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New Steve
Passfield video hits CMC
After the video for his debut single Goin’ It Alone
reached number 7 on the CMC countdown
earlier in the year, independent country artist Steve Passfield
is expecting big things from his
second video A Man Will Risk It All, which begins its CMC
rotation this week.
The video was filmed on location on the Breeza Plains in
Northwest NSW and tells the story of
a local farmer facing mounting debts due to the effect of the
drought on his land. As family and
personal pressures build to breaking point, the farmer finds
hope in his father’s support and
experience.
“Country music is all about the stories of our land,” said
Steve. “I wanted the video for A Man
Will Risk It All to reflect what people in the bush are going
through at the moment.”
“Ross Woods, who filmed the video for my first single, did such
a top job that I wanted him
back for this,” said Steve. “He’s got a real talent for
translating the ideas I’m singing about and
turning them into a story on screen.”
“Plus I reckon he makes an everyday bloke like me look like a
Hollywood film star!” jokes
Steve.
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Hi there,
I just gotta tell ya that my first video "Goin' it Alone" has
cracked the Top Ten on the Country Music Channel. Yee Haa!!!
http://countrymusicchannel.com.au/CMC/Default.aspx
It's an enormous milestone for me and I'm grinnin' from ear to
ear. Thanks to Ross Woods 171entertainment who directed and
produced the clip for me, Renate for the makeup (loads of it)
and to Kevin and Clive Brand for the loan of the old Porsche car
used in the clip!
I must also thank the many radio presenters who still continue
to spin the song (NFS112). Most of them present Country Music
programs because they love it, not for the money!
A couple of gigs this month Saturday July 14th the Handpicked
Band and I are at Brumby's Bar in Jundabyne and I'll be at the
2007 2MCR Fundraising Concert an afternoon of entertainment to
raise funds for the Leukemia Foundation and 2MCR. Hosted by Jim
Haynes featuring the finest country music stars from around
Australia including Gina Jeffries, Adam Harvey, John Stephen,
Nikki Gilles, Camille Te'Nahu and Stewart French, Amber
Lawrence, Donna Boyd and a special suprise guest (that might be
me?).
When: Sunday July 29th 2007 at 2pm
Where: Campbelltown RSL Auditorium, Carberry Lane Campbelltown
Tickets: Adults $33, Children under 12 $11.
Tickets on sale now at the Campbelltown RSL Club 02 4625 1408
2MCR, Frankie T, Helen Kay and all are great supporters of
Australian Country Music so please come along and help.
Just a note regarding our appearance on Tim Bailey's weather. I
will get a copy of the video up on my myspace page soon for
those of you who have asked. Last weekend was the Studio Artes
Carnivale and I helped out friday in the Hornsby Mall and for
the opening night on friday night. What a blast. Looking forward
to the next one!
Stay warm.
Steve
www.stevepassfield.com
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Goin’ It Alone is at number 10
on the CMC chart!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!!!
I’d love you to keep goin for a few weeks please?
Request here
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Hi one and all,
Yes the winter solstice has passed and some amazing things have
been happening. I recently performed at the Port Stephens
Bluewater Country Music Festival with my mate Jimmy Rush, 2
acoustic guitars, lots of good bluegrass tunes and a bunch of
Steve Passfield songs, what a wonderful crowd and lovely place to
perform, the venue was The Retreat on port Stephens Road, Anna
Bay. It has cabins and group accommodation and is right on the
back of the sand hills. The hosts were fantastic and we had an
absolute ball and it really was one of those gigs that keep you
playing and practicing and writing! Helen Mitchell, of the Rage
Page, has given us a huge plug describing our gig as "one of the
best of the festival, clever bluegrass flatpicking and great
songs" thanks Helen! Check out
http://www.countryragepage.com/stevepassfield07.htm
Other great news is that my 1st video "Goin' it Alone" has jumped
into the Top 30 on the Country Music Channel from number 47 to
number 17! Yee Haaa!!!
http://countrymusicchannel.com.au/CMC/Default.aspx
You can vote for the video from the home page of my website at
http://www.stevepassfield.com/ it might make it
to a Top 10, ohhh, scary eh? Thanks for your support!!
And to the radio people still playing "Goin' It Alone" a BIG thank
you also!! It's on NFS112 if you're looking for it.
And even more news, this Thursday, June 28th, I will be performing
my song "Acceptance" on Tim Bailey's weather on Channel Ten with
students from St Edmunds School and the wonderful singers from
Studio Artes in Hornsby. I helped with St Edmunds annual Eddies
Mates fundraising dinner just a couple of weeks ago where almost
$140,000 was raised. Studio Artes have there annual Carnivale on
July 6th and 7th both at Westfield Hornsby, there Gallery and
workshop in Hornsby. I have website links to both Studio Artes and
St Edmunds on my home page, please check out there work. We were
scheduled to do a spot with Tim a few weeks ago but he was in the
Hunter following the floods and all the damage there so it was
postponed. Through a stroke of sheer coincidence I bumped into Tim
in Terrigal on friday June 15th, wrote the Tim Bailey weather
jingle on the back of an old letter, bumped into him again (no, I
wasn't stalking him!) 1/2 an hour later and he invited me onto the
Tele and I sang the jingle live, "drips and drops 'cross roof tops
and crops" Thanks Tim!
Drop into my gig guide and other info at
www.myspace.com/stevepassfield
and I hope to catch you somewhere soon 'round this lucky country!
In the meantime, stay warm and dry 'cause it looks like that extra
dry south american mongrel, El Nino, has finally racked off and
it's great to get some rain at last. Good luck to the farmers and
here's hoping for a bumper crop! It's only a few months ago that
the Murray River water quotas were going to be cut off completely,
my how things can change here Down Under.
Cheers, Steve.
www.stevepassfield.com
* Friday Jun 29, Antill Park Bowling Club, Picton, 7 – 10 pm.
The video of Goin’ It Alone is getting a good spin on CMC but your
help in requesting it would be appreciated!
http://countrymusicchannel.com.au/CMC/Requests.aspx (You
do need to join the CMC to request).
‘Till next time, thanks for your support!
Steve
www.stevepassfield.com
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- Trev Warner, Rod McCormack, Jeff McCormack, Steve Passfield
and Mick Albeck
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"Goin' it Alone " by Susan Jarvis
- Life is full of unexpected events and
turns, good and bad, and I’ve always had the attitude that the
glass is half full — that whatever
happens, something good will come from it,” Steve said.
So after a decade and a half as the driving force behind popular
Sydney band HANDPICKED, Steve decided to fulfil a long-held dream
and record a solo album.
- The result is the aptly titled Goin’
It Alone, a dynamic, diverse collection of great original songs,
performed in a distinctively Australian style that Steve has made
his own. The album was produced by ROD McCORMACK -
unquestionably one of Australia’s finest producers - who clearly
had an instinctive understanding of what Steve’s music was all
about.
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- “I wanted the songs to reflect who I
am, both personally and musically, and for each of them to take on
a life of their own,” Steve said.
“Rod has done a wonderful job in achieving that, and I’m very
proud of the way the album has turned out.”
- The album’s title track explores both
Steve’s decision to launch himself as a solo artist, and a series
of major events in his life leading up to the decision to record
this album. “It’s about self-belief and
self-confidence — digging in and having a go when challenges
get thrown at you, and we’ve all had those,” Steve said.
- One challenge faced by Steve almost
two decades ago was when his second child, Micah, was diagnosed
with Down Syndrome. Micah is now a happy, productive adult, and
Steve has penned a profoundly moving song inspired by his son
titled "Acceptance".
The song was recently used widely to mark World Down Syndrome Day,
on 21 March, and Steve is hoping he can use it to raise funds for
the many organizations that have helped his family, and others
like them, over the years.
- “We need more than tolerance of
people who are different, we need acceptance,” Steve said.
“This song is for Micah, his ‘disabled’ mates and anyone else who
may not make it on to the cover of the pretty people mags. We
really do need to be more accepting of each other.”
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- The musical influences on Goin’ It
Alone are incredibly diverse, from the gentle sounds of Acceptance
and Lady Of The Top End to the rockabilly groove of Trouble, the
bush ballad style of To Sing With Slim, the folk-inspired
Australiana of Botany Bay - Captain Johnston’s Jig and Phillip
Cunningham, and the wonderful swing sounds of Broke. Steve
enlisted the help of a few of his musical mates to make the album.
As he says, THE FERAL SWING KATZ came on board for Broke because
“no one swings like the Ferals”, and they’ve come up trumps on
this track.
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- All the songs on Goin’ It Alone are
Steve Passfield originals, though the evocative A Man Will Risk It
All was co-written with Rod McCormack and This House with KEVIN
BENNETT.
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- Australia’s history and pioneering
spirit has always fascinated Steve, and there are several songs on
the album that reflect this, including the passionate Australian
Spirit, Botany Bay — Captain Johnston’s Jig, and Phillip
Cunningham, about the Battle of Vinegar Hill. “I performed
at the Vinegar Hill Woolshed for many years, so this one is
actually quite personal,” Steve said.
- And Steve’s tribute to the great SLIM
DUSTY has already attracted considerable attention from the
industry and fans. Titled To Sing With Slim, it’s a slightly
different take on the influence Slim has had on Australian music.
“The fact that Slim came from my home
valley (near Kempsey in NSW) made it really important for me to
write this song. It’s my tribute to the King,” Steve said.
- Steve stresses that Handpicked will
continue to perform as a band, but he’s currently focusing firmly
on the new album,
and is planning to tour as a solo artist as much as possible in
2007.
“I’ve wanted to release an album of my own music for a long time,
and now I’ve been able to do so, I’m determined that as many
people as possible will hear my songs,” Steve said.
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- GOIN’ IT ALONE
STEVE PASSFIELD
- Independent
STEVE PASSFIELD is best known as the leader of country band
HANDPICKED, but this time he’s literally “gone it alone” with a
collection of his own songs (two of them written with ROD
MCCORMACK and KEVIN BENNETT respectively). Steve’s folk and
bluegrass influences are very much in evidence on a diverse
collection of songs which range from Australiana that would do
JOHN WILLIAMSON or COLIN BUCHANAN proud - such as the powerful
Australian Spirit and the delightful Lady Of The Top End - to
touching and tender tales of people. Acceptance - the tale of a
special little boy - is a real highlight of the album, as is the
disturbing Break Free. Songs like the cool swing-inspired Broke,
the tongue-in-cheek Trouble and Hillbilly Redneck Town demonstrate
the breadth of Steve’s talents, and his tribute to Slim, To Sing
With Slim, is a real gem. Other standout tracks include the
wonderful A Man Will Risk It All, and the Kevin Bennett co-write,
This House, which features a guest appearance from BILL CHAMBERS.
Independent SP001CD
Available from
www.stevepassfield.com
SUSAN JARVIS
email
steve@stevepassfield.com
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- Print out and have the memories
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