Felicity Urquhart & Josh Cunningham

Debut Album

The Song Club

Out May 9, 2021 via ABC Music

Darkness will always leave you depleted
And darkness will always be a repeat offender
But the light you shine on me’s still undefeated
As you make this one a year to remember

The Song Club is the debut album from Felicity Urquhart and Josh Cunningham. From a year that many would have gladly sent back for a refund, a joy bringing, spirit lifting collection of songs emerged as a reminder that even in the darkest of times, the light of music and love can never be extinguished.

in January 2020, Felicity and Josh were invited to join Song Club – a creative collective that tasked members with writing a song a week. This challenge gave the pair a lifeline to creativity and community as well as an abundance of new material.

Nine of the eleven tracks on The Song Club LP were written as weekly ‘Song Club’ compositions.

Resulting in an album of simple beauty, true to life narrative and music that celebrates the stories the songs tell.

“Initially I feared the rigid discipline required to come up with a song each week, limited by a vague prompt, would be difficult. Song writing for me has always been about connecting to the thing you feel most strongly from the deepest place in you and wrapping words around that feeling. Being told what to write about is very different,” reflects Josh. “But I found that no matter how nebulous the weekly prompt seemed to be, I could always attach it to something powerful and deeply personal because I was experiencing some profound things through that time.”

Felicity had her own hesitation committing to The Song Club, “I was worried that the demands of multiple careers, motherhood and life in general would cause me to drop my juggling balls. The upside though, was that when it came to song club, I simply didn’t have time to labour over it – I just had to trust my instincts and go with my gut so it resulted in a very personal ‘from the heart’ collection of songs for me,” she explains.

Josh (as a member of The Waifs), and Felicity in her own right, have both enjoyed lengthy, successful, enduring musical careers. A collective haul of Golden Guitars, ARIA Awards, multi-platinum album sales and extensive touring over nearly three decades forms a body of work that serves as a ready definition of success.

A from the heart connection to music has been a constant for each, from the moment its’ power captivated them at an early age and set the course for their lives.

Since their inception in 1992, The Waifs have woven their thread tightly into the fabric of Australian music. Ten albums, multi-platinum sales, extensive touring of Australia and the world, ARIA awards, induction into the Australian songwriters association hall of fame, countless festival appearances the world over, touring with acts as diverse as Bob Dylan, Keith Urban, Kasey Chambers, John Butler Trio, Paul Kelly, John Williamson, Ani DiFranco, Billy Bragg, and Weddings Parties Anything, are but a few of their accomplishments over a career approaching thirty years. Along the way Josh has also ventured beyond The Waifs, writing songs for Sara Storer and co- producing her 2007 album ‘Silver Skies’, as well as playing guitar with Missy Higgins during the first three years of her career.

Felicity’s impressive list of accomplishments include 13 Golden Guitar awards, multiple ARIA nominations, and a successful ten-year radio broadcasting career hosting ABC’s Saturday Night Country – which saw her win CMA’s (Country Music Association of America) International Broadcaster award. She’s written and performed with many notable artists such as Slim Dusty, John Williamson, Kasey Chambers, Troy Cassar-Daly, Don Walker, Mark Seymour, Mick Thomas, Chad Morgan, and also toured with international artists John Mellencamp, Sheryl Crow, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Kenny Rogers, Don Maclean, Rodney Crowell, and Don Williams. In addition to music, Felicity continues to enjoy a fifteen year long (and counting) television career as a presenter on Channel 7’s lifestyle show, Sydney Weekender.

Long-time admirers from afar of each other’s work, the pair consider it an honour to be creating music together. “To harness our collective passion for story and song and get to tell our own story in the most personal way through the most personal medium we know is truly inspiring” says Josh.

The fact that all the songs were written, performed, recorded and produced by Josh and Felicity seems a fitting element to this deeply intimate work that was mixed by James Newhouse and mastered by William Bowden.

The Song Club features eleven songs that speak of new beginnings, new journeys, new horizons, and a sense of freedom and flight.

“Even though a destination may be unclear, being deeply rooted in the important fundamentals and having a true travelling companion gives a sense of confidence that you’re on the right path – that everything will be ok”, says Felicity.