Mondo Rock Legend and Golden Guitar Winner Unite for Exciting New Side Project McCusker Gill
Ever wondered what happens when an Australian rock legend and a Golden Guitar winner join forces, driven by a shared passion for the dark art and craft of songwriting?
The answer is McCusker Gill, the dynamic collaboration between Eric McCusker, founding member and lead guitarist of Mondo Rock, and Angus Gill, Golden Guitar winner and the youngest Australian male solo artist to perform at the Grand Ole Opry.
Eric McCusker, known for penning some of Australia’s most iconic hits like Come Said The Boy, State of the Heart, and Summer of '81, joins forces with Angus Gill, whose impressive career includes five ARIA chart-topping albums and numerous #1 singles on Australian country radio. Their new single, "Canned Laughter", is a testament to their combined talent and shared influences. Inspired by Steely Dan, a band McCusker introduced Gill to, the song uses the metaphor of fake laughter to explore the theme of a fading relationship. This is the second release from McCusker Gill, with plans for an EP later this year. "Canned Laughter" features an ensemble of legendary musicians, including Dean Parks, the world’s most recorded session guitarist (Steely Dan, Barbra Streisand), drummer Gary Novak (Alanis Morissette, Michael Bublé), bassist Andrew Ford (Sting, Whitney Houston), and keyboardist James Raymond (David Crosby, Michael McDonald), vocalists Mahalia Barnes and Jade MacRae (Joe Bonamassa, Jimmy Barnes). McCusker remarks, “There’s nothing sadder than a hollow laugh! So much went into the writing and recording of this. And I think we ended up with exactly what we set out to create. I think it’s a fine homage to the mordant humour of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen!” “Working on Canned Laughter with Eric was artistically fulfilling, venturing into new territory (for me) and deciding how to navigate it. It was fun to write…very much an evolutionary process, as songwriting often is. This process involved making a series of very small decisions, over the course of 6 months. Eric often quotes Steve Martin, who says, precision creates movement. It’s very true when it comes to songs,” says Gill. Comments are closed.
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