Jo Caseley - Albany (2016)

With family tree branches that stretch to Banjo Patterson on one side and the haunting folk songs of Wales via the USA on the other, Australian singer/songwriter Jo Caseley performs her storytelling alt-country/blues with an honesty and fragility that makes her refreshingly different.
Whilst her power packed performances have been likened to a Tennessee Suzi Quatro, if you combined the belly laughs of John Prine, the heartfelt soul of Bonnie Raitt and the darkness of Mary Gauthier, you’d be on the right track. Either way, her style is completely her own.
She cut her teeth busking the streets of Kings Cross long before social media existed and landed her first gig in a smokey blues bar next to a strip joint, miles away from the glitz of today's music scene where her humble, authentic stylings are appreciated.
Drawing influence from Slim Dusty/Joy McKean and The Chambers Family, she hit the road for 7 months with her family and caravan in tow to promote her 2nd Independent offering “Dusty Dirt Track”, boasting a #1 hit for Amrap radio’s most requested new song, “Happy”.
From outback stations in The Kimberley and rough mining town pubs to plush resort style hotels and ABC radio studios, this humble gal from the NSW Southern Highlands learned to hold her own.
The tour ended fittingly when she co-wrote with one of her greatest influences Bill Chambers. The pair formed a lasting friendship after writing a heartfelt song about Jo’s heritage, “The Baby’s Cry”, which tells the story of Jo’s orphaned American grandfather.
Caseley hosts The Old Mil & Railway Sessions, intimate hall concerts held in her Southern Highlands village home of Penrose which she created in order to perform locally in an sympathetic environment whilst networking with other artists. Her sell-out concerts have featured artists such as Bill Chambers, Kevin Bennett, Lachlan Bryan, Allan Caswell, Harry Hookey & Lou Bradley.
With singles from her new album Albany released Jan 2016 already creating a buzz on ABC radio and reaching semi-finalist status in the 2014 International Song Writing Competition and the 2015 Unsigned Only Music Competition, as well as festival fans celebrating her as their greatest new discovery, we’re tipping it’s time you discovered Jo Caseley.