Fred Smith, Liz Frencham

Singer Songwriter and Australian diplomat Fred Smith recently featured on ABC television’s Australian Story. Fred will be touring Australia in November following his return (inshallah!) from a final stint in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan. His Dust of Uruzgan CD captured his experiences in the war-torn country and earned him comparisons with songwriting greats Don Walker, Eric Bogle and John Schumann.

While working on the Multinational Base in Tarin Kowt in August this year, Fred wrote a song called ‘Going Home’, capturing the mood on the base as the mission winds down and our troops begin to withdraw from Uruzgan. He recorded the song while on leave in September, and will be teaming up with Griffith University to release a video and recording of the song in early November as part of an Australian Research Council arts and health initiative. Money raised through downloads and CD sales of ‘Going Home’ will go towards supporting Mates for Mates, a not for profit organisation set up to provide support to wounded, injured or ill members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and their families.

On his November tour Fred will be sharing the stage with longtime sidekick Liz Frencham, playing a range of songs from both his solo, and their shared repertoire. Fred presents his songs with a wry humour and gentle worldliness earned through the experiences that inform many of his songs. He has spent the last 15 years all over the joint: working in Afghanistan and the South Pacific, touring in North America and travelling the Australian festival circuit. He has released about eight albums, mostly solo, but also collaborations with Liz Frencham