The Shack Folk Club Reopens on Sydney 's Northern Beaches

There was a sense of déjà vu as Rhonda Mawer , Paul Robertson and Kathleen and Trevor Swadling sat around the table at Kathleen and Trevor 's place in December of 2005 discussing plans for a new folk club on the Northern Beaches. As a consequence “ The Shack ” has made a resurgence into the twenty first century as a folk club on a monthly basis in its old stomping ground of Narrabeen at the Tramshed Community Arts centre in Narrabeen. It kicked off with its opening night on Saturday 4 March 2006 .

Some twenty four years earlier the same four people were sitting in exactly the same spot discussing plans for the 20 th Century Folk Club which had a very successful six years in the running. Having been members of the original Shack, Rhonda and Kathleen have always been enthusiastic about the idea of recreating some of the essence of The Shack . Its spirit has never died and it helped mould the lives of many people through music and friendship.

The Shack began in the 1960's as a folk music gathering in people's homes before finding a permanent home in an old ambulance shed in the Narrabeen Lakes Caravan Park , hence the name “The Shack”. After losing the venue due to local government bureaucracy it finally rented a shop in Narrabeen and operated Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, providing music by local and guest artists from the thriving folk scene of the sixties and seventies. So popular was the folk scene at the time that The Shack could manage to rent a shop which was only used on the weekends and could pull in audiences three nights a week.

Greg Quill was an integral part of The Shack from the beginning and reined as President for several years before he formed the group Country Radio with Chris Blanchflower, Orlando Agostino and later Kerryn Tolhurst. The group had several successful albums before Greg decided to leave our shores for Canada where he is now editor and features writer of The Toronto Star.

Some of the other folk/acoustic legends that performed at The Shack were the likes of Al Head, Graham Lowndes, Al Ward, Bernard Bolan, Mike McLellan, Marian Henderson, Jeanie Lewis, radio legend Bob Hudson, Margaret Roadknight, the late Colin Dryden and Mick Driscoll, The Stovepipe Spasm Band, The New York Public Library and many more.

The 20 th Century Folk club was essentially a revival of The Shack , but on a once a month basis unlike the “good old days” of weekly folk clubs. It began in the venue provided by Paul Robertson of Majick Theatre which was held in the Old Gym of Narrabeen High School, but later moved to the Stroll Inn Coffee Lounge in Dee Why where it operated for six years. Again, bureaucracy caused it to close down in 1988 and it was put into the “too hard bag” for eighteen years due to a lack of suitable venues and legalities of the twentieth century.

However the thought of starting again has always been there after the first of the annual Shack reunions that began in 2003 which were conceived and organised by Rhonda Mawer and held at the home of Ken and Alison Horrell in Newport (Ken having been a prominent member of The Shack ). Many of the original Shackies as well as many new faces came to the reunions and great nights of performance and jamming were had by all. Photos of these events taken by Wayne Richmond can be viewed on his website: www.humph.org/shack .

The Shack is functioning as a non-profit making organisation and is inviting membership (link to membership page) for those who want to support it and have a say in the running of the club as well as receiving regular newsletters.

The opening night kicked off with a bang with the ever popular New York Public Library, who were regular performers at the old Shack and are still going strong after some forty years. Also playing was The Spasm Band, featuring Andy George of the original Stovepipe Spasm Band, Graham Vick who later joined him in the East Neasdon Spasm Band, and Rhonda Mawer who later joined them in another band called Midlife Crisis. Additional performers were the ever popular talented duo, Sarah Fogarty and Margaret Salem , as well as local singer/songwriting group The Swadlings who performed Trevor Swadling's original songs and music.

Since the opening night The Shack has had regular monthly concerts on the first Saturday of each month with full house attendance. A diverse variety of performers gives each event a unique experience for the audiences. From traditional folk to contemporary singer/songwriters The Shack provides an opportunity for seasoned as well as fresh budding artists to express their talents. Many a local musician who can only find pub venues to play are finding that The Shack audiences actually come to listen – a rare privilege in this day and age in the world of music.