Lomond Acoustica Presents Ian Bland, Greg Hunt & Nick Charles
Lomond Acoustica Presents Ian Bland, Greg Hunt & Nick Charles
Nick Charles classic blues and country fingerstyle underpins a vast repertoire, but the influences are diverse. They range from his ragtime guitar heroes Big Bill, Blind Blake and of course Robert Johnson but include obvious references to players as eclectic as Doc Watson, Merle Travis and the modern school of John Fahey, Leo Kottke and even the English icons Bert Jansch and others.
His songs have won countless awards including the Australian Song Contest twice, every conceivable Australia blues award multiple times, and festival song competitions in the USA. In late 2025 a track from his latest album Further Down the Line won the Victorian Blues award for song of the year.
At the recent International Blues Challenge in Memphis Tennessee Nick won “Best Solo/Duo” guitarist from a staggeringly large competitive field further highlighting his standing.
A typical performance can include classic fingerstyle instrumentals such as Sleepwalk and Albatross, reflective Dylanesque lyricism and high energy roots and blues. Along the way you will hear a lifetime’s stories and songs from a vast career. At times you might also glimpse wonderful twelve-string tunes and stinging bottleneck slide on his trusty resophonic guitars.
Nick has headlined at most Australian blues, folk and jazz festivals including twenty-five times at Port Fairy, and multiple appearances at many others.
A splendid time is guaranteed for lovers of fine acoustic music
Melbourne singer/ songwriter and poet Ian Bland has gained a loyal following over the past eighteen years for his weekly Sunday segment on Melbourne’s 3RRR.
He has spruiked his verse in concert halls, ballrooms, The National Gallery, coal vaults, festivals at home and the UK, pubs, cemeteries - even the steps of Parliament.
Musically, he has performed with fiddle/mandolin player Greg Hunt for more than twenty years, blending a diverse range of musical influences with insightful stories drawn from rural and urban Australia and beyond; topics as diverse as drought, single’s bars and the demise of suburban pubs.
Tickets $10 on the door or via the link