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Home is where the heart is

After juggling work and music for many years, the song-writing duo hit the big time in 2011 – but it wasn’t easy. “We put in a lot of hard work to get where we are today. We played around Rocky for many years – we just didn't appear on the music scene.” The pair built up a loyal following playing non-stop around Rockhampton, treating audiences not only to covers but their original songs “which was a rare thing to do in Rocky in those days” recalls Tom.

However, when Tom went back to Brisbane to work, Jeremy stayed in Rockhampton. They both continued to work full-time and played music together as often as they could, building on their Aussie rock repertoire, until they recorded their debut, limited release, EP The Blue Road at Pete Murray's studio in Byron Bay. The boys received overwhelmingly positive reviews for their album and to their surprise, received a phone call from EMI asking them to record a song for the Finn Brothers Tribute Album. 

“As the only unsigned act on that album, and singing the classic Better Be Home Soon, we were in awesome company with artists such as Paul Kelly, Angus Stone, Sleepy Jackson, Empire of the Sun – and then there was Busby Marou, this band no one had heard of. That really put us in the mix and helped people remember the name.”

2009 saw the duo as one of five successful applicants for Breakthrough – a Federal Government initiative supporting emerging Indigenous contemporary musicians.

The album, released last year, has been nominated for multiple awards and their track Biding My Time claimed the APRA Blues and Roots Work Of The Year Award.

Tom and Jeremy have both spent time at CQUniversity – Tom studying a Bachelor of Arts degree and Jeremy a Bachelor of Science. “There was a bunch of us from school that went to uni in Rocky and we had a great year at CQU. We’d love to come back one day and put on a concert for the students. I used to live on res at uni and go to every concert I could.”

Whether they are playing to audiences in sold-out concert venues, or for a prep class of five-year-olds, Tom says it’s always a buzz to hear the fans screaming and singing along to their songs.

“We’ve been lucky enough to do a lot of fun tours, but meeting Dolly Parton was a real thrill for me. She is easily the biggest superstar we've ever met. She's not only a great song writer, but she's a living legend. I remember growing up telling my sisters and mum to turn off the Dolly Parton songs and now I’ve got my nieces and nephews telling me the same thing. I tell them ‘trust me, one day you'll be listening to her too!’