THE BYRON SHIRE
It’s
Volume 28 #25 Tuesday, November 26, 2013 Phone 02 6684 1777 Fax 02 6684 1719 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au www.echo.net.au 23,200 copies every week
Inside this week
Time p16 MONKEYS WITH BIG SCREENS
CAB AUDIT
Dawson shoots Mungo and Just your type musos, charges the spies in between the – p10 covers – p22 dropped – p20
John Campbell gets the Hunger (Games) – p24
Music fest goes off ‘without hitch’
Mandy Nolan
The sixth Mullum Music Festival took to the streets, halls, clubs and pubs of Mullumbimby last weekend in an event that festival director Glenn Wright says ‘went off without a hitch’. Although things could have been quite different. Saturday night saw wild storms hit the coast and for half an hour there was a tornado warning, not something to relish when you are the director of an event that that involves thousands of people, tents and a need for continuous power supply. The storm circled and somehow managed to miss Mullum, hammering nearby Byron Bay. ‘We were lucky,’ says Glenn Wright, ‘but then we seem to
be lucky most years’. And true to form Mullmbimby turned on searing hot days and balmy nights for the 6,000plus festival-goers enjoying over 120 performances by almost 80 acts over four days.
Spine-tingling Opening with a sold-out Gala on Thursday night, featuring a spine-tingling song dedicated to Dave Ades by Jo Jo Smith, the festival set a cracking pace and continued to deliver. Greg Sheehan led the street parade on Sunday to the Civic Hall, and the days’ programming at the venue was organised by Sheehan, to whom this year’s festival was dedicated. ‘Greg told the story of his life and it was definitely one of the event highlights,’ said Glenn. ‘He then went on
to “guest” with artists. It was magnificent, and all credit to the incredible musicianship and collaborative genius of Greg Sheehan.’ Festival patron Mama Kin delivered a unique concert with the support of 15 Cape Byron Steiner School students who sang and played as she presented a selection of her songs from previous albums. Kin was delighted not just because of the students’ excellent musicianship but because ‘my kids are in the audience and they get to see me with a bunch of teenagers who think I’m cool!’ Sketch the Rhyme enjoyed capacity crowds each evening with their interactive freestyling hip-hop and drawing performance and for this writer one of the true highlights was
the Songbirds of the 70s show curated by Tin Pan Orange’s Emily Lubitz.
No police Perhaps one of the true measures of the charm of Mullum Music Festival is the complete absence of police. As Schoolies hit Byron with riot police in force, giant booze buses and mounted police, I did not see one police car in Mullumbimby over the entire weekend. With a successful Keys Please program encouraging drivers to hand over car keys and offering a breathalyser to check alcohol levels before you hit the road, Mullum Music Festival proved itself not justa great festival for music lovers, but also a successful and well-managed event.
Page 37
Byron rejects fluoridation Byron Shire will remain fluoride free after councillors voted against Cr Diane Woods’s motion in a rowdy meeting full of interested onlookers last Thursday. Mayor Simon Richardson, Crs Paul Spooner, Duncan Dey, Rose Wanchap and Basil Cameron voted against, while Di Woods, Sol Ibrahim and Alan Hunter voted for. Cr Chris Cubis was absent from the meeting and therefore forfeited his vote, but his notes of support for fluoridation were read out by Cr Woods.
they should support us in other ways to achieve better outcomes,’ he said. Cr Paul Spooner also questioned the state government’s motives. ‘Why are in this position?’ he asked. ‘The dentist who addressed us this morning told us that he was very supportive of preventive health care. He would like to see that happen; he would like to do those things – but he can’t. And why can’t he? Because the NSW government is somehow abandoning their primary healthcare in terms of our children. This is what’s really going on here.’
‘Test case’
In favour
Mayor Simon Richardson was applauded by a full gallery of residents as he said Byron should be a test case in achieving improved dental health through education rather than medication. ‘If Health NSW are truly concerned about dental health and not just fluoride, then
Cr Alan Hunter spoke in favour of fluoride, saying his views are influenced by his personal experience and he is concerned for the children and the elderly. ‘I wasn’t convinced by the arguments against fluoridation. This is not forced medication; there continued on page 2
Hans Lovejoy
The festival parade, with festival director Glenn Wright centre in red, livened up the streets of Mullum on Sunday. Photo Jeff ‘Trom Boner’ Dawson. See more of Jeff ’s photos on page 20 and Sharon’s video on Echonetdaily at echo.net.au.
Byron Shire Council Notices
Protesters in the Council Chambers. Photo Jeff Dawson