Do you like your protest songs and bush ballads sung in an Australian accent with a generous helping of acerbic wit on the side?
Following their sold out Brisbane show last year, John Schumann and the Vagabond Crew return to Brisbane and Noosa with The Redgum Years in August 2024.
John Schumann is the singer-songwriter and unmistakable voice of legendary Australian folk-rock band Redgum and he takes to the stage with six-piece band, the Vagabond Crew.
‘The Vagabond Crew persuaded me to revisit the Redgum repertoire,’ said Schumann.
‘It was the band’s idea to call it The Redgum Years and play Redgum’s most popular, enduring songs.’
From the day Redgum started recording in 1975, they delivered protest songs, bush ballads and witty political commentary in Australian vernacular they refused to water down for commercial radio or TV.
The original Redgum band wrote enduring songs.
Almost 50 years later, the set-list for the August 2024 show includes the anthemic ‘I was only 19’ and ‘It doesn’t matter to me’, ‘The Long Run’, ‘I’ve been to Bali too’ and ‘Diamantina Drover’.
The songs hold up a mirror to Australian society which is sometimes unflattering: such as ‘One more boring night in Adelaide’, and ‘The Beaumont Rag’ which pokes fun at the idiot sons of the establishment.
Other songs like ‘I’ve been to Bali too’ are relatable while ‘Diamantina Drover’, ‘Peter the Cabby’ and ‘Gladstone Pier’ are evocative slices of authentic Australian life.
Schumann says he’s looking forward to bringing the show to Noosa and Brisbane.
‘I’ve loved the Noosa region since the original Redgum days. Noosa folk are fiercely independent and protective of Noosa’s beautiful natural heritage.’
He said Redgum always enjoyed strong support in Brisbane, especially in the 80s under Joh Bjelke-Petersen.
‘Brisbane is special in my heart because in the Joh years you had to be courageous to come to a Redgum concert with the Special Branch in attendance.
John Schumann back when going to a Redgum concert might attract police attention. PHOTO: supplied
‘We pull good crowds in Queensland, progressive people with a sense of humour.’
I saw the show in Brisbane last year. While the songs sound a little different without the flute and female vocals of the original line-up, Schumann and his band do a sterling job giving them new life in the twenty first century.
Clearly he still has what it takes to mesmerise a crowd and it doesn’t hurt being backed by a shit hot band: musicians with doctorates and serious musical pedigrees.
John Schumann and The Vagabond Crew bring new life to the enduring songs of Redgum
The Vagabond Crew are Julian Ferraretto, a storyteller on violin and mandolin, Enrico Morena on drums and percussion, Rohan Powell on guitar and vocals; Ian Polites on piano and vocals, Anthony Thyer (aka the Rock God) on electric guitar, harmonica, slide and vocals and Jamie Harrison on bass.
The night we saw the show, the musicianship, unity and heart of The Vagabond Crew supporting Schumann’s showmanship and storytelling made for a magic show with the audience hanging off every word.
I love the crowd he draws: educated with a social conscience, veterans who’ve seen some shit and blokey in the best way.
There were plenty of young people in the audience too: perhaps with their parents or perhaps they discovered ‘I was only 19’ from The Herd’s  awesome cover or Schumann’s recent re-record with the Waifs.
I reckon young people are drawn to Redgum songs the way they are drawn to Paul Kelly: because the songs are timeless and speak to something deeply Australian in many of us.
John Schumann today: he’s still got it. PHOTO: supplied
Schumann’s a supporter of up and coming musicians, including his support act at the August 2024 gig: singer songwriter Michael Waugh whose new album, ‘Beauty & Truth’  paints vivid pictures of growing up queer in rural Australia.
John Schumann and the Vagabond Crew play The J in Noosa Heads on 23 August TICKETS AVAILABLE and The Tivoli in Fortitude Valley on 24 Aug TICKETS AVAILABLE
