Poms From Oz – Threads

“I first met the Poms when they performed at the Kookaburra Folk Club some four or five years ago. I remember thinking then, what wonderful tight harmonies they used and some most unusual material.
The Poms from Oz, Alan, Judy & Kathy Pomeroy hail from Townsville, North Queensland and were one of the features at both this year’s Wintermoon and Palm Creek Festivals, and lately they have been making a name for themselves in the UK. All three have been blessed with good voices and good ears for tight harmonies sometimes reminiscent of the Andrews Sisters and other groups of the ’30s and ’40s.
A couple of years ago they produced their first album Oz Tale Soup, which featured mostly Australian written material such as Bill Scott’s Hey Rain, Henry Lawson’s Waterlily and Harry Robertson’s Whaling Wife, along with a couple of originals.
The Poms have recently released their second album Threads and what a beauty this one is!! Kathy starts the album with Harry Robertson’s Norfolk Whalers followed by Bill Caddick’s John of Dreams. Some tight a cappella harmony follows with a tribute to Alice who lives in a silent world written by English folk singer Stan Graham. As an added visual effect Kathy signs when the trio sing this live, so you’ll just have to imagine that when you listen to this album.
The Poms have been slowly adding their own songs to their repertoire. There are two gems – First is Annie Bags, written by Judy about a local character in the early 1900s who, touched in the mind, dressed in sacks and travelled North Queensland for many years, on foot accompanied by an entourage of animals. The second, Flight from Lizard Island, is a collaboration between Judy and Alan. It tells the true tale of an 1881 incident when Mary Watson with her young son and Chinese servant were forced to flee from Lizard Island in a open tank of riveted black iron, having been attacked by natives after encroaching on a ceremonial ground. Both of these songs are well researched and give a local flavour to their material. Other tracks are Sue Wighton’s I www Dot Love You, Dougie Maclean’s Leaving for Australia, the almost traditional Oh TI (Jarfar Ahmat 1935) The 1940s 50s Nobody Here But Us Chickens, Draglines by Deborah Silverstein and Annie Lister’s Seagull. This CD is highly recommended – Buy one today! Available from Trad&Now
Online Shop.” Review by June Nicholls