Tuesday, June. 30th: Songwriter’s Showcase
Four talented songwriters give entertaining anecdotes about what inspires them. With performed examples.
CINDY MUGGERIDGE
- Self professed Boogie and Blues piano addict, and any other groove she can appropriate.
- Composing songs for 20+ years in a variety of styles
- Founding member of The Raven Mavens Duo, which has grown into the Quartette
- Released one solo CD; two CDs with the Mavens duo; and the 2nd Quartette CD will be released on 1 August 2026 at the Tap Room in Petone.
- Can currently also be seen performing with Vic Manuel’s Los Manuelitos and regularly performs in a duo with Neil Billington.
WAYNE MASON
- 60+ years of song writing, which includes Nature, NZ's most iconic song, written on his porch one sunny day in Upper Hutt, in 1969.
- A founding member of The Fourmyula
- A founding member of Rockinghorse and The Warratahs
- Currently plays in Laura Collins's Backporch Band and Too Many Chiefs with Laura, and Andrew London.
- Received the NZ order of Merit in 2002 for his contribution the NZ Music Industry
ANDREW LONDON
- Composing songs for 40+ years taking satire and storytelling to a whole new level.
- Performs constantly around the country and has spanned the length of NZ several times.
- Founding member of Hot Club Sandwich, The Cattlestops, and The Andrew London Trio.
- Released several CDs.
BEANS WRIGHT
- Songwriting since 2016 - in what some might call a unique and quirky storytelling style.
- Hails from the cold drizzly north of England, escaped to Wellington.
- They've released two solo albums 'The Bedroom Years' and 'Live at Wellyfest 2023', plus original material recorded with Poneke band 'Don and The Divorcees' in their album 'Bit Players'.
- They gained brief international acclaim in 2021 as a finalist in the Liverpool International Song Contest
- Beans was a headline act Wellington Folk Festival '23 and Hamsterfest '26.
NEIL BILLINGTON
- One of NZ's leading exponents on the harmonica
- Performed at both national and international festivals, including Saudi Arabia (with Hot Club Sandwich), and toured Japan on numerous occasions where he was privileged to be invited to play with Louisiana slide guitar legend Sonny Landreth.
- His styles range from the driving Chicago Blues (Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson), to ballads from the American song book following such jazz harmonicist as the great Toots Thielemans.
- He is well known to the songwriters of this showcase having played with Andrew's Hot Club Sandwich for several years in the early 2000's, shared gigs with Wayne, and now performs with Cindy. Beans he has yet to play with but there's still time!
- Before his musical career Neil was also a prominent broadcaster in television and radio in NZ, as well as serving a stint at the BBC in the '80s. He will be calling on some of that communications experience in his role this evening as he helps guide the discussion amongst our musical guests.