After spinning the great new song by queer Irish artist and former guest of the show Wallis Bird, Katie welcomes Australian music legend Joe Camilleri to the studio. Currently on tour with his band the Black Sorrows, he tells Katie how constant performing and songwriting still motivate him and give him joy after more than 50 years in the music business. They chat about the band’s latest album, Saint Georges Road – which is Joe’s 22nd album with the Black Sorrows and his 50th release overall – and heaps more. Enjoy! Here is the playlist:

* What’s Wrong with Changing – Wallis Bird

* Raise Your Hands – The Black Sorrows

* King Without a Throne – The Black Sorrows

* What Does It Take (To Win Your Love) – Junior Walker & The All Stars

* Saint Georges Road – The Black Sorrows

* Ghost Writer – Garland Jeffreys

* Chained to the Wheel – The Black Sorrows

Visit the Black Sorrows’ official website and follow them on Facebook and Twitter, and follow Joe on Instagram.

Photo of Joe Camilleri (above) by Betty Sujecki – please visit this Miss Chatelaine Facebook photo album for more pics!

On the morning of the inaugural Melbourne Pride festival, Katie plays songs about hope, new beginnings, embracing what life has to offer, rising up in solidarity, and more – including tracks from superb recent albums by great US and UK artists, and excellent new Australian songs. Here is the playlist:

* Giving Up – Jack Carty

* Gillian – Naomi Keyte

* Orphan Annie – Punch Brothers

* Perfect Imperfection – Dana Gehrman

* Paint the Red Rose Blue – Elvis Costello & The Imposters

* The Price of Love – Robert Plant & Alison Krauss

* Ruby – D Henry Fenton

* The Losing Side – Grace Petrie

* Growing Up – Alex the Astronaut

Above: Dana Gehrman’s ‘Perfect Imperfection’ single cover art by Julian Walz

Katie plays a track from Grace Cummings’ stunning new album, pays tribute to the late, great English folk singer Norma Waterson, enjoys a new guitar piece from D.C Cross, blisses out to Lisa Mitchell’s new song, and spins several more excellent new and recent tracks by Australian artists. Here is the playlist:

* Two Little Birds – Grace Cummings

* My Heart Don’t Feel a Thing – The Black Sorrows

* Smile – Kate Leahy

* Red Wine and Promises – Lal & Mike Waterson ft. Norma Waterson

* Cootamundra – D.C Cross

* Trouble – Maya O’Loughlin

* I Believe in Kindness – Lisa Mitchell

* Broken Toys – Nick O’Mara

* Never Alone – Hello Jane

Above: Hello Jane’s ‘Never Alone’ single cover design and photography by Hello Jane

This hour starts with a beautiful cover of an Australian classic and finishes with a stunning piece of music that tells a story of repatriation of Aboriginal ancestral remains. In between is a posthumous release by the great Scottish artist Gerry Rafferty, gorgeous new music from Norway’s Aurora and England’s Josienne Clarke, an extended meditation on stress dreams, the fourth single from Michael Waugh’s outstanding album The Cast, and a song that speaks to land rights and environmental degradation. Whew! Here is the playlist:

* Under the Milky Way – Emily Barker & Lukas Drinkwater ft. Fanny Lumsden

* Wild Mountain Thyme – Gerry Rafferty

* Artemis – Aurora

* Stress Dreams – Greensky Bluegrass

* Driving at Night – Josienne Clarke

* He Taught Me – Michael Waugh

* Australia – Ny Oh

* The Dawn – Bob Weatherall & Halfway with William Barton

Above: Greensky Bluegrass’s Stress Dreams album cover; artwork by Kent Elliott/Black Lab Five, photography by Dylan Langille/ontheDL

Opening the second hour with a heartfelt plea from small island nations artists about the effects of climate change on their homes, Katie presents more ripper new songs by ripper singer-songwriters from around Australia (and a band from the UK). Here is the playlist:

* Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) – Small Island Big Song ft. Emlyn, Putad, Sauljaljui, Vaiteani & Selina Leem

* Things Will Be Fine – Metronomy

* Will You Miss Me When You’re Sober? – Emily Barker & Lukas Drinkwater

* Don’t Believe the Hype – Jack Carty

* Miss Lily’s – darby

* Somewhere in Soho – Matt Boylan-Smith

* Alaska – Portair

* Dig (Variation) – Fanny Lumsden

* Gundry’s Track – Brendan McMahon

* Pemulwuy – Peter Baxter

Above: Small Island Big Song’s ‘Mercy Mercy Me’ single cover artwork by Jenn Da Costa

The morning after the women’s singles final at the Australian Open, Katie celebrates Ash Barty’s magnificent win and plays an outstanding set of new songs by emerging and established artists, including a fabulous collaboration between past guests the Teskey Brothers and Emma Donovan. Here is the playlist:

* Geneva – Lucy Lorenne

* Sunscreen – Don McGlashan

* Water – Gabriella Cohen

* Get Back to the Land – The Teskey Brothers ft. Emma Donovan

* Love Is Selfish – Jack White

* Heaven – Grace Cummings

* If You Don’t Know Me, Who Am I – Josh Pyke

* Less Than a Man – Madi Colville-Walker

* Absence of You – grentperez

Above: The Teskey Brothers & Emma Donovan’s ‘Get Back to the Land’ single cover – the painting Desert Breeze by Wurundjeri artist Grace Brown

Katie counts down her top 20 favourite songs of 2021. In another challenging year for everyone, there was no shortage of fabulous tunes to keep us all going – big love to all the artists who released new music. Eight of the songs in numbers 10 to 1 are by Australian artists and two are by US artists. Five are by solo women artists. Here is the playlist:

10. Graceful Lady with the Lamps – Nick Batterham

9. Right on Time – Brandi Carlile

8. Little Things – Ziggy Ramo ft. Paul Kelly

7. Tender Moment – Paula Punch

6. Blood Moon – Jeb Cardwell

5. Louise – Montgomery Church

4. As Long as It’s Not Us – Lachlan Bryan & The Wildes

3. Water Flowing Downward – Andrea von Kampen

2. you should do this for a living – Ruby Gill

1. First Time Really Feeling – Liz Stringer

Hear numbers 20 to 11 of Katie’s top songs in Part 1 of the show here, and check out her 2021 interview with Nick Batterham in show no.199.

Katie counts down her top 20 favourite songs of 2021. In another challenging year for everyone, there was no shortage of fabulous tunes to keep us all going – big love to all the artists who released new music. Eight of the songs in numbers 20 to 11 are by Australian artists, one is by a US artist and one is by a Scottish artist. Five are by solo or duo women artists, and two are by woman-fronted bands. Here is the playlist:

20. Make a Baby – The Maes

19. Deep Black Water – Georgia Van Etten

18. Wellerman – Nathan Evans

17. Lonesome Winter Blues – Jessie Monk

16. Canyon – Charm of Finches

15. Just for You – Joan & The Giants

14. The Cast – Michael Waugh

13. Boab (Time Is a River) – Jack Carty

12. Bones – Telenova

11. Starlight – Yola

Hear Katie’s top 10 songs in Part 2 of the show here, and check out her 2021 interviews with Charm of Finches in show no.218 and Yola in show no.213.

As well as being the grande dame of Australian folk music and a queer icon, Judy Small is the chair of the Midsumma Festival Board. She returns to Miss Chatelaine to talk about the 2022 festival, which starts on Sunday 23 January. She tells us how she became involved with Midsumma, how the festival has adjusted to Covid conditions, the AND/OR events (a platform for artists who are queer and disabled), the Midsumma Pathways mentorship initiative, what to expect at Carnival, the musical theatre show Fun Home, Melbourne Pride, and more. Here is the playlist:

* Be Still My Soul – Saara Aalto

* Waterfall – Cris Williamson

* Girls in Our Town – Margret RoadKnight

* I Can Be a Lesbian – Judy Small

* Love on a Rooftop – Ronnie Spector

Check out this year’s Midsumma Festival events and make a booking or two!

Visit Judy Small’s official website and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

Midsumma 2022 image (above) by Gonketa

This hour there are gorgeous new songs about love in a crazy world, noticing the small miracles as well as the big ones, and an odd couple in Los Angeles; recent releases by Miss Chat favourites Emily Soon and Jack Carty; an excellent new version of a classic folk song; and more. Here is the playlist:

* The Way I Feel About You – Cass Eager

* Will the Circle Be Unbroken? – The Dead South

* Fraction – Alius ft. Rasmus Hagen

* Everything Matters – Aurora ft. Pomme

* Is It Just the Bruise – darby

* Airplane – Les Ms

* Kid Codeine – The Delines

* Rush – Emily Soon

* Boab – Jack Carty

Above: Aurora’s The Gods We Can Touch album cover photography by Xin Li; design by Leif Podhajsky