Live Review: The Painted Ladies

In 1973, a young Aboriginal man by the name of Vic Simms somehow caught the ear of RCA Records whilst residing in Bathurst Jail with an old acoustic guitar traded for a couple of packets of tobacco. An album called The Loner was cut in a single afternoon in the jail’s old dining hall with a hastily assembled band. Local muso Luke Peacock discovered this lost gem and promptly decided this music deserved a bigger audience, assembling a crack team of locally and nationally renowned artists to deliver versions of songs from the album. The result is The Painted Ladies album, and to mark its release Peacock has assembled a local supergroup of sorts with members from The Medics, Screamfeeder, The Gin Club and Silent Feature Era amongst others to play the material live.

Local luminary Bob Weatherall opens proceedings with a heartfelt acknowledgment of country followed by an introduction from author Clinton Walker who is to make sporadic visits to the stage tonight to give some fascinating background and thoughts on the project. Rollicking opener Poor Folks Happiness opens up the musical portion of the night to a hooting and hollering crowd and it’s immediately apparent how warmly this project is being received. It’s also apparent the songs are truly the work of a guy with some serious songwriting chops. Album single Get Back Into The Shadows is an early highlight amongst many, Peacock an unassuming and confident bandleader as the horn section beefs up the song’s snappy hook-laden chorus. A duet with jazz singer Mel Lathouras for smoky ballad Karen’s Song highlights Simms’ fragile side as does the delicate fiddle of Phillipa Perrot for Living My Life By The Days, Peacock proving he’s right at home in the quieter moments as it comes off like a Jeff Tweedy ditty from a lost early Wilco album.

Paddy McHugh and the venerated “Black Elvis” himself Roger Knox grace the stage for another of the night’s standouts, the delta blues stomp of Stranger In My Country. You can see what it means to Knox as his eyes light up with joy interweaving his vocals with Peacock and The Medics’ Kahl Wallace. Half the crowd then hit the aisles for closer I Wanna Bop and we’re left to reflect on the artistic leap of faith that has resulted in such an outpouring of love for this project, a remarkable achievement that has infused the night with such a reconciliatory and celebratory grandeur.