Welcome, well as always there seems to be so much happening and very little time to let you all know about the goings on. But I'm here at last....phew... A couple of big events are coming up. First is the return of Bobby Bright and Lil Fi at the Briezoz cafe in Willimstown. A stella evening and will be sold out very quickly so get your tickets for that one. 24th July. Then (trumpets and fan fare) YES Lil' Fi and the DELTA RHYTHM KINGS ARE HAVING A REUNION...we thought it would never happen but it's on. The inaugural Valley Blues Festival - 25th July. Big line up go to the gig guide for all details and where to buy your tickets from.

I did a gig with the Really Terrible Choir - Sparkles, at Kinglake, BIG SING the other day here's a link to an abc article. Go an have a look. It was a terrific afternoon. Just copy and paste this into your browser.http://abc.net.au/local/photos/2009/06/30/2612405.htm?site=melbourne&rotator=true

Arthurs Creek, Strathewen BIG FUN NIGHT is on the 1st of August at the Arthurs Creek Hall. 1st August - BIG FUN NIGHT - 6mths after - Remembering friends and loved ones and Honouring the musicians who helped us through the hard times. Featuring Spectrum, Leslie Avril, Lil' Fi & Bobby Bright, Black Cat Bone, Sue - Miss Panton Hill, Aurora Tribal Dance, Sparkles (The Really Terrible Choir), Ian McKimmie, Wes Stecher and other local legends. Giving back to the givers. “Music has a way of finding the big, invisible moving pieces inside our hearts and souls and helping us figure out the position of things inside us” (Ancient Greeks)

There is ALWAYS something going on in my little world. So stay tuned and get along to a show if not mine then to some other live event. There's nothing like the REAL thing. Live art is dangerous and so very satisfying.

Cheers. Lil' Fi....

Keep reading and you'll see an article I wrote too...

KASPARS Blog spot still needs help of course....http://kasparsfundraiser.blogspot.com/

P.S Thankyou to those that have invested in independent artists your support keeps the freedom of speech in the music. It's not possible without the people.

PP.S. - I have put the words to my songs up on the guest book link at the bottom of the page. Lyrics to all songs that I have written on "Time and Love" and also "Magic Door" cds...Enjoy

.....a review in the Leader written by a John Jenkins it said "What a performer.... Fi's halogen smile and exhilarating style soon lit up the room. She's a lass with sass all right, she slapped at the drums, banged on the piano, she lassoed the high notes, then got down mean and throaty. She's a spirit-raiser, with enough natural charisma to electrify a morticians' convention. Every toe was tapping to her original songs...."

Here's an article I recently wrote about the Importance of Musicians. Just me trying to explain to people not in the music industry how so many musicians are taken advantage of in our society.

The Importance of Musicians.

By Lil’ Fi 11th May 2009

As an accomplished musician who has been performing in Australia for the past 20 years I feel that I have some authority on the importance of musicians to our society. In this article I will outline to you some of my observations on the healing effects of music and the essential need for the arts and music – as I strongly believe that it is as important as food and the air we breathe.

I am what I would call an “ear” player, I play music for the average person. I don’t read music, I play music from my heart - an Australian Blues/ roots musician. I am a songwriter and I sing my songs to people to help them laugh and feel their folly to help people to escape from the drudgery and discomforts of their daily lives. I like to think of myself as an antenna of society. I notice people, I observe them and I put it into music. Then we all can cry or laugh at ourselves and feel better for it.

“Blues music is all about making life better on earth – Gospel music is all about a better life in heaven. (Willie Dixon a famous blues songwriter who wrote over 500 titles)

Life in 2009 is hard, but then it’s always been hard, that’s just how it is. Musicians help people to cope with the trials that they find themselves in.

“Blues blues heal me, Blues is the healer” – (John Lee Hooker – Blues man)

I am a Queenslander born and bred, I have been living in Melbourne for 5 years now and I like to live in the bush. So I have been living in “the fire zone”. In Victoria there is a “fire season”, not a “wet season’ like we have up north. The fire is much much more terrifying I would say.

I have been evacuating from my home for the last 5 years every summer when there is a total fire ban day. I live in a tinderbox, environmental zone, there have been no burn offs where I live and as a renter I always pack up and go.

Recently in March 2009 the worst fires in the history of fires came through and burnt the communities directly to the north and east of where I live. There have been hundreds of families affected and I have become a part of the healing for these families. A bit of escape from the harsh and cruel reality of losing everything and starting again. The shock of having all of these people changed forever has a rippling effect through the community. People care about other people and want to help, they feel powerless and want to comfort. There are so many issues and emotions that need to be expressed and healed and remembered.

“Music has a way of finding the big, invisible moving pieces inside our hearts and souls and helping us figure out the position of things inside us” (Ancient Greeks)

I have been so proud of my fellow musicians since these fires. Immediately after the fires every musician I know put their hands up and did free gigs to raise funds, but more importantly to help people try to make sense of all the sadness happening around them. I have met musicians from the fire affected zones who have played at 10, 15, 27 funerals in a month – for free. I just have to say here that performing at a funeral is extremely difficult, let alone so many in a month. I see such generosity, that it makes me lie awake at night and cry I love these people so much.

I know musicians who can’t sleep for the hounding of songs that demand to be written, channelled through to help make a difference to the earth and her cruelty.

What I don’t see is a generosity to musicians. I see an expectation, a neediness and a blindness to the artists who take the job of music therapy so seriously that they fund it themselves. The Australian public are so very lucky to have such generous people to look after them. However I think it is time to turn the tables.

The average mans musician needs some respect and with that some financial remuneration. It’s not the 40 minutes of entertainment a musician is paid for. It’s the $50 worth of petrol to get to the gig, the $250 PA to play though and the 75 years of combined experience of how to play like that. You wouldn’t expect a mechanic to fix your car for free, neither should the musician be expected to perform for free. They both have to make a living.

I propose that there is a fund set aside to assist the assisters, the help the helpers, to care for the carers who lovingly and willingly look after the heart and souls of our communities. These are the volunteers we need to care for, they are precious, precious as gold, ever more so, because the “music helps us to find the big, invisible moving pieces inside our hearts and souls”.