The Music Show

Dolly Parton said she wrote over three thousand songs, so we can barely begin to honour her extraordinary songwriting in just one hour.

From her early country duets with Porter Wagoner, to the extraordinary purple patch that brought us Jolene and I Will Always Love You (allegedly written on the same day), to lending her voice and country music bona fides to Beyonce’s Cowboy Carter record, her impact on the musical landscape is hard to overstate.

Her image was genuinely iconic, modelled after sex workers in her Tennessee hometown, and her impact on literacy, public health, and human rights will be felt far beyond Appalachia for generations to come. 

She inspired working class people, women, and the LGBTQIA+ community, and did it all by being herself, on purpose. 

Singer songwriter Fanny Lumsden, and musician and broadcaster (and sometimes host of The Music Show) Alice Keath are Andy’s guests to unpack Dolly Parton’s musical and cultural impact.

Music heard in the show:

Dumb Blonde from Hello, I’m Dolly (1969)

Coat of Many Colours from Coat of Many Colours (1971) 

Just Someone I Used to Know from Porter Wayne and Dolly Rebecca (with Porter Wagoner, 1970)

Jolene from Jolene (1974)

I Will Always Love You from Jolene (1974)

9 to 5 from 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs (1980)

Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos) from 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs (1980)

The Seeker from Dolly (1975)

After the Gold Rush from Trio II (1999)

Little Sparrow from Little Sparrow (2001)

Long As I Can See the Light (feat. John Fogerty) from Rockstar (2023)

TYRANT, DOLLY P, JOLENE (Beyonce, featuring Dolly Parton) from COWBOY CARTER (2024)

Light of a Clear Blue Morning from New Harvest… First Gathering (1977)

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country

Technical production by Antonia Gauci, Tim Jenkins, and Tim Traeger

"I think if we saw every conversation as music, we would drastically shift the course of history."  So says the poet and performer aja monet. For her latest record, the color of rain, monet worked with Meshell Ndegecello, Justin Brown, and a whole host of musical collaborators to create something that spans genre, but has seen her named as one of the early headliners of the Melbourne International Jazz Festival and the Sydney International Women’s Jazz Festival.

From the quietest footsteps to the loudest explosions, foley artists craft the sounds that shape a movie, but their work usually leaves them behind the scenes. In his latest composition, Hollywood Parsifals, Thomas Meadowcroft is putting 2 foley artists centre stage with the MSO, and exploring what happens when you combine their skill at sound generation with a full orchestra.

Rubiks Collective is presenting Thomas Meadowcroft's Love Songs Without Subjects at the Melbourne Recital Centre on August 25.

Music heard in this program:

Title: Love Songs Without SubjectsArtist:  asamisimasa, Ditte Marie Bræin, and Thomas Meadowcroft Composer: Thomas MeadowcroftAlbum: Love Songs Without SubjectsLabel: Sofa Music

Title: say it with your chestArtist: aja monetComposer: Aja Monet, Burniss Earl Travis IIAlbum: the color of rainLabel: Drink Sum Wtr

Title: i know that i don't knowArtist: aja monetComposer: aja monet, Justin BrownAlbum: the color of rainLabel: Drink Sum Wtr

Title: for the CongoArtist: aja monetComposer: aja monet, Justin Brown, Abe RoundsAlbum: the color of rainLabel: Drink Sum Wtr

Title: hollyweirdArtist: aja monetComposer: aja monet, Burniss Earl Travis II, Daniel Mintseris, Josh Johnson, Justin BrownAlbum: the color of rainLabel: Drink Sum Wtr

Title: War Western Thriller Horror Romantic Comedy Crime Science Fiction, Hollywood ParsifalsArtist:  MSO, John Simpson, and Eugene UghettiComposer: Thomas MeadowcroftAlbum: Live recording

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country Country

Technical production by Harvey O'Sullivan

James Ellis Ford is better known as James Ford, producer for artists like Pulp, Arctic Monkeys, Florence and the Machine and Fontaines D.C. When you add the Ellis, he's a solo artist making his own music and he joins Andy to talk about his latest album Lost In Another World, and the War Child charity album HELP(2) which he made during his time as a 'boy in the bubble' of a quarantined chemotherapy ward. 

Cafe of the Gate of Salvation are old friends of The Music Show: a gospel choir celebrating their 40th birthday. They join Andy to sing live in the studio, and look back at their history.

And Andy remembers Belinda Webster, the producer, engineer and singular force behind Australia's art music label Tall Poppies. She died last week at the age of 74, and we'll hear her interviewed on The Music Show in 2006.

Celebrate Cafe of the Gate of Salvation’s birthday with them (if you can get a ticket!) on Sunday 23 August at the Factory Theatre in Sydney.

Music heard in the show:

Title: Polonaise for keyboard in F major, BWV Anh. 117aArtist: Geoffrey TozerComposer: Bach, J.S. (maybe)Album: For ChildrenLabel: Tall Poppies

Title: The lovely dawnArtist: Aura Go, Ian MunroComposer: Komalkova, EkaterinaAlbum: I was dancing with a gnatLabel: Tall Poppies

Title: Did You Ever Want To Go To Your Own Funeral?, OvertonesArtist: James Ellis FordComposer: Ford, James EllisAlbum: Lost in Another WorldLabel: Domino

Title: Sunday MorningArtist: Beth GibbonsComposer: Reed, LouAlbum: HELP(2)Label: War Child Records

Title: Be ThankfulArtist: Cafe of the Gate of Salvation, Lisa Spence (soloist)Composer: Yancy, Marvin; Jackson, ChuckPerformed live in The Music Show studio

Title: One StepArtist: Cafe of the Gate of SalvationComposer: Vails, DonaldPerformed live in The Music Show studio

Title: say it with your chestArtist: aja monetComposer: monet, ajaAlbum: the color of rainLabel: drink sum wtr

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country

Technical production by Harvey O’Sullivan

Kate Miller-Heidke's new album, the first since 2020's Child In Reverse is a very theatrical and sometimes funny slice of gothic-folk called The Kiss and the Abyss. In between live performances of two new songs, Kate talks about referencing Handel and planning for the end of the world.

Pianist Maki Namekawa has an enduring relationship with Philip Glass - performing the world premiere of several of his pieces, including the Piano Etudes. Namekawa is in Australia to perform the first 10 of those Etudes, and shares her experience of working with the renown composer.

And selected highlights from a conversation with Philip Glass on-stage at the Perth Festival in 2013, when the Etudes were premiered in their entirety.

Kate Miller-Heidke is on tour from Aug 27 - full dates available here

Maki Namekawa is performing as part of the Now Or Never festival on August 22nd.

Music heard in this program:

Title: Etude 9Artist: Maki NamekawaComposer: Philip GlassAlbum: Philip Glass: The Complete Piano EtudesLabel: Orange Mountain Music

Title: ButterfliesArtist: Kate Miller-HeidkeComposer: Kate Miller-Heidke & Kier NuttallAlbum: The Kiss & The AbyssLabel: EMI

Title: HolidayArtist: Kate Miller-HeidkeComposer: Kate Miller-Heidke & Kier NuttallAlbum: The Kiss & The AbyssLabel: EMI

Title: Love Sweet LoveArtist: Kate Miller-HeidkeComposer: Kate Miller-Heidke & Kier NuttallAlbum: The Kiss & The AbyssLabel: EMI

Title: Lascia Ch’io PiangaArtist: Emma Matthews & NZ Chamber OrchestraComposer: George Frideric HandelAlbum: Handel AriasLabel: Artworks

Title: Little AntsArtist: Kate Miller-HeidkeComposer: Kate Miller-Heidke & Kier NuttallAlbum: The Kiss & The AbyssLabel: EMI

Title: Etude 1Artist: Maki NamekawaComposer: Philip GlassAlbum: Philip Glass: The Complete Piano EtudesLabel: Orange Mountain Music

Title: Dance VIIIArtist: Philip Glass & Michael RiesmanComposer: Philip GlassAlbum: In The Upper RoomLabel: Orange Mountain Music

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country Country

Technical production by Antonia Gauci and Brendan O’Neill

Grace Cummings’ latest album is called Bloodhorse! and it's fantastic and fantastically strange. Her ragged, bluesy voice floats through a lush, ornate sound world on tracks like 'The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of Morphine', and 'WITCH! WITCH! WITCH!', the latter of which was recorded whilst Grace wielded a grim reaper style scythe in the studio. She joins Andy to take us into the highly-strung world of the record.

Anna Maria della Pieta was a Venetian orphan who was taught, celebrated and written for by Antonio Vivaldi. Her musical life is the subject of a new production by the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, with American historical violinist Augusta McKay Lodge leading. Augusta joins Andy to tell the story of Anna Maria.

Plus new music from Mara, who is playing Phoenix Central Park in Sydney on 18 August.

Vivaldi’s Legacy is on in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane 12 - 25 August.  

Music heard in the show:

Title: Violin Concerto in E Major, RV 267a 'per Anna Maria'; I. AllegroArtist: Théotime Langlois de Swarte, Orchestre Le ConsortComposer: Vivaldi, AntonioAlbum: Vivaldi: Concerti Per Una VitaLabel: Harmonia Mundi

Title: The Hills Are Alive With The Sound of Morphine, WITCH! WITCH! WITCH!, My God, John LennonArtist: Grace CummingsComposer: Cummings, GraceAlbum: Bloodhorse!Label: ATO Records

Title: Loosening My GripArtist: Mara, feat. Abby SundbornComposer: Schwerdtfeger, MaraAlbum: Air Leak/Loosening My GripLabel: Pure Space

Title: Violin Concerto in E Major, RV 267a 'per Anna Maria'; II. AndanteArtist: Théotime Langlois de Swarte, Orchestre Le ConsortComposer: Vivaldi, AntonioAlbum: Vivaldi: Concerti Per Una VitaLabel: Harmonia Mundi

Title: Violin Sonata in A Minor: I. –Artist: Augusta McKay LodgeComposer: Pisendel, Johann GeorgAlbum: Beyond Bach and Vivaldi: Rare Unaccompanied Works for the Baroque ViolinLabel: Naxos

Title: A Certain PanicArtist: Kate Miller-HeidkeComposer: Miller-Heidke, Kate; Nuttall, KierAlbum: The Kiss and the AbyssLabel: EMI

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country

Technical production by Antonia Gauci and Brendan O’Neill

Can you tell the history of the world in fifty pieces of music? No, but BBC Radio 3 presenter and writer Tom Service has given it a red hot go in A History of the World in 50 Pieces: The Classical Music That Shapes Us. He joins Andy to talk through the surprising stories behind some of those pieces, from Handel to Happy Birthday. 

Music heard in the show:

Title: Overture from The Marriage of FigaroArtist: Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Riccardo MutiComposer: Mozart, Wolfgang AmadeusAlbum: Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro K492Label: Warner Classics

Title: Psalm 130: ‘Du fond de l'abîme’Artist: Ann Murray, BBC Philharmonic, City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus, Yan Pascal TortelierComposer: Boulanger, LiliAlbum: Faust et HélèneLabel: Chandos

Title: “Gente, Gente!”, and “Questo giorno di tormenti” from The Marriage of FigaroArtist: Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Riccardo MutiComposer: Mozart, Wolfgang AmadeusAlbum: Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro K492Label: Warner Classics

Title: Scena II. Ruggier de danni asprissimi, from La liberazione di Ruggiero dall'isola d'AlcinaArtist: Huelgas-Ensemble, Paul Van NevelComposer: Caccini, FrancescaAlbum: Caccini, F: La liberazione di Ruggerio dall'isola di AlcinaLabel: Deutsche Harmonia Mundi

Title: Fuera, Fuera! Haganles lugar!Artist: Florilegium, Arakaendar Bolivia Choir, Ashley SolomonComposer: Chavarria, Roque Jacinto deAlbum: Bolivian Baroque Volume 3Label: Channel Classics

Title: Gruppen, for 3 Orchestras (extracts)Artist: WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Bruno Maderna, Michael GielenComposer: Stockhausen, KarlheinzAlbum: Gruppen, PunkteLabel: BMC

Title: The Rumble, America from West Side StoryArtist: Leonard Bernstein; Kiri Te Kanawa; José Carreras; Tatiana Troyanos; Kurt Ollmann; Marilyn HorneComposer: Bernstein, LeonardAlbum: Leonard Bernstein Conducts West Side StoryLabel: Deutsche Grammophon

Title: MbubeArtist: Solomon Linda’s Original Evening BirdsComposer: Linda, Solomon Album: Single, 1939Label: Gallo

Title: WimowehArtist: The WeaversComposer: Linda, SolomonAlbum: The Weavers at Carnegie HallLabel: Vanguard

Title: The Lion Sleeps TonightArtist: The TokensComposer: Linda, Solomon; Peretti, Hugo; Creatore, Luigi; Weiss, George David; Stanton, AlbertAlbum: The Lion Sleeps TonightLabel: RCA Victor

Title: The Lion Sleeps TonightArtist: Billy Eichner and Seth RogenComposer: Linda, Solomon; Peretti, Hugo; Creatore, Luigi; Weiss, George David; Stanton, AlbertAlbum: The Lion King (2019)Label: Walt Disney Records

Title: The Lark AscendingArtist: Tasmin Little, BBC Philharmonic, Andrew DavisComposer: Vaughan Williams, RalphAlbum: The Lark AscendingLabel: Chandos

Title: America: A Prophecy, Op. 19 Artist: Susan Bickley, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, Thomas AdèsComposer: Adès, ThomasAlbum: Adès: America A ProphecyLabel: Warner Classics

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country

Technical production by Tegan Nicholls

All The Grateful Dead are one of the iconic bands of the last century, not just for their music, but for their extended tours, which saw their fans follow them across America and create a very special sort of travelling community. Mischa Richter shares stories from the road and explores his new documentary Summer Tour.

Don Walker talks basement recordings, lessons from Nashville, and his new album Love Songs, plus he shares a memory of Glenn A Baker.

And in a church in Germany, an organ is 25 years into a 639 year performance of John Cage's piece As Slow As Possible. The notes change rarely, only every couple of years, and one of those changes has just happened. Director of the John Cage Trust Jeffrey Lependorf tells Andy what it felt like to be there as an A natural was added to the sound. 

Summer Tour is screening as part of the Melbourne International Film Festival

Don Walker is on tour in October - dates here

Music heard in this program:

Title: As Slow As PossibleArtist: John CageComposer: John CageAlbum: Live Performance

Title: The Wheel (Live in Chicago - 1976)Artist: Grateful DeadComposer: Jerry Garcia; Robert HunterAlbum: So Many RoadsLabel: Grateful Dead Records

Title: Dark Star (Live At the Fillmore West)Artist: Grateful DeadComposer: Jerry Garcia; Robert HunterAlbum: Live/DeadLabel: Warner Bros. - Seven Arts Records

Title: LuckArtist: Don WalkerComposer: Don Walker, Thomas Busby, Jason IsbellAlbum: Love SongsLabel: Sony Music

Title: Breakfast in ParisArtist: Don WalkerComposer: Don WalkerAlbum: Love SongsLabel: Sony Music

Title: Could You Still Be HereArtist: Don WalkerComposer: Don WalkerAlbum: Love SongsLabel: Sony Music

Title: Fly AwayArtist: Don WalkerComposer: Don WalkerAlbum: Love SongsLabel: Sony Music

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country Country

Technical production by Tegan Nicholls

Anita O'Day was a jazz singer who lived 'the jazz life'. She's been compared to people like Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald: an incredible singer, storyteller, and a deeply troubled drug user and alcoholic.  Despite the turmoil of her personal life, she's one of the most precise singers of her generation, on the beat and right in tune for every note. 

Author James Gavin, who knew O'Day, returns to The Music Show with his fresh biography, Cool Heat: Anita O’Day and Her Dangerous Jazz Life.

Music heard in the show: 

Title: Let Me Off UptownArtist: Gene Krupa Orchestra, Roy Eldridge, Anita O’DayComposer: Bostic, Earl; Evans, ReddAlbum: Let Me Off UptownLabel: Okeh

Title: Tea For TwoArtist: Anita O’DayComposer: Youmans, VincentAlbum: Anita O’Day At Mister Kelly’sLabel: Verve

Title: What Is This Thing Called Love?Artist: Anita O’DayComposer: Porter, ColeAlbum: Anita O'Day Swings Cole Porter with Billy MayLabel: Verve

Title: Angel EyesArtist: Anita O’Day, Johnny MandelComposer: Brent, Earl; Dennis, Matt Album: Waiter, Make Mine BluesLabel: Verve

Title: Don't ExplainArtist: Anita O’Day, Johnny MandelComposer: Holiday, Billie; Herzog, Arthur Jr.Album: Travelin' LightLabel: Verve

Title: Boogie Blues Artist: Anita O’Day, Gary McFarland OrchestraComposer: Krupa, Gene; Biondi, RayAlbum: All the Sad Young MenLabel: Verve

Title: Old Devil MoonArtist: Anita O’DayComposer: Harburg, Yip; Lane, BurtonAlbum: Mello'dayLabel:  GNP Crescendo

Title: In A Mellow ToneArtist: Anita O’DayComposer: Ellington, Duke; Gabler, MiltAlbum: In A Mellow ToneLabel: DRG

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country

Technical production by Emrys Cronin and Ross Richardson

American composer William Basinski's very long and much celebrated avant-garde electronic work The Disintegration Loops was born from the gradual decay of magnetic tape. It was created over a month in August and September 2001, during which time Basinski witnessed the collapse of the World Trade Centre from his New York apartment. 25 years later, the piece is being presented in its entirety in Melbourne, with Basinski hosting a sleepover of sorts as part of the Now or Never Festival.

Will Swenson has been part of many Broadway revival casts - from Hair to Les Misérables to Assassins - but playing Neil Diamond in his prime is a different sort of revival. He joins Andy to talk about the jukebox musical A Beautiful Noise, and getting the real Neil's blessing.

And we remember Glen Hansard, the Irish musician, actor and co-composer of the Oscar-winning film Once and its stage adaptation, who has died at the age of 56. 

Plus it's National Poetry Month and The Music Show launches Middle of the Air for 2026, our competition in partnership with Red Room Poetry. Throughout August entries are open to submit a poem, which may be chosen by newly-announced partner artists Missy Higgins and Ziggy Ramo to transform into two new songs. 

Music heard in this program:

Title: DLP 6Artist: William BasinskiComposer: William BasinskiAlbum: The Disintegration Loops IVLabel: 2062

Title: CratersArtist: Missy HigginsComposer: Missy HigginsAlbum: The Second ActLabel: Eleven

Title: BanambaArtist: Ziggy RamoComposer: Guyala Bayles, Lewis Mitchell, Macario De SouzaAlbum: Human?Label: Impressed Recordings

Title: Crunchy Granola SuiteArtist: Neil DiamondComposer: Neil DiamondAlbum: Hot August NightLabel: MCA Records

Title: I Am... I SaidArtist: Neil DiamondComposer: Neil DiamondAlbum: StonesLabel: MCA Records

Title: Kentucky WomanArtist: Will SwensonComposer: Neil DiamondAlbum: Live Performance

Title: What Happens When The Heart Just StopsArtist: The FramesComposer: Glen Hansard & The FramesAlbum: For The BirdsLabel: Little Big Music

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country Country

Technical production by Emrys Cronin & Ross Richardson

The latest in our Music Now & Then series with composer Liza Lim, who first appeared on The Music Show in its early years when she was in her mid twenties, where both her youth and the 'difficulty' of her music were remarked upon. 

As her opera The Oresteia is remounted by Sydney Chamber Opera and ELISION Ensemble, Andy speaks with Liza on stage about revisiting works and ideas over more than thirty years. 

The Oresteia is staged at Sydney's Carriageworks 24-31 July.

Music heard in the show:

Title: The Oresteia: The Furies; Positions of a memory theatre (Cassandra’s Dream Song); Athena’s TrumpetArtists: Jeannie van de Velde, Julie Edwardson, Deborah Kayser, Andrew Muscat-Clark, Tyrone Landau, Grant Smith (singers), Elision Ensemble/Sandro GorliComposer: Lim, LizaAlbum: Mother TongueLabel: BR Klassik

Title: The Compass, II. – Artist: William Barton (digeridoo), Carin Levine (flute), Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra/Christoph PoppenComposer: Lim, LizaAlbum: Musica Viva Vol. 47Label: BR Klassik

Title: A Sutured World, IV. Simon Says. Alle Vögel fliegen hochArtist: Nicolas Altstaedt (cello), Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra/Edward GardnerComposer: Lim, LizaAlbum: Musica Viva Vol. 47Label: BR Klassik

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country

Technical production by Harvey O’Sullivan, Mickey Grossman and Ann-Marie Debettencor