Fanny Lumsden is no grey nomad, but she is quite happy living like one.
The brunette beauty is a country music singer who has embraced a life on the road with a 1978 Millard 14ft pop-top caravan that once belonged to her aunt and uncle.
The idea to get the van came about when Fanny and her partner were actually looking for a house while living in Sydney. Always living in suitcases, working during the week and touring on the weekends, the pair had just been to a house inspection when Fanny said out loud, ‘We could just get a caravan’. “To my absolute joy he said, ‘Oh yeah, lets do that’,” Fanny said, about her then boyfriend, now husband. “It has been a dream since I was a kid. I just find it so exciting.”
The pair moved all their stuff back to her parents’ house, who now live in the Snowy Mountains, and hit the road in the van. “It’s name is Little Milly. We just absolutely love the life, the culture. We’ve tried to keep everything original as much as we can.”
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In just over a year they have travelled over 70,000 kilometres, from Tasmania to Broome and back again on tour, meeting lots of friendly faces along the way.
“I think you are all kind of in the same boat. At a park, a free camp, even on the side of the road, there is like this secret handshake. You are always having a chat about the servo, ‘Oh yeah, fuels this price down the road’, the state of the road, or you can’t go this way because the road is closed. It’s like an icebreaker.”
They have made friend with so many types of people, from grey-nomads to families and backpackers. “Since we got a van six of seven muso couples, friends of ours, have bought a van as well. I feel like we are starting a resurgence, like Slim Dusty’s golden days.”
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It makes so much sense for the couple to travel with a van. “We go to shows now and we’ve got the band gear, our dressing room, and then we stay in it overnight.”
The country life is very much a part of Fanny’s background. Growing up on a farm west of West Wyalong she remembers hard working holidays and playing music with her cousins. Music wasn’t always her career plan. After getting a science degree at university Fanny fell back into the musicians lifestyle. She crowdfunded her first two albums, the second of which is due out later this year, and she is currently on tour.
Fanny has been called a breath of fresh county air by Rolling Stone Magazine and was named QANTAS New Talent Of The Year at the recent CMAA Golden Guitar Awards. She is part of the line-up at Broadbeach Country Music Festival 2017, a free event held July 28-30 on the Gold Coast, which also includes international act America. She will also be seen at the Gympie Music Muster in August.
Fanny is determined fame won’t change her. “I would have the same caravan no matter what industry. I would wear the same clothes. I love retro, I love old things, I love peoples stories, I love Australiana, I love my mum.”
Her parents will be joining them on part of the tour, although they are not staying in a caravan. “They are just camping. They’ve got swags.”