Swamp Dawkins ~ Dust Your Boots Off!
Bushdances & Barndances, Hoedowns & Honkytonks, Country Dances & Wild West Nights, Iconic Australian Music & Classic American Roadhouse Country
Dashville has to be one of the best outdoor venues we’ve played at and it was a delight to be invited by The Flight Centre to play for the opening night of their conference. With around d450+ guests, it was a night full of energy and a sensational time for everyone…And here’s what Bec and Sarah had to say afterwards!
Michael and the team at Swamp Dawkins were a dream to work with. The lead up was seamless and the night ran incredibly well. The barn dance calls were perfect and everyone at the event joined in and had a great time. Thanks guys for making our opening night of the conference one to remember!
Bec
Swamp Dawkins gave us the best night- these guys are phenomenal! I have never seen so many non dancers hit the floor to learn some moves! Much more than just a band- these are real entertainers. 3 encores before management stepped in to tell them we had to stop!
Sarah
We’ve been invited by SportsNet holidays to play for their guest several times and this one, on board the John Cadman II was fantastic. The cruise was part of the NRL Grand Final pre-game entertainment for the SportsNet guests… absolute pleasure to play for everyone on their way to the stadium.
We’ve done a fantastic few gigs up at the Fairmont Resort Leura for corporate conferences and retreats. The team there always put on a fantastic night…
We’ve been doing an increasing amount of events for Corporate Clients– conferences, staff parties, weekends away. All of them fantastic nights that get people involved, up from their tables, away from the bar, and onto the dance floor. Here’s a list of just some of the corporate clients we’ve entertained:
Atlassian (Staff event)
Thanks to Donna and Paul Wallis for having us play at your combined 50th birthdays and 25h wedding anniversary! The band made a weekend roadtrip of it – staying at the Argyle Inn ,Taralaga just 10mins from Donna and Paul’s property.
The property had a beautiful sunset view from the marquis on the hill while we played some quiet music over dinner to settle everyone in before the tables were cleared for dancing.
After a few heart-pumping songs that got everyone on the dance floor we slipped into a couple of bushdances before having a break for the formalities. After a few speeches, we settled into the rest of the evening with anything and everything from our catalogue of songs that kept everyone on the dance floor.
We even got to roll out Mamma Mia by ABBA and Livin’ on a Prayer by Bon Jovi – surely we must be the only bushband around the traps who can start the night with Kenny Rogers before finishing with ABBA, AC/DC and Bon Jovi whilst fitting in bushdances in between!
One of the guest gave us a great compliment when he said “you guys can do everything” and another guest who said “there was something for everyone – no-one had an excuse not to dance!”. That’s what we love to hear – everyone, young and old, was up and at it!
TESTIMONIAL
We had a fantastic gig recently down at a beautiful property between Bundanoon and Exeter for a couple celebrating a 70th birthday and the unveiling of a completely restored historic barn!
We had a special request for music from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s and so the night was a mix of bushdancing and dance hits from the 60’s – She’s so fine (Easybeats), I saw her standing there (Beatles), Route 66 (Rolling Stones), Johnny B Good (Chuck Berry), Summertime Blues (Eddie Cochrane) just to name a few.
Our hosts put on a fantastic night – from the catering, to the setting, the support band performing music before dinner from a local couple, and then the night of endless dancing with Swamp Dawkins.
As far as parties go – we do a lot of 21sts, 30ths, 40ths and 50ths – but this was our first 70th and they definitely showed us you are as young as you feel! A very memorable night all round.
Thanks again to Sydney University’s Wesley College for having Swamp Dawkins play your annual bushdance during O-Week celebrations – what an awesome to top off the week!
Another great night of live music and bush, barn, and square dancing – and getting chaotic with a mix of great hits by Kenny Rogers, Johhny Cash, Paul Kelly and AC/DC just to name a few!
Look forward to doing it again next year!
There’s nothing like serendipity!
We got a call not so long ago from Michelle Webb who runs the O’Connell Hotel, halfway between Bathurst and Oberon about 3hours west of Sydney across the mountains.
“We’re having our 150th for our historic pub which was built back in 1865 and we want a bushdance – a night of dancing and celebrating – can you help us?”
For sure. Without a doubt!
Later on I told my mum where we were playing – she grew up in the country and all of us have travelled a lot on the other side of the Blue Mountains over the years. Apparently my cousin (who I hadn’t seen in probably 25years) lives right across the road from the pub so Michelle’s call turned out to be a chance to play for my rellos as well! Serendipity indeed.
Michelle had planned a weekend of celebrations, including an outdoor film on the Firday night, followed by the bushdance on Saturday. Everyone was definitely in the festive mood with 250 or so people from the area turning up to dust off their boots and hit the dance floor for the bushdance. Swamp Dawkins also played a follow up Sunday afternoon session over lunch to show our thanks to Michelle for inviting us to play.
We had an absolute ball – below is a little clip of the dancing on the night, and you can check out our photos and share these through the Swamp Dawkins Facebook page.
A final tip: if you’re ever on your way to Bathurst from Sydney, take the scenic route. Turn off at Lithgow, drive the state’s “big dipper” road (trust me – you’ll know it when you see it), make your way through Tarana, head on to O’Connell and say g’day to Michelle from us! Fantastic beer garden, great food, very child friendly with lots of room to run around and there’s a cafe just across the road for a breakfast starter in the morning. Hope you enjoy it just as much as we did!
“We’ve got a wedding. We want an hour of music over dinner – but it has to be quiet enough for people to talk otherwise…well – otherwise…” – Check.
“We then want an hour of bush dancing after dinner” – Double Check.
“And then we want an hour of ‘wild music’ after that. And maybe more than an hour!” – Triple Check.
Lock it in!
We get all kinds of requests – increasingly though, more and more people are looking for a hybrid night of bush dancing / barn dancing / square dancing to get everyone up and mixing, combined with good party music for people to kick on.
The wedding for Patricia – Paddy and Phid more correctly! – was one of those. Similar to the recent gigs with Phil Gilbert and at the O’Connell Hotel – the bush dancing is n’t just about bush dancing: it’s about getting everyone out of their chairs, up on their feet and swinging around the dance floor, mixing with everyone, with no shortage of smiles and everyone being in the moment.
Below is a little video of the dancing on the night, set to Michael’s original ‘At the Honkytonk’.
The bush dancing gets people up without fail and the night just takes off from there be it with more bush dancing, bopping to music from the 60’s/70’s/80’s, or rocking to iconic Australian hit songs from Paul Kelly to AC/DC, or Americana country and swampy blues.
The venue for Patricia’s wedding – Allview Escape at Blackheath – has to have one of the best views in the Blue Mountains with the marquis overlooking the magnificent valleys and escarpments that make up the iconic Blue Mountains. The gourmet BBQ, summer evening setting, guests very much in the celebratory mood, and a fantastic newly wed couple made for the perfect recipe for a night to remember.
Patricia – thanks again for inviting us to play – it’s a serious privilege to play at people’s weddings and we couldn’t be happier for you and Phid. Thanks for letting us be part of your day!
TESTIMONIAL