Joy McKean | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mildred Geraldine Joy McKean |
| Born | (1930-01-14)14 January 1930 Singleton, New South Wales, Australia |
| Died | 25 May 2023(2023-05-25) (aged 93) |
| Genres | Country |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, musician, talent manager |
| Years active | 1940–2023 |
| Formerly of | The McKean Sisters (1948–1956) |
| Spouse | Slim Dusty |
Mildred Geraldine Joy Kirkpatrick[1]OAM (néeMcKean; 14 January 1930 – 25 May 2023), was an Australiancountry music singer-songwriter and wife and manager ofSlim Dusty. Her daughter is country singer and musicianAnne Kirkpatrick.
McKean was known as theQueen ofAustralian country music,[2] and considered a pioneer in the industry, recognized as one of Australia's leading songwriters andbush balladeers and wrote several of Dusty's most popular songs.[3] In 1973, she was awarded the first everGolden Guitar, for writing "Lights on the Hill". Several documentary films tell of the couple's success and adventures as performers, includingThe Slim Dusty Movie andSlim and I.
The McKean-Dusty partnership produced over 100 albums, and sold eight million records in Australia alone.
McKean was awarded theOAM in 1991, with the citation "services to the entertainment industry".[1]
In 2014, a bronze statue of McKean and Slim Dusty was unveiled inTamworth, New South Wales[2]
McKean won severalAPRA Awards and was inducted into theAustralian Roll of Renown in 1983.[4] She was the first winner of theGolden Guitars, an award she would win 45 times in her career.
Joy McKean was born inSingleton in theHunter Region,New South Wales, on 14 January 1930.[5] As an infant, McKean lived on the dairy farm belonging to her mother's family. Her father was a country school teacher and the family moved around to several regional centres during her youth. Her mother and their father, who was a steel guitar player, encouraged an interest in different types of music, including country performersJimmie Rogers and theCarter Family. Joy learned the accordion, piano and steel guitar, while younger sisterHeather McKean learned the ukulele and both took upyodeling. McKean also contractedpolio as a child and was treated inSydney by the famousSister Kenny.[6]
McKean first performed on the radio around the age of 10 on Sydney's2GB radio station. Later McKean and her sister,Heather McKean (born 20 February 1932), sang for theSydney University Revue, while a student at the university. By the age of 18, in the 1940s, she was performing live with her sister Heather on their own half-hour Saturday radio show on2KY as theMcKean Sisters, noted for theiryodelling harmonies.[3][7]The Melody Trail starring the two sisters ran from 1949 until 1956. The McKeans began recording, and from 1951 with Rodeo Label they cut such trademark hits as "Gymkhana Yodel" and "Yodel Down The Valley". During this time, McKean metSlim Dusty, introduced by radio DJ Tim McNamara in Sydney.[8][6]
Joy McKean married Slim Dusty (real name David Kirkpatrick) in 1951 (becoming Mrs Kirkpatrick, but retaining Joy McKean as her stage name). Sister Heather metReg Lindsay, whom she married in 1954 and the sisters began solo careers and partnerships with two of Australia's leading male country music singers.[6] McKean was Dusty's wife and manager for over 50 years, creating a hugely successful body of work.[9] Dusty and McKean had two children:Anne Kirkpatrick andDavid Kirkpatrick who are also accomplished singer-songwriters.[10] The family began annual round Australia tours in 1964 – encompassing a 30,000-mile, 10-month journey which was the subject of a feature film,The Slim Dusty Movie in 1984.
Dusty attained international success with his 1957 hit "A Pub With No Beer", and remained at the forefront ofAustralian country music from that time until his death in 2003. Together they produced more than 100 albums, sold eight million records in Australia alone, and earned 45Golden Guitars.[9] McKean developed a flair for melody and musical storytelling with vivid evocative imagery. She was awarded the first everGolden Guitar award in 1973, for writing "Lights on the Hill", performed by Dusty.[11] Other popular songs written by McKean for her husband include: "Walk A Country Mile", "Indian Pacific", "Kelly's Offsider", "The Angel of Goulburn Hill" and "The Biggest Disappointment".[12][9][1]
In 1993 the McKean Sisters reunited to record a CD, "The McKeans on Stage" and continued to perform together on stage various times with the Slim Dusty Show over the subsequent decade leading up to Slim's death in 2003 and Tamworth's tribute "Concert for Slim" in 2004.[6] This tribute concert brought together over 30 Australian music artists and featured an historic duet performance by McKean andPaul Kelly of "Sunlander" and a cover of McKean'sLights on the Hill performed byKeith Urban.[13]
McKean received her sixthGolden Guitar award in 2007 with "Peppimenarti Cradle" winning the Award for Bush Ballad of the Year.[14] McKean celebrated her 80th birthday in 2010 with theHappy Birthday Joy concert at Capitol Theatre in Tamworth during the Country Music Festival in January 2010.[15]
McKean was one of the founders of theTamworth Country Music Festival and theCountry Music Association of Australia, and was also a biographer (Slim Dusty: Another Day, Another Town).[10] She was chair of the Slim Dusty Foundation Ltd, the organisation established to build and operate the Slim Dusty Centre in his home town of Kempsey, New South Wales. The centre opened in October 2015.[16]
The 2020Australian documentary filmSlim and I, directed byKriv Stenders was released when McKean was aged 90, and told the story of her life withSlim Dusty.[17] The film features covers of McKean songs by acclaimed contemporary artists includingMissy Higgins,Paul Kelly,Troy Cassar-Daley andKeith Urban.[18]
Film critic Paul Byrnes wrote: "Kriv Stenders (Red Dog) gives us a loving portrait of one of the most important songwriters this country has produced – and it's notSlim Dusty. Aficionados already knew Joy McKean wrote many of her husband's best songs – in particular, Lights on the Hill and The Biggest Disappointment.Slim and I makes clear that she also kept the Slim Dusty Show on the road, managed the band, raised the kids and kept her husband from straying too far from the path of righteousness...".[9]
The film soundtrack included a new McKean composition "I Don't Believe You", co-written with grandson James Arneman, and his wife Flora Smith, and described byRolling Stone as "McKean at her most honest and poignant, with her iconic songwriting shining through in what was her first composition in over a decade."[19]
Joy McKean died of cancer on 25 May 2023, at the age of 93.[20]
TheAPRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by theAustralasian Performing Right Association (APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters".[21]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021[22] | Joy McKean | Ted Albert Award for Outstanding Services to Australian Music | awarded |
TheAustralian Roll of Renown honours Australian and New Zealander musicians who have shaped the music industry by making a significant and lasting contribution to Country Music. It was inaugurated in 1976 and the inductee is announced at theCountry Music Awards of Australia in Tamworth in January.[23] Joy has been recognised twice; once as part of The McKean Sisters and individually in 2020.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | The McKean Sisters | Australian Roll of Renown | inductee |
| 2020 | Joy McKean | Australian Roll of Renown | inductee |
TheAustralian Women in Music Awards is an annual event that celebrates outstanding women in theAustralian Music Industry who have made significant and lasting contributions in their chosen field. They commenced in 2018.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019[24] | Joy McKean | Lifetime Achievement Award | awarded |
TheCountry Music Awards of Australia (CMAA) (also known as the Golden Guitar Awards) is an annual awards night held in January during theTamworth Country Music Festival, celebrating recording excellence in the Australian country music industry. They have been held annually since 1973.[25]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result(wins only) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | "Lights on the Hill" (written by Joy McKean) recorded by Slim Dusty | APRA Song of the Year | Won |
| 1975 | "Biggest Disappointment" (written by Joy McKean) recorded by Slim Dusty | APRA Song of the Year | Won |
| 1978 | "Indian Pacific" (written by Joy McKean) recorded by Slim Dusty | APRA Song of the Year | Won |
| 1979 | "Beat of the Government Stroke" (written by Joy McKean & Tom Oliver) recorded by Slim Dusty | APRA Song of the Year | Won |
| 1998 | "Lady Is a Truckie" (written by Joy McKean) recorded by Slim Dusty | Bush Ballad of the Year | Won |
| 2007 | "Peppimenarti Cradle" (written by Joy McKean) recorded by Anne Kirkpatrick | Bush Ballad of the Year | Won |
The Tamworth Songwriters Association (TSA) is an annual songwriting contest for original country songs, awarded in January at theTamworth Country Music Festival. They commenced in 1986.[26] Joy McKean has won three awards.[27]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result (wins only) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | "Calloused Hands" by Joy McKean and Tony Brooks | Traditional Bush Ball of the Year | Won |
| 1994 | "Ringer from the Top End" by Joy McKean | Traditional Bush Ball of the Year | Won |
| 2005 | Joy McKean | Tex Morton Award | awarded |
The Country Music Association of Australia said the singer-songwriter was the "Queen of Australian Country Music".
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