Blues Portrait Volume 5 Book review by Phil Shepperd – Harmonica Riff Raff Online Blog – April 2025

Then there was five. Visual artist and blues connoisseur Pauline Bailey has presented pertinent questions to another forty artists from varied backgrounds and vintage, all bound into a mighty impressive publication – Blues Portrait Volume 5. The launch has come and gone and a copy managed to find its way into my mail. Chores were left on hold (longer than intended) as I began to examine the contents. Where to begin was quickly resolved, at the ‘begin’ as Dan O’Sullivan (Tomcat Playground/Frank Sultana) a fabulous harp player was first cab off the rank. Andy Cowan, ivory tickler was next in line so that was devoured feverishly having been a fan of Madder Lake back in the day. Dorothy ‘DJ’ Gosper Canberrian harpist was further in, so I skipped a few and, before you knew it, I had read ten! Had a peek at Doc White’s to see if good friend of HRR Steve Williams rated a mention. He did! Although I have to make a correction Doc – Steve played harmonica with Chad Morgan not guitar. Steve informs me that Chad called him ‘Gobbo’ derived from a colloquial term for the harmonica, ‘Gob Iron’. Not sure which is worse this or John Farnham’s nickname for Steve, ‘Rusty Buns’. Also you should do yourself a service and check out these tunes with Steve, Doc & Tobasco Tom – Baby Please Don’t Go and St. James Infirmary. Evan Whetter and Erica Graf from Lazy Eye (also good friends of HRR) were a must read. Better throw Ev into the harp players mix to those listed in last month’s blog, even though he’s predominantly a fabulous Hammond exponent. He can huff and puff amongst the best of us. Hear here Black Hill. I’m still recovering (a Bex and a lie down) from Sugarcane Collin’s definition of the Blues (you’ll have to buy the book). As per the previous volumes this edition is akin to the music it’s based on, a rough and tumble, warts and all life’s journey of Australian musicians (guitarists, drummers, harpists, vocalists, bassists and keyboardists) feeling the blues. Oh! There’s a chapter on a regular visitor to our shores as well, the living legend Charlie Musselwhite. Head to Pauline Bailey’s store to have yourself a copy.

August 2024 – Feature article in Volume 6 of Jimmy Hornet Magazine. Available from jimmyhornet.com RRP $28.00. Thank you to Anthea Palmer for the feature and the wonderful intro! “Meet a vibrant painter who breathes new life into iconic music venues. Starting her artistic journey at 40 with stencil street-art portraits of legendary musicians like Bon Scott and Billy Thorpe, she seamlessly transitioned to capturing the spirit of the venues she loves. Born and raised in Melbourne, she now calls Gippsland home but still indulges her love for live music across the city and beyond. Her paintings are more than just art; they are a heartfelt effort to preserve the rich history and cherished memories of these musical landmarks, many of which are sadly disappearing. From the gritty charm of “Pony” to the lively Lulie Tavern”, her work tells the story of Melbourne’s musical heartbeat, one quirky building at a time”.

JH: How did you come to focus on painting iconic music venues? “I began studying art at the age of 40 and my very first paintings were a series of stencil/street-art style portraits. The subjects were Bon Scott, Pete Wells, Ian Rilen, Lobby Loyde and Billy Thorpe, so my work has always had a musical theme. Being a music lover, it was a natural progression to paint the venues that I loved as well as the musicians. I live two hours from Melbourne in Gippsland nowadays, but I was born and raised in Melbourne and spent a lot of my early adulthood going out to see live music – something I’m still doing to this day. I had a real passion for music then, and I still do. I go to as many gigs as I can, here in Gippsland and in Melbourne. I love painting music venues because they hold a lot of history and memories for people – particularly these days with so many of them closing. It’s my way of preserving history, I guess. I love quirky buildings as well, cafes, shopfronts and abandoned buildings. Anything that tells a story. Many of the buildings I paint have interesting signs too, which is something I’ve always been attracted to. That goes back to my childhood watching my dad create his own fonts and paint signs in the backyard shed for a club he belonged to, the South Oakleigh Club. I always had aspirations of being a signwriter, so after I left school at sixteen, I did two weeks’ work experience and applied for an apprenticeship. I completed the aptitude test and was told that I scored higher than the men but unfortunately being “a woman” they had to give the men priority as it wasn’t a “suitable job for a woman”. It was a different world back then in 1981. It took me a long time to get back to it, but I suppose I’m a signwriter of sorts on my own terms now. Ha!“

JH: What was the first venue or building you painted? “Some of my very early paintings were of the platform underpass at Flinders Street Station. The cracked tiles, decay, and prominent signage appealed to me as well as the history. The first music venue I painted was “Pony”, 68 Little Collins Street. The brickwork, character, grunginess and overall feel just struck me. I also did a painting of AC/DC Lane where Cherry Bar was located and by coincidence, the two buildings became linked a few years later. After “Pony” the building became “Boney”, and the Cherry Bar now calls that building home after relocating from AC/DC Lane. After I started writing my blues books, I found out that the 68 Collins Street building was a music venue back in the sixties called Little Reata. Many of the people who got their start at Little Reata including Margret RoadKnight went on to have very successful careers in the Melbourne music scene.”

JH: Which is your favourite piece?

“Lulie Tavern in Collingwood is my favourite piece at the moment. I went there for the first time only a few months ago and was inspired to do a painting which I completed in two days! It’s a great venue; cool atmosphere, friendly staff and great food. Plus, they have live music a few nights a week and a street festival.”

JB: How or where do you sell your art? “I sell through my website and online store, and I also have regular exhibitions. This year has been very busy for me. I exhibited at the West Gippsland Arts Centre a couple of months ago and I have three more solo exhibitions later in the year at Brunswick Artists’ Bar, Thin Slizzy in Collingwood and WAS Gallery in Warragul. I also sell tea towels and cards at some of the art galleries around Gippsland and I have a semi-permanent display of paintings at the Criterion Hotel in Sale.”

JH: Do you accept commissions for houses or workplaces? “Yes, I do! I’ve done several commissions for people including houses and apartments. I’m working on two commissions at the moment. One is an Irish Bar in Nepal, and the other is a café in Trafalgar which is being converted into an office. It’s nice when someone thinks enough of my art to ask for a special piece.”

JH: You have released four volumes of “Blues Portrait.” What are these books about?

“The books are an overview of the blues scene in Australia. I interviewed over 170 musicians from all corners of Australia (and a couple from overseas) and asked them about how they started their musical journeys, how they feel about music, and how they discovered blues. I always felt blues was underrepresented and thought it would be nice to shine a spotlight on these hard-working musicians and give them a chance to tell their stories. Their stories are honest, heartfelt and genuine and it’s been a privilege to work with all of these people and share their stories. I never expected to release four books but once I began uncovering people I found more and more. I’m now working on a fifth volume! Once I get my teeth into a project, I’m like a dog with a bone. I was fortunate to have Max Crawdaddy, Kerri Simpson, Jeff Lang and Phil Manning write the forewords for the books. The books include musicians from every pocket of Australia and all walks of life. Matt Taylor, Ian Collard, Jimi Hocking, Brian Cadd, Ash Grunwald, Dom Turner, Fiona Boyes, Ross Wilson, Chuck Leavell, Continental Robert, Margret RoadKnight, Tim Rogers, Angry Anderson, Joe Camilleri, Penny Ikinger, Dallas Frasca, Russell Morris. It’s a long list. Fabulous people and fabulous musicians, every single one of them. The inspiration for the books goes back to the musicians who are no longer with us, Pete Wells from Rose Tattoo in particular. I met Pete many years ago and we talked at great length about his life and all sorts of things. Sadly he didn’t get a chance to tell his story, which is the case for many iconic musicians who’ve passed away. That’s why I’m so interested in recording peoples’ stories before it’s too late. I guess that’s also why I’m so interested in capturing buildings before they’re gone and committing them to canvas. A photo that I took of Pete Wells at a Rose Tattoo gig back in 2004 was used for the cover of Volume 2 as a tribute.”

JH: What is the biggest lesson learned from publishing the books? “The main thing I’ve learnt is that everybody has a story! I’ve also learnt that it’s possible to start new or unfamiliar projects later in life and it’s possible to learn a new skill at any age. I didn’t start writing until I was 51, and that came about through a friend, Melbourne musician Kim Volkman. We worked together on his autobiography and subsequent book (a new venture for both of us) and that’s what planted the seed for the Blues Portrait books. I self-published the books and learnt how to do everything myself from the ground up, which for me was a big achievement. Through that I learnt that no matter how difficult the task may seem, you have to believe in what you’re doing, put in the hard work, and push on through the obstacles in order to succeed. And keep your fingers crossed that it pays off.”

JH: What is most challenging about running your small business? “I think it’s difficult running an art-related business especially with the tough times we’re experiencing at the moment. It’s up and down. People just don’t have the money to spend, so buying art is a luxury, not a necessity. I guess we just have to hang in there, keep creating and hope for better times ahead.”

JH: Whose music have you been listening to lately? “A broad range of music! I have pretty varied tastes. Blues, of course, right through to funk, punk, jazz and heavy metal. Favourites at the moment are Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Buddy Guy, Black Sabbath, Rose Tattoo, the Stones, Chris Wilson, Frank Sultana, Kim Volkman & The Whiskey Priests, Willie Maxwell and The 6V6s, Anna Scionti, Lloyd Spiegel, Howlin’ Wolf, Endless Boogie, Nine Inch Nails, The Faces, Canned Heat, R.L. Burnside, Bill Barber & The Holding Cell, Child, Shihad, Sweet Talk, Southern River Band, Motorhead, Marcus King, Dave Hole, Ted Nugent, Johnny Winter… the list goes on. I’d like to name every single person in my books but there isn’t enough room!!!”

Thanks to the Baw Baw Arts Alliance for the lovely article in this month’s newsletter. Looking forward to exhibiting at the Station Gallery Yarragon in April.

Thanks so much to Tony Smith at Trad And Now for the lovely reviews of Volume 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 (issues no. 159, 160, 161, 162 & 171). Trad and Now is a an independent, six-weekly magazine that was established in 2002 to serve the burgeoning Australian folk, blues, roots, bluegrass, indy, alternative and world music and dance industry. Featuring performers, venues, latest news, festivals, poetry, dance, CD and book reviews, contact directories and much more, it has become the longest running Australian national music magazine covering these genres. Available by subscription at www.tradandnow.com or at newsagents around Australia.

December 2023 – Thank you to Geoff Hughes for having me as a guest on his Writer’s Show podcast! Listen to episode #60 here and check out the rest of Geoff’s podcasts here

December 2023 – Feature in Gippsland Life Magazine – Summer Edition No. 57 – Read the “Blues and Hues” article below or click here to view online.

Blues and Hues – by Ken Roberts. Gippsland Life Magazine, Issue #57, December 2023

“It’s rare that the interests of childhood translate to what in adulthood become our passions. Pauline Bailey, now living near Heyfield but from her early life in Melbourne, has been able to maintain these interests and turn them into her life’s work and constant joy. From an early age growing up in a home with both parents sharing a love of music, Pauline too loved music. Combined with an interest in drawing, art and books she would never realize that later in life these would fill her days. Growing up in Melbourne Pauline always loved the city lifestyle and the urban landscape that would have a lasting imprint upon her. She was in the perfect place to indulge her passion for music. She was fortunate to have seen her first musical gig at school with a visit by James Freud and band playing a concert. While most of her peers were watching Countdown at six on Sunday evening Pauline, through a school classmate, was able to get tickets to tapings and watch the magic happen live. She remembers seeing many popular acts of the day and being a part of the crush of the audience and the heady thrill of being in the midst of what would later be seen as an iconic time in the country’s musical history, something the majority of teenagers could not even dream of happening! At 16 she went to her first real music gig to see Rose Tattoo, never suspecting that many years later she would become friends with members of the band. Her interest in live music gigs continues until present day. She has travelled across the country and even the US, visiting Chicago in 2019 with her husband Dave to indulge in her lifelong passion for the Rolling Stones and going to their concert at Soldier Field Stadium. She was and still is a regular at Melbourne music venues and while once attending a taping of the SBS show “Rockwiz” even became a contestant. Brian Nankervis the host became a friend and later opened two of Pauline’s art exhibitions in his own rock wiz style! From her home in the bush on the outskirts of Heyfield with idyllic vistas, Pauline paints and writes, and lives with her supportive husband Dave who has a mutual love of music. Her now adult children Melissa and Shane also have a common interest in music albeit not as passionately as their mother! They have attended numerous gigs with their mum over the years and Shane has been playing guitar since he was very young. Now a grandmother to Melissa’s little boy, adorable Henry, Pauline surely hopes that this family fervour continues, it won’t be without trying! Pauline has become an historian of sorts as she has a passion for recording images and stories before they disappear. Growing up in the city she loved the gritty reality of buildings and scenes, places and sights that most others wouldn’t look twice at. A much-loved series of her works were detailed paintings of tiles in Melbourne train stations such as Flinders Street and Richmond. These images were passed by on a daily basis by thousands and yet she could see the beauty that others had missed. Everywhere she goes now she photographs buildings, often decrepit, that may soon disappear. She will later paint these, and they include many locations in Gippsland as well as the city. Pauline returned to study art formally in her forties and then never looked back. She has an impressive and constant list of individual and group exhibitions with her works selling frequently. It was through a sale of one of her paintings to him that she met Kim Volkman, a Melbourne musician, who would become a good friend and have an amazing impact on her life. As a friend he would tell her many stories about his life and musical journey and at some point she suggested that they should be recorded somewhere. This became the impetus for Pauline to begin the process and the result was her first book, a writing collaboration with Kim, “The Devil Won’t Take Charity” about Kim’s life story. It was to be a pivotal experience. During her early love of rock music she also slowly began a love for blues music. She discovered that many of her favourite artists also were inspired by the genre. After writing the biography of Kim Volkman she decided to learn more but found that there was very little written about the blues music scene and the many artists in it. As with her paintings where she loved to preserve images of buildings before they were lost, she could see that it would be very valuable to record the stories of blues artists before it was too late. She began with one story after approaching an artist she liked and proposed an interview with the idea of creating a book telling blues artists’ stories. Pauline wrote down a wish list of musicians she would like to interview. This list became longer and longer as her subjects would often suggest others. She began a constant round of sourcing and interviewing musicians around Australia over an 18-month period which through her hard work and dedication resulted in “Blues Portrait: A Profile of the Australian Blues Scene” released in 2019. Through this self-published book Pauline unexpectedly created her own niche. She related the stories of these people and gave them voices that would otherwise have never been heard, something that hadn’t been done before. Pauline’s literary venture was very well received, and the book became successful, especially within the blues and music world. Her “problem” was that she had barely scratched the surface of her long list of names and so she continued on. During this time there was a worldwide pandemic which while shutting down the live music scene still gave Pauline the opportunity to research and talk to musicians on the phone and write their stories. The result was that she had enough interviews to create Volumes 2 and 3 together and launch them at the same time. Again, they were very well received, and the story continued with more artists to interview. “Blues Portrait” Volume 4 was the result of this further endeavour. Nobody should underestimate the level of commitment and constant effort required to complete these works and the results show Pauline’s dedication and skill in achieving these goals. An acknowledgement of her success is the constant demand for her series of books which have gone around the country and overseas. Still, her list of subjects has not been exhausted and Pauline continues to work on future volumes. All this while still painting and planning future exhibitions. She is an amazing woman!”

19th October 2023 – Interview with Neil Rogers on The Australian Mood, Triple R FM

25th September 2023 – Love That Album podcast with Maurice Bursztynski

24th March 2022 – The Writer’s Show Podcast with Geoff Hughes

Jazzamatazz

Thank you to Des Cowley for the review in Rhythms Magazine, Nov/Dec 2022 issue:

May 2022: Big thanks to Stefan at the Gippy Times for the article!

March 2022 – Thanks to Geoff Hughes for having me as a guest on his Writer’s Show podcast! Check out Geoff’s website here

https://www.thewritersshow.com/pauline-bailey-blues-portrait

January 2020: Feature in Issue 20 of MEGAscene Magazine

5th September 2017 – ABC Gippsland Radio live to air interview to promote “The Devil Won’t Take Charity” by Kim Volkman.

December 2015: Design feature in Herald Sun Home Magazine (December 12th issue)

August 2014: Paintings featured in Darren Cole’s Soundproof documentary screening at Melbourne International Film Festival. About Soundproof: “Three men linked only by their passion for rock and roll battle to keep their dreams and businesses alive in a city rapidly changing around them.”

“PLACE” exhibition opening – Bailey, Masin and Roberts. Tacit Contemporary Art, 323 Johnston St. Abbotsford, Tuesday 14th August 2012

Popular performer Brian Nankervis (Rockwiz, Pictures of You) is opening the exhibition “PLACE” at Tacit Contemporary Art, 323 Johnston St. Abbotsford at 6pm, Tuesday 14th August 2012

About the exhibition: Combining the talents of these three diverse artists gives the exhibition a broad appeal with works ranging from photorealism, collage, traditional, modern to abstract. Finding our “PLACE” in the world. An exhibition by three artists explores the concept of where we come from and where we belong. “PLACE” at Tacit Contemporary Art, gives the artists, Pauline Bailey, Helen Masin and Ken Roberts the opportunity to visually respond to what the sense of place means to them. Pauline, born and raised in Melbourne, explores the areas that she grew up with and which still now give her a sense of home. You experience her comfort and familiarity with the images of suburban streets and buildings. Unlike her rural home amid gumtrees and kangaroos, her paintings inhabit world-weary streets, well-used buildings, live music venues and crowded shop facades. Her inspiration is firmly placed in the city of her youth. Helen, though living in the country, has nomadically journeyed away from her place of birth but those ties seem to hold her and many of her images are from the familiar areas around her original country hometown. She explores the openness of the country, the isolation and vastness of life on the land. A still beauty and quietness haunt her works. She portrays scenes usually unseen and missed though in her work they are rendered as unforgettable images. Ken still lives in his country town of birth and his paintings relate to the people and places he knows well. While some paintings show “Australian pastoral” images and a sense of belonging, others portray people who seem misplaced and lost. The security he feels in his own place makes him question that of others who do not feel such a connection and are alienated from where they belong. The diversity of style and content displayed by the three artists enhance the subject of where we belong and who we are and how we find our own “PLACE”.

Watch the opening speech by Brian Nankervis here

© Pauline Bailey