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A TRUCKER'S LIFE - Owner Driver Magazine September 2005 How a CD with proceeds going to the Two T's Memorial was born. SPENDING LONG arduous hours behind the wheel is a truckies' lot. Some cope through bleary eyes fully focused on meeting their deadline and thinking of nothing else but getting there and the rest they can grab while waiting in the rank. Others have dreams of grandeur while they solve the nation's problems and, by returning calls to the talkback shows, rid themselves of the frustration that all too often is exacerbated by the very topics aired. Then there are the few that use the long, lonely hours tossing around ideas that could prove beneficial to their mates on the road. Rick Lay is one of the latter. As a result of his thoughts on those long and lonely trips he has been instrumental in the establishment and construction of Tamworth's truckies Memorial Park, where each year a service is held in conjunction with the Australian Truck Drivers Memorial at Tarcutta. |
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And Rick has not stopped there. He was instrumental in bringing a Guinness World Book of Records title to Tamworth when he organised a team of drivers to reverse a 19-metre articulated vehicle from Gunnedah to Tamworth (about 72 kilometres). While raising much - needed funds for local charities, this promotion regained some of the respect the industry had lost in the public eye, a goal that was fore-most on Rick's agenda. He has now turned his talents to song writing and after a huge interest in his song "Every Year in October" sung by Dale Duncan at last year's memorial service, the pair have joined forces in releasing a collection of songs on CD. It all came together at last year's service where Dale also performed one of his original songs, "Three Words Daddy", to the 400-strong gathering to an over whelming response. As a result of that encounter he agreed to record an album dedicated to the trucking industry. "Everyone gave the song the thumbs up", Dale says. "There was such an overwhelming response to the song that many of those attending the memorial wanted to buy my CD, and I didn't have one. "It wasn't long after that conversation with Rick Lay that I put pen to paper and started writing more songs for the album". Long time friend and big time country artist Col Finley travelled down from Brisbane to co-write two of the songs - "The Ghost of Gully Creek" and "If the Truckies Stop". "All the songs on the album are basically a story and I wrote them about my life", he says. "Like everyone else I've had some pretty rough times and I've had some great touching moments and my way to express my feelings about life is writing them down on paper". Dale is on cloud nine and has good reason to be - he has just returned from Sydney where Steve Smart at Studios 301 mastered his album. "Steve Smart is the same guy who has mastered albums for Adam Harvey, Melinda Schneider, Beccy Cole and Col Finley, just to name a few", he explains. In fact, Steve's words to Dale were, "your on a winner here, you're a great songwriter who writes with strong lyrics". Phil Hastings of HMV Music says of the album: "There's something very special about this CD. This is the best country album I've heard for a while. All nine songs have the word 'hit' written all over them". The album has nothing to prove, nothing to do with fashions or radio play or anything else except just making and playing great country music. Dale says he's already sold about 3,500 copies of the album even before it was released on August 12. Proceeds from the sale of the album will go into the Two T's Truck Drivers Memorial Fund to help those families who have lost loved ones during their duties on the road. |
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