Folk music band. Called Bush Dancing. Four over four decades Tallowood has been the soundtrack of the NSW mid-north coast. With their feet firmly ground in Australian bush-dance music and the songs and stories which accompanied the growth of the fledgling nation, Mick Parker, Brian ‘Googs’ Goddard, Mick Giles and Tom Foster carry on the proud traditions of the band which started with an almost ad hoc appearance at Ulong RSL in 1979. While the members may have slowed a little after seven albums, multiple awards, countless music festivals and bush dances, a couple of movie soundtracks, the family-friendly, bush dances and history-laden folk music rolls on. The wide assortment of interesting and unusual instruments is as much a part of the band’s presentation as they’ve always been, as is the focus on stirring vocal lines and harmonies. The band’s music has always had a strong Celtic and English folk influence and an emphasis on illustrating Australian colonial history, at its height at the family bush dance. From the simple rollicking celebration of a Circassian Circle to the heartbreaking stories of goldrush, settlers, and the challenges of taming a wild and unruly nation, Tallowood’s music and songs breath colour and texture into the stories, challenges and celebrations of the time. Tallowood’s vast repertoire of traditional tunes is also complimented with a host of contemporary covers and witty originals. Recorded Albums: Origins & Lemons (1985), Like The Spokes Of A Wheel (1988), Regrowth (1992), Australian Accent (2001), A Durable Species (2009), Old Growth – A 40 year Anthology (2019), At The Old Jig Jog (2023). Contributions to film soundtracks include: Winds Of Jarrah (1986) and Over The Hill (1992).