John Williamson

John Robert Williamson AM (born 1 November 1945 in Quambatook, Victoria) is an Australian country music singer-songwriter.

Williamson was raised in the Mallee district of north-western Victoria. In 1965, his family moved to Croppa Creek, near Moree, New South Wales, where John began performing at a local restaurant.

Throughout his career John Williamson has released over 32 albums, 10 videos, 3 DVDs and 2 books of lyrics. John has received more than 20 Golden Guitar Awards at the Australian Country Music Awards and has won 2 A.R.I.A. Awards for Best Australian Country Record. John Williamson has also featured in three television series as well as This is Your Life. Many of John’s albums have gone Gold and Platinum and continue to do so. John Williamson has sold more than 2,000,000 albums in Australia alone.

One of John’s songs, True Blue, has become the anthem for the Australian Cricket Team. In 1970 John Williamson’s first song, Old Man Emu, went to number one and became gold. John’s song, Mallee Boy, became triple-platinum and won him an A.R.I.A. Award.

In 1988 John Williamson performed at the opening of the New Parliament House. The Variety Club named John Williamson ‘Entertainer of the Year’ in 1989. At the A.R.I.A. Awards in 1990 John’s Album, Warragul, was named Best Australian Country Record. In 1991 the album, Waratah St, went gold before it even got to the shops. This album contained a song that got John kicked out of a few country RSL clubs. This song was A Flag Of Our Own.

Williamson became a Member of the Order of Australia in 1992, for his services to Australian Country Music and conservation issues [1].

In 1995 John released the book, True Blue, which contained the lyrics to all his songs and how they were thought of and written. John Williamson was surprised at his book launch when he became part of the television show, This is Your Life.

In January 1997 John Williamson was inducted to the Roll of Renown. In 1998 John won an award for the Biggest Selling Album at the Country Music Awards of Australia at Tamworth. In 1999 the album, The Way It Is, was released and went gold after eight weeks. In 2000 John Williamson won three Golden Guitar Awards- Bush Ballad of The Year: Three Sons, Heritage Song of The Year: Campfire on the Road and Best Selling Album of The Year: The Way It Is.

His famed song "This is Australia Calling" was also adopted as publicity music for Telstra, who used it in public advertising and also as "on hold" music on their international and inland telephone services.

John Williamson was honoured to be asked to perform his tribute song, Sir Don, at Sir Donald Bradman's Memorial Service in Adelaide in 2001. The original scraps of paper this song was scribbled on have been framed and now hang in the Bradman Museum, Bowral, New South Wales. John also represented Australia when he sang at the Opening Ceremony of Winterlude in Ottawa, Canada.

In 2003 John Williamson was elected President of the Country Music Association of Australia (CMAA) after the retiring of Slim Dusty. John was asked by John Howard to perform Waltzing Matilda at the Memorial Service for the 1st Anniversary of the 2002 Bali bombing on 12 October 2003. In 2004 John won 2 Golden Guitar Awards for Vocal Collaboration of The Year and Single of The Year for his duet with Sara Storer, Raining on the Plains. As of 2005, John Williamson is working on a new album, Chandelier of Stars with Pixie Jenkins and Warren H. Williams.

In 2006 Williamson performed True Blue in the pre-match entertainment of the ANZAC Day AFL game between Essendon and Collingwood at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. He also performed this song and Home Among The Gum Tree's at Steve Irwin's memorial concert.