Submitted by Warren Fahey
Do YOU have lucky colours, clothing, emblems you wear before a performance or rituals you perform prior to going on stage?
– Are there things you avoid because you consider them bad luck?
– Are there sayings you use for good luck?
– Do you have any stories about unlucky and haunted venues?
Warren Fahey will be known to many jazz performers from his pioneering Larrikin Record label and the Folkways Music stores. Larrikin released a wide range of Australian jazz over its 25 year history including the music of Bruce Cale, Dick Hughes, Marie Wilson, Bob Bertles, Bob Sedergreen, Christine Sullivan, Joe Chindamo, Serge Ermoll and many others. Larrikin was also a major distributor of jazz labels.
When he started Folkways in 1973 it soon became a mecca for jazz and blues music -especially difficult to obtain Australian jazz. Fahey exited all his business interests in 1999 to concentrate his efforts in collecting Australian folklore, writing books (he has over a dozen books published) and also resume his performing career.
It is folklore that has fascinated Fahey for over 45 years and collecting folklore associated with music was a natural progression. As a collector he places all his findings on his website www.warrenfahey.com which is already receiving high traffic from browsers searching for Australian music history and associated folklore. Although he is currently collecting ‘superstitions’ of musicians he is also interested in hearing from people who can contribute any of the following: nicknames associated with jazz players, bawdy tune and song titles used as ‘alternatives’ by musicians (usually amongst themselves), practical jokes played on other musicians, jokes about jazz, jazz instruments and jazz musicians.
This project is part of a two-year survey Warren is conducting on folklore and contemporary culture. Funding has been provided by the Music Board of the Australia Council for the Arts.
Contact Warren via his website www.warrenfahey.com
