PHYL LOBL /PHYL VINNICOMBE

 

Phyl Vinnicombe was a primary school teacher, a country girl from Ballarat, first exposed to the local folk scene through house-sitting for Peter and Ruth Mann and then meeting folk singer Glen Tomasetti, the mother of two of her young students. She recalls Emerald Hill, Pete Seeger’s workshop there, an early visit to the Reata (where Martyn Wyndham-Read played ‘'Widdecombe Fair'’) and guitar classes with Tomasetti upstairs at Frank Traynors Jazz and Folk Club, as decisive influences on her own musical quest. 

Vinnicombe impressed listeners early on with her self-composed protest songs, notably ''Dark-eyed Daughter'', written in response to Charles Perkins’ Freedom Rides. She made a guest appearance singing ''Andy’s Gone with Cattle'' and ''O’Meally’s Shanty'' on the Martin Wyndham-Read and Bush Band album 'Bullockies, Bushwackers and Booze' (1967) and recorded a W&G EP for the Aboriginal Advancement League in 1968. Vinnicombe married musician Geri Lobl and moved to Sydney where she remained active in the NSW folk scene.

Larrikin Records used Phyl’s talents on several LPs before releasing her debut album 'On My Selection' in 1977 followed by 'Broadmeadow Thistle' in 1980 consisting almost entirely of Phyl’s compositions. Phyl was the first artist to take part in the Folk Touring Circuit initiated by the National Folk Trust. An appointment to the Music Board of the Australia Council resulted in improved funding for folk music and recognition and funding that led to the National Folk Festival moving to Canberra. Phyl’s work has continued over the years and she is still active in championing folk music and encouraging and nurturing young musicians