Secular gospel and cruisin’ the blues

ASH Grunwald is home on the North Coast on a brief reprieve from a hectic year.

On the cusp of preparing for the Gympie Muster, the solo bluesman is charting plans for more international tours, but not before his upcoming show with a full gospel choir next month.

Like many artists during the COVID era, Grunwald said his motivation to tour at all waned sharply.

“My motivation now is that I’m taking my kid and showing her the world – it suddenly has a point again,” he said.

“I’ve toured a lot, but now it needs to have more meaning than just another gig because unless I’m taking my family, I’d rather be at home surfing.”

“My 16-year-old is homeschooling, and has just been to New Zealand with me, and I’ll take her to Scandinavia in the New Year.

“My wife, Danni, has always been at me to do a white Christmas, and I love Canada, so I’ll tour for a month and then spend time with the kids in the snow, which they haven’t had much of in their lives.”

Grunwald’s fusion of blues, roots, and groove spans 12 studio albums, six Australian Top 50 albums, two APRA Awards, and a gong for Best International Act at the LA Music Critic Awards in 2014.

After decades of being involved in social issues, the artist now draws more inspiration from an introspective approach.

“I’ve always cared about the environment, but the interpersonal interests me more – how do we operate this thing we’re given as human beings – the human condition? That’s my main fascination,” Grunwald said.

“One of my songs called Whispering Voice featured Kasey Chambers, and that was a meditation on how it doesn’t matter how successful you are, or how bad the externals of your life, it’s what’s going on in your mind that determines your quality of life.”

The upcoming show at Brunswick Heads will feature Grunwald performing with the 12-piece Midnight Choir led by Janet Swain.

“The choir is super exciting, and I’ve got a real gospel influence, like the old spirituals that come out of the Mississippi Delta – that music is deeper than most – if you think of some of the slower songs Blind Boys of Alabama do, that’s a good example of what I love,” he said.

“When I play solo, it’s often about crowd participation, and I feel that’s something in our DNA in these more secular times that we’re missing.

“In my ideal world, I would write secular gospel. Some of my songs work like that already, but I’d lean into it even more, so that it hits deeper.

“I try to write lyrics to improve my own life, and they’ve become little mantras which remind me when I sing them of the things you need to be happy, so, in a gospel choir format, that’s gonna be awesome.”

Grunwald and the Midnight Choir perform on October 18.

For tickets, visit brunswickpicturehouse.com