Songwriter Colin Hay and the late, great tour promoter Colleen Ironside have been named as the recipients of the Ted Albert Award for Outstanding Services to Australian Music, music body APRA AMCOS has announced.
The pair will be honoured at this year’s APRA Music Awards, which take place in Sydney on Thursday, 27th April. “To receive the news that APRA wanted to bestow this most prestigious Ted Albert Award is very special indeed,” said Hay. “This award is for outstanding services to Australian Music. I think services is the key word here. It’s important to realise at some point in your life that it is a valuable thing to be of service. To be of some use.”
Men At Work: ‘Down Under’
Hay rose to fame with the beloved act Men At Work in the ’80s, who scored hits with ‘Down Under’ and ‘Who Can It Be Now?’. As a solo artist, Hay has released more than a dozen acclaimed records, most recently Now And The Evermore, which landed in March 2022.
Ironside, who died in Thailand in 2022, was responsible for countless tours across the Asia Pacific, working with local acts such as INXS, Ratcat, Wendy Matthews, and James Reyne. She’s also handled tours by The Rolling Stones, Elton John, David Bowie, Sting, and so many more. She rose to be Senior Vice President of bookings for touring giant Live Nation in Pan-Asia.
“We are very proud to salute two uniquely Australian music industry figures, the late Colleen Ironside, and Colin Hay who both honed their talent and started careers at home, which sent them out into the international scene and onto huge success,” Dean Ormston, CEO of APRA AMCOS said in a statement.
“Colleen championed Australian songwriters and artists and created live music pathways into Asia with a business acumen that was years ahead of her peers. Colin is a songwriter of the highest level and with the biggest heart, whose songs continue to connect and hit number 1 on the charts.”
Further Reading
King Stingray, Spacey Jane and Flume Among APRA Music Awards 2023 Nominees
Listen to Lime Cordiale’s Colin Hay Tribute Song ‘Colin’, Featuring the Man Himself
