Why write when the world is crumbling? Music Makes the world go 'round.

Pink Floyd, Tama Lundon, Jimmy Webb and Miriam Clancy.

Hello friends.

When I think - oh! I’d better send out a newsletter! - I get a little paralysed by the fact that there is so much going on, the saddest and most atrocious world events, plus our own local government actions or lack of, and I wonder why write these posts - when there are good writers out there bringing attention to the important stuff, with critical research and intelligent analysis, writing about the crucial issues.

Thank you,

Mountain Tūī

Emily Writes

Nick's Kōrero

David Slack

Melanie Nelson

The Kākā by Bernard Hickey

Dr Gary Payinda

and so many more.

My musings on music and life hardly seem essential, but here I am writing anyway. Writing these posts seems to help me sort a few things out in my head. Maybe for you, they are a brief distraction. Whatever, I am so grateful to anyone who reads, follows or subscribes - I love the comments and feedback too.

Music life and suchlike:

The Come Together Pink Floyd tour is done and dusted -with only three shows and all that prep, it is all over so quickly, but it was a gem. I expected to enjoy it, but not as much as I did. More than anything, a great bunch of people to spend time with, getting lost in those compositions and providing the 'oohs' and 'aaahs' in a musical cocoon, was the perfect way to hide from reality. The vocals in Pink Floyd’s recordings are often so much a part of the atmosphere they created, blending voice as an instrument, hypnotic and at times uplifting. Opening out from the ooh to the aah, it may seem like a simple thing, but it can create such a lift in the music - and it feels good too. Almost spiritual. Singing ‘Breathe’ in the opening tracks of Dark Side of the Moon with Sam Flynn Scott and Luke Buda, melting our voices together is something I’ll remember as one of those time-stands-still moments. I’m lucky in so many ways. Lucky - what a strange word that is. I tell myself I am lucky because I constantly feel the pull and a bit of sadness over the fact that, in chipping away at this life doing music, I always wanted it to be my own songs, my own band, but the world had different ideas. There are so many songs I have written or co-written that are sitting out there on the platforms, not doing much, and I can’t help but feel regret about a few things. But this is the story for so many musicians and songwriters. And it is getting tougher and more challenging to cut through. Through these shows, I get to sing and play to packed rooms of joyful people, and I love the people I work with - there is so much goodness in that. I don’t want that to stop. Life is good.

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Pic: Radar Photography Christchurch Town Hall. (There’s life in the ole girl yet)

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Tama Lundon:

Last week, we all received the sad news that Tama Lundon, keyboard player and songwriter from our much-treasured band, Herbs, had died. Tama had been unwell for some time and was physically very frail, but whenever he performed in recent years, he would astound all those in attendance with the strength, power, and warmth of his singing voice.

In October 2023, When the Cat’s Away reformed with the original line-up (minus one) to honour our precious bandmate, Margaret Urlich, in a show at the Auckland Town Hall. We invited Tama to be a part of the show, and we performed a set of Herbs songs within our set. It was a privilege to perform with Tama. His presence and voice were unforgettable. I don’t know about you, but I can’t imagine life in New Zealand without those Herbs songs. Often topical, political, loving, and always so well crafted. It is well known that Lundon co-wrote the band’s big hit 'Long Ago' with Willie Hona, but, at Tama’s funeral on Saturday, former Herbs drummer Gordon Joll spoke about his time with the band and how they would all write together, often starting with Tama contributing chord sequences and ideas. He also talked about Tama’s warmth, humility, humour, and loyalty. He’ll be missed by many, and I feel for his whānau and his wife, Cheryl, who cared for him so well for so long. Rest easy, Tama.

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There’s always music!

Jimmy Webb:

Last week, I put together a music special for RNZ afternoons and spoke with Jesse Mulligan about the songwriter Jimmy Webb - his life and music. It was a tall order to fit into under half an hour all that life lived and songs written; just five made it into the segment. I could have filled that just with Glen Campbell’s renditions of Webb’s songs.

I talk here about how songs like ‘Galveston’ and ‘Wichita Lineman’ were to my family, of course, at that stage, oblivious to Jimmy Webb as the writer of those classic songs. Glen Campbell was incredibly popular in Aotearoa back then, and a huge favourite of my parents - his albums spent a lot of time on our stereo!!

Here’s a link to that brief special - we got some nice feedback from RNZ listeners and even got a post on Jimmy Webb’s official Facebook page.

If you have a listen, you’ll hear that Brett and I played at the actual WTF Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on the same bill as Jimmy Webb, watching him in the wings. Here’s the poster to prove it. Honest. I should write about that. And I will. See! Lucky.

If you haven’t seen this Rick Beato Interview with Jimmy Webb, watch it here - it is a pearler.

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And then - there’s music!

Miriam Clancy.

Last week, I received a message from Brooklyn-based NZ songwriter Miriam Clancy, saying she was back for a brief stint to see her Mum, and has managed to squeeze a few days in recording with Jol Mulholland. She asked if I would come in and add some vocals to one of her songs. Yes, of course. Miriam is an incredible talent, not yet appreciated as much as she should be, but it’ll happen. She is also a force of nature. She moved from Aotea, Great Barrier Island, to Brooklyn, New York, with her husband JP and four children some years ago, and has still managed to find the time to release and record some beautiful albums.

It was good to see her, and it turns out our voices sound really great together. We’d been talking about doing this for a long time. It's nice that it happened and worked so well.

If you haven’t checked out Miriam’s music - do it! You won’t be sorry. Her voice is beautiful, and she is such a skilled musician and songwriter.

Here’s a link to her bandcamp page -

Something older:

Something newer:

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A little thing not about music:

If you read my last Substack post, you’ll know I’ve been waiting for some scan results. At this stage, there’s no news. Our stressed health system is one of those local realities. Apparently, at Waitakere Radiology, urgent scans are taking up to two months for the official report to come through. No news is… no news.

Thanks again for reading this. I’ll write again soon. Love you.

Oh! - Before I go, I think I should start sharing songs I’ve written.

So here is one I co-wrote with Brett in London for the Boom-Boom Mancini album that never got released. I’ll start writing about these times soon. I am sometimes reluctant to look back, but maybe it will be interesting.