Foco Nuevo in September
For 18 years, musicians from far and wide have turned up for the monthly gigs organised by Jumping Fences, the house band. All except one.
That one is local musician Danny Widdicombe, who lives near Victoria Park — a place that has been the subject of considerable controversy because it is where the proposed Olympic stadium is to be built. Danny played a song about the Orange Man — although, although it might just as easily have been about our own Pauline.
As Lachlan Hurse of Jumping Fences made plain controversy, it was foremost on our minds when we were treated to some incredible music.
First up were Jumping Fences themselves, giving us reason to hope, as their lead singer Sue Monk pointed out in their new song Hope comes knocking.
Then came Danny Widdicombe, whose story is almost as remarkable as his music. He has survived leukaemia and undergone a bone-marrow transplant. Along the way he has made friendships with musicians far and wide, including a fiddle player who knew Dolly Parton, and a host of other musicians.
Among them is our own local jazz pianist, Brendan St Ledger, who played on Danny’s album One Note at a Time. The album features a song with lyrics that particularly appeal to me:
Give yourself a nice surprise every single day.
There’s no need to legitimise everything you say.
Well, Foco in September, on a day when spring suddenly turned into summer, proved to be a pretty good musical event.
Not the least of the highlights was saxophone player Ross, who not only played the set with Jumping Fences but combined with Danny Widdicombe to join him for the closing — or near-closing — song, One Note at a Time.
All very good.
Music, it seems, is alive and well in Brisbane, thanks to all those musicians, from near and far, who have turned up month after month for 18 years.
There will now be a brief lapse while the main protagonists from Jumping Fences, Sue and Lachlan, travel to Cuba to find out what’s going on over there, will the orange man invade? — JF will play at a gig celebrating its 30th anniversary, a gig of then young upcoming cuban musicians they themselves played at back in 1996.
So there you have it.
An audience of around 60 people was treated to some great music in JFs back yard, along with some wonderful stories from Sue, Lachlan, and Danny.
Long may the music continue.
Ian Curr, 4th September 2026