Louise Clancey

Published under the title "Fine tuning a musical life"  in Bluestone Magazine April 19th 2015  - written by Louise North

It would sound almost cliched if it weren’t true, but singer and country and western music fan Louise Clancey is a coalminer’s daughter. And just like legendary country and western singer Loretta Lynn – another coalminer’s daughter – Louise comes from humble beginnings. The “shy country kid”, who was born in New Zealand, went to a primary school that had just 25 other students, but has since turned her quiet upbringing on its heels. Today she is a well-known performer and singer in the south-west through her pub rock band, The Louie Clancey Band, and she’s about to undertake a PhD in literature at Deakin University. The contrast is not lost on Louise, but she says she’s able to compartmentalise her life and it’s just as well, because there are a lot of competing interests. She’s a part-time university lecturer, student, singer and single mum. “I was the quintessential child who sang into a hair brush and imagined being a singer and an actor,” she said. Louise loved being in school plays and was “obsessed” with the 1970s television show the Partridge Family and the American singing family The Osmonds. “Mum always said I sang as soon as I could talk,” she said last week at Deakin University in between teaching classes.

At age 10, Louise and a friend performed as a country and western duo at local country dances dressed in cowboy hats and plenty of denim with tassels and fringes. Like most kids, she grew up with the sounds of her parent’s record collection
which featured Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson and Charlie Pride, although Louise’s mother, Gail, had eclectic taste and there was some Abba and The Sweet to break the country twang. As a shy child (“and yes people do laugh at that now”), Louise was terrified but compelled to perform, “but once I was on stage, I was in my element”. Louise cut her teeth on musical theatre at high school and smiles broadly when she recalls roles as Mary Magdalene in Godspell and tough-girl Rizzo in Grease. “There is a real sense of family and community in preparing for a performance, but the last night is a little death and you wonder ‘what now?’,” she said.
For Louise, however, there was always something brewing in her dynamic mind.She dabbled in a couple of bands up until her mid-20s and when she was 25moved to Western Australia to work with BHP at remote mining sites. It was there that she met her former husband, chef Andrew Clancey.Andrew had family in Warrnambool and so the couple, with their then fivemonth-old son Noah, moved to Port Fairy where they established Portofinos Restaurant with Andrew’s brother Shane. Louise also immersed herself in cabaret with the Warrnambool Theatre Company. With a move into Warrnambool and a change in band structure, Louise isreflecting on where her musical expression might turn nextthat time Louise met musician Mal Hill who started her on her singing journey and together they performed acoustic gigs in local cafes.With some confidence under her belt, Louise formed the alternative,country, bluegrass band Louie and Rustlers in 2002 with Jon Clegg and Russ Goodear.Others would come in and out of the line up, but they performed at the Tamworth Country Music Festival, produced two EPs and were invited to perform at the Port Fairy Folk Festival. The group broke up in 2006, but reformed in 2010 to play at “the Folkie” one last time. During that time Louise wrote a lot of original material for the band and her early songwriting talent was recognised with a nomination in the 2004 Victorian Country Music Awards. As the Rustlers were breaking up, Louise formed a new band with a new style. The Louie Clancey Band retained four of Rustlers members and became a pub-rock band that plays mostly covers: a mix of Led Zeppelin, AC/DC and the Divinyls with a bit of Fleetwood Mac is a typical night out. Louise is the lead vocalist supported by Michael Schack (bass) Tim Clingan(drums), Jereme Clingan (guitar), and Darren Ely who, after more than four years, has just left the band.Ely’s exit from the band, and moving to live in Warrnambool last week, has given Louise pause for reflection on the future of the band. “I’m looking for a fresh start to reinvigorate the band; its direction,” she said. It’s clear she isn’t seeking to keep the status quo, but rather a major reassessment of where she wants to take the band from here.One thing she does know for certain is the name of the band will change. ‘Louie’ has matured and Louise is keen to reflect that maturity.