After his memorable performance of Sparrows of Kabul at Cobargo, Fred Smith is back in the Far South Coast. He blends tunes you can whistle with stories you will remember. His songs are subtle, wry and perceptive. A favourite on the Australian festival circuit, Mr Smith is loved for his wry worldly wit, gift for story and melody and sublime collaborations with Liz Frencham and The Spooky Men's Chorale. You will be moved and entertained by the songs and stories of Australia's finest contemporary balladeer. Featuring some of Mr Smith's favourite musicians Matt Nightingale and Jacqui Bradley, he will be playing songs from his rich back catalogue and his brand new album Look. A departure from his recent output on Afghanistan, Look is full of wry musings about the ordinary stuff and the world we live in: the speed of modern life, love, isolation and the internet as humans continue to lurch onwards from crisis to crisis. It offers a wonderful blend of mirth, meaning and melody. It would fit well in your kitchen. For years he juggled the careers of diplomat and folk musician and his experiences have given him plenty of material for songwriting. The songwriter, author and diplomat went to Afghanistan in 2009 to be the first Australian diplomat to be working alongside Australian troops in Uruzgan province. He was the last to leave in 2013. He returned to Afghanistan in April 2020 and worked on the evacuation of Kabul in August 2021. The team worked to get former Australian government staff and thousands of others through the human logjam at the airport's gates and out of Afghanistan as the Taliban entered Kabul and seized control of the country. He also spent a period with the Peace Monitoring Group in Bougainville. He was written two books about his experiences in Afghanistan. The lyrics to his song 'Sappers Lullaby' are engraved in marble at the Australian plot at the centuries-old British War Cemetery in Kabul. In a review in the Sydney Morning Herald, Bruce Elder said Fred Smith is simply the best folk/country musician working in his country. "Beyond writing some of the finest songs about Australians at war, he has created a repertoire that is wry, literate, witty, powerfully emotional and insightful." Don't miss Fred Smith's show, presented by Navigate Arts, at 7pm at the Old Tanja Church, 1140 Tathra-Bermagui Road, Tanja. Doors open and dinner from 6pm. Delicious homemade food available for cash purchase and responsible BYO. Tickets $30, $25 concession, under 16 free. Tickets from humanitix
