is a lot
of fun to play and so much better than
my older guitar. I also recently bought
myself a set of harmonicas and a headpiece
to go with it, so I am teaching myself
how to play the harmonica at the time
of writing.
I have also recently taken up songwriting,
and have written a few songs myself.
Over the last year, I have written bits
and pieces that get nowhere, but I think
that this has helped my writing somewhat.
I plan to write more and more bush ballads
in the future, with writing being one
of my future goals.
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(Finalist)
NATALIE FOLEY
( NSW)
I grew up with a wide range of musical
influence...;, listening to Patsy Cline,
Reba McEntire, Tammy Wynette, Carole
King and Connie Francis so I often find
myself drawing strength from these strong
ladies of country Music.
In 1984 I started sing at the age of
13yrs with a band call the Blue Angles
comprising of 7 children ranging from
the ages of 13 to 16 yrs. In 1985 a
small group, broke away and started
a new  group
by the name of the Breakaways &
during the year we performed several
times on Leeton with our greatest achiever
being the NBN telethon.
1986 I had also teamed up with another
young girl and competing on the. I competed
successfully in the talent quest circuit
and did a lot for charity rising money
for the Heart Foundation and. cancer
research. In 1988 I was selected in
the top twenty finalists to compete
in Star Maker and I then made it thru
to the top 10 finalists.
In 1990 I meet my husband and started
a family the greatest achievement in
life so far. My husband, being a serviceman,
the constant moving made things difficult
to continue my music so I put things
on hold.
Before I knew it 20 years had past,
then in late 2007 a tragedy occurred
in my home town and at the towns request
I turn my hand to song writing and composed
a dedication to young Shelley Ward and
I now find myself back doing what I
love, singing country music with a new
found love of the Bush Ballads.
So now with my family grown and a new
chapter opens my life I am composing
madly and reconnecting myself with country
music.
With being so diverse now and maybe
me mellowing with age I find myself
connecting passionately with the Australian
Bush Ballads so I can't wait to do more
entertaining more in the future.
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 (Winner)
SHARON SMITH (QLD)
Born 11/12/ 1976 at Pittsworth. QLD.
Sharon has played bass for a lot of
distinguished Country Music artists
over the years. In 2001 Sharon made
her debut appearance singing at some
well known Country Music Festivals.
Sharon has also won 3 rd place in the
Bush Ballad Section at the Broxburn
Bash 2007, and received the Stan Coster
Memorial Award. 2008 she won the Bush
Ballad Section at Broxburn.
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