My journey through the world of music began with dancing in my early years. I remember the sound of the piano as I danced to its rhythm and beat. We had a piano at home and, luckily for me, my older sisters began teaching me how to play.
I began formal lessons at the age of 11 and took to it easily, learning classical piano and theory through my teenage years. My first memory of jazz piano was listening to Fats Waller, in music class. It was unbelievable how he could ‘make it up’ as he went along. This sparked a lifelong curiosity about the art of improvisation.
Around the age of 16, I delved into folk and bush music, hammering out chords with friends playing guitars and violins. The joy of playing with others in a band setting had me hooked leading me to deeper studies in jazz harmony and chord structures.
During my 20s, I discovered blues piano and joined the Chicago-based blues band Lonesome Boogie. Together, we recorded two albums, Grinnin’ and Pickin’ and Hey, This Is Our Town. One of the highlights of playing in this band was supporting the great Junior Wells at the Basement in Sydney.
Loving the feel and vibrancy of blues and boogie-woogie piano, I drew inspiration from legends such as Otis Spann, Pinetop Perkins, Albert Ammons, Pete Johnson, and Charles Brown.
Freelancing and contributing to various blues bands’ albums became a significant part of my musical journey before joining the swing dance band, The Jive Bombers. I played on and off with this band for many years and I remain firm friends with the great musicians in this band today.
From there I moved to the Central Coast, where I met my dear friends Narelle Dawson and Jill Tweedie. Together, we formed the trio Hip Sister with piano, bass, guitar, and beautiful three-part harmonies. Our success opened doors to supporting renowned international blues artists like Charlie Musselwhite and John Hammond.
Around the same time I met the legendary jazz singers, Carol Ralph and Kate Dunbar. These ladies brought me back to jazz. In 2006 I recorded Jazz Portraits with Carol and her band and during that time we played many festivals and jazz clubs in and around Sydney.
A few years later I met and played with Bill Dudley’s New Orleanians. We had weekly residencies right up to the time he left to reside in Cairns. I decided to keep the band going, renaming it Carolyn Packer’s Stompin’ Rhythm Aces.
We recorded two albums, There’ll Be Some Changes Made and Sweet Substitute.
I’m now onto the next phase in my journey in music. Collaborating with Gypsy Jazz guitarist Cameron Jones, I feel it’s now time to focus more on writing and honing in on my own style of playing. My new album, Time To Feel Love, is a testament to that.
Acknowledgements
Huge thanks to my dear friend Jan Preston, her husband Mike, and my husband Chris, for getting this website published!
