The almost cinematic aspect of the rise is now oft-cited; how the plucky sisters who had worked as Jillaroos, fruit pickers, roustabouts, cattle ranch hands and even enrolled in a wool classing course, while playing country music at agricultural shows, rodeos, anywhere that would have them, landed themselves in the CMAA College of Country Music in Tamworth and at seminar on marketing and networking conducted by singer Adam Brand early in 2005. How they listened intently, took him at his word and handed over a copy of their independent album of covers and originals, Little Bit Rusty .As Sophie recalls: “I walked up to him and gave him a copy – He looked at it and he was like, oh yeah. He goes ‘I’m going to play it in my ute when I leave here’ and we were like, ‘yeah, right, he’s not going to listen to it’.”
He listened, Compass Brothers Records head Graham Thompson listened and, within what seemed not much more than weeks, chunks of Australia was listening to an album that shot straight to number three on the ARIA Country Charts (with Golden Guitar nominations to follow). There was an instant connection to two gifted creators who, as Susan Jarvis wrote in Capital News, “Have a knack of finding fresh ways of seeing the bush and new approaches to writing and singing about it.” Reviews flowed warm and constant. The Qantas inflight magazine told its international readers: “Australian rather than American accents, catchy tunes, great harmonies, lyrics that make you laugh (“gone like a beer on a Friday night”) and kick-arse rhythms.
Now, with a third album under their collective belt, it would be hard to find an Australian performance and recording act so true to its origins, so intuitively in touch with its audience and so able to meet its needs and desires.
There is nothing quite like the assurance of success – which has come in the shape of two albums that are amongst the very highest-sellers in their label’s catalogue “At the start we weren’t sure if we’d be taken as a joke or seriously” Sophie admits. “We’re a bit different – its a mixture of the traditional, of country rock, comedy and loud drinking songs.” Which is fairly to be expected from a couple of girls who came through adolescence listening to Slim Dusty, John Williamson, Chad Morgan and Johnny Cash on one hand and Nirvana and Red Hot Chili Peppers on the other, and now enjoy the likes of Terri Clark, and Australian peers and comrades – Adam Brand, Lee Kernaghan, Gina Jeffreys, Melinda Schneider and Sara Storer.
That assurance has provided a solid base from which to prepare and offer an ambitious third album – Dust Will Settle. “This is our best yet” enthuses Sophie. “I’m excited and also a little nervous about it. This time around we’ve tried to steer a bit of a different course. Perhaps as we get older the songs are not so lighthearted, they’re more grown up. I hope they realise it’s still us, the same girls.”
Unmistakably so. Certainly the songs are as sprightly, energetic and engaging as those on the first two albums but with a greater depth and diversity. It’s very much a song driven album, with five of them penned by younger sister Celeste. “Celeste has a very exciting future as a writer,” said one recent reviewer and her big sister is not inclined to disagree. “She’s really growing as a writer,” observes an admiring Sophie. “They’re great songs, we were all happy to put them on.” She had begun her own writing odyssey early with some of the originals on Little Bit Rusty written when she was just 15. There’s a telling intuition that comes from “Growing up in the bush – it gives us a connection, we’re one of them.” And as she told Susan Jarvis after the second album Long Five Days in 2006, “We always write from what we know – feelings, experiences, stories we’ve heard – and we record in a way that reflects our live shows.”
Live performances – spirited and seductive – are pivotal to the Sunny Cowgirls sudden, inexorable rise. “We just love playing to huge crowds of country people because we feel right at home and they really relate to our music,” says Sophie. And played to them they have – at the Gympie Muster and two years running at the Deniliquin Ute Muster which they nominate as their prime concert memories. “We get a great reaction all over, and some places stand out, like Mackay and Toowoomba ...... and Mulgildie this little ghost town in Queensland. I suppose our core audience is the B&S Ball and Ute crowd. They’re mostly 18-25 and pretty wild but a lot of older people also come to our shows. So we do an acoustic sit-down set, tell stories.” Stories are drawn from a life that saw them grow up on the Sunninghill farm at Dunkeld in rural Victoria then shifting to Western Australia when Sophie was 12 and Celeste 8. At high school in Perth the sisters stood apart – “We were the only kids wearing Blunnies and stuff” Celeste once related. “We’ve never been into the city culture – it just doesn’t suit us. As soon as school was over we headed back to the bush”.
That’s essentially where they have stayed, spread out on acres with room for their beloved old Holden utes (as the bumper sticker seen on the cover of Little Bit Rusty declared: ‘A Woman’s Place Is In A Ute’). “Living in Tamworth we’re still able to go around the country” says Sophie. “The Central Coast, where a lot of Australian country artists are based, just didn’t work for us. We’ll always be country girls.”
Inspirational, role model ones too. “Young girls come and tell us they want to grow up and drive utes, have dogs, play guitar, sing songs, have lots of fun – just like us. Kids 4-5 know the words to all to our songs. It’s a bit of a worry because there’s a fair few drinking songs. Oh dear!” And now there’s the cheeky Naked, which was inspired by a song Sophie had heard by her old W.A. mate Courtney Murphy, I Think About You Naked. Oh dear, indeed.
Destined for much raucous recycling is anthem-on-the-rise – Live It Loud. “We know that’s going to really go off live” laughs Sophie, “Grog Monster and Dancing On The Darling too.” She nominates the affecting Pink Galah, which arrives at particularly satisfying time in her emotional life, as “the most personal song I’ve ever written. It came to me sitting on the verandah at home one day; I was thinking about how galahs and parrots have a life partner.” The album’s title track also has layers beyond the surface. “It actually refers to depression,” she reveals. “When you grow up in the county you see it around you. The effect of drought on people is not widely understood. But it’s not a depressing song; it’s a song about hope, about coming out the other side of trials because, in time, the dust will settle.”
Rabbit may have an obvious Australian connection but was in fact inspired by the works of a prim Englishwoman born in the century before last. “I’ve always had a thing about foxes and rabbits” details Sophie, “ever since I read the Beatrix Potter books when I as really young. Mr. Todd the fox scared me half to death but I never forgot him.” Celeste was similarly inspired to pen the sweetly serenading Kelpie, which was inspired by a poem she once came across. “Celeste is a mad kelpie lover,” confirms Sophie. ‘She’s always wanted to write a song about a dog and now she has, and it’s a really good one!”
Produced by Graham Thompson, who has one of the country’s best strike rates, Dust Will Settle is an elastic album that rolls out and over you. It concludes with a classic, though underheard, 60s hit that he suggested the girls work up as a duet with their mentor Adam Brand. Someday was a 1966 top ten solo hit by Tony Barber, guitarist for the original hit lineup of Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs (He’d also penned that group’s first hit, Blue Day). It is a rollicking piece they can’t wait to take out on the road. “Someday is a super-fun song to sing,” confirms Sophie. “It’s always hard work but we really look forward to touring – to see what our audience gives back to us. I do find it hard to find time to write on the road, it gets stressful, but once we have the songs done all we want to do is play them to people. We get asked if we’re looking to go overseas and, while I guess I’m curious about Nashville and maybe going there to suss it out, there’s no real urge because the people we play to here can be so incredible.”
What becomes evident, when the Sunny Cowgirls get on a stage, is how much these two sisters (now 21 and 25) spark off each other. “We’re very happy people and we’re best mates - I hope that comes across on the album” says Sophie. “I may be four years older but I’m not the boss. ‘Less is good at giving it back!”
ROCKSTAR
The Sunny Cowgirls Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I worked this land with my old man
Which was then passed down to me
Through years of drought we stuck it out
Worked as a family
Well it's my home it's all I know
But is that how life should be
So I hope and so I dream
I just wanna to be a rockstar
Flying high over the country
Away from living on the sunburnt plains
Just waiting for the rain to come
Yeah I just wanna be a rockstar and
Wave my worries out the window
Take off and run
I just wanna be a rockstar
Well all my friends left this town
And went out on their own
Yeah the saw the world and I've been told
Every night is all night long
But I sit here and drink my beer
And I write a country song
And I close my eyes I'm in the spotlight
I hear the crowd applaud
So I hope and so I dream
Cos I see
I just wanna to be a rockstar
Flying high over the country
Away from living on the sunburnt plains
Just waiting for the rain to come
Yeah I just wanna be a rockstar and
Wave my worries out the window
Take off and run
I just wanna be a rockstar
And my father says how much I'd miss this ground
But that's the thing I need to figure out
I just wanna to be a rockstar
Flying high over the country
Away from living on the sunburnt plains
Just waiting for the rain to come
Yeah I just wanna be a rockstar and
Wave my worries out the window
Take off and run
I just wanna be a rockstar
The Sunny Cowgirls’ song “Rockstar” talks about the struggles of living in the countryside, working on a farm, and the longing for something more. The song starts with a reference to the main character’s great-granddad who bought the farm in 1923. The singer talks about how they worked the land with their old man, and how the land was passed down to them through generations. Despite years of drought, they stuck together as a family to keep the farm running. The singer talks about how the farm is all they know, but they wonder if their life should be more than just living on the sunburnt plains.
The main character wants to break free from their life on the farm and become a rockstar. They dream of flying high over the country, away from their struggles, waiting for the rain to come. They long to be in the spotlight, feeling the thrill of being adored by the crowd. The main character’s friends have left the town, and they feel left behind. They write country songs and close their eyes, dreaming of being a rockstar.
Ultimately, the main character is torn between staying on the farm and chasing their dreams of becoming a rockstar. They acknowledge that their father believes they will miss the ground, but they need to figure out what they truly want in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Great granddad bought this farm in 1923
The singer's family has owned and worked the farm for generations
And I worked this land with my old man
The singer learned how to farm from their father
Which was then passed down to me
The singer inherited the farm from their family
Through years of drought we stuck it out
The family persevered through difficult times on the farm
Worked as a family
The family worked together on the farm
Well it's my home it's all I know
The farm is the singer's only home and way of life
But is that how life should be
The singer questions whether their life on the farm is the right path
So I hope and so I dream
The artist has aspirations for something beyond their current life on the farm
Cos I see
The artist has a vision of a different life for themselves
I just wanna to be a rockstar
The artist dreams of becoming a famous musician
Flying high over the country
The singer envisions touring and performing all around the country
Away from living on the sunburnt plains
The artist wants to escape their current life on the farm
Just waiting for the rain to come
The singer is tired of the constant struggle of drought on the farm
Yeah I just wanna be a rockstar and
The dream of being a rockstar is all-consuming for the singer
Wave my worries out the window
Becoming a rockstar would allow the singer to leave their worries behind
Take off and run
The artist wants to leave their current life behind and start fresh
Well all my friends left this town
The artist's friends have all moved away to pursue their own dreams
And went out on their own
The singer's friends have found success outside of their small town
Every night is all night long
The singer's friends are living a wild and exciting life
But I sit here and drink my beer
The artist is stuck in their familiar routine
And I write a country song
The artist uses music to express their desire for a different life
And I close my eyes I'm in the spotlight
The artist visualizes their dream of performing on stage
I hear the crowd applaud
The singer can imagine the thrill of entertaining a large audience
And my father says how much I'd miss this ground
The artist's father reminds them of the value of their family's history on the farm
But that's the thing I need to figure out
The singer is conflicted between their loyalty to their family and their desire for a different life
Contributed by Jason A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.