As one of Australia’s most loved country stars there’s few women who know country music quite like Melinda Schneider.
It was no surprise then when the six time Golden Guitar winner paired up with fellow country music icon Beccy Cole for the 2014 album ‘Great Women of Country – And The Songs That Made Them’.
Covering tracks from big names like Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette and Linda Rondstat, the idea for the album was inspired by two of her fellow country artists.
“Adam Harvey and Troy Cassar-Daley had huge success with their ‘Great Country Songbook’ and I just thought we needed a bit of gender balance,” Melinda explained.
“So I called Beccy and said ‘why don’t we do songs from the girls?’.”
Three years on and, while Beccy has moved on to a new project, Melinda is taking the hits of her childhood heroes on the road once again.
“I’m still waving the flag for ‘Great Women of Country’ on my own,” she laughed.
Along with music and touring, Melinda says her greatest passion at this point in life is being a mum to five-year-old son, Sullivan.
“Being the best mum I can be, that’s my number one,” she said.
“At the moment I’m just trying to balance work and motherhood and not get too caught up in my career, which isn’t easy in showbiz.”
While he may still be young, it seems Sullivan is keen to snag some of the limelight for himself. In a recent appearance on ‘Today Extra’ alongside his famous mum, Sullivan had hosts David Campbell and Sonia Kruger in stitches after showing a fondness for the word ‘boobies’.
“It was his first live TV appearance and I don’t think we’ll be doing that too often,” Melinda laughed.
Though raising a child is a tough gig, it’s also been a source of inspiration for the singer/songwriter, who plans to release a new solo album next year in time for Mother’s Day.
“In the eight years since my last originals album, I’ve become a mum and I’ve experienced a whole lot of new things, so that’s what the album is going to be drawn from,” Melinda said.
‘Melinda Schneider sings Great Women of Country’ will be on at the Evan Theatre on Saturday, October 28 at 8pm. Tickets start at $39. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.penrith.panthers.com.au or call 1300 PANTHERS.
